With more education in change management, you learn skills to adapt and help others adjust to change. Whether change is planned or unplanned, the process of response is similar. First, take note of what needs to change, plan a method to address the change and move forth to enact the change. This sounds a lot easier than it is.

The challenging part of change management is the people involved, and change management courses address adaptation skills. Everyone responds differently to change depending on his or her needs, fears and expectations. Respond in a positive manner to employee concerns, and any resistance to change. For more change management education and training for beginners, please see the following points:

1. Read articles and information for education in change management.

2. Find courses in change management to strengthen your skills.

3. Participate in change management seminars for experiential learning.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Seek an education in change management to enhance your skills

Gaining an understanding of change management is the first step to using change management functions in your business. Take time to educate yourself with articles and professionals to learn change management basics. Then seek further education about implementing change management strategies, so you have a working foundation of the concept and process.

I recommend: For a through overview of the change management concepts, see Distance Consulting. The IT Infrastructure Library explains the concept of ITIL change and offers ITIL change management-training courses.

Invest in change management training programs to enhance leadership skills

Change management is an important skill to grasp for a smooth running business because change is inevitable in the business world. So, make sure your employees have change management classes to learn how to adjust to expected and unexpected changes. Include the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) change management when researching training, so the IT department handles change management by honoring IT management best practices standards.

I recommend: Business Training Works provides change management training online and in a variety of other formats. Training Connection has an on-site change management class that teaches how to address change with a proactive approach. The Change Management Learning Center offers change management certification programs with different formats.

Attend change management seminars for interactive learning

For a different venue of learning, try change management seminars. Some seminars ask you to bring a change project from work, so you receive input from professionals and peers. Once you identify your style of approach and tweak it according to the material presented, you have the opportunity to practice with others at the seminar. This experiential learning process is valuable for people at any level of experience and education.

I recommend: LaMarsh and Associates offer seminars and workshops for managers of different skill levels, so choose the level appropriate for your skills. Decide how long you want your change management seminar to be with AchieveMax's convenient scheduling options. The Freeman Institute offers a change management seminar that focuses on learning about yourself, building relationships and improving your skills with change.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Include human relations training with your education in change management, so you know how to accommodate individual concerns when work situations change.

Change management education and training helps you and your employees roll with the punches in the business world. It helps you overcome barriers, and move forward with projects and communication with employees and clients. Being able to implement change, though, requires skills not necessarily innate to everyone, and by pursuing change management class or change management courses, you can improve your success chances for overcoming business obstacles.

Change management training can come in handy when there is organizational transformation within a company. You want to improve your performance, but you have to get everyone on board with the tide of change. Companies that understand how to effectively communicate stand to have an improved rate of better performance and motivation to see those changes put through and implemented.

To choose the best change management class or courses:

1. Consider the time frame in which you need to complete your courses. Use that as a starting point, and work your schedule backward from there.

2. Budget accordingly for your change management training.

3. Look at how much time you can commit to change management classes or seminars.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find change management seminars

Change management seminars are one click away. Whether you take them online or in person, they are a quality investment for your organization.

I recommend: Check out the Management and Supervisory Skills Seminars from the American Management Association. Consider Change Guides, LLC for their Understanding and Planning for Change Programs or their Train-the-Trainer Program. Look at the Change Management Training Seminar from AchieveMax, Inc.

Find traditional change management courses

Change management courses are offered by a variety of skilled companies. They can come to you or you to them. Either way, taking courses in change management can shift the thought processes of your employees in the right direction towards your new initiatives.

I recommend: Seek out the Freeman Institute for their Change Management Program. Thomas Group, Inc. is another education in change management provider.

Choose unique change management courses

Don't settle for ordinary. Instead look for unique change management training.

I recommend: For an interesting twist on change management seminars, consider the Change Management Seminar from Prescient Digital Media where they offer insight into management of change using intranets, blogs and wikis. Look at the Strategic Planning For Success change management training courses offered by Alliance Training and Consulting.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If you are a business owner looking to offer change management training to your staff to help lead the rest of the team, choose the most influential candidates between their peers to have optimal buy in when the topics are presented to the general workforce of your company.

Are you looking at ITIL change management training courses? You’re thinking about becoming ITIL certified. However, you realize that the training and education won't end with taking these classes. To stay knowledgeable about change management, it's important to stay on top of it because it's constantly changing.

