What was the purpose of the work?

A global company in the financial services industry decided to consolidate five premises in Sandton into one. The site for the new premises was selected and a six-year building and relocation project started in 2012. The change management effort officially started in March 2017. Bioss SA was appointed to guide the Change Management effort.

The Design & Scope of the Project

The purpose of the Change Management effort that Bioss fulfilled for the financial service, was to realize the company vision through an agile and collaborative workforce thriving in a rapidly changing and ambiguous environment.

Bioss utilized a neuroscience-based approach to managing the change.

New Ways of Working Introduced

The changes and new ways of working introduced can be summarized as follows:

  • Reduction in enclosed areas (e.g. offices and meeting rooms)
  • Longer distances to shared facilities (e.g. bathrooms, eateries and printing hubs)
  • Paperless environment (reduced printing, more scanning)
  • Reduction in physical storage on the floors (less cupboards, credenzas and pedestals)
  • Improved technology (e.g. Skype for Business and Wi-Fi)
  • Agile workspaces and activity-based working

The associated Change Management strategy was structured in unique projects for each change introduced in a three-phased change program:

  1. Move Preparations (7 months)- change management campaigns, risk management and business readiness activities.
  2. Move Management (6 months) – 16 weekends of relocation with approximately 500 employees per weekend.
  3. Sustainability (10 months) – measurement and reporting of ROI, focus groups, documentation and additional campaigns where required.

Deliverables and Results