What is Change Management? A Case Study

By JourneyHR
29 Oct 2024

In a nutshell, the goal of Change management is to help people and organisations adapt to change smoothly and effectively, minimising resistance and ensuring successful implementation. It supports impactful organisational changes, and could include embedding a new senior leadership team, the departure of a senior role, organisational design, restructuring, implementing new technologies, creating efficiencies or the merging of companies and assets. 

Case Study: 
Our client is an SME with a headcount of 80 employees. The business has experienced rapid, organic growth, with department heads independently expanding their teams over time. While this allowed for flexibility, it also led to unintended consequences – multiple departments ended up with overlapping roles and skillsets. This created inefficiencies, with resources spread thin in some areas while others were underutilised, leading to operational bottlenecks and missed opportunities for streamlined collaboration. The organisation employed JourneyHR to help them create a fit-for-future structure and implement the change.  

Implementation
JourneyHR supported by conducting a comprehensive talent mapping of the team, allowing us to identify high performers and key value-add individuals. Additionally, we assessed critical loss and flight risks to gain a thorough understanding of the employee landscape, ensuring we were well-informed before making any proposals. 

After completing the talent mapping, we conducted an in-depth analysis with the financial lead, focusing on resourcing challenges, capacity, and team profitability. This process helped us identify utilisation gaps and allowed us to begin designing a more efficient organisational structure. A final review of talent mapping and succession plans enabled us to propose a future-ready organisational design for the CEO’s review.  

Following approval, we initiated a consultation period in compliance with legal requirements, aiming to reduce the overall employee headcount by approximately 20%.  

Outcomes 
The redundancy process was executed efficiently, with impacted individuals exiting the company within a 30-day timeframe.

During the consultation we received 2 Data Subject Access Requests, and one individual progressed to pre-tribunal conciliation and was successfully settled with. The remainder of the affected employees exited with no further escalation and at minimal cost.  

After the consultation period, all remaining employees were reassigned to new roles and responsibilities where necessary. Clear and consistent communication was prioritised to ensure employees felt secure in their positions, minimising the risk of additional voluntary turnover. A coaching-led approach was implemented over a series of company meetings to re-engage employees and help them fully understand the new structure, organisational chart, and the company’s mission for the upcoming year. This approach fostered alignment, supported wellbeing,  and strengthened commitment across the team. We have since implemented a plan for realigned career pathways and training to foster a future focussed mindset.  

The business has had one voluntary leaver since implementation which is a minimal loss. Our client is very pleased with the new organisational design, reporting back maximised operational efficiencies and ways of working.  

Testimonial
 “Journey HR’s approach to understanding and addressing the unique challenges of my industry has been instrumental. Their personalised service and deep industry insights have enabled us to build a stronger, more cohesive team, fostering an environment where creativity and collaboration thrive. Working with Journey HR, we’ve not only achieved our immediate HR objectives but have also laid a solid foundation for sustainable growth and success. Their team’s professionalism, responsiveness, and genuine commitment to our wellbeing have made them an invaluable partner in our journey.” CEO of Client X.  
  
 

BusinessClient servicesGrowthHuman BehaviourIndustryStrategyTalent

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