Organizational change management (OCM) resources provide guidance for the launch of a multibillion-dollar retailer’s new omnichannel program.
Opportunity
A fast-growing U.S. retail chain wants to provide a more uniform online experience and in its hundreds of stores by introducing a new website and other innovations that require support through employee behavioral changes. The company has a culture of independence at each location, resistance to change, and widespread introduction of system workarounds.
Imagining IT Differently
The OCM team conducted a series of activities to familiarize thousands of the retailer’s employees with the coming changes and prepare them. This included executive-alignment sessions, change risk assessments, foundational education, a comprehensive training strategy, communications, and enablement of the client’s own new change management program. Additional work continues in this multiphase project.
Future Made Possible
- Business processes and change impacts were documented and vetted in advance of the launch.
- The client rolled out its new website for a better customer experience and anticipated increased profits in the United States.
- Employees at the chain’s hundreds of stores were prepared for the heavy change volume, including new types of consumer interactions that fit with the omnichannel program.
- Consultants advised the company in setting up its own new OCM department to oversee future change-management projects.
