Successfully Managing Workplace Change

By Marie Toomey

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Most companies undergo new initiatives, which require significant change. Changes can
include a new system, process or even a whole organizational structure affecting the
department, country or company. Key questions include whether the implementation was
successful and why, as well as how its success can be judged.

COMMUNICATE TO EMPLOYEES
Managing the introduction of a change in an organization can be a daunting undertaking. A
mandate is received, the project execution plan is written, the project team is assembled
and deployment is ready. Project planning documentation is vital preparation for what likely
will be a challenging project.
Nonetheless, managing the change requires a specific focus on a far less predictable
element: people. Focusing on the organizations staff is the key to a successful
implementation.
Implementing a new system is no small effort. The system implies a shift from how project
managers and other staff members currently work. Employees typically are happy with
current processes because they know the tools inside and out and have been using
them for years.
Many staff members will be opposed to yet another change because they may have seen
numerous IT systems introduced in close succession. When implementing change, ease
the pain of transformation with targeted communication.

DETERMINE EMPLOYEE BUY-IN

Considerable effort is required to provide user buy-in or acceptance. It is usually not in the
companys best interest to invest in a system if the users do not want it. Securing buy-in
starts from the beginning of a project by identifying key stakeholders.
Understanding who is affected by the change and why, as well as how they feel about this
will help nurture interest, dispel distrust and eventually gain overall acceptance of what is
introduced.

MEASURE SUCCESS
Measuring success should not be an afterthought, as it is a useful tool for gaining user buyin. To measure the success of an implementation, the desired benefits should be identified
early on. It is likely that management-centric benefits were identified during the business
case phase, establishing ROI targets early in the process.
For instance, the benefits for a new asset management system might be an improved ability
for management to monitor warranty periods as well as increased visibility of an assets
remaining estimated useful life to help plan for necessary future investment.
However, it is effective to articulate benefits of specific relevance to end users. For
example, when implementing the asset management system, facilities management staff
(the end users) would perceive value in the ability to draw from an existing asset library,
which would reduce data input and free up time for more important tasks. Informing staff at
the end of the project phase of the achievement of benefits originally identified is a powerful
mechanism to increase interest and acceptance.

INCORPORATE EXISTING PROCESSES

Successfully managing the implementation of a new system, such as a project management
system, requires an in-depth analysis of the organizations existing processes. A new
project management system brings the opportunity to standardize processes so information
output from the system will eventually be comparable between departments, regions or
even countries. This is normally the greatest source of change during the implementation,
as processes are the essence of staff members daily tasks.

STANDARDIZE PROCESSES AMONG REGIONAL FACILITIES

Often, a key challenge for many companies is to implement the change across many
regional operating areas. Using identification, measurement and reporting of program
benefits is an effective way to engage the business leaders and their staff in discussions
prior to configuring the processes in the company.
Effective stakeholder engagement during this phase is imperative to staff feeling involved in
the change process. Users will be more likely to accept the new system at a faster rate if
they are consulted on how they currently perform tasks.
With the inevitability of change for business innovation, it is important to work with staff to
address concerns and for the organizations leader to clearly communicate the benefits of
the new process to staff.
Marie Toomey
Marie Toomey has seven years of experience working in project management and management consulting within the
UK, the Middle East, North America and Latin America. She is currently a senior project manager for the
Faithful+Gould project and program management consulting (PPMC) service. She has experience in process design
and improvement, and has effectively managed the transition of new IT infrastructure into the live environment for
strategic programs encompassing extensive stakeholder engagement, program assurance, and management and
reporting of program benefits to senior stakeholders.