Information is Power: How Change Management Benefited Zonar Implementation

After discovering fuel receipts saved from 1962, CDOT Area Maintenance Manager Eddie Gentry decided it was time to reduce office clutter—including old manuals, paperwork, and assorted items found on the road—in CDOT's Northeast Colorado workspace.

Not wanting to force his team to throw away items, Gentry attended a three-day change management course to gain skills on how to approach his colleagues about the benefits of reducing clutter. By applying the awareness, desire, knowledge, ability, and reinforcement (ADKAR) step to his project, Gentry transformed the clutter reduction project into a group effort instead of a mandate.

Integrating Change Management into Project Management

More recently, Gentry applied change management to the Zonar project, which incorporated two initiatives: one for tracking fuel purchases and mileage, and a second initiative for exchanging data between vehicles and the control center.

After Gentry's team voiced concerns about "Big Brother" tracking their work, he used ADKAR to build awareness about the initiative's true goals. This, in turn, reassured his team, discouraging resistance. Additionally, he focused on how Zonar could benefit CDOT crews by focusing on what was in it for his team.

Gentry noted that Zonar could protect crews against potential speeding accusations and quickly provide answers to citizens seeking plow locations.