Change Capability Maximizes Efficiency in State Government

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olorado is a rapidly growing state with an expected 92% increase in population by 2050. To support this growth, Colorado needed its Department of Transportation to expand its operations without an accompanying increase in budget. Improving operational efficiency was identified as the way to ensure that Coloradoans could continue to safely and quickly commute and travel within the state.

As part of a multi-year strategy, key leaders initiated an improvement initiative that integrated Lean process improvement and Prosci’s research-based change management to deliver measurable efficiency improvements. Read a summary of their story below, or download the full success story.

The Challenge

CDOT needed to become more efficient by integrating process improvement and change management capabilities in its underfunded and geographically spread-out department.

The Solution

Leaders of CDOT invested in a robust change management capability plan that included:

• Integrating change management as a key enabler of top-priority strategic initiatives
• Adopting the Prosci ADKAR^® Model to build a common language for change management
• Training change managers, frontline managers, executives and employees in change management capability
• Promoting change management capability through a Change Agent Network

Through these, CDOT embedded a deep understanding of each person’s role in change, how to build role-based competency and how to position their organization for change success.

“Here at CDOT, we know that building and maintaining effective organizational change capability is crucial. Prosci’s comprehensive approach is straightforward, research-based, easy to use and aligns with our strategic direction. This partnership is fundamental to our success.” 

– Gary Vansuch, Director of Process Improvement at CDOT

Keys to Application

The team at CDOT knew the importance of awareness and reinforcement, the first and last elements of the ADKAR Model, and so built a plan that made these elements successful:

Building awareness with the ADKAR Model

CDOT adopted the Prosci ADKAR Model as its universal language for change and focused on building awareness and desire for a new way to manage change with this easy-to-understand framework.

Sustaining change with a Change Agent Network

To overcome the unique challenge of a geographically spread-out department, the CDOT team decided to create a Change Agent Network that would work closely via online meeting platforms and other virtual support mechanisms. This support allowed each change agent to better apply change in their area while also allowing for constant and clear communication about ongoing and upcoming initiatives. 

Results

By implementing a structured approach for managing change, CDOT saw an increase is organization-wide cooperation during large projects and process improvement initiatives. This resulted in: 

• A 55% lower error rate of the oversize and overweight permit division 
• A 40% reduced contract review time, from five to three days 
• Overall increased change effectiveness

CDOT was also recognized by the American Society for Quality and by the Harvard Ash Center for its process improvement program and successful process improvement initiatives.

Read the Full Story

For the full story on how CDOT successfully implemented change management capability and what results it saw, download the success story.