26 June 2025
Back to Basics: Management of Change
ICAO defines Change Management as a formal process to manage changes within an organisation in a systematic manner, so that changes that may impact identified hazards and risk mitigation strategies are accounted for, before the implementation of such changes.
Managing change is a constant and familiar factor in the Aviation industry. Most of the required steps in effective change management could be perceived as no more than common sense or good business management; however, in the ever-changing and often challenging day-to-day operations of our organisations, these essential elements are often overlooked.
To help ensure that the safety and continuity of the business are maintained during change initiatives, documentation has been developed to provide a systematic approach and formal process for implementing change. It will provide information and guidance on how to identify, plan for and manage change within your organisation. This controlled approach is to ensure that the consequences of such a change do not pose a threat to company operations or pose a risk to individuals or groups.
The process has been developed to be applicable for change initiatives of varying scales, sizes and complexities, but it is important that all steps are completed to ensure a consistent and comprehensive approach.
Common areas of change
Common areas of organisational change include:
- Mission
- Strategy
- Operational changes, including structure and hierarchies
- Technology
- Culture
- Employees and/or management
- Workflows
- Branding
Types of organisational change
There are three main categories of change:
- Business process re-engineering focuses on the analysis and design of workflows and processes within an organisation
- Technological change refers to the process of invention, innovation, and diffusion of technology or processes
- Incremental change means introducing many small, gradual changes to a project instead of a few large, rapid changes
To successfully promote the benefits of the change, you need to understand them yourself. So, think about:
- Why do you need to change? What are your key objectives?
- What are the benefits of the change to the organisation?
- How will it impact people positively?
- How will it affect the way that people work?
- What will people need to do to successfully achieve the change?
What is a change management process?
A change management process should identify changes within the organisation that may affect established processes, procedures, products and services. Prior to implementing changes, a change management process should describe the arrangements to ensure safety performance. The result of this process is the reduction in the safety risks resulting from changes in the provision of products or services by the organisation.
The Change Management Plan documents and tracks the necessary information required to effectively manage change from inception to delivery. This document will provide guidelines on how to manage change, to ensure the consequences of such a change do not pose a threat to company operations or pose a risk to individuals or groups. Whether major or minor, all aspects of the change must be covered and analysed. This will ensure that changes to procedures or work practices have been registered, hazards identified, risks assessed, and control measures implemented to manage any Health, Safety or Environmental impact of the change before implementation.
These processes are necessary to ensure that the appropriate personnel review the impact of any change and that agreed-upon changes are implemented properly.
Management of change plays an integral part in the planning and implementation of Health and Safety arrangements and should be considered as being proactive towards problem solving and ensuring the adequacy of any control measures required while reducing any risk associated with the change.
The key points to be considered when planning change are understanding and defining the change and why it is required; The who, what, why and when should be identified when carrying out the change. The relevant employees and, where appropriate, subcontractors must be involved in planning changes, since they have the expert knowledge of operational conditions. Involving the workforce has the added benefit of obtaining their acceptance of the change.
Therefore, consider the following when creating your change plan.
- Requirement for change
- Purpose for change
- Clarify vision and create objectives
- Expected benefits and opportunities
- Limitations and restrictions
- Relevance of change to the organisation
- Stakeholders/Leaders/managers to be involved in the change
- Determine resources
- Review documentation requirements
- Communication requirements
The Change Plan should be a controlled document and will change as the needs of the project change.
ICAO Doc 9859, ed 4, has identified the following elements within the change management process.
In practice, this breaks down into the four key phases as shown below:
- Develop the Case
- Project Identification: What is the need for change, understanding & defining the change.
- Project Scope and Applicability: What will Change?
- Managing Stakeholders: Who will it affect?
2. Hazard Identification & Risk Management
- Identifying hazards and managing risk: What are the implications of the change and how will you identify hazards and manage risk?
3. Assurance & Governance
- Managing Compliance and Oversight: How will you ensure governance and oversight of the change process?
- Ensuring Success: How will success be measured and lessons learned?
4. Project Planning & Implementation
- Identifying hazards and managing risk: What are the implications of the change and how will you identify hazards and manage risk
Management of Change (MOC) is an important element in an organisation’s Safety Management System (SMS) and ensures that these changes are managed systematically to maintain or enhance safety levels. The successful implementation of these components enhances overall organisational resilience and adaptability.
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Sandy Lonsbury
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