Change management: a mirage?

Change management. Everyone talks about it, but rarely pays for it… Could this be a sign that the concept is missing its target and has never really demonstrated its value?

This post is too short to address this question, but let's approach it through the lens of digital transformation. My bowl, you know…

The very notion of "change management" is based on the principle that change is necessary. Experience shows that this is difficult, so we put energy into making people change. Because it's obvious that change is necessary. At least for those (or even the one) who decided to do so.

By the way if there's resistance, it's because it's not so straightforward… And when it comes to people's jobs, it's important because most of us put our heart and soul into them. So it's legitimate to be concerned, especially when change is necessary…

When we talk about digital transformation, the changes brought about by new software or the digitization of a process are extremely disruptive on our ways of working. This affects every aspect of work, completely reshaping the landscape. Therefore, it requires work, and it takes time. We might dream of a "change manager" working alongside the project manager to "change" people as the project unfolds. But experience shows that this isn't enough. And that's perhaps why decision-makers are often reluctant to pay for such a service.

So, what do we do?

We humbly do our job: the project manager integrates the end users of the systems he puts in place as much as possible into the design of the solution, we think about the processes before installing the software, we train seriously, we communicate.

And above all, once the system is up and running, you don't stop! That's when the lessons learned from digital adoption come into play. The process, well-defined during the project phase, will inevitably have to evolve. Because technology evolves, legislation evolves, and people learn and therefore have ideas for improvement. If your company hasn't put in place an organization to evolve these practices and the software that goes with them, you have no way to progress. If you don't support users in their discovery of the tool, they will get stuck at some point and find workarounds.

And for that, the solution exists: we need to connect people, provide them with a space to share best practices, arbitrate between changes in processes and software modifications, and reach peer agreement on what and how to do it. These are precisely the tools provided by work on digital adoption. And this isn't "change management," but long-term organizational development. Concrete. Close to the people.