The 3 Elements of Change ManagementAbout Change Management
I’ve read books and articles over the years to try and help me improve my management techniques around all aspects of project work, especially Change Management. There are some very good articles on Change Management around from some very experienced Project Managers. There are also some very good industry standard methodologies which will attempt to guide you through the ins and outs of Change Management, amongst other things, and they are also very good.Will any of these articles, books or training courses remove the challenges of Change Management – I don’t think so. Remember this always “Projects are about People” and then you’ll always be sure to blame the right aspect of project management on it’s core failing – it’s always the people that catch you out.Lets briefly look at the three core elements of Change management then, that make this a special sort of headache for all project managers. In doing so lets first distinguish between change brought on by the nature of the project and change within the project. We’re interested here in Change within the Project – which is Project Change Management. More about the reasons we make change and use project management to deliver that change in another article.The 3 Elements of Change Management:1. Causes and Drivers of Change
2. Impact of change and getting agreement
3. Implementing change in the project (or program)Well that wasn’t too painful was it? If only life was this simple. If you take these basic elements and build a simple process around them you’ll get a reasonably workable process flow which identifies basic causes of change, such as;Change Management of Planned Changes – for example;agreed upgrade in a solution as part of a strategic program who’s conclusion was announced after the project started.
value engineering where the project has an opportunity to embrace a new approach to the advantage of the whole project, to reduce costs etc..
unplanned business growth requiring an expansion (or contraction) of the final solution.Change Management of Unsolicited or Unplanned Changes;Client decides part way through delivering a project that they don’t have enough meeting rooms and require a re-design of floor space to accommodate more.
Increase in scope of the conference facilities after they have been built, to include new/additional technologies.
change in senior management who decides he wants the floor plan changed to meet his “new needs”
- my favorite – a complete re-stack (re-shuffle of trading teams) of a trading floor because the wall of screens from one team block the main view out of the building, a week before go-live.Change Management of Emergency Changes;Fixes to critical components as a result of damage caused through some uncontrolled event – accidental flooding or collapse of some critical infrastructure.
Changes to critical components brought on by poor planning and failure to predict accurate requirements. You got caught out! – yes it happens.
Impact of dwindling resources (budget) forcing the need to adjust the solution quality or schedule etc.There are other elements to Change Management – at a higher level it’s the communications before, during and after projects. Within the project it’s about managing expectations and being able to predict or foresee the impact of a required outcome, and “coax” your customer along the right path to retain their support and the momentum in delivery.Change Management is an essential Control component of any project. You will need the following ingredients in place to make change work;1. An agreed and signed-off scope of work clearly defining the deliverables and constraints
2. An agreed (and proven) change process which will take a change input (request) and provide:
Complete description of the changeWhat’s driving the change
Impact on schedule, cost and quality (final deliverables)
Who raised the change request
Who approved it
When it will happen
Who will action it
If change is denied, then a sign-off to that intent.3. A communications forum where Changes are regularly reviewed and all impacted parties are present for comment.4. An appointed Project Board or Steering Committee where there is the authority to approve changes that impact the project beyond the authority of the project manager or project team to decide on.Remember – Change Management is all about people. You need to identify the change and it’s impact and then get the right people to agree to approve or decline the change request based on facts and credible experience (sometimes).This sounds easy but on small projects people can get very protective of their “perceived control” or authority and the project manager may become hamstrung to make basic decisions or to manage the sometimes unreasonable requests for changes from customers staff. On large projects Change Management can and often does become a full time job with a dedicated team doing nothing else but review Change Requests and facilitate the right communications forums and approval meetings.Basic Change Management Process flow
Process ->
Recognize Change request ->
Document it ->
Review it ->
Analyze Impact ->
Present to Change board->If approved, re-plan program to include.If denied, close it and get on with life.Of course, this is just one view of Change Management based on 30 years of delivery experience. Each Project Manager will have there own view but I doubt that any experienced Project Manager will argue with the above but would embellish it with there own invaluable experience to put more “meat on the bone”.

