Change management or Project Management.

While approaching change management, I have encountered companies telling me they are happy only contracting a project manager (PM).

I want to share some of the most common reasons given:

👉 Project management covers change management.

👉 Having two team members will be a waste of time and money.

👉 Seems redundant.

There could be many more reasons given to avoid contracting a change management (CM) specialist.

First, let’s clarify that not all PM’s are certified in change management methodologies. Also, there are separate focuses for PMs and CMs.

√ PMs focus on the technical side of a project: time, cost, scope, design, development and delivery.

√ CMs focus on the people or organizational side of a project: engagement, adoption and usage.

Let’s be real, unless we are setting up a completely automated system, changes are adopted by people. The success of organizational, systems and process changes is determined by the adoption of these by employees. By having a dedicated people-focused resource, companies are better aligned to have changes implemented ahead of schedule and under budget.

If you want to ensure a project is adopted by the users = people, then the people aspect of a project needs to be managed, addressed, engaged with methods beyond the technical know-how.

#changemanagement #change