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Change management is a process used to control and manage change within a large organization. It involves requesting, evaluating, and implementing changes, with strict adherence to a formal process. Companies often use a change request form to handle requests, and changes must be paid for regardless of the requester’s authority. Testing is done before changes are pushed to the production system.
A change management process is a set of business practices used to control and manage change within a large system or organization. The term is most commonly used in systems engineering or large construction projects. The purpose of change management is to ensure clear communication between the client and the service provider about the required change from the accepted specifications, the impact on the timeline and the expected cost of these changes. An additional benefit of this process is authorization validation for change requests.
The entire change management process comprises three elements: requesting the change, evaluating the time and cost to make the change, and implementing the changes. These steps remain the same whether the project is an information technology project or a construction project. It is worth noting that strict adherence to a formal change management process is recognized by the courts as a valid tool for managing changes to contracts. Changes requested and approved during the process must be paid for by the company, regardless of the requester’s authority. It is assumed that the company has designed a business practice that has followed its internal approval process.
To handle change requests, many companies design a form that provides all the required information. For example, a change request form typically asks for the requester’s name and her title, the business rationale for the request, the requested functionality, and the general implications. Also included are the names of the people responsible for and who will test and accept the changes. After receiving and verifying the form, the system administrator assigns a tracking number to the request.
The person responsible for the system or project now reviews the details of the request and calculates the necessary resources, time allocation and all costs associated with implementing this change. During this process, the applicant may ask for questions or clarifications. This information is integrated into the change request form.
If the costs are accepted, the request is typically added to a priority list of other change requests, as part of the change management process. The work is assigned to a specific area, which will work with the system or project manager to clarify the requirements and make the necessary changes. In a computing environment, these changes are made in a test system. It is the responsibility of the testers to ensure that changes meet the original requirements and do not create negative results. Upon successful completion of testing, changes are pushed to the production or live system. Any issues or new issues created as a result of this change are investigated and may result in additional rounds of changes, testing, and implementation.
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