One of the first things discussed when anyone looks at a new project or purchases a new piece of tech is ‘What will the ROI (Return on Investment) be? We look at the direct cost of the hardware, engineering costs, disruption to production, cost of borrowing, etc. However, little consideration is given to the way people will respond to changing the way they do their job or how they engage with new tech, this has been referred to as the “adoption contribution” of the project—the percentage of project benefits that directly depends on people changing their day-to-day work. For important projects, the adoption contribution can be as much as 80% of the ROI.
The sustainability drive within a business has been mainly focused on the integration of new technology and new ways of working, however, much less attention has been given to the ‘soft skills’ required of facilitating the change process that is nessasery for the successful adoption of these new ideas and methodologies.
It is therefore essential that Change management is given both the time and the resources required before the project and afterwards. Applying change management prepares, equips and supports people, so they can successfully change how they do their jobs or engage with the new tech. This enables you to capture the adoption contribution and people-dependent portion of the project’s return on investment (ROI).
Change management address the different impacts on people and teams
Sustainability projects and initiatives can have a significant impact on the way individual people do their work on a day-to-day basis. Change can impact processes, systems, tools, job roles, workflows, mindsets, behaviours and more. And each change impacts differently.
The proof is in the data. Prosci’s Best practices in Change Management research consistently shows that initiatives with excellent change management are six times more likely to meet objectives than those with poor change management.
By providing a conduit between the hard skills required with the technical engineering solution and the people-centred soft skills we increase the success of achieving sustainability
The heart and mind often need bringing together. Connecting people from all departments in an organisation and outsourced specialists in a meaningful and empathetic way brings understanding, collaboration and a real Return on investment not just for the business but for the planet too.