It’s Time to Digitally Transform Your OCM Toolbox

Often when speaking with fellow seasoned organizational change management (OCM) practitioners, the question is raised, “Is digital transformation really something new? Does it require a new OCM approach?” After all, some of us have been doing this long enough that we remember helping organizations transition from green screens to networked PCs for the first time. One of my first end-users put the mouse on the floor, because they thought it was a foot pedal. Talk about digital transformation! While at its core, the OCM work that we do to drive change, new behaviors, and adoption remains the same, there are some important nuances regarding how we do this work in the digital environment that we must transform.

Let’s begin by looking at the organizational change management approach that we are long familiar with and very skilled at: implementing a known solution, such as an SAP deployment. From an OCM perspective, we develop an initial strategy, soon that strategy fleshes out into a detailed plan, and then we execute that plan in a methodical and scheduled manner over the course of the project. While the OCM strategy, plan, and deliverables are customized to the organizational context, project, and solution, most could be readily reused for the next SAP client or project. Traditional OCM: known solution, phased approach, predictable, repeatable, Waterfall.

Now let’s take a look at organizational change management to support a digital transformation. Digital projects leverage technologies to reimagine something in order to become more efficient, effective, or competitive. Unlike the SAP example, digital projects do not always begin with a solution in mind. Often, digital initiatives begin with a business opportunity or problem. The project team works with stakeholders to research, develop, test and iterate, to codevelop a solution. The solution may change, the timing may change, yet the team stays focused on the end game of addressing the business opportunity. With each iteration, OCM activities communicate the value of, when to expect, and how to use new features as well as engage and measure stakeholder feedback about these new features. The OCM plan needs to be nimble to adapt to new information. Digital OCM: business opportunity, solution to be determined, project phases planned around sprints, learning, pivot, iterate, Agile. (Super fun and exciting!)

So what does digital transformation demand of organizational change management?

• Due to the need for the project team to work effectively with stakeholders to jointly solve business problems, effective stakeholder engagement is more critical than ever. We must identify the right stakeholders, segment them, establish mutual trust, and then involve them in the effort in a meaningful way; enabling the project and stakeholders to effectively iterate a solution together.
• We need to leverage email as a communication channel less. Rather, communications should be embedded within the solution that is introduced so that stakeholders can pull the information that they need when they need it.
• We need to update our skills and produce “next generation” communications. People are inundated with information. Communications should be more visual, use the least amount of words to get the point across, and leverage numbers (data) and infographics. “Here’s a picture, a few choice words, and off you go!”
• We must continue to plan, but also plan to adapt. Modern communication channels allow for a lot more feedback in real-time. We post and receive instant feedback regarding what are audience is doing with what we are pushing out. Based on that feedback, we adapt and tailor to maximize stakeholder engagement.

Just as we help our clients to modernize their customer and employee experiences through digital transformation, we too must modernize our organizational change management toolkit. While we can leverage our OCM experience from the past, we must open ourselves to learn, adapt, pivot, and adjust in order to maximize stakeholder engagement and deliver nimble OCM solutions for the future. We must enable ourselves to innovate!

Contact ChangeStaffing to learn how our organizational change management consultants can help your organization navigate the change associated with your digital transformation.

A special thanks to Elena Tran, strategic organization transformation and change leader, for her thought leadership and for collaborating with us on this blog.

Originally published at https://www.changestaffing.com on September 22, 2020.