Client case
The importance of trust
Problem
A new way of working for sales and professional services was introduced at an international software company. The aims were to make customer implementations more consistent, faster and cheaper, as well as improve the quality of the services provided. Sweden, with 900 fte in professional services, was the first country to be tackled. At the start of the project it was unclear to what extent the target group would be willing and able to change. Therefore the likeliness of the project being successful was uncertain.
Arie and Juul carried out this project together. They both have the required knowledge and experience concerning change management, and they complement each other well. While Arie focused on getting and keeping all stakeholders on board, at the different levels of the organisation, Juul was able to focus on practical implementation and data collection. Together they carried out analyses, devised a change plan and presented their findings.
Approach
We started with a proper introduction to the local project team and management team, followed by a series of interviews with employees throughout the organisation. We conducted a survey to gain insight into the pre-existing knowledge regarding the change, support for the change and the ability to implement it. The results of this survey were shared and processed in an interactive workshop on change management for all managers (in small, multidisciplinary groups). Afterwards, we collected all information and wrote a change plan consisting of five sub-projects: leadership, organisational design, communication, workforce transition, and continuous improvement. This was all done in close collaboration with the local project leader, whom we also coached during the project.
Results
In around two months, a workable change plan was drawn up so the local project team could implement the new way of working. Managers were aware of their role and responsibilities in the process. Employees understood the need for change and were assisted in obtaining the required competences. The change strategy and lessons learned served as a blueprint for the other countries that followed after Sweden.
Decisive factors during this project
In this project, it was essential that we first gained the trust of the local project team and the local management team, by means of an extensive introduction and allowing the local teams’ explicit input in every step of the process. In addition, the initial survey provided very useful information about the required knowledge, skills and commitment to make the change.