The IET Manufacturing Technical Network is hosting a Webinar on 9th April 2025, titled Manufacturing Technology Adoption. Details and registration information can be found at Manufacturing Technology Adoption
This webinar is designed to help businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), thrive in the rapidly evolving world of manufacturing. Attendees will learn how to develop a winning strategy for adopting the latest manufacturing technologies and gain a competitive edge.
The webinar will cover:
- Discovering the latest technologies transforming manufacturing today
- Understanding the potential benefits and opportunities
- Finding support and resources for smooth technology adoption
- Identifying and developing the critical skills needed for success
As we build up to this event, I wanted to share some thoughts on technology change management that I have previously published on LinkedIn but are no longer available. My thoughts cover both planned and emergent change, and how, in practice, these work together. I would like to than my colleague Ketan Varia for his contribution in respect of different “types” of projects.
Technology Change Management
The Figure, above, presents a schematic illustration of a technology change process. This could represent any IT related implementation and is broken down into 5 steps as follows:
Need for Change:
The starting point for a project is to identify the need for change. This should include agreement across all affected stakeholders of why the change is required, including expected outcomes and, importantly, an understanding of what the organisation will look like once the change is implemented. This understanding will involve process and skill requirements.
Readiness Assessment:
This stage of the project is often overlooked. It involves a detailed analysis of skills (Project and Process) that are available in the organisation both to execute the project and to manage and operate any on-going activity once the changes have been implemented. This assessment should include an understanding of the wider political environment in which the project is operating and, also, impact on any extended processes within the organisation or its extended supply chain.
Plan:
The Plan phase takes the information gathered in the Readiness Assessment phase and builds a detailed project plan for implementing the change. This plan will include, if required, technology selection and implementation. It will also include the broader aspects of skill and culture development and stakeholder management.
Implement:
The implementation phase puts the new technology in place, carries out any required training and, importantly, reports across the organisation as key milestones are reached. Strong stakeholder management is crucial in this phase and should be adapted for the needs of the various stakeholder groups.
Review:
The review phase is critical to the long-term success and adoption of a technology change project. During this phase, the actual project outcomes are compared with project objectives and any differences identified. It is important, also, to review any learning that has taken place during the planning and implementation phases that may lead to an adjustment of desired outcomes that arise from this learning. An output of the review phase is then to feedback into new readiness and planning phases for an updated implementation project. It is important to have a clear map of benefits (both tangible and intangible) and tracking these becomes important to ensure that the change itself is delivering value.
Planned and Emergent Change
In applying the process outlined in Figure 1, it is clear there is a combination of both planned and emergent change in progress. This arises, partly, because organisations rarely understand the full potential of new technology until they have been through an implementation and gained that learning from experience. It may be, therefore, that the impact on process and/or skill requirements for the new process has not been planned for. In addition, as organisations implement technology, they often see opportunities for process change leading to increased value that was not understood in the initial planning phase. These process changes will often involve an evolution of culture within the organisation and such an evolution is best addressed using an emergent change approach.
Types of Projects
A further complexity with Technology Change Management is that, when it comes to change projects, they are often lumped into one “type”, whereas, in practice there are 4 very different change project types.
The result is that planning and management of change is often not optimal. The 4 project types are:
Simple:
Issues are easy to figure out and solve. Things will work the same, just better or faster. No major process change
Complicated:
There are many solutions and ways of delivering the project/workstream. There are many steps or parts, but with expertise everything can be resolved. Meeting all the milestones means project success.
Complex:
Many parts (internal and external) are connected and influence each other in unpredictable ways. Emergent solutions develop as the project progresses. Human factors play a great part in success. Meeting all the milestone does not necessarily mean success - ‘sum is greater than the parts’
Chaotic:
Unpredictable and disorderly project. External factors change too rapidly to allow time to plan or focus. Lack of insight to deliver project/workstream
It is seen, therefore, that different types of projects need different skill sets. Often management lump projects all into ‘complicated’ and are then surprised that more emergent change (see below) occurs than expected as many change projects are complex or, even, chaotic.
For further insight, attend The IET Manufacturing Technical Network Webinar on 9th April 2025 Manufacturing Technology Adoption