In all organisations there are people who just get things done. They are normally the go-to people when all else fails and can work the system to achieve results where others couldn’t. People have made careers from being the go-to person and it’s clear these people are needed as sometimes things just need to get done! Working the system is fine if a system exists; if it doesn’t, or the system is not effective, then a new system is created to get things done. In operational processes this is normally referred to as the ‘hidden factory’ where perceived better processes are created outside of those that have been formally accepted. The creation of hidden factories in organisations can be directly related to an increase in costs through creation of duplicate processes, resulting in inefficiencies and risk by not following agreed document processes.
In change, where the process is less operational, the mechanism for getting things done can become even murkier and shadow change processes can be created. Change shadows occur when organisations are not responding to business needs effectively resulting in those requesting the change finding other solutions to their problems.
Take for example the Information Operation (see our blogs on Information Operations) issue facing many organisations surrounding the proliferation of excel spreadsheets as a way of managing its data. This issue, and change shadows in general, are caused by a business need that has not been fulfilled by an efficient change process, through:
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Requirements and planning for a solution not being defined and a solution has been built piecemeal over time
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The business case not being correctly positioned that would have allowed for a more appropriate solution being accepted and built
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Change not governing design principles (System, Data and Process) and operational areas being free to build what they need without thinking of longer term repercussions
The role of a change department in the organisation is ultimately to make change better. One of the ways a change function can do this is by having a strong design function that can provide solutions to problems: identify the most appropriate solution, build the business case for the solution, plan the most efficient way to deliver and assess impacts on the overall design of the organisation.
Change functions help organisations avoid:
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Making short-term gains for long-term pain in the solutions the select
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Developing unsupported workarounds that become the business usual
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Failing to invest in enabling solutions as the case doesn’t stand up when presented in isolation
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Eroding benefits of planned change by responding through short term solutions
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Impacting on other changes or areas of the business by not understanding the underlying changes to architecture
Organisations are continually looking to improve and they need to do this to ensure they stay ahead of the competition. Ultimately change is undertaken to make these improvements and in order to deliver this in the best way possible the change functions of an organisation should themselves be continually improving. If they don’t then it not only jeopardises the organisation’s ability to stay ahead of the competition but also undermines its own position and the creation of change shadows.
For organisations to be successful in avoiding the shadows of change there are a number of steps that should be taken.
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Like any department the processes surrounding change should be reviewed.
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Are the processes transparent and clear to all? Or are they a bit of a black art where only a certain few know how to get things done?
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Are the change processes effective? What is the true cost of change to the organisation and how effective is it in delivering the expected benefits?
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Look at the structure of the change organisation. Centralised or decentralised the change function needs to have clear and robust governance around how change is designed and delivered.
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Identify how change occurs: capture the process, identify the players in the process, identify the shadows and develop a governance structure around the process.
Organisations should move into the light and avoid the shadows that can be created around change.
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