IT Change Management: A Theory

I’ve written about change management in the past, most recently with an update on the topic in the NITLSG, but I wanted to try and capture some of the principle drivers and effects of good change management in a single article.? I have been thinking about it a lot lately, considering that, for instance, a year ago, no one had Generative AI in their IT strategy roadmap, and today, everyone has some aspect of change coming as a result of it.? With so much new potential for change and everyone having lost their collective minds over GAI, I feel it is still important to maintain a level-headed approach toward change management and effectively create and maintain a culture that embraces change and flourishes with thoughtful strategies and a positive mindset towards technology.??

The Structure of Change Management

So, let’s start by defining the core idea of change management.? The central tenet is that you, our fearless and level-headed IT Leader, must prepare, support, and help individuals, teams, and the entire organization understand and adapt to technological change. This means managing the technological aspects of change AND addressing the human factors accompanying change.??

To ensure the best possible chance of success with your change management strategy, this tenet of IT change management stands atop three core principles.? IT change management should:

1. Reduce the negative impact on operations and morale.

2. Ensure that new systems and processes are embraced, not resisted.

3. Lead to optimal implementation results and the achievement of strategic goals.

Reduce - Ensure - Lead.? Like any sound principle, each requires supportive actions to exist beyond a vision.? If you prefer an industry-standards-based approach towards good management of IT practices, several well-established change management frameworks exist, each with a prescribed set of actions to support these principles. There are Lewin’s CMM, McKinsey 7-S, Kotter's 8-Step Change Model, and the ADKAR Model, to name a few. While each is unique in its approach, all revolve around a central set of common actions related to the "Reduce - Ensure - Lead" idea.? Regardless of which you choose, or if you decide to modify some or all to create your own model, which has always been my preference, I think it is essential that the following six major activities be considered to support the three principles.

Activity #1 - Develop a clear vision and strategy

The cornerstone of a successful change initiative rests upon a well-defined vision and strategy. Start by conducting a comprehensive change impact assessment to ascertain the ramifications of the proposed change on the organization. Meticulously evaluate the existing technology landscape, seeking potential integration points. A clear understanding of the impact and technical imperatives paves the way for effective communication with the team. Articulate the rationale behind the change, highlighting its alignment with organizational goals and emphasizing the benefits it promises. Then, craft a compelling narrative that resonates with the team, making it relatable and inspiring. Develop a detailed change management plan outlining the sequential steps, timeframes, and resources necessary for effective execution. Establish key milestones and metrics as navigation aids throughout the change process. This ensures adherence to the plan, enabling informed decision-making along the way.

Activity #2 - Engage stakeholders early and often

Start by mapping out all stakeholders, including executives, managers, end-users, and external partners. It's important to understand who your influencers, resisters, and key supporters are, as well as their concerns, expectations, and how the change will impact them. With this knowledge, develop a comprehensive communication plan that keeps stakeholders informed and engaged throughout the process. To ensure your message reaches everyone effectively, utilize multiple channels, such as emails, meetings, and Slack or intranet updates. Involving stakeholders from the beginning and maintaining open lines of communication allows you to build trust, gather valuable feedback, and increase the likelihood of a smooth and successful change implementation.? When in doubt, communicate!

Activity #3 - Build a change leadership team

To drive change effectively, build a strong change leadership team.? This new center of excellence can be used for IT changes and for all changes that will have similar impacts on the organization. This should be a cross-functional team of change champions who can advocate for the change within their respective departments, and each should have a broad perspective of the business and the surrounding industry. Ensure the team includes influential leaders who can drive support and enthusiasm for the initiative. You also want to ensure that the change team has the full support of the executive management team, as this will lend credibility and authority to their efforts. If it is within your leadership capability, provide the change team with the authority and resources they need to perform this role or, at the very least, ensure that senior management does so on your behalf. You may need to equip the team with the skills needed to oversee change management, so be sure to offer training on your preferred principles and techniques, tailoring the approach to your organization's specific needs and culture. Not every organization approaches change management similarly, so adapting the training and strategies is important.

