RTM Consulting. Change Management. Key to Avoiding a Failed Knowledge Management Implementation. Randy Mysliviec CEO

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1 RTM Consulting Change Management Key to Avoiding a Failed Knowledge Management Implementation Randy Mysliviec CEO

2 RTM Consulting All rights reserved. Change Management Key to Avoiding a Failed Knowledge Management (KM) Implementation Introduction As the competition is increasing every day, organizations are having a difficult time maintaining and exceeding their customer satisfaction goals. Happy customers always help organizations with repeat business, extending contracts and spreading word of mouth in the industry thus providing organizations with leads to get new contracts/customers. In order to ensure the very best in customer satisfaction, organizations are moving to Knowledge Management to help them in leveraging the organizational IP gained over a period of time by working closely with various customers and in different industry domains. So what is Knowledge Management? Knowledge is information in context coupled with an understanding of how to use it Davenport & Prusak Knowledge Management is a concept and a practice to identify, capture, share, reuse and innovate by effectively utilizing organizational experiences and insights. As organizations started realizing that Knowledge Management is becoming a key component in the overall strategy to stay competitive, many organizations tried to implement Knowledge Management with mixed results or failure. In an earlier white paper I wrote that companies who fail at KM do so for one of two reasons. Reason #1 Companies build grand KM strategies and subsequently try to tackle too much at once. o KM solutions are far from simple to build and implement, but too many companies make the process far too complex while also failing to take an incremental approach to the problem. The practicality of the solution then receives organizational scrutiny eventually leading to its demise. Reason #2 They focus on technology vs. a process, when in fact one without the other will not work. o No question about it, KM can be very process intensive, but the process can/should be designed in such a manner that the workflows are more natural for the organization. A good KM tool(s) is also necessary to enable a good process. In this paper I focus on the situations where companies failed when approaching Knowledge Management as a technology implementation. Technology is just an enabler in a Knowledge

3 RTM Consulting 3 Management solution, the key element is people. And to implement a successful Knowledge Management solution, organizations need to address people s needs, concerns and fears. This leads us to a discussion regarding Change Management. Any Knowledge Management solution which does not have a strong Change Management strategy is doomed to failure. So, Change Management must be a key component of your Knowledge Management strategy. Knowledge Management is all about transforming an organization s perspective about knowledge and how to leverage organizational IP. What is Change Management? Change: Make or become different (verb) and the act of making or becoming different (noun) Change is all about people. People, being social creatures driven by beliefs and behaviors, are often resistant to adopt new practices and behaviors. To have transformational change, organizations should embed the desired beliefs and behaviors at every level. Change is not predictable and does not follow a set pattern making it difficult to manage for many organizations. It can originate from different sources internal, external and environmental. How organizations respond to change can make the difference between surviving and thriving in the business environment. A well-managed change will have a positive impact on the organization. In today s business environment change is inevitable. An organizational change can be in many shapes/forms. Here is a list of possible categories for organizational change(s): 1. Strategic changes 2. Structural changes 3. Technological changes 4. Operational changes Change Management is a strategy or an approach to transition an organization from a current state to a desired future state to meet their changing business needs. It is not the strongest species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the ones who are most responsive to the change. Charles Darwin

4 RTM Consulting 4 Organization Team Individual Why Change Management is critical for Knowledge Management? Some organizational changes may involve one or two of the above mentioned change categories. Knowledge Management includes all four categories described earlier and that is why it is very important to have a comprehensive strategy for Change Management when implementing a Knowledge Management solution. Lack of a strong Change Management strategy is one of the top five reasons for having a failed Knowledge Management implementation. Knowledge is held by individuals. Individuals form organizations. So, for an organization to change individuals who are part of the organization, the focus should be on the need for behavioral change. An effective Change Management strategy should address the individuals behavioral aspects to motivate them to adopt change for the better tomorrow. Over the years individuals and organizations have imbibed the idea of, Knowledge is Power. The more you hoard makes you the most valuable person in an organization. This perception needs to be changed to, Knowledge sharing is Power. The more you share others will reciprocate that and collectively as an organization you know more.

