Questions Your Change Management Consultant Should Ask You

A change management consultant is someone who is responsible for the implementation of fresh concepts within a business, helping with the transformation of the manner in which the company operates. The main responsibility of the change management consultant is to determine the areas whereby the change is required and address how this will impact the business in question.

Any change management consultant will need to begin by asking questions that enable them to get an understanding of where the company is right now. This includes questions like:

• In what respect are some things working effectively or not working at this moment?
• What are some of the things you have tried?
• Can you tell me a little bit about the history of the situation?
• What do you see as the greatest difficulty, opportunity, barrier, or challenge?

Questions like this will enable the change management consultant to get a handle on the situation so you can move forward effectively.

Resistance Questions

Aside from this, you can expect the change management consultant to ask about whether or not there is likely to be any resistance to the changes that will be implemented. Managing resistance to change is something that a lot of business owners need to deal with. People do not like change! Therefore, it is vital that everyone in the team is made aware of why the change is important so that you can get everyone on board. Therefore, you can expect the consultant to ask you more about the attitude of your team members and how they feel about the proposed changes.

Communication concerns

What is the best form of communication for you? How would you like to be updated? This is another area that your change management consultant should discuss with you. Whether it is a series of conference calls or a weekly email recap, it is imperative that the communications are professional and consistent. The best change management consultants will typically use a number of communication platforms, ensuring instant updates on a continual basis with weekly recaps to tie everything together and make sure everyone is aware of the status of the change project.

Risks

What are the risks of the proposed change? Finally, the change management consultant will work alongside you to determine any risks that are associated with the proposed plan. It is imperative that all of the risks are outlined at the earliest opportunity so that plans can be put in place to make sure that any of the dangers or issues don’t come to fruition. Of course, the consultant is also going to look at the benefits the change will bring and put the required steps in place to make sure that these benefits are optimized for you.

Now you should have an insight into some of the questions a change management consultant should ask you. Questions like this are essential to make sure that the consultant in question is able to understand where your business is at right now and the changes that need to be made.