Formulating a Change Plan

There is a right way to change things and a wrong way to do it.  The right way is a series of steps and chronological patterns that lead the process to fruition.  The wrong way is not doing it.

That being said, making changes comes with the inherent risk of not coming up with the exact result you were looking for.  Even at the end of the road, if there is nothing different, going through the process of changing had the benefits of practicing the process and determining that the current way, for the time being, is an adequate path to take.

Change requires planning.  Planning for change can be a very simple process, or it can take longer and be more involved than the actual process.  There isn’t one formula for every change, so an organization needs to figure out what works for them. 

The change process begins with determining which category of change is needed.  The chart below illustrates the three different change types an organization will go through.  Once the category of the change is determined, the next steps can be formulated.

Category of Change	Recipient	Difficulty	Length of Initiative	Reversibility
First-order Change	Procedures-	Minor	Short	Reversible
Second-order Change	Policies	Moderate	Medium	Irreversible
Third-order Change	Values	Very	Long	Irreversible

 

First-order Changes – These are procedural changes and are the most common organizational changes.  Very often they can be relegated to a specific department or even a group within that department.  Procedural changes are just what it says they are, changes to a way a process within the business works.  These changes take effect when a new process is implemented, or there are published changes to an existing process.  These types of changes are relatively easy to make and usually don’t take a whole lot of time to plan, develop and implement.  The other benefit to this type of change is that they are reversible.  A new process is a living organism within an organization and has the ability to constantly evolve and improve.  An example of a first order change would be a new process for processing cash transactions within the organization.

Second-order Changes –These are policy changes and are less common than first-order changes within an organization.  Policy changes are relatively more difficult to implement as they require changes in the underlying organizational structure.  This means that some of the guiding principles of the organization require modification or in some cases deletion all together. These changes take more time to organize, implement and manage than first-order changes and once they are completed are irreversible in nature.  An example of a second-order change would be that the organization decides no longer to accept cash as a viable means of payment.

Third-order Changes – These are value changes an organization determines are necessary in order to become more efficient or effective.  Value changes are the most difficult types of changes an organization can make as they impact the core values an organization has been built upon.  Most often, these types of changes are also culture changes that will affect the organization in its entirety and involve not only every employee within the organization, but many times key vendors and customers that have been in a relationship with the corporation for a long period of time. 

Beginning the Change Process

Prior to beginning and process for change, the very first step is to establish the group of people that will be ensuring that the changes are in line with the goals of the organization, and have the ability to affect change as well as being empowered to facilitate the changes being made.  This group should be comprised of the organization’s leaders along with people designated for specific purposes such as project management or IT.  Once you have developed this group, the change can start.

1.      Identify the change you want to make

a.      Make a list of changes you believe the organization needs.

                                                              i.      Pick three or four depending on ease of change and necessity of change

1.      Trying to get two or three Third Order changes accomplished at once won’t be as effective as trying to get one of each done.

2.      Determine the Goals for that change

a.      Goals need to be specific, quantitative and attainable.

b.      Quantifying goals can include specific dates for completion, or other data points that can show progress.

c.       Find a good balance between the impossible and the painless. 

                                                              i.      Finding this balance takes practice.  If you are unsure, work backwards.  Figure out where you want to be and go to where you are to make sure you have given yourself enough time and resources to hit your goal.

3.      Determine how you will track the change/Develop metrics to manage the change

a.      When you have quantitative goals, you can develop metrics to make sure you are on track.  Before you begin, you should have a clear and easy way to make sure that you can inspect what you expect.

4.      Determine who the change will have an effect on

a.      This is an internal and external function where you will determine which people, departments as well as customers, channel partners, etc. will be affected by the change. 

b.      Make a list of everyone that will be part of the change as well as any individuals or groups that will feel the results of those changes and any of the tasks required within the change process.

5.      Build an action plan including who will be responsible for each step    

a.      Step by step action plans are important in the change process.  For each step you need to identify the following items:

                                                              i.      Specific goal for the step to include a quantitative measurement

                                                            ii.      Resources required for completing the step – people, supplies, accommodations, etc.

                                                          iii.      Definition of what the step will be – specific action items that can be completed.

                                                          iv.      Who is responsible (Specific name or title) for ensuring the particular step is completed accurately and timely

                                                            v.      Timeline for completion of the step – this should include when that step should begin and when it should be completed.

6.      Do a risk assessment for the change

a.      Once you have a list of who is involved, it is time to do what I think is one of the more important steps of the change process; a risk assessment.  Risk assessments are determining factors in change management.  If the risk of losing customers, employees, etc. is higher than the benefit of the change, you may want to either re-engineer the change or look for something different to do.

b.      Risk assessments entail looking at the opportunity costs of the change.  These costs are either the cost of the next best option or worst case scenario at each step of the change process.  Like any other financial analysis, you should determine a cost benefit to the change before blindly charging forward.

c.       That voice in the back of your head wondering if this new idea is the best is the onus behind a risk assessment.  Don’t overthink the risk and talk yourself out of the change.  Instead, use it as an opportunity to look at the process in the most objective way possible.  Look at your options and make an assertive decision:  move ahead, modify or eliminate.  Don’t go halfway because of fear.

7.      Determine a timeline for the change to take place

a.      Just like the goals, make sure that your timeline is realistic.  When coming up with timelines, the best way is to assign goals for each step and add them together to come up with your end goal.  If it is too far in the future for your comfort, you can look more closely at the individual goals and adjust.  If it is happening too fast, you may have missed a couple of steps or have goals that need to be stretched out a bit. 

b.      We all want change to happen overnight.  Unfortunately, that isn’t always going to be the case.  Establishing realistic timelines will give you an idea of how big of a change it is, and how long you will have before you realize any benefits from it.  This is a great exercise for those with a high sense of urgency working in a large or lumbering organization.

8.      Determine a communication plan for the change

a.      Now that you have formulated your change plan, you will need to develop a communication plan to ensure that your goals, timelines and specific expectations are clearly communicated to everyone involved or affected by the change that will be taking place. 

b.      Your communication plan should keep the results of your risk assessment in mind.  If you determined that one group or another has a high degree of risk in regards to turnover or dissatisfaction hitting them over the head with the change might not be in your best interest:  consider your audience. 

c.       No matter your audience, your communication plan must be assertive, concise and include three very important items:

                                                              i.      An unwavering leadership commitment to the change

                                                            ii.      Specific goals, timelines and expectations for the change

                                                          iii.      Openness to ideas, thoughts or other input to the process or any of its components.

Once you have completed these steps you will have a basic formula for change.  In order to maintain consistency and ensure future successes, your individual formula should be documented through processes, memos or other written tools so that you can replicate those things you did well, and eliminate those that didn’t work.   Now that you have the formula put together to put a change in process, you can start laying out the change itself.