Activity #4 - Foster a culture of openness and flexibility

This is most likely something you already have in place and do at an organizational level.? Look at the mechanisms in place now where communication to the business is effective.? Continue to use these spaces and create additional forums or group situations where employees can voice their concerns, ask questions, and provide feedback about the change initiative. This could also include town hall meetings, surveys, or designated feedback channels (I conduct monthly “Beer and Learns” for these occasions.) Be transparent about any challenges or setbacks encountered, demonstrating a commitment to addressing them head-on. A high degree of humility and an EQ to match will be assets to your commitment.? In all your presentations and outreach, always emphasize encouraging a mindset that embraces change as an opportunity for growth and improvement rather than a threat or disruption. Recognize and reward individuals and teams who demonstrate flexibility and innovation in adapting to the change, as this will reinforce the desired behaviors and attitudes throughout the organization.

Activity #5 - Provide training and support

Providing comprehensive training and support to all affected employees will also pay substantial dividends in ensuring a smooth transition during the change process. Start by developing training programs tailored to the specific needs of different user groups, ensuring that everyone has the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in the new environment. Offer ongoing support through the communication channels mentioned above and others, such as help desks, online resources, and peer mentoring programs. Establish support networks, like user groups or change ambassadors, who can assist colleagues during the transition period, providing guidance and answering questions as they arise. Continuously monitor progress and gather feedback to identify gaps in understanding or areas where additional training or resources may be needed. For instance, if you are getting a lot of help desk tickets related to your new change, you should re-engage the business and focus on the specific topic so that all know how to overcome the issue.? Any time, and especially with change management, that you invest in robust training and support mechanisms, you empower your organization to adapt to change, thus minimizing disruptions to productivity and morale.

Activity #6 - Monitor progress and celebrate success

Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the change initiative's success and review progress against these metrics regularly. This will allow you to identify areas requiring attention or adjustments, ensuring the change stays on track. As you reach milestones and achieve goals, take the time to recognize and celebrate both big and small achievements. This helps maintain momentum and boosts morale among team members working hard to make the change successful. Share success stories widely throughout the organization, highlighting the benefits of the change and reinforcing the positive outcomes. Monitoring progress and acknowledging successes will help keep your stakeholders engaged, motivated, and committed to the change journey.

Leadership Commitment

One of the most critical factors in the success of any IT change initiative is the commitment and support from top leadership. When senior executives and key stakeholders actively endorse and champion the change or even the idea of change management as a means to employ the change, their endorsement sends a powerful message to the organization that the initiative (and, by proxy, change management) is a strategic priority. This leadership commitment can significantly influence the success of change initiatives by fostering a culture of change, allocating necessary resources, and helping those executing the change to overcome resistance.

To secure leadership commitment to technology changes, you must effectively communicate the strategic value and benefits of the proposed change. This involves aligning the change with the organization's overall goals and objectives, demonstrating how it will contribute to long-term success, and articulating the potential risks of maintaining the status quo. By presenting a compelling business case and vision for the future, you can gain the support and buy-in of top leadership.? This can be done in many ways, the more popular of which tend to evolve from an IT Steering Committee or similar internal consortium focused on organizational changes.

Once leadership commitment is secured, keep this support visible and consistent throughout the change process. This can involve regular communication from senior executives about the importance of the change, their involvement in key milestone events, and the allocation of adequate resources to support the initiative. In an ideal world, you can enroll one or more executive team members into your pilot phase for the change, where they can see and touch what will happen well before the actual transition (I will cover this in more detail shortly).? When employees see that top leadership is fully invested in the change, they are more likely to embrace it themselves.

Leadership commitment also plays a vital role in overcoming resistance to change. When faced with skepticism or pushback from specific stakeholders, your executive leadership’s support can help address concerns, build trust, and create a sense of urgency around the change. By actively engaging with resistors and demonstrating a willingness to listen and address their concerns, leaders can help to build consensus and drive the change forward.

Lastly, leadership commitment is essential for ensuring the long-term sustainability of the change. By championing the initiative even after the initial implementation, leaders can help embed the change into the organization's culture and way of working. This ongoing support can involve celebrating successes, sharing best practices, and continuously reinforcing the change's benefits.

