Planning Change Around Situation, Structure, and Strategy

An organization that is prepared for change knows how to strategize and manage change.  Since each project or change management initiative is unique, however, each may require separate and unique planning.  To ensure that your change management initiatives are most effective, remember these three criteria to plan around – Situation, Structure and Strategy.

Situation planning helps you understand the nature of the change that you are initiating or responding to.  Is the change a formal project?  A company-wide campaign?  In any case, knowing the characteristics of the change being introduced will help you recognize its scope and impact.
Situation planning also means understanding your organization.  Is your organizational culture accepting when change is introduced?  How has change been managed in the past?  The more responsive your organization is, the more successful your change initiatives will be.

Situation planning also means knowing which groups in your organization will be affected by the change.  Some groups may be more affected by others.  Knowing who will be affected and how they will be affected helps you customize your plan to ensure buy-in from everyone.

In addition to planning around your situation, it’s also important to plan your working structure.  This takes place on two levels – the teams responsible for the work and the management on board.
 
Individuals working on change management teams must be carefully chosen from the most affected groups to ensure full energy investment.  Likewise, management must also be fully invested to build support and communicate openly with their respective audiences.

Once you understand your situation and your structure, your final criteria to plan around is your strategy.  This will help you determine how the change will be implemented based on factors such as risk and resistance.  Dramatic, wider-reaching changes will have higher risk.  Greater resistance from the organization will also mean higher risk.  Both of these will affect your change management strategy.

The specific change initiative you’re implementing will determine the special tactics required.  This may involve training, choosing appropriate channels of communication, delegating responsibilities to the right people and status monitoring and reporting.  While your overall strategy shapes your plan, your tactics determine how the plan will be implemented.

Adapting to and initiating change is always a challenge for your organization.  But, knowing how to plan around Situation, Structure and Strategy helps you meet that challenge with greater success.