Organizational Change Management

To understand how to manage organizational change, first we need to consider: What we want to change, the current and future status we want to reach.

But fundamentally, what for? We must never lose the focus of the essential strategic objective.

These 4 basic questions will lay the foundations to determine the factors that we must control in the change management process.

What to change? Technology, organization, processes? We can consider an integral change oriented to obtain greater efficiency, a reduction of costs or a higher quality in all areas or we can focus our efforts in specific areas, in the resolution of a structural problem, etc.

Where are we now? Organizations often propose to change, knowing that there is an undetermined problem, but we do not have an analysis of the situation that allows focusing the efforts towards a specific area. Therefore, although it seems obvious, one of the first tasks to develop is an analysis of the situation. And this is often the first obstacle that we will encounter when we initiate a change management process, since it can be mistakenly understood as a questioning of the way of doing, of the way of working, in short, the work that has been performed.

Where do we want to go? To eliminate this first barrier, it is essential that the
objectives are correctly transmitted and all the parties involved in the process are adequately informed about the scope of the project and the benefits to be obtained. That is, the strategic objective established by management and
how we will reach that point.

In this way the intention, empowerment and line of action established by the management of the organization is transmitted, which will position the actions in the plane that corresponds to them. At the same time, we will avoid many common mistakes.

How can we start a successful change? One of the main actions is to establish a team involved in the management of the change. Depending on the area of ​​action, the type of organization, the objectives, etc. it will be formed by people that belong to the structure that we want to change. They must be people with decision-making capacity, understanding of the situation and objectives, strategic thinking. This will be the first level at which the "change manager" will begin the transformation. And from there, it will be expanded to other levels of the organization.

Once again, people as the key to success.

I remark, people: if we transform technology or processes but forget the organizational part, people as a driver of change management, we can never reach the goal set successfully.

Probably, will not even get there.