Change Impact Assessment

I mentioned the importance of conducting a change impact assessment in the abovementioned activity.? Before embarking on any significant IT change initiative, conducting a thorough change impact assessment is important to fully understand the scope of how this change will impact the entire business. Even small, seemingly innocuous changes can have widespread dramatic impacts you did not consider.? This process involves analyzing and understanding how the proposed changes will affect various aspects of the organization, including workflows, employee roles, and customer interactions. By proactively assessing the impact of change, you can anticipate potential challenges, develop targeted mitigation strategies, and ensure a smoother transition for all stakeholders.

When conducting a change impact assessment, start by mapping out the current state of all processes, systems, and roles affected by the change, whether directly or indirectly. This provides a baseline for comparison and helps identify areas where the change will have the most significant impact. If I do X, will it affect Y?? If yes, how?? Next, consider how the proposed changes will alter existing workflows. Will certain steps be eliminated or automated? Will new processes be introduced? Understanding these workflow changes is essential for developing training programs and support resources to help employees adapt.

To further that point, mapping out systems these days means mapping out the current state of the system in question and every single system that integrates or interacts with it, either upstream or downstream. Even changing something as simple as an intake field may have a far-reaching impact upstream, where data has already been configured to translate itself into the prior known field.? I always recommend conducting the current state mapping as a matter of good practice, as it is always needed in some regard.? It's also important to consider the ability of these new changes (systems) to integrate with existing systems in a new capacity. This may involve evaluating vendor options based on their integration capabilities, assessing the need for custom development or middleware solutions, and thoroughly testing integration scenarios before deployment.

Likewise, with employees, you need to evaluate how the change will affect roles and responsibilities.? Will certain roles become obsolete? Will new skills be required? Will teams need to be restructured? By anticipating these impacts, you can preemptively partner with HR and other departments to develop reskilling and upskilling programs, redefine job descriptions, and ensure employees are well-prepared for their new roles in the post-change environment.?

What does a change impact assessment actually look like?? Here is a high-level sample of a change impact assessment to implement a new ERP system.? For each of these data points, there would be a substantial number of risks, benefits, and drawbacks, but for the sake of simplicity, I have limited it to just a few.? A true impact assessment would be as exhaustively comprehensive as possible, considering every point where your change affects a technology, person, or process.

Risk Management

Now, as for risk management in relation to technological change, I prefer to structure my risks into three different groups.

Technical risks encompass issues related to the technology, such as compatibility with existing systems, performance concerns, security vulnerabilities, or potential bugs and glitches. By anticipating and addressing risks early in the process, you can minimize disruptions, ensure a smoother transition, and increase the likelihood of achieving your desired outcomes. For the purposes of mitigation, it's important to conduct thorough testing and validation of new technologies or systems before implementation into a production state, identifying all of the risks found and then mitigating those that have a potentially debilitating risk. This should also involve piloting the change with a small group of users, running simulations, and engaging in rigorous quality assurance processes. By identifying and addressing technical risks early on, you can avoid costly downtime, data loss, or other technology-related disruptions.

Operational risks involve the potential impact of the change on business processes, workflows, and day-to-day operations. This may include risks such as reduced productivity during the transition period, disruptions to customer service, or challenges with integrating new processes into existing workflows. To mitigate operational risks, it's important to carefully map out how the change will impact different areas of the organization and develop contingency plans to minimize these disruptions. This may involve providing additional resources or support during the transition period, adjusting timelines to accommodate key business cycles, or phasing the rollout to minimize operational impact.

Human factors are perhaps the most critical and often overlooked aspect of risk management in IT change initiatives. This group includes risks related to employee resistance, skill gaps, or changes in job roles and responsibilities. To mitigate these risks, engaging employees early in the change process, communicating transparently about the reasons for the change and its potential impact, and providing comprehensive training and support to help employees adapt to new technologies or processes are all necessary. By proactively addressing human factors, you can reduce resistance, build buy-in, and ensure that employees have the skills and confidence to embrace the change.

