10 Questions to Ask When Starting a New Change Project

I just started an exciting change management project. The goal is to enable a global roll-out of a new cross-functional process. 

The 'what' and the 'why' of the project are clear but the 'how' needs to be defined after internal capabilities--resourcing, skills and culture--are assessed and understood.

The 'discovery' phase of this assignment includes interviews with key stakeholders and a deep-dive review of documents. In addition to learning about the business strategy and how it is being delivered, we need to understand how people work together.

Triangulation, the technique of comparing different data sources to distinguish between facts and fiction, is helpful to create an accurate picture of the organization. This is needed before determining how to position the change and develop the best transition process.

Interviewing is the most effective and interesting part of the discovery process. Asking a set of questions to a diverse group of people will give us the puzzle pieces to assemble the organizational picture. Triangulating the answers will help identify the ones that don't fit.

Here are 10 questions that create a good picture of an organization:

• What does success look like to you about this change?
• What are people struggling with (pain points) without the change?
• How will the organization and operators benefit from the change? 
• What changes were successful in the past? Why?
• What changes failed in the past? Why?
• What should I know about your culture? How so?
• Why might people resist adopting the process?
• How would you roll-out the change?
• How would you get people involved in making the change?
• What last thoughts do you have about making the change?

Questions are powerful tools to gain understanding of how an organization and its people operate. Doing so in a structured way with the right questions will help you help them to change their picture for the better.

Phil