Why Change Management needs launches

I absolutely love launches and they are beyond a doubt my favourite time in an organisational change.

Most Change Management is done in projects and these projects usually have a defined date when the new product, solution or "thing" will be launched and live and available (even for agile changes). 

It's when the rubber hits the road, the thing actually gets into the hands of people, and all your hard work finally pays off. 

Here's 4 reasons why launching change is so powerful:

1. People like to have clear milestones

There's a reason New Year is a time everyone sets resolutions and goals. We humans are hard-wired not to like change. But if we feel we know it's coming at a defined time in the future rather than sprung as a surprise on us, it helps us feel in control, planned and prepared. Having a clear date for your change, usually in line with the project implementation date but not always, can give people a level of comfort to anticipate when their world will be rocked.

2. You can create hype and excitement

But change doesn't have to be scary, and making your change launch vibrant, fun, exciting and exhilarating is a great way to help combat those fears and entice people to feel positive about the future. When I worked in Marketing, we did launches for new products, new brand campaigns, new competitions, new everythings! And not just to customers and the public, we actually launched internally to own teams as advocates of our products and brands. In Marketing, we called it "activation" - you are activating people with energy and excitement, and creating hype and buzz. When we celebrate change instead of brush it under the carpet, it comes out into the light - the scariest monsters in films are the ones you don't see hahaha! 

3. You can hyper-focus attention and participation for better engagement

Look, people need to see something 7-21 times before they actually take notice (another marketing tip!) and while your stakeholders and impacted teams may have ignored all your comms up to this point, as a change gets nearer to launch it starts to build the pressure (deadlines work!). You have more license to send out more comms, get employee capacity for training and readiness, and make sure everyone has everything they need before the big day. You can totally use this to your advantage to create a momentum with your launch that people cannot ignore - and see engagement rise rapidly before the deadline. 

4. You can pave the way for future changes

If you do a great job at launching one change, people will remember it. Then the next time you go to launch a change, they'll reflect positively on the previous memorable launches and re-ignite that excitement and commitment to show up, participate and accept the upcoming changes. Everything you do in each launch is laying groundwork for future launches and as I like to call it, "the undercurrent of change acceptance" is where true transformation occurs.

To learn more about how to switch people on and build trust during your launch, request my free 6 Ways to Build Trust Video:

CLICK HERE to request instant access to my Building Trust Video

Lata xx

With so much experience running launches for change, it was super easy to take those skills and launch my own products and services in my side hustle. If you have an existing side hustle or would love to create a product or service, Jeff Walker's Product Launch Formula is an absolute game-changer. I use lots of Jeff's tools, tips and techniques in my own change launches now, plus in my business.