5 Common Setbacks With Ineffective Technology Change Management

Technology is advancing at an unprecedented pace, empowering businesses to accomplish more in less time. The transformations that technology has brought about in the business world are mind-boggling and with transformative change comes stress.

Without a defined change management strategy in place, avoidable inconsistencies are more likely to occur and you risk disrupting essential operations and losing valuable team members due to burnout. Keeping that in mind, before you begin implementing new technology in your infrastructure, you must understand the significance of effective change management.

Change management is an approach that deals with changes or transformations in organizational processes, objectives and technologies. The goal of change management is devising strategies to implement and govern transformation while helping your team adjust to it.

Making the case for change management:

Change management is crucial because:

• It addresses the effects of change on individuals, processes and more
  Every change has repercussions in multiple areas of an organization, and change management helps address each of these.
• It enables organizations to prosper in an ever-changing business environment
  Organizations that use change management achieve better results even when managing multiple distinct transformations.
• It empowers people
  Change management prepares, empowers and supports people to adapt to changes in their workflows, environments and technology.
• It increases the success rate of a transformation
  Excellent change management increases the likelihood of meeting objectives by reducing risks.
• It is required for compliance with nearly all information security regulations, standards, and best practices
  While change management has inherent benefits for organizations, it is impossible to be compliant with regulations such as HIPAA, GLBA, and GDPR without a change management program. Additionally, most cyber liability insurance coverage expects an organization to practice effective change management. Without a documented change management program, an organization is incapable of being fully in compliance with even the most basic standards and regulations.

What could go wrong with ineffective change management?

1. Gaps in Communication

Effective communication is, without a doubt, one of the most critical factors for organizational success. Employee resistance may develop if they feel bombarded with changes and aren’t comfortable expressing their concerns due to a lack of two-way communication.

Communication breakdowns or gaps cause demotivation, employee frustration, a lack of collaboration, attrition and ultimately, business failure.

2. Employee resistance and frustration

You should expect some of your employees to resist change initially. However, failing to handle it proactively could undermine your objectives. If ignored, it eventually leads to disengagement, decreased productivity and increased absenteeism.

Plus, if an employee is frustrated for an extended period, it may create a dull workplace atmosphere that will eventually affect other employees.

3. Workflow glitches and stoppages

Workflow glitches and stoppages are obstacles that no aspiring business should tolerate. Remember, neglecting such hurdles can harm productivity, timeliness and future prospects.

It’s worth noting that in today’s complex business environments, unexpected workflow glitches and stoppages will almost certainly have a cascading effect and destabilize other related/dependent business components.

4. Lost productivity

In an era when businesses compete to optimize their productivity and be the best in their domain, lost productivity can certainly eat into the profitability of a careless business.

5. Regulatory penalties

In the event of a data breach, failure to have a change management program is a deficiency that can cause higher fines and penalties from regulators. This failure may also be cited as evidence of poor security practices in any litigation that comes about as a result of the data breach.

An effective change management strategy is critical for businesses to tackle all the problems listed above. Are you fully equipped with the experience and expertise to handle it on your own? If you feel your company lacks certain resources, it’s best to work with an MSSP capable of easing your transition to a higher-performing technology ecosystem.

With our wealth of experience and knowledge surrounding successful technology change management, we may be the ideal partner for your company. Feel free to contact us to set up a consultation.

Additionally, to learn more about change management, feel free to download our eBook “5 Ways to Make Your Technology Change Management a Success” by clicking here.