5 RTM Consulting 5 If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples, then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas. George Bernard Shaw Strategy for Approaching Change Management Most of the change initiatives fail because change is considered in isolation. 60% of change initiatives did not meet their objectives. Survey done by IBM Here is the approach for implementing a successful change initiative: 1. Assessment a. Conduct an assessment to understand the need for change and the opportunity it brings to the organization b. Understand the organization culture 2. Strategy a. Create a Change Management strategy and vision by answering some of the important questions about change: i. What do we need to achieve? ii. How we need to initiate change? iii. When do we need to begin the change process? iv. Who will be impacted by change? b. Define clear roles for people participating in the Change Management initiative 3. Build a. Create a Change Management plan involving all the key stakeholders and people who will be impacted by the change b. Develop a communication plan which provides the details about the communication channels, frequency of communication, reports etc. 4. Implement a. Implement the change based on the strategy and Change Management plan defined in earlier phases b. Keep all the stakeholders and resources focused on the vision c. Monitor the progress d. Keep the feedback channel open to learn about resistance (if any) 5. Evolve a. Review results and learning s to make necessary adjustments b. Embed the change into the organization culture Any organizational change will either have a Positive Change Cycle or The Grief Cycle depending on the organizational culture and the change strategy the organization adopts.

6 RTM Consulting 6 If people are looking at change as an opportunity to get better and it has the right strategy to address the change requirements, then the organization will experience a Positive Change Cycle. Source: changingminds.org On the other hand if people in the organization resist change and think of it as a threat, then the organization goes through the Grief Cycle. Source: changingminds.org In order to avoid going through the Grief Cycle or making the change less painful, organizations need to have Change Management best practices to guide them through the change process successfully.

7 RTM Consulting 7 Change Management Best Practices Best Practice 1: Build a Case for Change Management Creating a strong compelling case for Change Management is the first step to have a successful change implementation. The case for Change Management should be made to include all stakeholders who will be impacted by the change. Understanding their concerns and what they care about and addressing them rationally and emotionally will reduce resistance to change. Involve the very same stakeholders who will be affected by the change in building a case for change and encourage people who are not participating to share their ideas. Best Practice 2: Leadership and Stakeholders Commitment In times of change employees look towards leadership to guide them through the process. It is important for top management to believe in change and walk the talk, thus building trust and guidance. Leadership should communicate the change vision to people early in the stage and have an open door policy to hear ideas/feedback from employees. Leadership should create a steering committee comprised of representatives from all levels of the organization that will be impacted by the change and involve them in the planning and implementation of change. Leadership should coach, motivate and support people throughout the change process to gain commitment. Best Practice 3: Communication Communication is an important component in having effective Change Management. Develop a detailed Communication Plan which identifies people who need to be informed, communications channels that will be used and the frequency of communications. Leadership and people leading the change process should ensure they communicate the 4 P s defined by William Bridges and Susan Mitchell Bridges: The purpose: Why we have to do this. The picture: What it will look and feel like when we reach our goal. The plan: Step-by-step, how we will get there. The part: What you can (and need to) do to help us move forward.

8 RTM Consulting 8 All communications should be consistent in the message that is being delivered. It should be two way communication allowing employees to discuss, clarify and share ideas. Best Practice 4: Time Change process is a complex component. Organizations should not roll out change during busy times of the year or when people participating in the change are under abnormal levels of organizational pressure. Also, since change process revolves around people and organizations, companies should understand that beliefs and behaviors need adequate time and space to change. Underestimating the time for change process could be a trigger for failure. Best Practice 5: Deploy Change Champions/Agents A change champion/agent may be defined as the person responsible for moving others who are affected by the change through its different stages. The change champion should be a member of the leadership team whom people regard as an opinion leader. The change champion should be a good listener and one who understands the emotional aspects of people who will be impacted by change. He/she should be able to clearly articulate the case for change and answer all the questions raised by people during the change process to keep them focused and committed. Knowledge Management Case Study The client is a global IT Services organization providing solutions to Fortune 100 organizations. Consultants are spread out globally, working with their customers implementing complex solutions. The organization previously tried implementing a Knowledge Management solution and failed in their first attempt. RTM Consulting (RTMC) was engaged after the KM project failure to assist them in implementing Knowledge Management. RTMC first did an assessment of the current organizational knowledge assets and the culture and found that the organizational environment was not very conducive to collaboration and knowledge sharing. RTMC came up with a Change Management strategy to address the cultural and behavioral aspects. The new Change Management strategy has: Involved employees in the design of the change strategy which helped them to be more receptive to change Identified Opinion Leaders and Influencers from the group to represent and communicate about KM and the change needed

