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Change Management Checklist: 3 Ways To Get It Right

3 minute read

If you’re like most organizations, change has become the rule, not the exception. According to Gartner, a typical organization today has undertaken five major changes in the past three years, and nearly 75% of companies expect to increase that number over the next three years.

With so much change, one would assume that business leaders have become experts at managing the execution of change initiatives, right? Not exactly. That same research shows that half of change initiatives fail, and only 34% are a clear success.

According to Forbes, “Change battle fatigue is the result of many elements such as past failures plaguing the minds of employees and the sacrifices made during the arduous change process. When a transformation is poorly led, fatigue can set in quickly.” 

Any change worth doing is worth doing right. Here are three key areas of change management initiatives that will increase your chances of success.

#1: Develop a comprehensive plan

Invest in solutions and subject matter experts who can scope the full impact of the change, map out potential risks, and identify additional considerations. 

✅ Conduct a financial analysis of costs and risks
✅ Research and invest in a proven change management solution upfront
✅ Bring in outside experts to conduct a full assessment and build a roadmap

#2: Look at the big picture

With any major change initiative, it is critical that executive stakeholders take the 50,000-foot view, not the 500-foot view. Integration and rollout plans should extend to all employees across business units, regional locations, and subsidiaries, as well as any partners and customers.

✅ Identify all impacted stakeholders, both inside and outside the company
✅ Develop both an overarching plan as well as tactics for specific audiences, depending on their level of impact
✅ Monitor the change rollout in real time and adjust the plan for future audiences in real time

Read: Supply Chain Trends & Insights Report: Transformation

#3: Over-share and over-educate

Keep the communication lines open. Make sure employees are kept up-to-date on all developments (good and bad). Invest in robust training to set the company up for success before go-live ever happens.

✅ Establish a consistent communication schedule across all stakeholders to instill trust
✅ Share an honest progress report of the initiative at each stage of the journey
✅ Create two-way communication for all impacted stakeholders and adjust the plan accordingly

According to a McKinsey study, projects using change management saw 143% of the expected ROI from a project, versus just 35% for projects with little to no change management. In the current economic climate, companies can’t afford to remain stagnant. But they also can’t afford to diminish the ROI derived from technology meant to support innovation. It’s a numbers game. To win, you must make the most of every dollar spent.

That means putting a comprehensive change management process in place from the get-go. One that sets employees, and the organization, up for success. Think of it like an insurance policy, or better yet, an investment in the future.  

Reach out to Catena Solutions to learn more about how our team of experts can support you in your change management efforts.