Changing a parliament’s internal working environment and operations as a result of strategic decisions taken requires time, resources and commitment.

The time required varies, yet in many organizations strategic change takes several years – and is typically projected over 3-5 years. The people involved at different levels within the organization (stakeholders) are likely to be impacted in various ways e.g. through changed work patterns, roles, responsibilities, working relations etc. Organizational change of this kind is not just about the introduction of newly engineered processes, tools, and technology, but is equally about people's commitment to those changes. To be successful change needs the full support and commitment of all the relevant stakeholders, and to achieve this the parliament needs to institute some form of inclusive change management program.

Change management

Change may be regarded both as positive and negative, implying the creation of something new on the one hand and the discontinuity of familiar systems, working relationships and arrangements on the other. Inevitably some staff in parliament will be more receptive, while others will try to maintain the status quo for as long as possible.

The key to gaining greater support within the organization in order to successfully implement change is for the parliamentary and administrative leadership to provide clear and compelling explanations of why change is needed, acknowledge existing concerns and challenges at all levels and times, and to respond constructively through an organized change management process. In the broadest sense this involves doing everything required to facilitate the transition for different sections within the organization to enable them to smoothly migrate from “doing things the old way” to “doing things the new way”. This includes the leadership making available a platform or forum to receive comments, criticism, feedback and input from stakeholders including from different ranks.

Commitment of the leadership

Organizational change as a result of the new strategy should be led and managed from the highest political and administrative level of parliament. How this will take place in practice may vary from one parliament to the next. Whatever the case, it is important that a central body or committee is established - by the leadership of the parliament - to coordinate and manage the strategic planning processes, and that it commit itself to change management through pro-active and open engagement with all stakeholders.

An option (if it is not already in place in similar shape or form) may be that a parliamentary standing committee takes charge of - or be established for - the strategic planning process, that would be responsible among others for the commissioning of the development of the parliamentary strategy document (including assigning its authors), and engaging and communicating with key stakeholders. The committee should be balanced in its composition to account for political, administrative and technical interests. Besides the participation of Members and the Secretary General (or Clerk), the committee may also seek technical advice through specialized working groups or experts e.g. on communicating with the public, or the use of ICT, institutional knowledge management, human resources development etc.

Not only would such a committee lend its support to the strategy planning process, but it would also play an important role in facilitating decision making at the “macro-level” i.e., among the political and administrative leadership of the parliament. During and after the strategy implementation it would oversee the monitoring and evaluation activities.

At the “micro-level”, in different parts of the parliamentary organization, the committee would be able to facilitate the change management process by involving key stakeholders and garnering support through: coordinating, communicating and informing key stakeholders; hosting inclusive workshops with staff to inform them about the strategic planning process and consulting with them on the upcoming changes; commissioning independent change management facilitators when necessary to support the process; providing sufficient training support during the strategy implementation phase, when new services, processes and innovations are introduced; and establishing a participative environment that would allow staff to give their inputs during the strategy evaluation phases.