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In this lesson,

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we're going to explore the basics

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of the change management processes.

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Now, understanding the need for change

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is only half the battle when it comes to change management.

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The other half is much more intricate,

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and it lies in the processes

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that govern exactly how a change is going to be executed.

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Whether it's a minor software update

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or a major system overhaul,

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the steps taken to implement a proposed change

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can spell the difference between a change of success

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and eventual disaster.

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Now, as you go through the change management process,

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you're going to see that there are five main steps

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to this process.

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Preparing for the change, creating a vision for the change,

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implementing the change, verifying the change,

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and documenting the change.

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First, we need to prepare for the change.

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In the initial phase of change management,

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preparing for the change

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involves understanding the current state

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and recognizing the need for a transition to occur.

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It requires a thorough assessment

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of your existing processes, identifying inefficiencies,

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and pinpointing potential challenges

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that might arise during the transformation.

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At this stage, it's crucial

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to gather all the necessary resources, engage stakeholders,

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and ensure that the organization is both mentally

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and operationally ready for the change ahead.

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Second, we need to create a vision for the change.

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Creating a clear and compelling vision for the change

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is crucial for guiding the transformation

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and ensuring it's aligned across the organization.

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This vision will serve as our North star

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and provide us with a direction and purpose

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by defining the desired future state,

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explaining the reasons for the change,

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and offering a picture

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of what success will actually look like.

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The more vivid and inspiring the vision is,

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the more likely it is to generate enthusiasm and buy-in

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from all the stakeholders involved in the proposed change.

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Third, we need to implement the change.

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With a clear vision in place,

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we need to put our plan into action.

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Implementing the change might require training sessions,

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restructuring your teams, or introducing new tools

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and technologies into your organization.

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Throughout its implementation, continuous communication

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is going to be the key to your change success.

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Now, make sure that you can keep your stakeholders informed

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about the progress, address their concerns promptly,

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and be open to feedback to ensure a smoother transition

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and reduce the overall resistance

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that you're going to experience.

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Fourth, we need to verify the change.

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Once our change has been implemented,

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it's essential to measure its effectiveness

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and ensure that our desired outcomes have been realized.

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Verification is going to involve comparing the new state

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to the envisioned objectives

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set out at the beginning of our change.

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Now, it might require surveys, performance metrics analysis,

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or stakeholder interviews to be able to evaluate

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whether this change was successful.

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Any discrepancies or issues identified during this phase

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should also be addressed promptly

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to refine and optimize the change process.

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Fifth, we're going to document the change.

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Now, the final step in the basic change management process

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is to document the change,

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and this is an important thing for us to consider

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so you can maintain a historical record

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of any changes that were implemented

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and ensure that we can properly capture any lessons learned

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for future reference.

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This documentation will encompass the entire process

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from the initial need for a change

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through to its final implementation and verification.

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By maintaining detailed records,

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organizations can reflect on their past initiatives,

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understand the decisions that have been made,

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and continuously improve

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their future change management practices.

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Now, when it comes to the change management process,

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there are several areas that you need to consider

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as you move throughout this process,

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including the use of scheduled maintenance windows,

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having a solid backout plan,

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testing the results

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after the proposed change was implemented,

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and always using standard operating procedures

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to implement your proposed changes.

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First, we have the use of scheduled maintenance windows.

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Now, it is never a good idea to make a change on the fly

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or during peak operational hours,

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so most large organizations

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will set aside a specific timeframe

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when system adjustments and changes can be implemented

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in order to minimize potential disruptions

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and ensure that if something goes awry, that the impact

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on the organization's daily operations will be reduced.

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For example, when I used to run a large enterprise network

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that had services for over 1 million end users

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across six continents, we ended up having

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a weekly planned schedule maintenance window

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that occurred every Saturday evening

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from midnight to 4:00 a.m. at our main facility

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that was located on the east coast of the United States.

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So if we ever needed to reboot a server

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to install a non-critical piece of software,

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we would simply do it

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during this scheduled maintenance window

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because we knew it was already there and on the books,

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and everybody was aware

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that changes were happening during that window.

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Now, having a scheduled maintenance window doesn't mean

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that you're only allowed to implement changes once a week,

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because sometimes emergencies happen

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and you need to make a change fast.

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For example, if a brand new security patch

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is released by Microsoft that listed it as a critical patch,

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we probably don't want to wait another six days

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until next Saturday to be able to install that patch.

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So we could propose an emergency change that, if approved,

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could be implemented within a few minutes, a few hours,

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or a few days, depending on the criticality

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and the potential impact of the change on our end users.

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Second, we need to ensure that we have a backup plan

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created for our proposed change.

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Even with the best planning, unforeseen issues can arise

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during the implementation of a proposed change.

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This is where the backout plan

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becomes invaluable to your organization.

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A backout plan is a predetermined strategy

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to revert the system back to the original state

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if a change doesn't go as expected.

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Think of it as a safety net

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that ensures that our operations can quickly be returned

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to normalcy in the event of a complication

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during a proposed change implementation.

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Now, third, we have to test the results

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of our implemented changes.

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It is not enough to simply implement a change

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and hope for the best.

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Instead, we need to validate that the change was successful

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by conducting tests of our systems and operational processes

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after the change occurs

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to ensure that our desired outcomes have been achieved

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and that no new issues have been created

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by implementing the change.

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This step acts as a validation of the change

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to confirm its success, or highlight areas

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that need further modifications or tweaks.

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Fourth and finally, it's important

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that we highlight the importance

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of following your organization's

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standard operating procedures

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whenever you're implementing a change.

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Now, a standard operating procedure, or SOP,

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is a detailed, step-by-step set of instructions

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that guides how a specific task should be carried out.

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When it comes to a proposed change,

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these SOPs are going to help to ensure

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that we can maintain consistency and efficiency

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for our enterprise networks.

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By always using standard operating procedures

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to implement our changes

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in our enterprise systems and networks,

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our organizations can ensure

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that there is a uniform approach being used,

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which in turn helps to reduce errors

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and inconsistencies across our systems.

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So remember, the journey into change management

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is not a straight road, but a series of well-defined steps

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that each is crucial in its own right.

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By using scheduled maintenance windows,

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creating backout plans,

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testing the results of our implemented changes,

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and utilizing standard operating procedures

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to make our changes, we can increase the chances

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of successfully implementing our proposed changes.