Change. We do not not take well to change (not us, but people in general). Leaving one’s comfort zone is disruptive, challenging and draining. It is hard enough for people to adjust to daylight savings time, let alone being told that a client hates a landing page design you made, and that you need to come up with an entirely new motif for their website.
Change is always tough, but in project management (PM) organizational change is often a necessity. Change management (CM) goes hand in hand with project management.
(source: prosci.com)
As you can see in the image above, change management works well for project objectives. Change management handles the personnel side of management, and whereas project management is the installation of the management process, change management is the implementation of the management process.
Change Management and the IT Department
The IT department is often caught in the middle when change is demanded by upper management. On one hand, they want the IT department to be consistent and predictable in their performance. On the other, when the decision has been made to augment standards, management wants to see the team flawlessly adapt to freshly introduced operational methods without a hitch.
Sounds a bit contradictory, right? Well, it is, but with the proper PM software in place change can be managed with as little roadblocks as possible, and lead to greater organisational efficiency and productivity.
How Easy Projects PM software can flawlessly facilitate change for your IT team
1. Transparency and accountability
With Easy Projects every member of your team is on board with executive directions and decisions when it comes to change. All of the project information is in one place. Direction and instruction is clearly assigned to responsible departments from upper management, and each member is held accountable, including management.
2. Work request changes simplified
After planning, reviewing, and agreeing on project changes, management can use the simplified Easy Projects work request forms to notify departments of specific process changes and pin them to the dashboard.
This is especially helpful for the IT department. Team members may be rooted in their ways, already comfortable with an established set of protocols and procedures. If change is coming down the line that disrupts their habits it will take a while for them to get used to it. An IT request form simplifies the request and editing that happens inevitably in project.
Simplified IT work requests keep the IT department on track, as they can be referenced directly from Easy Projects whenever needed. Say, a team member finishes their task well ahead of schedule (Whoohoo! Yes!). There is no more time spent on hunting down and asking managers, “So wait, how am I supposed figure out what I should be doing next?” or “I think this would be a good idea, what do you think?” Both parties get the forms in real-time, so no more running around the office to hunt down anyone.
Their next assigned task is already viewable right there in the software! If, for whatever reason, the work change forms are unclear, IT will notify the manager and the form can easily be updated with detailed and coherent instructions.
Remember, that the IT department are specialists in their field, and have knowledge and programming savvy exclusive from that of most project managers. Upon delivery of a new work change form, suggestions can be sent to the manager without delay and taken into account to modify the work request.
3. Who is doing what and how well?
Using interactive Gantt charts such as those available in Easy Projects keeps managers informed of progress, which is vital for seamless change management. Gantt charts, such as the one seen below, are useful PM tools for tracking progress.
As change is a challenge, some members of your department may acclimate more quickly than others. Managers can monitor who is assigned what IT tasks and how quickly each member is performing.
If, for example, a developer is performing their tasks extra quickly after adopting new procedures, management can take advantage of their exceptional performance in one of two ways:
1. They can be assigned a new series of tasks to be completed ahead of schedule, boosting productivity, if their teammates are on par with project expectations
2. They can be assigned to mentor IT teammates in methods to adapt and successfully complete tasks using the new set of SOPs and protocols, if their teammates are struggling with project expectations
4. Change management from afar
In contrast with the marketing, sales and management departments, the IT department is the most likely to be geographically displaced (read: outsourced) than any other. Using a cloud PM system like Easy Projects not only simplifies communication, but allows for the greatest degree of project performance flexibility.
Whether your project has IT staff that work from home or even in a different time zone, project change and assignments are delegated in real-time, without any delay. Also, whether working from an office or not, no matter what device your team prefers to use (desktop, laptop, tablet, even smartphone...) or has at their disposal, they are able to communicate at any time with any teammate or manager, and handle tasks from any location with an internet connection.
The easier it is to get work done, the easier it is for the IT department to adapt to change and remain reliable and productive.
Easy Projects for your IT change management
Now that you have a basic understanding of how Easy Projects can manage change for your IT department, don’t just take our word for it. Take a look at some of our client case studies on how our software successfully aided IT departments during change. See you next time!
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