Attending seminars is one of the best ways to keep abreast of the changes in this field. For example, you can listen to keynote speakers discuss the latest theories in change management and how to apply them into your organization. You can also listen to podcasts for the latest news and ideas. To learn about change management education and training news and trends, do the following:

1. Attend change management seminars to become familiar with best practices.

2. Understand ITIL change management training by watching webcasts or studying white papers.

3. Read news websites to get the latest on change management education and training.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Learn about best practices through change management seminars

Understand the most recent research and development in change management by attending change management courses. Instructors will show how you can incorporate it into your organization. Some of the topics you can learn in change management training courses include developing and executing a strong mission, setting up an effective framework based on your company's values, and creating and implementing a valuable team.

I recommend: AACE International has comprehensive change management education and training seminars. You’ll learn how to implement the best practices in your organization. AchieveMax also provides comprehensive education in change management seminars. Understand what it means to produce a strong mission, construct a strong team, and build a successful organization.

View webcasts or read white papers to get the latest in ITIL change management training

Watch webcasts to learn how to successfully execute all of your configuration items changes. Presenters will show that there must be a business explanation behind these changes. You will learn how to identify the configuration item, create and test the change, and come up with an exit plan if it doesn't work. Read white papers to find out how companies are implementing change management training in their organizations.

I recommend: TechRepublic offers webcasts on change management training programs. Learn how to make sure your changes in configuration items are successfully executed. This change management class provides in-depth information, such as how to develop, test, and deploy configuration items changes. ZDNet offers a white paper on ITIL change management. Learn how Hewlett Packard developed its change management based on ITIL and ITSM.

Get the latest change management education and training news and trends via news websites

Learn the latest trends on how IT consulting firms are developing and enhancing their IT change management training courses. Take these ITIL change management courses and become certified. Learn how companies are automating change management in order to simplify compliance standards.

I recommend: Read Tekrati to learn how Entreprise Management Associates are expanding their change management courses. Learn how to become ITIL certified. Network World also covers stories on change management. You can read a commentary on how companies need to automate their change management policies to ease compliance.

Change is rarely easy, and organizations have so many factors involved in any change, that many managers avoid the process in spite of the possible benefits. The word change comes with a feeling of upheaval, but smart executives manage change rather than survive it. Managers look to change management education and training key terms to learn systems that make the transitions possible and tolerable. External change is usually unavoidable and possibly unmanageable, so change management usually refers to the systems established for change within an organization and the responses to external changes that take place.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Focused vision

Workers respond to change in various ways, so managers must coach their team during difficult transitions with change management principles. Before changes start, a savvy manager will instill a focused vision to the workforce. Dynamic managers will make sure that the employees feel a unity of mission, a knowledge of the goals and a feeling of ownership.

I recommend: Advantage Point will assist managers learning the key terms used with change management.

Geographically distributed development

Managers must build organizations that compete in a global marketplace and face the challenges that come with this stiff competition. When a manager must implement change in this challenging world, change management includes working with people in distant locations, different time zones and different workweeks. Managers must implement geographically distributed development in order to manage change effectively in this competitive atmosphere.

I recommend: Borland has the tools to assist managers manage change effectively.

ADKAR model

Change management has various models and the ADKAR model is one of the most popular and effective. Managers following this model have a clear and concise model for their efforts. In order to manage change, managers should plan and implement five distinctive stages for success.

I recommend: Tech FAQ clearly details the important stages of the ADKAR model.

Organizational change management

Organizational change includes many factors that project leaders target for improvement. Managers plan regularly to use effective strategies and to implement change when necessary. These leaders must provide effective organizational change management whether merging with another company, selling off parts of the whole or switching software programs for the entire system or small units.

I recommend: Pepperdine University produces outstanding graduates and features valuable information on their website.

Action plan

The executives in charge of planning produce an action plan focusing on the goals of the organization. All goals are not equal, and savvy managers provide for the priorities in the planning stages. Managers also focus on the vision of the organizational leaders and the company mission statement while working to reconcile these goals with an action plan.

I recommend: Ganthead.com provides information on organizational action plans.

Readiness assessments

Managers deal with resistance to change with varying degrees of stress and success. Leaders in charge of organizational change use readiness assessments to determine the time frame of the process and the impact on the employees. Key managers must also evaluate the team in charge of the change with a readiness assessment.

I recommend: The Change Management Learning Center outlines the need for a readiness assessment when evaluating the challenges involved with organizational change.