In this lesson,
we're going to explore the basics
of the change management processes.
Now, understanding the need for change
is only half the battle when it comes to change management.
The other half is much more intricate,
and it lies in the processes
that govern exactly how a change is going to be executed.
Whether it's a minor software update
or a major system overhaul,
the steps taken to implement a proposed change
can spell the difference between a change of success
and eventual disaster.
Now, as you go through the change management process,
you're going to see that there are five main steps
to this process.
Preparing for the change, creating a vision for the change,
implementing the change, verifying the change,
and documenting the change.
First, we need to prepare for the change.
In the initial phase of change management,
preparing for the change
involves understanding the current state
and recognizing the need for a transition to occur.
It requires a thorough assessment
of your existing processes, identifying inefficiencies,
and pinpointing potential challenges
that might arise during the transformation.
At this stage, it's crucial
to gather all the necessary resources, engage stakeholders,
and ensure that the organization is both mentally
and operationally ready for the change ahead.
Second, we need to create a vision for the change.
Creating a clear and compelling vision for the change
is crucial for guiding the transformation
and ensuring it's aligned across the organization.
This vision will serve as our North star
and provide us with a direction and purpose
by defining the desired future state,
explaining the reasons for the change,
and offering a picture
of what success will actually look like.
The more vivid and inspiring the vision is,
the more likely it is to generate enthusiasm and buy-in
from all the stakeholders involved in the proposed change.
Third, we need to implement the change.
With a clear vision in place,
we need to put our plan into action.
Implementing the change might require training sessions,
restructuring your teams, or introducing new tools
and technologies into your organization.
Throughout its implementation, continuous communication
is going to be the key to your change success.
Now, make sure that you can keep your stakeholders informed
about the progress, address their concerns promptly,
and be open to feedback to ensure a smoother transition
and reduce the overall resistance
that you're going to experience.
Fourth, we need to verify the change.
Once our change has been implemented,
it's essential to measure its effectiveness
and ensure that our desired outcomes have been realized.
Verification is going to involve comparing the new state
to the envisioned objectives
set out at the beginning of our change.
Now, it might require surveys, performance metrics analysis,
or stakeholder interviews to be able to evaluate
whether this change was successful.
Any discrepancies or issues identified during this phase
should also be addressed promptly
to refine and optimize the change process.
Fifth, we're going to document the change.
Now, the final step in the basic change management process
is to document the change,
and this is an important thing for us to consider
so you can maintain a historical record
of any changes that were implemented
and ensure that we can properly capture any lessons learned
for future reference.
This documentation will encompass the entire process
from the initial need for a change
through to its final implementation and verification.
By maintaining detailed records,
organizations can reflect on their past initiatives,
understand the decisions that have been made,
and continuously improve
their future change management practices.
Now, when it comes to the change management process,
there are several areas that you need to consider
as you move throughout this process,
including the use of scheduled maintenance windows,
having a solid backout plan,
testing the results
after the proposed change was implemented,
and always using standard operating procedures
to implement your proposed changes.
First, we have the use of scheduled maintenance windows.
Now, it is never a good idea to make a change on the fly
or during peak operational hours,
so most large organizations
will set aside a specific timeframe
when system adjustments and changes can be implemented
in order to minimize potential disruptions
and ensure that if something goes awry, that the impact
on the organization's daily operations will be reduced.
For example, when I used to run a large enterprise network
that had services for over 1 million end users
across six continents, we ended up having
a weekly planned schedule maintenance window
that occurred every Saturday evening
from midnight to 4:00 a.m. at our main facility
that was located on the east coast of the United States.
So if we ever needed to reboot a server
to install a non-critical piece of software,
we would simply do it
during this scheduled maintenance window
because we knew it was already there and on the books,
and everybody was aware
that changes were happening during that window.
Now, having a scheduled maintenance window doesn't mean
that you're only allowed to implement changes once a week,
because sometimes emergencies happen
and you need to make a change fast.
For example, if a brand new security patch
is released by Microsoft that listed it as a critical patch,
we probably don't want to wait another six days
until next Saturday to be able to install that patch.
So we could propose an emergency change that, if approved,
could be implemented within a few minutes, a few hours,
or a few days, depending on the criticality
and the potential impact of the change on our end users.
Second, we need to ensure that we have a backup plan
created for our proposed change.
Even with the best planning, unforeseen issues can arise
during the implementation of a proposed change.
This is where the backout plan
becomes invaluable to your organization.
A backout plan is a predetermined strategy
to revert the system back to the original state
if a change doesn't go as expected.
Think of it as a safety net
that ensures that our operations can quickly be returned
to normalcy in the event of a complication
during a proposed change implementation.
Now, third, we have to test the results
of our implemented changes.
It is not enough to simply implement a change
and hope for the best.
Instead, we need to validate that the change was successful
by conducting tests of our systems and operational processes
after the change occurs
to ensure that our desired outcomes have been achieved
and that no new issues have been created
by implementing the change.
This step acts as a validation of the change
to confirm its success, or highlight areas
that need further modifications or tweaks.
Fourth and finally, it's important
that we highlight the importance
of following your organization's
standard operating procedures
whenever you're implementing a change.
Now, a standard operating procedure, or SOP,
is a detailed, step-by-step set of instructions
that guides how a specific task should be carried out.
When it comes to a proposed change,
these SOPs are going to help to ensure
that we can maintain consistency and efficiency
for our enterprise networks.
By always using standard operating procedures
to implement our changes
in our enterprise systems and networks,
our organizations can ensure
that there is a uniform approach being used,
which in turn helps to reduce errors
and inconsistencies across our systems.
So remember, the journey into change management
is not a straight road, but a series of well-defined steps
that each is crucial in its own right.
By using scheduled maintenance windows,
creating backout plans,
testing the results of our implemented changes,
and utilizing standard operating procedures
to make our changes, we can increase the chances
of successfully implementing our proposed changes.