Change is an expected part of everyday life, and business is no exception. However, managing changes within organisations can be quite challenging because it requires a concerted effort by teams of different levels. A structured approach to managing change will therefore go a long way. The method or manner in which change is implemented is what is defined as Change Management (CM).
Generally speaking, organisations are founded on 3 main pillars which are driven by a team of talented and/or competent individuals. These are:
1. Leadership
Leadership refers to the authority figures responsible for driving the organisation to achieve its goals and objectives per the stakeholder requirements.
2. Goal alignment
Goals refer to the aims or targets of the company. These are typically set before the company starts and need to be met for the company to say it is successful. The organisation’s team needs to be clear on the goals they are working towards, which we are referring to as alignment.
3. Compliance
Compliance refers to the legal and statutory frameworks within which your organisation operates. These can be local, national, international, industry or even product regulated requirements.
Whenever changes are introduced to organisations, they touch on one or more of these three pillars.
Examples of Organisational Change
Change comes in different forms. It may be a change in the laws governing your industry, it may be a new leader to a team, it may be a new direction for your company in terms of goals, or even new technology being introduced to your work processes. Whatever the change, your team of talented and/or competent people need to be agile enough to respond to that change. If the team is unable to adapt, the change can result in a crisis.
What is Change Agility?
Each time a change is introduced into an organisation, the organisation has to adjust to accommodate it. The ability and capacity for company employees to gather or share information on changes and respond to the same is an important quality of successful teams and organisations. This is referred to as Change Agility.
Why should your organisation understand Change Management?
Change agility offers any business a competitive advantage, but only if a change is managed quickly and appropriately. It is important to understand change agility in order to:
1. Plan for changes better 2. Engage the teams whenever changes happen 3. Reflect on the impact and improvements that the change will bring before the change is executed
Contact IMS Africa today for a structured approach to Change Management.
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