Last month, I began the two-part series on managing change to improve your edge.
This month focuses on how the project management process can be applied to managing change in the benefits selling arena.
Many brokerage firms use systems to track and organize major changes. As an example, such a change might include when a benefit brokerage that had focused on core medical products decides to add a voluntary benefit practice. This addition to the firm's offerings may be required in order to compete better. Use of a systematic project management approach is valuable in keeping the project on track and helping you to:
- Make sure change is well defined.
- List the steps in the process and the order in which they must be done.
- Identify resources necessary to enact change in each step.
- Create a realistic timetable.
- Schedule staff communication and training.
- Draw-up a cost-benefit analysis.
- Devise a plan to gauge results, particularly if addressing a big change.
The follow-up process deserves special mention, because it is not enough to simply budget the costs and forecast the gains. You need to measure the success of your steps.
Finally, change management requires communication. The communications and training elements of project management can offer a framework to avoid losing sight of the human element, i.e. yourself and your staff. It's vital that you openly communicate the reasons for a change and its expected payoff. All involved personnel should both understand and buy into the value of the change. Otherwise, management may follow what seems like a well-planned course, only to have a project fail because the people involved were not committed to it.
Avoid this pitfall by communicating the change at each stage of the project:
- During the Planning Stage, let your staff know what change is being considered and why.
- During the Development Stage, keep staff up-to-date on the project's progress, what exactly is being done and why, and how they might help.
- During the Implementation Stage, inform your staff as to what's being introduced, when and how. Tell them what they need to say to clients, vendors and prospective customers to position the change in the best possible light.
This process not only helps staff members "buy-in" to the change, it also gives management a reading on their own commitment to the project as they see it through the eyes of others. Keep the project open for improvement, as staff may identify an overlooked step or opportunity.
Keep three things in mind as you manage change: accept the risk of failure, organize the project systematically and constantly communicate with your staff and customers. Change is complex, but it has only one of two outcomes: success or failure. By proper change planning and management, you can maximize success probabilities and minimize the risk of failure.
