Do you have the right levers in place to drive a successful outcome for your Information and Communications Technology (ICT) program? Ensuring a successful implementation not only entails selecting the right technology and constructing a skilled Project Team, but critically it also entails driving a well considered change management, communications and training strategy and plan.
The importance of change management, communication and training cannot be understated and is regularly quoted in ERP implementations as a key element of success (or failure). For example, a Monash & Victoria University of Technology (Australia) study found that “The main findings…indicate that organizations that have undertaken several iterations of ERP implementations still do not attain expected benefits, and the main reason for this lack of benefit attainment are people issues, mainly training and change management.”
The table below depicts the key levers of the Change Management stream – all components are inter-linked and together form the basis for an effective plan.Cadence Performance Solutions (Cadence) continues to support Customers on medium to a range of ICT programs. Their focus is to work with Customers to ensure users adopt new systems.
Joe Westhuizen, the CEO of Cadence, has worked on countless projects and says “not surprisingly, most organization’s create a communications and training plan, but very few give attention to all the levers of change. For example, senior leaders, who are often the face and voice of change and in the best position to reinforce change – their involvement most often seems to be assumed or expected rather than architected”.
Whether its time, budget or the lack of experienced resources, ICT programs (and their leaders) are not being as comprehensive as they could and should be in their approach to help users embrace and adopt change and embrace and adopt new systems.
Sports teams typically improve when they obtain the services of a coach. Why – because the coach brings the structures, plans and game experience. The coach uses different levers to drive team success.
The key takeaway is to use all the levers you have at your disposal. Each lever uniquely contributes to a successful outcome. By not utilizing all the levers of change you leave certain aspects of change to chance or luck and put at risk the project results and outcomes. As Joe mentions when talking about successful ICT programs, “to be more successful, build an holistic approach, leverage all the levers, and you will be pleasantly surprised, or perhaps just relieved at how successful your ICT implementation really can be.”
Joe Westhuizen, CEO,
Cadence Performance Solutions
Phone : +61 1300 30 60 04
Email : [email protected]
Website : cadenceperformance.solutions
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