We are now part of Eviden, discover more...

The Evolution of Change Management: From the Pandemic Into The Future of Work

Change is hard, especially in recent years. Enterprises have experienced how abrupt change can be — the last two years have caused sudden disruption, to say the least. Rapid pandemic-driven change exposed a global lack of preparation. And although the stage was already set to veer virtually before early 2020, many organizations are struggling to adapt to new ways of working. Yet, at the same time, companies that championed change by establishing an effective Google Workspace change management program are reaping the rewards of unmatched collaboration and a cloud-forward culture.

The Evolution of Change Management: From the Pandemic Into The Future of Work

While change management has always been a driving force behind successful cloud transformation, it looks quite different these days. Between the pandemic and improved avenues of communication, change management has evolved for the better. Enterprises are using lessons learned from COVID to better enable collaboration and equip their employees with the tools, training, and support they need to embrace change regardless of their physical location.

As leaders in cloud transformation, Maven Wave has also had to adapt the way we develop and deliver change management programs. And while no two change management roadmaps are the same, the future of work has driven new hybrid approaches that are here to stay.

Let’s dive into some of the lasting changes our team is seeing as a result and top trends around hybrid work change management powered by Google Workspace.

People-Focused Change Management and Data-Driven Change 

Change management has always revolved around a company’s biggest asset: its people. But what does that look like today? At a high level, change management will always be people-oriented, but today, the integration of data enables effective change for even the most complex transformations. By using data, our team can help build personas and create custom training and adoption tracks to maximize success depending on a user’s needs. Data-driven insights also provide a deeper understanding of user behaviors and the overall effectiveness of performance. Moreover, data is delivering profitability results and highlighting the ROI of a transformation.

While challenges remain when it comes to getting remote workers to accept and use new collaboration tools, Google Workspace has a clear advantage: most people already use Gmail and Google Workspace apps in their personal lives. In fact, over 2 billion people worldwide use and trust Google Workspace today, so getting buy-in across the organization at the earliest stage is easier than ever. 

New Change Management Communication Channels 

How an organization communicates change can make or break the project. Before the pandemic, change management discussions were happening in boardrooms and conference rooms and by the water cooler. These methods are no longer effective. Change managers aren’t flying all over the world as they did before to deliver training sessions and on-site support. In some circumstances, in-person change management and delivery programs are necessary, but they’ve evolved into more of an on-demand, hybrid approach.

Today, change managers communicate through innovative, virtual engagement channels such as internal podcasts, webinars, videos, and digital assets (including newsletters and company-wide hubs supported by Google Sites). Blogs have also become increasingly popular as a unique way to communicate internal change. Google Workspace is also a big fan of communicating via blogs as a way to relay changes and updates across its feature set. Teams are celebrating success and change management milestones via Google Meet nowadays — which has hosted over 235 million daily meeting participants and 7.5 billion daily video call minutes in Q3 of 2020 alone — and using Forms to survey colleagues. 

Industry-Specific Change Management 

As we mentioned earlier, no two change management programs are the same, especially when it comes to industry-specific needs and challenges. A change management roadmap for healthcare organizations will look different than one designed for financial services. Not to mention the critical security and compliance requirements these industries require. With security at the top of everyone’s mind when it comes to cloud transformation and dispersed collaboration, Google Workspace is designed to deliver the highest level of security features, from change management to deployment and beyond. To learn more about Google Cloud’s dedication to security, check out the Google Workspace security white paper here.

From kiosks on manufacturing floors to on-demand training sessions on pre-configured Chromebooks for frontline workers (where every second counts), transformation is happening at an exponential rate. Not only did the pandemic empower new ways of working, but it also inspired more efficient methods of delivering critical industries with the resources they need to rapidly meet new challenges.  

A Look Ahead: The Change in Change Management 

As enterprises continue to move through this hybrid world’s new version of working, innovative ways to deliver change will have to keep developing. The shift in change management will need to continue to keep pace with the times and the rapid growth of new technologies. Innovation is key to developing even more effective ways to reach the next generation of the workforce.

With innovation at the core of Google Workspace and Maven Wave’s team, organizations can reach their change management goals while ensuring their teams are well prepared for the future and beyond.

Is your organization ready for the change? Find out by taking the Google Workspace Future of Work Assessment here

Take the Assessment
November 23rd, 2021
ENTERPRISE COLLABORATION

Get the latest industry news and insights delivered straight to your inbox.

Sign up for our Newsletter
2021-11-23T13:23:53-06:00