change management guide

© 2008, Coles Myer Ltd.

CHANGE MANAGEMENT PROCESS GUIDE

Coles Group Ltd Information Technology IS&O - Service Delivery

© 2007, Coles Group Limited Change Management Guide of 33 Coles Group Ltd. Information Technology IS&O - Service Delivery

Record of Changes to this Document Version Date Change Author Reviewed By

2.0 15/11/07 Major re-write, and merge from previous documents

Paul Cosgrave Ross Halford

Karen Hardman

2.1 23/06/08 Rewrite completed Revised for ServiceCenter 6

Ross Halford Ross Halford Paul Cosgrave

Document Stakeholders Name Position Interest

Robyn Freeman Service Delivery Manager Document Owner

Ross Halford Incident & Change Coordination Team Lead Approver

Paul Cosgrave Unix Manager Reviewer

Debbie Browning IS&O Platform Support Manager Reviewer

IT CAB Members Change Advisory Board Members Reviewers

Distribution List This document has been distributed to the following personnel:

Name Title & Department DATE

All updates to be communicated to all of IT via IT News announcements.

Details of significant changes, or process/policy changes to be noted in the version control above, for easy reference


CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................................. 5 1.1 OBJECTIVE................................................................................................................................................... 5 1.2 INTENDED AUDIENCE .................................................................................................................................. 5

2. CHANGE MANAGEMENT OVERVIEW...................................................................................................... 6 2.1 WHEN TO USE CHANGE MANAGEMENT....................................................................................................... 6 2.2 CHANGE MANAGEMENT & PROBLEM / INCIDENT RESOLUTION................................................................... 6 2.3 CHANGE MANAGEMENT – EXEMPTIONS...................................................................................................... 7

3. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES ................................................................................................................ 8 3.1 CHANGE REQUESTOR .................................................................................................................................. 8 3.2 CHANGE OWNER ......................................................................................................................................... 8 3.3 LINE MANAGER ........................................................................................................................................... 8 3.4 CHANGE COORDINATOR .............................................................................................................................. 9 3.5 SERVICE COORDINATOR ............................................................................................................................ 10 3.6 BRAND REPRESENTATIVE .......................................................................................................................... 10 3.7 SECONDARY SUPPORT TEAM REVIEW & APPROVAL ................................................................................. 11

3.7.1 Reviewing Another Teams Change Request......................................................................................... 11 3.7.2 Approving Another Teams Change Request ........................................................................................ 11

4. CHANGE ADVISORY BOARD (CAB) ........................................................................................................ 12 4.1 CAB – OVERVIEW..................................................................................................................................... 12 4.2 CAB MEMBERS......................................................................................................................................... 12 4.3 CAB MEETINGS ........................................................................................................................................ 12

5. CHANGE CONCEPTS.................................................................................................................................... 14 5.1 CHANGE CLASSIFICATION ......................................................................................................................... 14

5.1.1 Planned Changes ................................................................................................................................. 14 5.1.2 Urgent Changes ................................................................................................................................... 14 5.1.3 Retrospective Change Requests ........................................................................................................... 15 5.1.4 CAB Pre-Approved Changes ............................................................................................................... 15 5.1.5 CAB Exempt Changes .......................................................................................................................... 16 5.1.6 Change Templates................................................................................................................................ 16

5.2 REASON FOR CHANGE ............................................................................................................................... 16 5.2.1 Problem Resolution.............................................................................................................................. 17 5.2.2 Incident Resolution .............................................................................................................................. 17 5.2.3 Preventative Maintenance.................................................................................................................... 17 5.2.4 Company / Project Request.................................................................................................................. 17 5.2.5 Hardware Maintenance ....................................................................................................................... 17 5.2.6 Software Maintenance ......................................................................................................................... 17 5.2.7 Infrastructure Improvement ................................................................................................................. 18 5.2.8 Pre-Approved....................................................................................................................................... 18 5.2.9 Disaster Recovery Test......................................................................................................................... 18

5.3 LEAD TIMES .............................................................................................................................................. 19 5.3.1 Urgent Changes ................................................................................................................................... 19 5.3.2 CAB Pre-Approved Changes ............................................................................................................... 19 5.3.3 Planned Changes ................................................................................................................................. 19

5.4 OTHER CHANGE ATTRIBUTES.................................................................................................................... 20 5.4.1 Risk....................................................................................................................................................... 20 5.4.2 Impact .................................................................................................................................................. 20 5.4.3 Business ............................................................................................................................................... 20

5.4.3.1 Business - Coles Group .............................................................................................................................. 20 5.4.3.2 If the Business is Unknown ........................................................................................................................ 21

6. CHANGE MANAGEMENT – PROCESS FLOW........................................................................................ 22 6.1 CREATING THE CHANGE REQUEST............................................................................................................. 22