The need for managing tasks efficiently is constantly increasing in the heated continuum of modernization. Use of computer applications that aid in task management has solved the issue to a great extent. Recently, a slew of organizations have introduced several task management tools that can organize, prioritize schedule and reschedule tasks to boost personal and organizational productivity. These tools organize several tasks effectively, ensuring they are completed within stipulated time.Need for advanced task managementThe advent of products in task management has closely followed the IT boom. Information Technology has triggered radical globalization of traditional business processes. Owing to this, projects have become way more complicated than the era before rampant globalization. Traditional management tools do not quite measure up to the challenge. This has given rise to software applications that can manage tasks with greater efficiency in relatively lesser time. These applications can be run either on PC or on the web interface.Efficacy Modern applications in task management ought to score high on efficacy. Towards this end, the makers of these applications employ many different features in them. Each feature is intended to simplify a specific task. Typical applications have variegated elements to deal with resources, timesheets and calendars. Another set of features might take care of other needs like seamless communication, regular reporting and document management.Aid in project managementApplications in task management are great aids in dealing with complex projects. The use of such an application allows project managers to peruse several projects in detail. The application also helps managers to exercise greater control both over the project in its entirety and individual tasks and nuances. Long gone are days when a manager would handle individual projects in separate time frames. The recent technical aid allows managers to concentrate on several projects at the same time, escalating productivity and profit.Team productivityProject management software applications bring respite not just for the project manager. These applications are also a great help to the other members in the team. Use of the application keeps team members updated on all information that relate to the project. With the feature that allows automatic assignment of task, members of the team need not wait for work endlessly.Moreover, this also narrows down the response time for several customers. Proper use of the application can almost eliminate idle time in workplaces. This makes for an end-to-end task management and project development regime.

Basecamp users are wide and varied. It is used by managers, entrepreneurs, small business owners, freelancers, homemakers and other professionals to help them manage their tasks in a better, efficient and time saving way. There are several alternatives on offer by different companies if you want a specific feature(s) to fulfill your requirements.A basecamp alternative must be a smart collaboration device which makes your numerous tasks easier to handle. Basecamp lacks in certain features like Gantt charts and some other features. These can be counted as limitations of basecamp. Gantt charts are a significant tool to set milestones and track progress. If your project can benefit from Gantt charts then, you musty look for a task management tool which has these features.Project management and task management are two integral components of any entrepreneurial or company functioning. Efficiently accomplished tasks completed on deadlines with active and positive participation from all team members is achieved with the assistance of an online task management tool.Task manager features include simplification and breakdown of complicated tasks into easy do-able sub tasks, collaboration and division of work load among team members, creation of alerts, notifications and reminders, management of master schedule and setting of milestones to oversee the project projects and creation of practical deadlines and plans in case a contingency occurs. Creation of sub tasks involves utilization of an easy to add box feature and setting dates within which the task is to be done. There are several free downloadable task managers available on the internet but they lack in some advanced features. The premium ones have to be paid for. It would be a good idea for you to use trial software and test the features for their usefulness before purchasing a premium version of it.The conventionally used spreadsheets to manage tasks in a project were quite cumbersome to use and handle. The online task management software has revolutionized the way task management is done nowadays. It is far more efficient, clever and time saving. The user interface is quite simple and yet very smart. The to-do lists are created priority wise with set and definite deadlines. Task management entails management of several tasks all at one time spread through the day, week or months. The planning and execution has to be faultless and followed precisely if the project has be successful in terms of optimum utilization of resources such as funds, personnel and machinery and completed on time.It is important that you familiarize yourself with the task management software and find it easy to use before investing in one. The trial period is meant to do just that. A 30 day free trial is usually offered by most task management software manufacturers. Always purchase genuine and authentic software from certified companies. A task manager would make it easy for you to manage tasks irrespective of their complexity, create realistic schedule, collaborate constructively with ball team players, utilize everyone’s valuable inputs, send out automated reminders and alerts so that everyone is kept abreast of the project progress, changes or alteration schedule.The privacy and permission can be set to control the access to the project. Addition, deletion and alteration of tasks can be done even as the project moves following the schedule. Fully customizable task workflow enables you to manage your tasks as per your specific needs. Sharing of tasks and ideation is possible and ensures optimum participation and involvement of every team member working on the project.For result oriented managers, task managers have proven to be a boon. The online project management is completely customizable and you can use to perform your tasks in a better way. Step by step completion of tasks ensures that project moves along on time and there is no room for any confusion, miscommunication or lagging. The master schedule is followed as designed and the workflow is smooth.Stress free work also makes sure that employees are inspired, motivated, relaxed and enthused at all times. Project managers would find that every team member is putting in his or her maximum efforts which are appreciated. It is not only firms and business owners who benefit from task management software but people who do freelance work and even housewives who have a home to run on a daily basis and scores of activities to be performed each day.