Change Impact Assessment

Description

A Change Impact Assessment is used to understand the impacts that change will have on groups of people, and what needs to happen for the change to be deemed successful. It is the starting point for a number of change management activities such as stakeholder management, leadership engagement, communications and engagement planning, resistance management, training need analysis, operating model planning, benefits realisation and readiness activities. Good practice is to revisit this assessment at different project stages as more information about the change becomes available. The key stages are often post-shaping (RIBA Stage 4) and during detailed operational design (RIBA Stage 5/6).

Process

This process is to be completed by the Change Manager. Working with the Business Analyst, responsible for the design of new processes or the Project Managers and SME's. General process steps are outlined below:

  • Understand the change - review project documentation provided
  • Identify impacted stakeholder groups
  • Assess the current state
  • Define future state
  • Analyse the impacts across defined categories
  • Validate with stakeholders
  • Prioritise and categorise impacts according to defined criteria
  • Consider how change intervention to support the delivery of that change impact and mitigate any risks (see template below)
  • Review and refresh 

Activity this Assessment will Inform

  • Learning needs analysis
  • Change intervention planning
  • Change and engagement plans
  • Communications plan
  • Project intervention timings and risks/issues/business considerations
  • Future subject matter expoert support requirements
  • Go/No-Go decisions and timings
  • Benefit realisation measures and timings
  • High-level process assessment

Key Inputs

The Initiative Summary and/or Business Case should outline the following:

  • The vision and the overarching scope/goals for the change
  • The outcomes and benefits the changes will deliver
  • Timelines and budget
  • Key risks to the change happening
  • A high-level overview of the current and future states (potentially from a high-level impact assessment, refine as the future state becomes more defined)
  • Stakeholder plans and assessments to identify key internal and external stakeholders who are impacted

Engagement

An initial high-level review of the assessment should be undertaken by the Change Manager, with the Transformation Project Manager, Capital Project Manager and Project Team. This should be validated with representatives from impacted teams or capability areas and any other colleagues that can aid the discussion e.g. a member from the People Team if changes to job roles are expected. 

Forms and Links

  • TR02 Change Impact Assessment Template:

Approvals and Compliance Review

The Change Impact Assessment should be reviewed and tested with the appropriate stakeholder groups and then approved by the Project Board and business representatives (subject matter experts representing each area impacted by the change). The outputs listed above will form part of the change plan to be included in the overall project plan, approved at each RIBA stage.

Repeated Subsequent RIBA Stages

Good practice is to revisit at different project stages as more information about the change becomes available. The key stages are often post-shaping (RIBA Stage 4) and during detailed operational design (RIBA Stages 5/6).