Change Impact Assessment: Process, Matrix and Practical Example

This guide shows how to compare current and future states, identify affected teams, assess impact severity and turn a practical matrix into targeted readiness actions.

It identifies what differs between the current and future states, who must work differently, how significant each impact is and what preparation people need. Two teams may use the same platform, yet one must redesign its daily workflow while the other simply submits requests differently.

Three questions should remain distinct:

• Change impact: What changes, for whom, and to what extent?
• Change readiness: Are people, processes and resources prepared to work differently?
• Change risk: What might go wrong if critical gaps remain unresolved?

Start with: What will people actually do differently? A change impact assessment process compares workflows, identifies affected groups and assesses disruption before prescribing support.

Step 1: Compare the Current State and Future State

Define which requests, teams and locations are in scope. Capture how work happens today, including workarounds, then describe the intended workflow.

Look beyond the software. Use process mapping to reveal who approves, handles exceptions and owns handovers. Prosci identifies ten aspects of change impact, including processes, systems, tools, job roles and behaviours. Examine additional aspects when relevant; not every change affects all ten.

Step 2: Identify the People and Stakeholder Groups Affected

Include direct users and those whose responsibilities depend on the process:

• Service coordinators: Assign and resolve requests.
• Departmental requesters: Submit information and track progress.
• Line managers: Make approval decisions.
• IT support: Manage access and incidents.

Step 3: Assess Impact Severity Using Clear Criteria

Apply a consistent scale to each group:

For example, service coordinators may receive a High rating because the new system changes most of their core tasks (extent), affects work performed throughout each day (frequency) and influences whether requests are handled correctly (importance). Departmental requesters may receive a Medium rating because their submission process changes, but their main responsibilities remain largely the same.

A change impact assessment example should show how one change affects teams differently. Consider a company replacing emailed internal requests and spreadsheet trackers with a shared digital portal. The following change impact matrix is fictional: the severity ratings and proposed responses illustrate a method, not findings from an actual organisation.

What makes the assessments different?

For service coordinators, the change affects the work itself: how requests are prioritised, allocated, escalated and closed. Even if they know how to navigate the portal, they may struggle unless decision rules and exception handling are clear. That is why training alone is insufficient; a pilot should include exception scenarios, not just routine submissions.

For departmental requesters, the core purpose of their role stays largely unchanged. Their adjustment is mainly how they provide information and find updates. Line managers face a different issue: digital approvals may reveal unclear authority limits that email previously concealed. IT support needs tested recovery arrangements to protect service continuity.

How to reuse the matrix?

Treat this table as a practical change impact assessment template. For each affected group, record the change, current and future states, severity and the reason for it, the action required and its owner. In a working version, add a target date, evidence source, unresolved assumptions and validation status.

Use the findings to target training and communication, as UCSF recommends. A high-impact group needs support matched to its actual work; a medium-impact group may still require urgent intervention if a critical dependency remains unresolved. The matrix should guide action, not merely colour-code disruption.

Once you know who will be affected, what must happen before the change goes live? A change impact assessment identifies what each group must do differently; a change readiness assessment examines whether people, processes and support arrangements are prepared to make that shift. The distinction matters when deciding what to fix first.

Turn the findings into actions with observable tests:

Count completed training sessions or emails sent if they help manage delivery, but do not mistake them for readiness. What matters is whether people can perform their changed tasks confidently and whether essential services can continue reliably.

Do not treat the first impact matrix as final. As system designs, approval rules and responsibilities evolve, earlier assumptions may become outdated. Revisit the assessment with the people expected to work differently.

Use this change impact analysis checklist before launch:

1. 1
   Have affected employees validated the findings? Check that recorded changes reflect real work.
2. 2
   Have we covered exceptions and indirect impacts? Include unusual requests, handovers and dependent teams.
3. 3
   Can we explain every severity rating? Base High or Medium on specific changes, not impressions.
4. 4
   Does each material impact have an owner and response? Record the action, deadline and evidence required.
5. 5
   What has changed since the last review? Reassess revised workflows, responsibilities and system features.

A useful assessment stays aligned with how people will actually work. Update it when new evidence emerges, so preventable disruption is addressed before it reaches employees and customers.