You probably have heard the term “change management.” But what does it mean exactly? And, what is the difference between project management and change management? Keep reading to discover the answers to these questions.
What Is Project Management?
As we saw in a previous post, project management is a discipline focused on the application of tools, skills, and activities to ensure that a project is brought to completion within a certain timeframe and meeting certain requirements.
The origins of project management can be traced back to the early 20th century. The advent of information technology accelerated the growth of project management, which established itself as a fundamental discipline across many different industries.
To learn more about project management, check out our post, “What Is Project Management?”
What Is Change Management?
Change management is a set of approaches whose main goal is to guide organizational change by helping people deal with transitions within a company or other type of institution.
Very often, organizations have to implement changes of various nature. Change management helps roll out these transformations in a controlled, coordinated, and predictable fashion. Some common examples of organizational change include the following:
- Organizational restructuring
- Mergers, de-mergers, and acquisitions
- New hire onboarding
- Changes in company culture
The invention of change management is credited to Kurt Lewin, a psychologist and social scientist known for his field theory of behavior, according to which a person’s behavior is determined by their environment.
Project Management vs Change Management: What Is the Difference?
As you can see from the definitions above, project management is a discipline, while change management is a set of approaches or processes.
There is extensive literature and many college courses about project management. Change management is also widely studied but it hasn’t managed to generate the same level of academic interest.
Furthermore, change management focuses on people, while project management focuses on getting things done on time and within budget.
Of course, human behavior is one of the factors a project manager must take into account, this is far from being the main focus of project management.Change management, on the other hand, specializes in helping people deal with the implementation of organizational change.
About Darnell Technical
Darnell Technical Services is an engineering design firm with extensive experience in a vast array of projects. Our headquarters are located in Santa Ana, California, and we have an office in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Contact us today by telephone (714-285-0082 (CA), 702-945-2899 (NV)) or through our social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to learn more about all the technical instruments and materials we put at your disposal.
