Improving the change management process : executive summary

As external factors increasingly influence the way businesses operate, companies have to be able to adapt in order to cope with these external influences. They have to become agile and responsive to change in order to gain a real competitive advantage. However, most companies believe that they are unable to achieve this to their satisfaction. One of the main reasons cited is their inability to manage change effectively. The research summarised in this report identifies how the process of managing change can be facilitated and improved. It builds on the main concerns and issues identified in the change management literature and is supported with evidence from companies undergoing change. The research focuses, in particular, on best practice benchmarking, critical success factors for change, the role of corporate culture, understanding learning organisations and how to sustain change. Based on these research areas, two major developments are proposed to help organisations to manage change more effectively. The first method focuses on a benchmarking tool for change management. Formed from the actual practices of organisations who have managed change effectively, the tool provides a quantifiable way for companies to measure and improve their performance in change management. Its successful implementation in a number of different applications and levels, as demonstrated in the research, suggests that it could provide significant benefits to any organisation undergoing change. The second method focuses on sustaining long term successful change management, through more effective capture, sharing and transfer of knowledge within a company. This is known as corporate learning. A corporate learning framework, based on best practice, is proposed as a way forward for organisations to ensure that a holistic approach is taken when implementing corporate learning. Used correctly, these innovative methods provide mechanisms which can help any company undergoing change to improve the way in which it manages that change.