Overcoming Resistance

So, at the beginning of this article, I posited that the potential for success in IT change management relies heavily on principles and actions. However, even when trust between IT and the business is firmly established, it still does not guarantee smooth sailing. IT simply does not get a pass on making sweeping technological changes because of past success or misguided assumptions.? Well-planned change management approaches will always encounter resistance from stakeholders, ranging from passive disengagement to active opposition. This resistance can jeopardize IT projects' success or even the basic approval to consider the change if not effectively addressed.? So, how can you overcome resistance and gain buy-in?? Let’s look back at our key activities and identify specific items related to navigating these headwinds.

For starters, one of the most effective ways to mitigate resistance is to engage key stakeholders, including potential resisters, early in the change process. You can gather valuable insights into their concerns, needs, and priorities by involving them from the outset. While I feel that one-on-one conversations are ideal, you can also seek input through surveys or focus groups and actively listen to and collect their feedback. Incorporating their suggestions into your plans and actively demonstrating that you did so helps you design a more robust change initiative and fosters a sense of ownership and investment among stakeholders.? More often than not, this can change the concept from an “IT Project” to a “Company Project” in the minds of these stakeholders.

When resistance does arise, it's crucial to face it head-on with empathy and transparency. Take the time to listen to and acknowledge the concerns of resisters, even if you disagree with their perspectives. Always provide clear and honest responses to their objections and, whenever possible, back up your expectations and assertions with data and examples.? You should never dismiss or downplay their concerns, as this can further entrench resistance. Instead, take the opposite route and work directly and collaboratively with resisters to find mutually acceptable outcomes. You can build trust and gradually shift attitudes toward the change by demonstrating a willingness to engage in open dialogue and problem-solving. Sometimes, a change is necessary, and there can be no mutually acceptable outcome. However, even in those cases, you can still work with resisters on other key activities, such as developing training materials that they feel are adequate.

Resistance to change is a natural human response and a common challenge that IT leaders face when implementing new initiatives. This is especially true when it involves learning new skills or adopting unfamiliar technologies. To help your user base adapt to the change, it's essential to provide comprehensive support and resources. This may include training programs, coaching sessions, user guides, and dedicated help desk support. As with any technology training programs you may implement, recognize that everyone learns and adapts differently, so you should always offer a range of support options to cater to various learning styles and needs. By making these small investments in your employees' development and providing ongoing support with your new changes, you can build their confidence and competence in navigating the change.

Finally, don't underestimate the power of positive reinforcement in overcoming resistance. Highlight the achievements of early adopters and change champions who have successfully embraced the new working methods. Share their success stories widely through Slack boards, team meetings, or recognition programs. In almost every case where I have utilized pilot teams leading up to a technological change, I have always found a way to celebrate them by recognizing them publicly in the business, providing additional technology privileges, or even giving them vendor swag. By showcasing the change's tangible benefits and positive outcomes, you can inspire others to follow suit and, if done right, attract others to future pilot programs. Celebrating successes also helps maintain momentum and motivation throughout the change process, which is important as the change process can sometimes span several months.

Measuring Change Success

As an IT leader, I firmly believe in the power of measuring data to drive success. Whether tracking system performance, monitoring user adoption rates, or gauging employee satisfaction, data-driven insights are essential for one of my favorite activities - yes, you guessed it - continuous improvement. This is especially true regarding change management, where the stakes are high, the impact on the organization can be significant, and continuous improvement is critical for maintaining the integrity of the change after it has “gone live.”. Simply stated, if you don’t measure the changes, how will you know if your change management efforts are truly successful? The answer lies in measuring key metrics and KPIs that provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of your initiatives.? So, what key metrics and KPIs should IT leaders focus on? Let's dive in and explore some critical areas to monitor.

First and foremost, the user adoption rate is a crucial indicator of success. After all, what's the point of implementing a new technology or system if no one is using it? By tracking the percentage of employees who have embraced the change and are actively utilizing the new tools, you can gauge the effectiveness of your change management efforts. High adoption rates suggest that your communication, training, and support strategies are working, while low adoption rates may signal the need for additional interventions.? I commonly use a three-phase adoption approach, which makes for relatively easy measurement.??

