The results of the Mott MacDonald study have emphasised that the most important stage of any project is the development of the business case: when benefits, requirements and scope of works are defined. This is because the failure to identify all of the project stakeholders and their requirements, and to address them in the detailed design, will result in dissatisfaction and a product that does not perform as required.
When preparing the requirements (i.e. output specifications) for outline business cases, the incorporation of change management strategies has proved essential for successful project delivery, especially in equipment and development and outsourcing projects.
Change management (sometimes confused with change control) involves the identification of the impacts (i.e. to business, people, technology, etc.) due to the project and the development and management of strategies to ensure the smooth implementation and acceptance of the project outputs. The change management activities (e.g. impact of change and change readiness assessments, communications management, and stakeholder management) support the smooth delivery of project deliverables and should form part of the project management activities. Most projects fail due to bad change management (e.g. project communications problems and poor stakeholder management). Change management involves key project management activities that are usually left out of project management training and management systems.
Therefore, project managers who can manage change and people effectively have a better chance of delivering projects on time, within budget and to the required quality.
The use of project management skills and tools coupled with change management skills and tools provides a better chance of successfully delivering large projects. This is because the change management tools are specifically designed to manage the people and external interfaces/influences of the project environment.