Having worked in change management across various sectors, organisational structures and change types, there have been common pain points that organisations are slowly getting across, but which can still occur quite commonly. This highlights that people face challenges when accessing change, program and project information, and they are challenges that are relevant across various organisational types and contexts, regardless of the type of change, level of government, or sector.
With a sound change management plan in place, organisations can address their change pain in advance, effectively gaining a much smoother, people-centric implementation for key operational and strategic initiatives. The capability for an organisation to implement smoothly provides a degree of certainty without dampening innovation.
How many of these pain points sound familiar?
Target audiences are not aware of progress or important changes. When people lack information about where processes stand, why certain events occur, or crucial updates, their lack of awareness can lead to negative situations, including resistance and critical errors, that start to hinder effective planning.
People have difficulty in finding information. If individuals struggle to locate the information they need, whether due to scattered sources, overwhelming content, or structural reasons, this impedes efficient access to essential details. Not only does this mean people don't have the information about what's changing, it means they will often find the easiest way to resolve their information need - this could be by 'asking around' or reverting to the old way of working - which moves away from embedding change.
Information can be found but it's difficult to understand or use. Even well-organised information can become inaccessible through complex language, lack of availability in required file types or languages, and formats that make it hard to comprehend and utilise the information. Inaccuracies in the information, or poor corporate content and knowledge management practices can exacerbate this issue.
Impacted people are not aware of available support. If people are unaware of services and resources that could assist them this may prevent them from seeking support or accessing information that could improve their situation. Too easily this can lead to perpetuating a situation in which people are labouring under misunderstandings and viewing the change negatively as a result.
Uncertainty about change behaviours, obligations or entitlements. Interacting with changed services, products, processes, technology and the like becomes confusing when individuals are unsure of their entitlements and obligations. Complex policies, rules, and processes contribute to this uncertainty, potentially leading to missed support or unfulfilled obligations. Especially common is the tendency to 'layer' policies by introducing new policies and rules that cover the current change, without revising or updating the existing body of policies, rules, processes and models.
Unclear how to reach an outcome. During change, people often feel lost and frustrated when navigating interactions with multiple sources and contacts. There can be physical documents, intranet sites, self-help processes on top of the multiple groups advising or involved (the lead consultants, the IT department, the business representatives, leadership representatives, the local team, superusers, peak bodies and so on). When finding a problem with changed processes, structures, systems etc, people can become confused as to how to reach an appropriate outcome.
Too much time and effort to complete new tasks. Accessing and using changed work instructions, services or systems can be time-consuming and challenging. Working through new processes can mean needing to consult new or updated process manuals, system help screens or training courses. When learning new ways of working, it's common for individuals to make mistakes and it can take longer to understand what went wrong and to work out the new way to rectify errors. Lengthy task completion can be particularly problematic when immediate support is needed and seemingly unavailable.
Stakeholders who are required to provide information multiple times. Repeatedly providing the same information frustrates individuals involved in change projects. This is quite often due to inefficient information gathering during discovery, or a lack of information sharing within the project or program team. This not only wastes the time and effort of key stakeholders, it burns up their good will and potential enthusiasm for a new solution despite the benefits.
These pain points underscore the importance of sound change management to improve communication and enhance the experience of impacted people. Change management allows organisations to create more accessible and user-friendly outcomes, improving it's capability to implement smoothly. Organisations gain from addressing their change pain by creating a virtuous cycle that contributes to a growth culture and market agility.
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