Phase 1 is my pilot phase, which includes a fixed number of staff members.? Throughout the pilot, I can find out how many of the pilot team are embracing the change, how many are disliking the change, and how many rest somewhere in between.? I can also find out why and see what changes I can make to the plan to bring as many of these individuals into the “embrace” column as possible.? As the pilot wraps up, these numbers allow me to plan for Phase 2, also known as the “open enrollment” phase.? In this phase, I will already have announced to the business on which dates the open enrollment period begins and ends.? Staff members can self-enroll during this period and receive training and support immediately.? I aim to enroll the largest percentage of the total staff during this period.? Typically, as you can imagine, the resisters do not participate in open enrollment.? During Phase 2, I will have communicated to the business how the open enrollment is going and when Phase 3 begins, otherwise known as “mandatory enrollment.”? Mandatory enrollment is designed to catch any remaining employees who have thus far managed to avoid being impacted by the change and provide the extra attention and training to bring them in.? After this, I will start to measure, through surveys and direct feedback, how many staff members have changed to “embraced” or even how many have changed from “embraced” and continuously monitor the progress of each over time.

When I look at these “to” and “from” numbers, I also try to find productivity metrics, another key area to focus on. After all, the ultimate goal of most technology changes for organizations is to improve efficiency and productivity. By tracking relevant metrics such as reduced processing times due to improved automation, increased output due to performance upgrades, or even a reduction in errors made possible by structured data initiatives, you can demonstrate back to the business the tangible benefits of the change initiative. Improved productivity validates the success of your change management efforts and helps build support for future initiatives.??

Back to my point about the three-phase model I employ.? After creating my pilot team and providing them with their testing assignments, I begin by closely observing how they use the platform. A vendor will make assumptions about how end users will adopt and use their platform, but employees rarely follow such a straightforward approach.? By watching and taking notes on how the pilot team works and then using that data to create the training rubric, I can turn it around and show it to the pilot team so I can get feedback on my approach and the potential effectiveness of the training I have developed.? Investing time in creating a comprehensive training program is essential for ensuring employees have the skills and knowledge to utilize these new technologies or processes effectively.?

Further, by measuring knowledge retention, skill application, and user confidence, you can assess your training efforts' effectiveness and identify areas for improvement. This is especially true in cases where employees may be trained on a change, yet it may still be several months before they need to utilize the change actively.? All too often, an IT organization will roll out a change that will eventually affect all employees somehow. Still, not necessarily right away.? An employee trained on a platform that they won’t use for three months is an employee who will either need to be re-trained or be able to access your training rubric with ease and complete self-training as needed.? In the end, effective training methodologies support smoother transitions and faster adoption, so monitoring this metric closely is crucial.

Business impact metrics are perhaps the most important indicators of success. After all, the ultimate goal of any technology change is to drive positive business outcomes. You can demonstrate the tangible value of your change management efforts by measuring the change's impact on key metrics such as revenue growth, cost savings, customer satisfaction, error reduction, or even market share. Positive business outcomes validate the change initiative's success and help build support for future investments.? Remember, though, that past performance does not indicate future success.? Every change should be treated as a new opportunity to improve your change management process, and no assumptions should be held that new changes will automatically be successful.?

There are many other potentially valuable metrics, including measuring project milestone progress, comparing system performance against expected system performance, and continuous improvement indicators like the number of suggestions implemented, process enhancements made, or lessons learned applied.? There is not necessarily value in measuring all things, but it is important to select the specific metrics that can best ensure the success of present and future changes.

Change Fatigue

Employees who are subjected to continuous change initiatives often begin to experience change fatigue. Change fatigue is when individuals become overwhelmed, disengaged, and resistant to further changes due to the cumulative impact of multiple change initiatives coming too fast, being mismanaged, or a combination of both. As an IT leader, it's essential to recognize the signs of change fatigue and develop strategies to manage and mitigate its effects.

One key strategy for managing change fatigue is carefully prioritizing and sequencing change initiatives. Rather than launching multiple projects simultaneously, IT leaders should assess the urgency and impact of each initiative and develop a phased approach that allows employees to adapt to one change before introducing another. By providing a clear roadmap and timeline for change, leaders can help employees understand what to expect and reduce the sense of uncertainty and chaos that often contributes to change fatigue.? There is no secret formula for how many changes an organization can withstand in a given time period. Still, as you learn how well your organization adapts, you should calculate time buffers between appropriate changes and ensure that fatigue does not set in.

