When you are deeply involved in managing a change journey it is easy to overlook the fact that a very significant amount of change can be happening in a single location at the same time, as a result of multiple change initiatives. This can quickly lead to ‘change fatigue’ with resulting low morale, increased resistance, low productivity and high levels of absenteeism or attrition.
Properly structured change initiatives, involving programmes and projects, are designed to avoid this but, too often, insufficient thought and planning is put into how the impacted business units will adopt multiple ‘waves’ of change. Effective portfolio and change management disciplines are good at addressing planned change, driven by the strategy, but not always adequate at coping with additional significant ‘must do’ changes.
Things to consider
- Has your organisation an overarching corporate portfolio view of change?
- Have you discussed and agreed with affected business units:
- The type, rate and volume of change being introduced into their areas?
- How much change they are trying to introduce themselves and how much is coming from external initiatives?
- How any concerns and issues can be overcome?
- Where ‘hot-spots’ will arise and what strategies and tactics will be used to address these?
- What must be sacrificed to ensure that the operational business units will not be overwhelmed?