When budgets are squeezed, change management is often an early casualty. Seen as a function that can be picked up by project teams, change managers are often viewed as a expensive and ‘nice to have’ rather than ‘must have’.
But change managers bring tremendous value and cannot be replaced easily!
Here are three critical items to add to the benefits section of your change initiative.
1. Make the risks of insufficient training explicit
Imagine Julie, a purchasing officer, struggling to add a filter in a new ERP system. After 15 minutes, she asks for help from colleagues, and soon three people are frustrated, wasting time trying to solve the issue. This scenario is all too common and underscores the importance of proper training.
As change managers, we must advocate against the ‘lift and shift’ mentality and emphasize the need for thorough, relevant training. Proper training may require time and cost, but it prevents time wastage and protects employee morale, reducing resistance to future changes.
2. Explain the importance of using the right comms channels
During stakeholder engagement, we identify how different groups prefer to receive communications—whether through toolbox talks, emails, videos, or social media. Change managers know the value of working with internal communications teams to align messaging with these preferences.
Without our input, project teams might default to email, assuming it’s effective for everyone, which often leads to confusion. Instead, we ensure that communications are targeted and effective, preventing miscommunication and frustration.
3. Ensure you spruik the benefits of stakeholder mapping
Change managers have the perceptual skills to map stakeholders, gauge emotional temperatures, and create communication matrices. This work is critical to managing people risks that project teams, focused on delivery, may overlook.
We monitor the emotional climate and address issues like negative conversations that can spread misinformation. Our role in stakeholder mapping ensures that change efforts are smoothly executed and well-received.
Wrapping up
These are just three examples of ways we change managers bring value that need to be included in the change benefits. ChangePlan is designed to help change managers demonstrate the value they bring to projects.
- stakeholder maps can be generated instantly and shared with ease
- data-rich change dashboards enable robust leader conversations
- automated pulse checks gather data on stakeholder sentiment & project adoption and create reporting for you
If you haven’t had your demo of ChangePlan to learn how it can help your change team communicate the benefits of change, click here to schedule it now.