For example, when I roll out Single Sign On to my organization, I will start by understanding when the LAST change was made in the business and when any OTHER changes are scheduled.? Knowing this, I can properly plot out the change in the corporate “calendar” - I am NOT the only one with changes coming!? Then, I start with eight weeks of communications and a small pilot team, plus a substantial amount of communications.? After the pilot team is done and all of our data is collected, I will run four to six weeks of open enrollment with twice-weekly training and then one week of mandatory enrollment with daily training.? After the mandatory enrollment has concluded, I will add a buffer of eight weeks before any subsequent IT change.? Eight weeks seems to be a generally appropriate burn-in period for something as straightforward as the changes related to adopting Single Sign On. Note, however, that I would adjust as needed depending on the dynamics of the organization.? For something much broader, such as a new HRIS or ERP system, I would put in a minimum twelve-week buffer after the project went “live” to ensure the maximum possible adoption by the business.? Your buffer times may be different!

Communication is also critical for managing change fatigue. When employees are kept informed about the reasons for change, the progress of initiatives, and the impact on their roles and responsibilities, they are more likely to feel engaged and invested in the process. As the IT change leader, you should establish regular communication channels, such as town hall meetings, newsletters, and feedback forums, to keep employees updated and provide opportunities for dialogue and input.

Sustainability of Change

Aligning the change with the organization's long-term goals and vision is essential to ensure long-term success. This involves regularly reassessing the change initiative to ensure it continues delivering value and supporting the organization's strategic objectives. By tying the change to the bigger picture, IT leaders can help maintain momentum and secure ongoing support from key stakeholders. This is usually done via the IT Steering Committee or similar prioritization consortium that monitors the technological portfolio and is responsible for its ongoing care and feeding.

In reality, even the most successful IT change management doesn't end with implementing new technologies or processes. Often, when leading a project, I will include that while there is technically a “go-live” moment at which time the organization can begin to realize the benefits of the change, what we have done in actuality is provided a new “thing” that needs to be carefully maintained in perpetuity or at least until the next thing replaces it.? You can’t just deploy a change and then walk away, assuming it will last that way forever. Sustainability and avoidance of platform orphanism involves developing strategies to ensure that the changes are embraced, reinforced, and aligned with the organization's long-term goals and that changes are considered dynamic, long-term events. By prioritizing sustainability, you can prevent the organization from slipping back into old habits and ensure that the change delivers lasting value.

You should also focus on training and retraining as core components of long-term sustainability. As new hires join the organization or technologies evolve, you should provide ongoing training opportunities to ensure all employees have the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in the new environment. This may involve developing self-paced learning modules, hosting regular training sessions, or providing one-on-one coaching and support.? Too often, an employee is trained on a platform and then is not trained again each time there is a successive update.? They remain locked in on an old skillset while newer employees are learning everything else about the system.

Circling back

With your amazing change successfully executed, metric collection underway, and your transition to continuous improvement in progress, now is the perfect time to conduct a post-mortem (also known as a retrospective or after-action review) against your change. Whatever you call it, the ultimate goal is to identify what went well, what didn't go as planned, and what can be improved for future efforts. By taking a systematic approach to post-mortem analysis, you can gain valuable insights that can help you refine your change management strategies and drive better outcomes over time.? In my opinion, post-mortems are key for any IT project that impacts an organization, and they are a good addition as a final, yet ongoing, step in change management.

One of the primary benefits of a post-mortem is the opportunity to highlight what went right during the change process for the specific initiative. By identifying the strategies, tactics, and approaches that contributed to success, you can codify best practices and ensure they are replicated in future efforts. This helps drive consistency and efficiency and also helps build a culture of excellence within your change management team.? Further, you can share this learning with the business so that they can utilize the established approaches in their change efforts.

