What is a Change Strategy?
Your change strategy and plan are often used interchangeably, but the terms can be fluid. While they may overlap, it’s beneficial to distinguish them, especially in significant programs. Your change strategy provides the overarching approach for executing the change, focusing on phases. It sets the tone for the change, outlining principles, business requirements, broad time frames, key considerations, risks, dependencies, and the structure for governance and teams.
Change Strategy vs. Change Plan:
Change Strategy:
High-level overview.
Addresses change at a phase level.
Outlines approach, principles, requirements, time frames, considerations, risks, and structure.
Change Plan:
Detailed, trackable plan.
Specifies week-by-week activities, milestones, work streams, owners, and resource models.
Example:
Using the Change Proud framework, your change strategy should articulate activities related to the vision, impact on people, required change activities (communication, training, change network), and methods for measuring KPIs and sustaining the change. It provides a phases-level indication of the approach, time frames, and likely outcomes.
Writing Your Change Strategy:
When writing your change strategy, focus on covering these four essential areas:
1.Business Context:
Articulate the business context driving the need for change.
2.People and Populations Impacted:
Identify key populations impacted and the degree of impact on them.
3.General Approach:
Outline the general approach without delving into intricate details.
4.Timing and Sequencing:
Provide a sense of timing, deadlines, and key phases.
Considerations:
Risk and Dependencies:
Call out risks and dependencies in your approach.
Flexibility:
Be adaptable; detailed planning comes later after the change impact assessment.
For further detail sign-up to the Change Proud programme now.