9 RTM Consulting 9 Defined rewards & recognition programs to encourage employees to participate in the KM initiative Adopted a Pull & Push strategy Conducted Cross Functional Teamwork sessions to explain how each team can leverage other teams experience & expertise Communicated through K-Talks, KM Newsletters about the change Conclusion Change Management is key to avoiding a failed knowledge management implementation. Most organizations approach Change Management as a project based on rational thinking and forget about the emotional aspect of people involved in the change process. Any change process is faced with some resistance. Understanding, identifying and addressing resistance takes time and effort. By utilizing people with the right skills, having the support and commitment of leadership and taking into account the human emotions involved (beliefs, behaviors, feelings etc.), resistance can be handled adequately, leading to a smooth transition and successful change implementation.

10 RTM Consulting 10 About RTM Consulting and the Author Cincinnati-based RTM Consulting provides strategic and operational advisory services to technology companies and other industries to assist them in increasing revenues and growing margins by leveraging consulting, professional and support services more effectively. Specializing in Global Resource Management, Project/Portfolio and Knowledge Management, and Services Business Optimization, RTM Consulting helps IT hardware, software and pure consulting companies achieve the benefits associated with successful services portfolios. With its unique Just-in-Time Resourcing solution and Business Acceleration Services, RTM Consulting helps large, medium and small firms move beyond theory to practical application of industry best practices and achievement of exceptional results in the shortest possible period of time. Randy Mysliviec leads RTM Consulting, providing high impact advisory services for technology companies professional and consulting service businesses. Acknowledged by industry sources as an expert in Global Resource Management (GRM) and author of the Just-in-Time Resourcing brand of solutions, Randy helps multi-national companies with the complex challenge of operating professional services teams serving the global market. He is a founding member of the Technology Professional Services Association (TPSA now TSIA - the Technology Services Industry Association) and served as a member of the TPSA Advisory Board All rights reserved.

11 RTM Consulting The Challenge Technology service providers and other human capital intensive service organizations including hardware, software and consulting companies, internal shared service organizations and outsourcing entities all know that efficient management of human capital, project processes, and other service delivery and go-to-market related processes are key to market success. Today s challenging business environment makes running a services business highly dependent upon having lean and proven business and operational processes designed for peak performance. The Solution Our unique combination of decades of services and outsourcing operational experience coupled with solutions targeted to the services organization allow us to work with large, medium and small firms to move beyond theory to practical application of industry best practices and achievement of exceptional results in the shortest possible period of time. Contact Us: (855.RTMC555) info@rtmconsulting.net Who We Are RTM Consulting provides strategic and operational advisory services to technology companies and other industries to assist them in increasing revenues and growing margins by leveraging consulting, professional and support services more effectively. What We Do Strategic Planning Services - We use our extensive leadership experience to help services organizations build the right strategy and operational model to make value creation a reality. Resource Management - We help you focus on Getting the Right Person in the Right Place at the Right Time with our Just-in-Time Resourcing (JITR) solution. Project and Portfolio Management Our unique PMO/PM frameworks will help your organization efficiently run projects on-time, on-budget, with consistently excellent quality. Services Business Optimization - Our skilled practitioners help you identify and implement best practices necessary to transform your services business into the most efficient and effective operation possible. Skills Development/Training - We enhance the soft skills of your consulting and professional services personnel to complement your product, business and technical knowledge. We also offer training in project management, resource management and other services based disciplines. PSA/PPM Consulting - We provide an objective third party assessment and assistance in choosing the right automation solution for your needs and assist you with implementation to achieve the benefits of your investment. Outsourcing Advisory Services - We assist both providers and consumers of outsourcing services with Strategic Sourcing Consulting, Resource Management Strategies, Business Optimization, Skills Development and Training, and Resource Management/Project Management Automation. Value Realization Services - Our unique Value Realization Framework enables you to help your clients close the technology consumption gap by accelerating adoption of your products full range of features and functions. How We Do It Company Capabilities Overview Our mission is to help consulting, professional and support services organizations get better at what they do Our highly disciplined management consulting and operational services include: Rapid Diagnostics to identify opportunities to improve business performance. Implementation Services to make solution implementation fast and effective. Business Planning Services to turn your vision into a realistic operating plan. Business Acceleration Services to accelerate your time to value with RTMC solutions. Copyright All Rights Reserved.