6.2 SERVICECENTER APPROVAL PROCESS ...................................................................................................... 22 6.3 CHANGE IMPLEMENTATION....................................................................................................................... 23

6.3.1 Problems or Incidents during Implementation .................................................................................... 23 6.3.2 Implementation Exceeding Change Window ....................................................................................... 23

6.4 CHANGE CLOSURE AND NOTIFICATION ..................................................................................................... 24 6.4.1 Change Requests Not Successfully Implemented................................................................................. 24

7. CHANGE FOCUS AND FREEZE PERIODS .............................................................................................. 25 7.1 OVERVIEW................................................................................................................................................. 25 7.2 CHANGE FOCUS......................................................................................................................................... 25

7.2.1 Focus Period Criteria.......................................................................................................................... 25 7.3 CHANGE FREEZE ....................................................................................................................................... 26

7.3.1 Freeze Period Criteria......................................................................................................................... 26 7.4 FOCUS AND FREEZE– APPROVAL PROCESS................................................................................................ 26 7.5 FOCUS AND FREEZE - APPROVERS............................................................................................................. 28

7.5.1 IT Leadership Team Members / Production Services Managers......................................................... 28 APPENDIX A: TABLE OF DEFINITIONS .................................................................................................... 29

APPENDIX B: EXTERNAL REFERENCES.................................................................................................. 31

APPENDIX C: FORMS AND TEMPLATES .................................................................................................. 32 C.1: CAB – CHANGE INCIDENT FORM.............................................................................................................. 32 C.2: CAB – CHANGE REVIEW FORM ................................................................................................................ 32 C.3: CAB – CHANGE PRE-APPROVAL FORM .................................................................................................... 32 C.4: CAB – CHANGE EXEMPTION FORM .......................................................................................................... 32

APPENDIX D: ADDITIONAL CONTACT DETAILS .................................................................................. 33 D.1: CHANGE COORDINATION........................................................................................................................... 33


1. INTRODUCTION

Change Management is the process used to review, approve and implement alterations to

the IT environment, with a view to minimising the risk of incidents and disruption to IT

services.

1.1 Objective

The objectives of the Change Management process are:

• To ensure that standard procedures and consistent methods of implementation and

approval are used across Coles IT

• To minimise the risk of unexpected incidents impacting IT services

• To ensure all Change Requests can be audited.

1.2 Intended Audience

This Change Management Guide is presented for all users of, and stakeholders, in the

Change Management Process.


2. CHANGE MANAGEMENT OVERVIEW

2.1 When to Use Change Management

The Change Management process is to be used for alterations to all IT components and

services within the production, and non-production environments.

Changes that do not require a Change Request to be raised include:

• Changes to data within a database via data entry

• Application changes in the non-production environments

2.2 Change Management & Problem / Incident Resolution

The Change Management process will commonly be used reactively to address problems

or incidents, however the need to use the process is dependent on the priority and impact

of a problem or incident.

Where an incident with significant business impact requires immediate action to restore

service, a Change Request is generally not required and the details should be recorded in

the incident record. This would usually be a Priority One or Two Incident. If however,

the incident is a priority one and requires an update to system configurations or code, a

Retrospective Change Request will be required within 24 hours of the implementation.

Where an incident does not require immediate action to resolve or restore service and the

resolution can be planned or scheduled, a Change Request should be raised. This would

usually be the case for Priority Three incidents.

For more information regarding the definitions of priorities, please view the ‘Incident

Management Process’ document, available through the following Connect site:

http://portal.cmlconnect.org/portal/wps/portal/retail_support/it/working_in_it/managing_i

t

http://portal.cmlconnect.org/portal/wps/portal/retail_support/it/working_in_it/managing_it



2.3 Change Management – Exemptions

For routine changes that can be made without impacting infrastructure or application

services, it’s possible to apply for an Exemption from the Change Management Approval

Process, by seeking approval from the CAB.

Examples of Change Requests exempt from the Change Management Approval process

are available by selecting the ‘Exemptions & Preapproval Register’ from the connect site

below:


t

For more details on how to apply for an Exemption to the Change Management Approval

process, see section, ‘5.1.4 CAB Exempt Changes’.




3. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

3.1 Change Requestor

A Change Requestor is the person requesting the change be performed. This may be a

Business representative or an IT Team Member.

