1. Driving beyond
Implementation to Solution
Adoption
going beyond delivering usable products by leading
to solution adoption via change management
techniques
2. Topics
1. What is change?
2. When is change needed?
3. Translate in Terms People Understand
4. Identify Sponsor(s) and Stakeholders
5. Dealing with Committee Decisions
6. Project Team Creation
7. Three Key Questions
8. Don't let “Completion” be Defined as a Static Event
9. Types of Planning
10. Leadership Style
11. Types of Communication
12. The Importance of Momentum
13. Anticipating the Normal Response to Change
14. Handling Fear & other Potential Derailments
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5. What is Change?
For this discussion, implementing software that makes organizational
processes and employees more effective and efficient.
However.... delivering a "usable" product does not ensure solution adoption and
unadopted solutions lead to low renewal rates.
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6. When is change needed?
Change initiatives do not have to start at the top
Problem & Potential Solutions, or Solution
Identify, qualify and quantify the need for change
Cost Savings
Operational Efficiency
Better relations between departments
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7. Translating Change
Change is ultimately about people, not configuration, etc.
Affected individuals
Affected groups
Positive and negative impact
What does this mean to them?
Achieving Buy-In
Using this during the project
Psychology of individuals, groups and overall organizations
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8. Sponsor(s)
Identify sponsor(s)
Typically the senior level person that champions the project within your
organization
This person typically explains the need for the project to the senior
leadership team, provides "air cover" for the project and secures financing
for the endeavor
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9. Stakeholders
Identify any person or group within your organization that will be impacted by
changes, they are Stakeholders
Should all stakeholders be members of your project team?
What about groups/people negatively impacted by change?
How do you handle stakeholders that are against the change?
Who has influence in your organization? (management, star employee,
etc.)
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10. Dealing with Committee Decisions
Three things to do prior to any committee decisions about a change initiative
1. Meet with all committee members individually before the big "committee
decision" meeting
2. Assess the stance of each individual on the particular decision and explain
what you are are doing
3. If negative, work toward positive
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11. Three Key Questions
1. What are we doing? (What does done look like?)
2. How do we get there? (What is our plan? Have we addressed resource
requirements and risks/impediments?)
3. How do we know we're making progress?
Would you go on a hike with someone who was not sure where the destination
was, did not know if there was a trail and who had no way of measuring time or
distance?
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12. “Completion” is not a static event
Training: In-person, in-classroom sessions,
online videos, documents
Support: Help files, internal documentation,
go-to people
Improvement: Enhancement request
process
Instead of one big “change” far more
effective to communicate processes for photo credit: 1
change management and talk about an
upcoming change within these surrounding
processes
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13. Build the Right Project Team
Project Lead
Organized, comfortable working with other groups, capable of running
efficient meetings, etc.
Go-to person for project communication
Every person on the project team should not be communicating status,
etc…
Domain Experts
HR, IT, Sys Admin, etc
“Selectively Involve” stakeholders
Good vs. Bad Team Examples
Good – 1 Project Lead, 3 domain experts, key stakeholders as needed
Bad – 15+ people, no clear leader…
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14. Planning
What are we doing? / How do we know when we are done?
How do we get there?
Project plans
Excel, email to-dos
Task Name, Owner, Status, Due Date
“I have always found that” out of date “plans are useless, but
planning is indispensable.” - Dwight D. Eisenhower
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17. Leadership Style
Leading change as though leading a country; what style would you chose?
Dictatorship
a ruler who has complete power in a country, especially power
which was obtained by force and is used unfairly or cruelly
Democracy
a system of running organizations, businesses, and groups in
which each member is entitled to vote and take part in decisions
Oligarchy
a small group of people who control and run a particular country
or organization
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18. Leadership Style continued
Benevolent & consultative "dictatorship" with support of the oligarchy and
feedback from the democracy…
Benevolent dictator = Project Lead /decision driver
Oligarchy = project team, sponsor and stakeholders; decision
makers
Democracy = stakeholders throughout organization; elicit feedback
but not decision-making authority
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19. Communication
Frequency
Between too much and too little, too much is better…
Format
Based on audience
Meetings about key change-related decisions
Who should be invited?
Agendas
Follow ups
Set near-term dates and owners for all items
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20. Normal Response to Change
Fear
Change is usually a dirty word
Why?...
“Silence only leads to speculation”
How to lessen fear
Communication – What is coming
photo credit: 2
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21. Maintain Project Momentum
Driver’s seat
Maintaining Momentum
Duration of effort
Avoiding “stops”
Parallel activities
Critical path
Importance of word choice & phrasing
“We have decided to implement this
system, and we would really like photo credit: 3
your feedback on this
functionality. Should it do this or
that?” vs. “What would you think
about implementing this?”
“Moving forward”, “the next step is”,
etc.
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22. Common Pitfalls
Disaffected individuals & groups
try to derail change; grabbing
the steering wheel…
Change initiatives can get lost…
Project loses momentum
The goal should not be change,
but the end result of that change
Longer duration = greater
chance of derailment photo credit: 4
Shorter duration with
surrounding process allows for
solution to adapt and evolve
with organization over time
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23. Summary
1. Define, Identify and Justify the need for change
2. Translate this to all affected groups in terms they understand
3. Identify sponsor(s) and stakeholders
4. Plan for success with committee decisions
5. Be selective in project team creation, most selective with project lead
6. Three Key Questions: 1) What are we doing?, 2) What does done look
like?, 3) How do we measure progress?
7. Completion is not a static event
8. Planning
9. Leadership Style as a style of governing
10. Communication
11. Momentum, fear & other potential derailments
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24. Photo Credits
1. http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomarthur/ / CC BY-SA 2.0
2. http://www.flickr.com/photos/spengler/ CC BY 2.0
3. http://www.flickr.com/photos/11755880@N00/ / CC BY 2.0
4. http://www.flickr.com/photos/photosoflessthanamazingjourneys/ / CC BY-
ND 2.0
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