Change management makes the difference in Chesterfield County: a well-planned change management strategy can help make a major transition successful. Finance staff can tailor the change management initiatives to the organization's culture to ensure success.

• Author: Brown, Patsy J.
• Position: Solutions

Changing administrative processes is difficult, especially when most of the jurisdiction's employees are directly affected. And when that change affects paychecks, the anxiety level is going to be high. When Chesterfield County, Virginia replaced several standalone legacy systems and an internally developed time and attendance system with an off-the-shelf human resources and payroll system, county officials knew a change management strategy would be essential.

Under the new system, employees would enter their timecards online, and the information would be routed and approved electronically; before, each department used paper timesheets. This process change affected more than 3,000 employees, including 600 supervisors and their back-up approvers. The roles and responsibilities of the 60 timekeepers and their backups also changed tremendously. A secondary challenge involved developing processes to ensure that nonexempt employees, who would now be entering their hours in the system, would be paid accurately. In addition, many of these employees lacked computer skills.

TEAMS AND PARTNERSHIPS

When the county implemented its new timecard online system, it assembled a team to manage the change management strategy and the necessary training. Team members used several techniques to lead the organization through the experience: making sure stakeholders were involved; collaborating with key departments to build on existing processes; drawing up communications plans; and creating a well-thought-out training plan. This approach worked with the county's culture and values, which include a customer focus, employee involvement, open communications, data-driven decisions, and teamwork.

The change management and training team comprised the financial systems manager, the payroll manager, the financial systems security coordinator, a payroll subject management expert, and a representative from the county's learning organization, Chesterfield University. As they formulated their approach to change management and training, the team considered the county's culture, the expectations for high-quality training, and the need for a seamless transition to the new system.

The county also formed a change agent network to get stakeholders involved. Each customer department named a liaison to the network, and each member had several responsibilities, including providing input on training needs; gathering information required for the security set-up; observing and...