Canada’s largest energy company embarked on a full-scale process and digital transformation journey. It was deemed as the largest and most complex go-live in the organization’s history. STRAAD was engaged to coordinate an ecosystem of 30 business readiness resources across Training, Communications, and Change Management. These resources were developed through the collaborations of STRAAD, the system implementor, independent consultants, and key leaders from the client organization. Our team was able to establish alignment by creating a business readiness operating model which provided clear governance, shared objectives, and a regular rhythm of integrated planning. Overcoming the challenges of distributed work occurred through creative, digitally enabled engagement solutions. The methodology and approach were deemed so successful that they have created the foundation of how the company will plan and manage digital change going forward.
A leading Canadian energy company embarked on a mission to enable their digital transformation strategy, with a focus on driving effective business processes that enable efficiency, innovation, and growth. In addition, ensuring data quality where information can be leveraged for strategic insight was a top priority. In its current state, the client was operating in an environment where accessing data was complex, unsustainable, and challenging to report. Teams were also working in siloes, impacting efficiency and effectiveness, and inhibiting innovation. To move to a more simplified way of working that drives standardization while creating opportunities for differentiation to increase the client’s competitive advantage, the client embarked on the largest and most complex Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) program in the organization’s history. Through the implementation of four key technology solutions, the client created a pathway to enable access to data, increase consistency in business processes, decrease complexity, support asset maintenance, and provide a platform for digital innovation.
The ERP implementation was broken into two key engagements: implementation within the current organization, and integration of an organization that the client recently assumed operatorship of to the new systems, processes, technology and ways of working. The degree of change to ensure complete integration and alignment of the acquired organization was significant and included additional adoption of systems that were out of scope for the initial engagement. Furthermore, stakeholders were experiencing other concurrent change, including changes to culture, operating model, organizational structure, communications and controls.
The client was experiencing significant challenges with the strategy and approach to business readiness and change that the system implementor was providing. Their approach did not speak to the complexity of the change and the uniqueness of the client’s culture or how they were organized. The client’s concern was that the system implementor was forcing a methodology from a previous client instead of slowing down and taking the time to build something truly customized to their needs.
After many years of successful support on different initiatives, the client knew STRAAD truly understood how to make these changes stick for them. Our team was intimately familiar with the organization’s culture and what its leaders truly needed to be successful in this change.
STRAAD partnered with the client to lead and execute a comprehensive business readiness operating model. Our approach was anchored in strategic change management tactics, enabling employees and leaders to adopt the new processes, systems and technology smoothly.
STRAAD served as a coordinator of employees, independent consultants and the system implementor to ensure alignment to a custom-designed approach to readiness and adoption. As an integrated Business Readiness team, STRAAD worked closely with training and communications to achieve the project’s key objectives: to adopt new behaviours; build a positive perception of the program; and enable the adoption of new ways of working.
STRAAD’s strategic approach to change ensures all levers of change are planned for in a thoughtful and progressive manner. Our process is linear and iterative and focuses on engaging communities while helping sustain change to support long-lasting benefits.
In line with this methodology, STRAAD deployed a full suite of change management tools and activities to enable technology adoption and drive, and sustain cultural behavioural changes to achieve the ERP’s stated objectives. Delivering this project in a fully remote environment added further complexity and required thoughtful considerations and new ways of working. These activities were created and delivered in partnership with the client and the system implementor, and aligned with the client’s preferred change management framework and requirements. STRAAD was uniquely positioned to provide both competency and capacity support to the client and system implementor, and we ensured all activities and strategies were designed with a human-centred approach, keeping in mind the impact of change on the organization’s operating model, talent and workforce, culture, leadership readiness, and enterprise strategy.
Taking a true partnership model allowed STRAAD and the client to facilitate a comprehensive readiness strategy and plan, supporting change readiness and team effectiveness components to achieve successful adoption and sustainment.
A deep dive into our strategic change approach:
To prepare all stakeholders for the transition, the following strategic change management strategies and activities were deployed in the lead-up to the ERP implementation, as well as during go-live and post-go-live to drive long-term adoption and sustainment.
Human-centred approach
Leader-Led
Analytics-Driven
Communicate for impact
Capability-development and innovative onboarding
Enhance team effectiveness
STRAAD has been credited with designing, managing, and delivering the new standard for complex, transformational change at the organization. The operating model we designed and delivered for Business Readiness was seen as a complete success, particularly being done in a fully remote environment. The coordination of an ecosystem of support was unlike any program they had seen before.
A few key callouts made by the client included:
Overall, the program has saved the organization over $200 million annually through realized efficiencies. Simplified with market standard technology, data, and processes 80% market standard to optimize for speed and simplicity.
Are you ready to unlock your organization’s performance and embark on a journey where passion and innovation converge? Contact us today, and together, let’s create a meaningful impact in the world.
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