When a company undergoes significant change it can be disruptive to the workforce. Whether it involves implementing new software, implementing new processes or getting employees fully behind a new executive team, productivity can be compromised when a company is dealing with a significant change. For companies to efficiently and positively manage a change, it is good practice to engage a change management specialist to oversee the change process and manage it in a holistic way.
Change managers recruitment is thus of vital importance so that a company gets the right person for the job. A change manager will play a key role in ensuring change initiatives are implemented so that they achieve their objectives on time and on budget. They will ensure that employees adopt the changes and use the new systems required to complete the change process. This can include changes to business processes, technology systems, employee roles and organizational structures.
The primary responsibility of a change manager is in creating and implementing change plans to maximize employee adoption and minimize any resistance. They will also seek to achieve faster adoption, higher use of, and proficiency with, the changed processes that impact employees. The goal is to increase the benefits to the company, create value, achieve a positive return on investment and to guarantee a successful outcome.
A Change managers recruitment will often have supervisory responsibility but they also be able to work with others at all levels of the organization to succeed. They will often act in an advisory capacity for senior executives to help them perform their role as change sponsor. They may also be required to provide direct support to all levels of management and supervisory roles in order to smooth the change transition.
The change manager has the following responsibilities:
• Use a structured methodology to perform change management activities.
• Apply a change management process and create a strategy to achieve employee adoption of the changes.
• Support the design, development, management and delivery of communications related to changes being made.
• Provide a change impact report.
• Conduct impact analyses, assess change readiness and identify key stakeholders.
• Support training efforts
When companies are recruiting to find a change manager they need to take a careful, detailed and considered approach to locate the right candidate. Change can be frightening for employees and sometimes for management too. Because the change management role will make a long-lasting impact on the company’s employees, culture and productivity, it vital that the recruitment process finds an individual with the exact hard and soft skills to drive a successful change process.
