4.1 Change acceleration implementation
Overview
The objective of this activity is to launch the activities set forth in the change strategy and plan (see Envision the Future, 3.1). A change strategy and plan provide a thoughtful, structured, programmatic approach to delivering the right change tactics to the right people at the right time throughout the course of the cloud transformation. They outline a comprehensive approach to ensure that changes introduced to the organization as a result of the cloud are accepted by leaders, employees, and other stakeholders with minimal disruption and maximum results. They provide a systematic mechanism for adjusting the application of tools, technologies, processes, or skills during a project or initiative. They describe the specific ways in which the organization will address changes in the way it operates its business, technology, supply chain, organizational structure, or project scope. The change strategy provides direction and results in informed decision-making throughout the cloud transformation process.
In the change acceleration implementation activity, the focus of the OCA team is to work closely with all cloud workstreams and stakeholders to implement the elements of that strategy and plan in a programmatic, rhythmic timeline that lasts the life of the program, and accelerates and decelerates with the various milestones over time.
Change can be highly disruptive to an organization and will affect both the cloud transformation and the surrounding environment over time. For example, new leaders might emerge or join, and others might retire or leave. New business transactions such as mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures might take place that cause the cloud transformation to accelerate, pause, or change scope.
The following diagram illustrates how OCA can minimize the gap in perception and productivity during change acceleration.
Best practices
Key best practices for the implementation of change acceleration include the following:
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For each major milestone, describe how the changes will impact the organization and who will be affected. These changes might include data center exits, deployments of new solutions and features, and establishing a Cloud Center of Excellence (CCOE).
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Create a plan for stakeholders to recognize when a change is needed, and how to mitigate impacts to their workforce.
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Follow the defined process or mechanism for implementing, approving, and monitoring changes to make sure that they have the desired effect.
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Regularly review and update both the strategic vision and business case for cloud transformation. This ensures that messaging remains consistent, relevant, and aligned with changing business conditions.
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Interview key leaders who join the organization, and identify impacted stakeholders for all key milestones early in the planning process. Periodically assess their alignment throughout the life of the program.
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Continuously integrate partners who join the broader cloud transformation program team to ensure consistent objectives and key results (OKRs), timelines, and motivations.
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Continuously partner with enabling functions that can prove helpful when they are engaged, and can cause timing and budgetary delays when they're not engaged. For example, these functions might include human resources, training, finance, cross-functional leaders, line of business leaders, and other partners or vendors who are directly or indirectly impacted. Plan to speak to these stakeholders at least quarterly. At the minimum, provide a program update and show them that you value their input. A few action items or insights will typically result that might derail plans if they aren't proactively addressed.
Change acceleration checklist
Creating a change acceleration checklist of activities can be helpful to see if your change strategy and plan (and associated user stories) are comprehensive and robust. The following table provides a list to get you started.
Area |
OCA 6-Point Framework reference |
Actions |
|---|---|---|
Project management |
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Leadership alignment and stakeholder analysis |
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Change impact assessment |
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Risk management and mitigation |
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Sponsor roadmap |
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Change acceleration plan |
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Additional steps
To get started on change acceleration implementation, do the following:
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Review the change strategy and plan in its entirety at key milestones, such as data center exits, migrations, new solutions, business transactions (mergers, acquisitions, divestitures), leadership changes, and at a minimum once per quarter.
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Participate in all weekly status meetings and sprint ceremonies as part of the cloud transformation integrated team.
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Meet with stakeholders regularly as part of their leadership action plans, and update key messages, FAQ, and communications as required, to stay relevant with the current IT and business strategy.
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Manage people-related, cultural, organizational, and political risks by using the risk management and mitigation log. Be careful to document highly sensitive issues separately and share them only with a limited audience on a need-to-know basis.
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Review and update the cloud business case as required, and create new change acceleration activities as necessary to realize the ROI of the cloud.
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Document and share lessons learned with the cloud transformation team and other teams within the company to create a culture of evolution, iteration, and continuous improvement.
The effective implementation of change acceleration is critical for realizing the full value of cloud transformation. By following these steps and best practices, and systematically implementing the change strategy, organizations can minimize disruption, align stakeholders, and accelerate cloud adoption to achieve their desired business outcomes.
