The word ‘change’ is not generally one that us Project Managers love. Change generally results in more work, more administration, and in many cases, more stress. And the further a project progresses, the bigger the impact a change tends to have on a project and project progress. In fact, if it were up to me & many of my on the ground Project Management colleagues, we would probably try our best to ban change from happening after concept design has been fixed!
Unfortunately though, that is not the world that we live in. Pretty much all projects involve at least a handful of changes that require careful management and administration by the team. And in the current slightly volatile market change tends to be unavoidable.
The reasons for change can be multiple. A Client or Stakeholder can simply change their mind. A new team member with new ideas and experience can be the cause of change occurring. Alterations in policy and legislation can force a change to happen. And changes can arise through discovery items as a project progresses, or by things simply not meeting the base assumptions the team have made.
Change can also be good. The issues that we face today mean that the world is changing rapidly. To keep up with latest developments in sustainability and technology on a global scale, our projects have to be open to a certain level of change. Change can mean innovation, the adaptation of better systems, or improvements to a team. Change can result in time and money being saved, processes being simplified and quality improved. And of course, these things are good for our projects, good for end users and ultimately good for society as a whole.
Another important factor, particularly in the world of construction, is that many of our projects are relatively long term. They can take months, years, or decades to design & construct. Therefore they have to be open to change. For example, to social, political and economic landscapes that we may not be able to predict at the outset of a project. Change can be both necessary and good for our projects.
As Project Managers, we are often at the centre of change. Ok, we may not be the change initiators, but we are often the ones that run the change control processes and administer changes under contracts and legal agreements. As Project Manager, we are instrumental in making the process of change harder or easier.
So how can you make managing change on your projects easier?
- Understanding the starting point. The first part of being able to manage change is being able to identify if something is a change in the first place. This requires a thorough understanding of what the starting point of a project was. Sometimes design development, or detailing can be mistaken as change where actually it is just the natural evolution of project progress. Take time to understand where a project started so when a change is requested you can establish whether it is in fact a change or not.
- Establish a robust change control process. Take time to think through what needs to happen when a change occurs. Think the process through from change request to that change being implemented (or rejected) and establish what needs to happen at each stage. Then, capture this process in an easy to understand flow diagram or document so that it can be easily communicated to your team.
- Get buy in from your team. Once you have mapped out the process, make sure you take the time to ensure your team understands and complies with the process. Consider adding it as an agenda item to a meeting where you can iron out any questions from the team. Make things easy for them by providing centrally accessible templates so there can be no excuse for them doing it wrong. And if a member of your team does not comply with the process, politely remind them of what they need to do. Don’t be tempted to step in as a one off and complete the task for them (unless completely necessary). The key here is to make sure that everyone understands and take responsibility for their role in the change process.
- Understand levels of delegated responsibility. In the construction industry, most change require Client approval prior to instruction. But in some cases, Clients can delegate authority so that you as a Project Manager can instruct a change under certain conditions. On a previous project for example, the PM team were empowered to make changes up to a cumulative value of £10,000 provided there was no impact on programme. At the other end of the spectrum, some larger changes may require additional levels of approval, for example from a board of stakeholders or trustees. These can take longer to sign off, so as PM it is important to establish the different levels of approvals so you can programme them in.
- Act on change quickly. As a general rule of thumb, the longer you wait to implicate a change, the greater the implications can be. Make sure that when changes are raised you act on them quickly and encourage relevant team members to do the same. Trust me, keeping quiet about a potential change, or sweeping it under the carpet never works out. Plus burying or avoiding necessary change can end up causing unnecessary stress, anxiety and nasty surprises for the team which can damage motivation, performance, morale and wellbeing.
Every project encounters change and change can be a good thing. As Project Managers we are at the heart of managing these changes. Make sure you follow the steps above to make managing change easier for your, your team and your Clients.