A Change Management Plan is a strategic tool used to plan, implement, and monitor changes in a project. From small, relatively easy adjustments in a task timeline to large, complex changes in a project’s scope or budget – you can use this tool to initiate, record, assess, approve and resolve any project change.
Whether you are adapting to market fluctuations, budget overruns or increased employee turnover – change is an expected part of every project’s lifecycle. But when executed right, a change management plan will help you minimize any negative impacts of change on stakeholders and employees, while reducing the risk of delays and failures that can set your project back.
Our template is free, editable and easy-to-use (if you know your way around some basic Excel). It is designed to record any change in the project, keep a log, and track it till it is resolved. We assign a unique identifier to each change (Change ID) for trackability. We then identify the specific actions needed to ‘resolve’ the change before spotlighting the specific area or domain of the project it affects.
We also give you a simple Yes or No option to decide if an individual change requires an ‘escalation process’. In the next two columns, we specify dates when a change was first noticed, and when it was resolved, in order to create a chronological record of all project changes and their impact on a project’s teams, processes and systems from start to finish.
Now, let’s explore our Change Management Plan in more detail:
Project Overview
Right at the top of our template, we identify and describe the project as a whole, including its name and version (in the case of periodically extended projects).
We also identify the project lead (usually the Project Manager) who oversees the planning, procurement, and execution of a project, and has a key role in informing stakeholders of any changes or adjustments needed in a project.
Change ID
Here, we assign each change a unique ID to easily track changes when scanning project documentation. A Change ID helps you avoid confusion later on when, say, if you want to assess the impact of different changes on a project’s scope, schedule, budget, or resources. While you can always use running numbers like 1, 2, 3, etc., you can also use a more advanced numbering logic to identify changes requested over a project’s life cycle.
Action
This is the most action-oriented part of our template, where you develop a written sequence of specific, concrete steps needed to minimize the impact of a change. This may be making structural changes, reallocating resources, and introducing new policies or procedures in light of potential risks and disruptions.
For the best results, you are encouraged to use this in tandem with our Risk Register template, which allows you to identify mitigation strategies to preemptively tackle any potential risks or hazards associated with a project.
Area of Change
In this column, you identify a specific area, domain or phase of a project which is likely to be affected by the change in question.
This requires you to conduct a change impact assessment, in other words, how a change will impact the teams, tasks, tools, processes, technologies, and systems part of a project. Ideally, the impact you aim to assess should be quantifiable so it can be measured and benchmarked – however, this may not always be possible. For example, if you are looking at cultural change in an organization employing individuals from diverse backgrounds, it may be difficult to measure impact – as levels of personal tolerance and bias are subjective, attitudinal, and not easy to measure.
Date Begun & Date Resolved
We start by entering the exact date when the process is initiated. This is usually the date when a particular request for change (‘RFC’) is submitted by a member of the project team. It is generally best practice to submit a formal request for change as soon as it is clear that modifying a part or aspect of the project is necessary for the successful execution and development of the overall project.
Unlike the previous column, where you specify the date a change request is first submitted, in this column, you will specify the date when a change is resolved or a corrective action is successfully implemented by the relevant team or team member.
By and large, knowing when all project changes were first noticed, and subsequently tackled, helps establish a chronological order of changes, providing a reference point and knowledge-base for tracking & analyzing the progress of a project over time.
Escalation
Now, imagine each member of your project team submits a separate request for change in their respective domain. How do you know which changes to take up with stakeholders and which ones to resolve within the team?
In other words, this is where you need to make a decision to ‘escalate’ or not. Escalation is a special procedure used by project managers to alert stakeholders about any issues within a project, allowing a team to swiftly address potential risks.
In our template, you simply decide whether a change requires escalation or not. Of course, this will depend on a contextualized understanding of the change and the project’s overall scope, schedule, budget, and timeline. But if you do decide to escalate, this is what you need to do:
- Step 1: Identify the Issue
- Step 2: Assign Responsibility
- Step 3: Find a Solution
- Step 4: Gather Evidence of the Issue and Impact of Change
- Step 5: Present the Issue to Appropriate Authority
Most project managers only escalate when faced with crucial company decisions beyond their authority that are also likely to result in a significant disruption of normal project operations and workflow.
Who Is This Template For?
- Project managers
- Team members
- Stakeholders
- Quality assurance teams
- Technical writers
Wrap Up
By capturing the key details of each change, say, what was modified, why the change was necessary, when it was implemented, and who authorized it – a change management plan serves as a historical record that helps managers & stakeholders track changes and understand their impacts on a project or product.
Our editable Change Management Plan template can be instantly downloaded in .xlsx, .xltx, and .ods formats.
