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Case Study

A well-orchestrated change management initiative helps a large government organization meet regulatory requirements on time and improved its internal change management capabilities.

01

Client Background

02

The Challenge

03

Solution

04

Outcomes

05

Next Steps

01

Client Background

The client is a public-sector organization with multiple departments and a broad workforce delivering services across Ontario.

Government bodies should walk the talk, which means often facing stringent legal and policy obligations. The organization sought to comply with an accessibility regulation and needed a structured plan to help employees accept and begin to adopt the new processes and tools within the compliance deadline.

A successful compliance initiative requires not only technical upgrades but also widespread cultural and procedural changes.

02

The Challenge

The organization had a short timeframe to become fully compliant with accessibility regulation while juggling:

  • The organization had a complex Stakeholder Landscape with almost 70,000 employees across various divisions, branches, roles, and levels needing consistent but targeted messaging and support.
  • The change was complex because, in addition to introducing new technology and processes, it required cultural and Behavioral Shifts. Beyond new technology, staff needed training, awareness, ongoing communication, and modeling of desired behaviors in their workflows.
03

Solution

  • Assigning a dedicated Change Management Specialist that developed a three-tier change management strategy and plan that guided the organization through an iterative implementation process.
  • Breaking a large change initiative into manageable phases to keeping momentum and measuring success incrementally.
  • The ability to pivot quickly reducing the impact of unexpected challenges and improving project outcomes.
  • Employed a structured approach that balanced strategic planning with practical implementation.
  • Mapped out the current state, gained insight into the organization’s structure, stakeholders, and then, created a roadmap with milestones, integrating compliance targets with change management activities.
  • Adopted an agile framework to enable quick pivots, used iterative planning, frequent check-ins.
  • Focused on communication plans, training modules, and resistance management, in-person sessions, and online resources to educate staff on accessibility practices.
  • Monitored progress, gathered feedback from leadership and staff, tackled challenges in real time, and adjusted the plan as needed.
04

Outcomes

  • The organization met the project objective of meeting accessibility regulation within the compliance timeline, avoiding potential legal or reputational risks.
  • Staff engagement, communication, and training activities increased awareness of accessibility principles, laying the foundation for mindset shifts and ongoing improvements in skills and competencies.
  • The core project team and its leadership recognized the positive culture shift toward inclusivity and collaboration.
  • The organization improved its internal change management capabilities and strengthened its capacity to handle the people-side of change to remain compliant and for future compliance initiatives.
05

Next Steps

Looking ahead, the client intends to embed these newly developed skills and processes into standard practice, ensuring that accessibility remains a central consideration across all departments.