Change management is a much discussed topic that has to be considered against the background of the constant changes of today. But what is Change Management – what exactly is behind this term? This question will be examined below.
Perhaps you have already been confronted with the term VUCA working world in this context, but you are not sure what exactly it means? Here you can learn more about it!
Change management in times of corona
The importance of this topic becomes particularly clear in the current time. The Corona crisis took many companies by surprise and forced them to use alternative forms of work. The digital transformation is also currently experiencing a revolution. The digital magazine has dealt with this topic and written an interesting article about it. You can do this article right here Find. 🙂
"Nothing is as constant as change."
Heraclitus made this statement many years before Christ and it is still very relevant today. Possible trends and drivers for the changes are, for example, climate change, globalization and internationalization.
These changes are of course also noticeable in the corporate context. As a result, it is important to react appropriately to the new conditions and circumstances and to cope with the change.
Definition: what is change management
The optimal one control this change is subject to "change management". This deals with the correct design of the change process. In a somewhat more global way, it includes all measures from preparation and analysis to planning and then the implementation and evaluation of change processes.
The targeted use of strategically appropriate measures is fundamental here. Overall, sustainable and appreciative value creation should be achieved. To explain that Goal To achieve this, the optimal use of the available resources is essential and the consideration of the individual individuals is therefore of particular importance. Resources can be material, such as material or money, or immaterial, such as motivation, personal interests or physical condition. It becomes clear that an individual consideration in the course of the change process makes sense.
It is helpful to evaluate measures during a change process through regular retros and to define new measures. If you would like to find out how such processes are already being implemented, you can find more information in the gray section.
Is your company currently in a change? Then using our software tool could help you. It develops managers into coaches for their teams. You can take a look at the following link to see how Shopware integrates Echometer into the retro process.
Change management starting points
The change can start at different points, depending on the desired goal.
These starting points are for example
- the Corporate structurelike the strategy or the technology
- a technological change could, for example, be the introduction of new tools or new software
- the Corporate culture, like values & norms
- A change in the area of cultural change could be the introduction of an employee-oriented leadership style
- , individual, i.e. skills and behavior
- an improvement in the skills of employees could be achieved through regular training, which is set as a measure
The various starting points are a little clearer in the following graphic.
Conclusion: what is change management
The above explanation of the topic clarifies the relevance of the change today. No company can escape the changing conditions and trends of the time and has to prepare for possible changes. It is therefore important to grasp the topic in its entirety and to understand the function of change management.
Different change management models can help to integrate change processes into the company. One of the best-known models is the Kotter change management model. You can find more information on this in our corresponding blog Article!
Sources: What is change management
- Gabler Wirtschaftslexikon (n.d.) Change Management. Retrieved on August 12, 2020 at: https://wirtschaftslexikon.gabler.de/search/content?keys=change+management&sort_by=search_api_relevance&sort_order=DESC
- Kostka, C. (2017). Change management. Carl Hanser Verlag GMBH & Co. KG.
- Lauer, T. (2019). Change Management (3rd edition). Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
- Vahs, D. & Weiand, A. (2013): Workbook Change Management. Methods and Techniques (2nd ed.). Stuttgart: Schäffer-Poeschel Verlag.
