At another time, I wrote about how to create a culture that supports change, and which basically consists of a good team of leaders from the Organization, and a robust training program, both (leadership and training) working to implement the change that is desired . But, the change management process as a whole can be understood in 7 steps. See them as follows:
# 1 – Defining the Current Situation
It is necessary to define exactly a baseline, that is, what is the current situation, and what exactly is being unproductive, negative, or not profitable in any way. It should be clearly established what the pains of the Organization are, which is troubling the Organization.
# 2 – Defining Desired Situation (The Change)
After defining the current situation, it’s needed to clearly define the desired (future) situation, that is, what is the change that the Organization wants to provoke, and what are the benefits that is expected to obtain with it.
# 3 – Top Management Decision
The top management of the Organization must be imbued with the mission of change so that success can be achieved. After all, to change something in an Organization, whether in the aspect of people or processes, or even the Culture as a whole, requires the consistent involvement of all those involved, and this is only achieved with the primary involvement of top management.
# 4 – Communication
The decision made and the change you want must be properly connected with all those involved in the Organization. Therefore, once the decision on change has been made, an effective communication program should be initiated to clarify, in an accessible language, what the change is, and what are the expected benefits, making clear the role of each one in this process.
# 5 – Leadership Support
Leadership plays a key role in Organizational change, they motivate and encourage people to follow the path of change, they clarify, but more than that, leadership must be an unambiguous example of the behavior that is wanted to achieve with change, one example of how to act to support and embrace change, and for that, leaders should be well-selected and prepared.
# 6 – Training Program
Training is an excellent way of changing culture. At the same time that it develops skills and motivates people, it also promotes behavioral changes. Therefore, developing a good training program aimed at collaborating in the implementation of change is fundamental at this time.
# 7 – Critical Analysis
On a regular basis, top management must conduct critical review meetings to verify the progress of the change in relation to its main aspects, ie, employee adherence, training effectiveness, leadership support, communication, etc.
Correct change management is an essential factor for success, acceptance and adherence to what is new. Each of the 7 steps should be worked with attention and care, seeking the greater goal that is the improvement obtained with the change!