No change initiative is perfect, and a post-mortem provides a safe space to openly discuss what didn't go as planned. Every time I conduct a post-mortem, I start by discussing the rules of engagement.? One of those rules is that the only way to improve is to objectively discuss what did not work well.? Employees need to understand that this part of the post-mortem is not a finger-pointing session, and you, the IT Leader, must ensure that the conversation remains objective and empirically based.? A member of the change management team would ideally state something such as “the communications were insufficient as demonstrated by the negative survey ratings indicating people were not well informed” rather than “the emails sucked.”? By identifying areas where the change management process fell short, you can pinpoint opportunities for improvement and develop targeted action plans to address them. This might include refining communication strategies, enhancing training programs, or improving stakeholder engagement techniques.

Conducting a post-mortem also sends a powerful message to your change team and stakeholders that continuous learning and improvement are valued and expected. Even if the project is wildly successful by any measurable means, all team members must aggressively be introspective about the overall change management effort.? By creating a culture where it's safe to discuss failures and learn from them, you help to encourage innovation, experimentation, and risk-taking. This helps drive better change management outcomes and contributes to a more resilient and adaptable organization overall.

This is one of the reasons why you should Involve key stakeholders in the post-mortem process.? When a key stakeholder can participate in a session where you are actively criticizing your work (positively speaking, that is), it demonstrates a complete willingness to improve. It can also help build trust and buy-in for future change initiatives. Further, by soliciting feedback and input from those impacted by the change, you demonstrate a commitment to transparency and collaboration. This can help foster a sense of shared ownership and responsibility for the success of change initiatives, making it easier to secure support and resources for future efforts.??

So, what should a typical post-mortem process look like? While the specific format may vary depending on the size and complexity of the change initiative (and your organization), there are a few key elements to consider:

1. Ensure you involve a diverse group of stakeholders in the post-mortem process, including change management team members, impacted end-users, business unit leaders, and executives. This helps ensure that you capture a range of perspectives and insights.

2. Develop a standardized format for post-mortem discussions, including key questions to guide the conversation. This might include prompts such as "What went well?", "What could have been improved?" and "What actions can we take to address identified issues?".

3. Use a systematic process for capturing and prioritizing insights and action items that emerge from the post-mortem discussion. This might involve using a collaborative document or tool to record ideas and assigning owners and timelines for each action item.

4. Share the findings and planned actions from the post-mortem with key stakeholders, including those who participated in the process and those impacted by the change initiative. This helps ensure transparency and accountability and demonstrates a commitment to continuous improvement.

5. Regularly monitor progress against identified action items and assess the impact of implemented changes on future change initiatives. This helps ensure that insights from the post-mortem are actually translated into meaningful improvements in your change management processes.

What next?

As an IT Leader, you will inevitably face the challenge of managing technological change within your organization. This daunting task can be navigated successfully by employing a thoughtful and comprehensive change management strategy. The key is to recognize that change is not just about technology - it's also about people.?

I urge you to resist the temptation to view change as a purely technical endeavor. You've got the technological piece down easy. Embrace the human aspect, and make it a priority to engage stakeholders early and often. Foster a culture of openness and flexibility, where employees feel empowered to voice their concerns and contribute to the process. Remember, resistance is natural but can be overcome through empathy, transparency, and a willingness to collaborate.

At the heart of effective change management lies a clear vision and strategy, meticulously crafted and communicated with unwavering commitment. Build a cross-functional team of change champions who can advocate for the initiative and drive support across the organization. Invest in comprehensive training and support mechanisms, empowering your employees to navigate the change confidently.

Measure your success through carefully selected metrics, continuously refining your approach based on data-driven insights. Recognize that change is an ongoing journey, not a one-time event. Prioritize sustainability by aligning the change with your organization's long-term goals and reinforcing its value through regular communication and training.

And when the dust settles, take the time to reflect and learn. Conduct a thorough post-mortem, celebrating successes and identifying areas for improvement. Embrace a culture of continuous learning, where failures are seen as opportunities for growth, not sources of blame.

Change is never easy, but it is necessary for growth and progress. By embracing a holistic, people-centric approach to change management, you can navigate these challenges gracefully and emerge as a true leader who empowers the organization to thrive in an ever-evolving technological landscape.