3.2 Change Owner

The Change Owner is the Team Member performing the change, or performing most of

the change. The Change Owner is responsible for creating the Change Request. Where

the Change Owner and the Change Implementer differ, then both are jointly responsible

for ensuring the following:

• Creating the Change record, complete with appropriate details for

implementation, backout, timelines, and testing

• Allocating change tasks when the assistance of additional Support Teams are

required

• Ensuring all approvals are obtained prior to commencing the change

• Liaising with any System Owners or Customers to ensure the change window is

appropriate

• Escalating to the Change Coordinator and their Line Manager if any problems

occur during, or as a result of the change

• Once the Change is complete, closing the Change Request with a suitable

completion status and within 48 hours of its implementation

3.3 Line Manager

The Line Manager is the team member who has direct line management responsibility for

the Change Owner, or departmental responsibility for the IT skills area.

Line Managers are responsible for:


• Reviewing and approving all Change Requests from their team, ensuring they’re

presented clearly and accurately

• Reviewing Change Requests where a Support Team has allocated one or more

change tasks to his or her group

• Approving Change Requests where the service supported by his or her team will

be impacted by the activities of another Support Team

• Verifying all Change Requests have been tested appropriately

• Evaluating the back out plan and ensuring it is achievable and appropriate for the

scheduled window

• Ensuring any risks have been mitigated

The Line Manager may choose to delegate approval to other members of the Assignee

Group, by registering one or more Team Members as Change Approvers in

ServiceCenter.

3.4 Change Coordinator

The Change Coordinator is an IT Team Member responsible for completing quality

control of the Change Management process.

Responsibilities include:

• Confirming all fields of the Change Request are clearly stated and satisfactorily

completed

• Ensuring Change Requests meet the set criteria during Focus or Freeze periods

• Providing approval to Change Requests that meet the Change Management

guidelines

• Providing assistance to Change Owners in understanding the Change

Management process

• Coordinating the CAB approval of Change Request Templates

The Change Coordinator is also responsible for the circulation of the Change Reports.


3.5 Service Coordinator

The Service Coordinator is a Coles Group IT Team member responsible for representing

the interests of the Coles Group brands.

Responsibilities include:

• Reviewing changes and assessing the planned or potential impact to the business

functions for which they are responsible

• Working with Brand Representatives to ensure the schedule of a change is

satisfactory, and if not, work with the Brand and Change Owner to reschedule the

work

• Highlighting business concerns or issues to the Change Owner

• Communicating upcoming Change Requests to Brand Representatives to ensure

their awareness and approval

• Approve Changes Requests on behalf of the brand(s)

For a list of the Service Delivery Coordinators for each business, view, ‘IT Change

Approver Contacts’ from the following connect site:


t

3.6 Brand Representative

A Brand Representative maybe engaged during the Change Management process to

ensure the Brand agrees to the work being performed, the schedule of activities, or

system outage if one is required.

If the Brand Representative has provided approval for a Change Request, this should be

included within the text of the Change Request, as it will streamline the approval.

The Service Coordinators can be contacted for further details about who are the relevant

Brand Representatives.




3.7 Secondary Support Team Review & Approval

In certain situations, a Change Owner will require the assistance of a Secondary Support

Team to review or approve a Change Request.

3.7.1 Reviewing Another Teams Change Request

When a Change Owner has allocated a Change Task to a secondary Support Team, the

Change Approvers within the secondary Support Team will be prompted to review the

Change Request.

ServiceCenter will generate an email notification to all Reviewers, however prior to this

the Change Owner is responsible for contacting any Support Teams assigned tasks. This

ensures any rostering issues are addressed effectively and a Team Member is allocated to

the task.

If a Change Reviewer has any concerns with the allocation of the change task, he or she

needs to raise this concern with the Change Owner.

3.7.2 Approving Another Teams Change Request

A Change Approver within a secondary Support Team will be required to approve

Change Requests, where the service supported by his or her team will be impacted by the

activities of another Support Team.

This mitigates the risk of Support Teams inadvertently impacting others, and ensures a

good understanding of the planned activities across the relevant groups.

If a Change Approver within a secondary Support Team has any concerns with the

suggested activities, he or she needs to raise this concern with the Change Owner.


4. CHANGE ADVISORY BOARD (CAB)

4.1 CAB – Overview

The role of the CAB is to ensure:

• The Change Management process is understood and consistently applied across

the Organisation

• Change Owners present their Medium and High Risk, or Medium and High

Impact Change Requests to the CAB for review and CAB approval

• Constantly question current work practices and assist with the introduction of

improved work practices

• Increase the number of successful Change Requests implemented

4.2 CAB Members

The Change Advisory Board consists of a group of Senior IT Managers.

For further details, check the members of the “IT CAB” distribution list.

4.3 CAB Meetings

The CAB has a number of fixed items on the agenda of its weekly meetings, including:

• Review breakdowns in the change process, for example unapproved Change

Requests being implemented

• Medium and High Risk, or Medium and High Impact Change Requests requiring

approval from the CAB

• Retrospective evaluation of changes implemented as a direct result of a Priority

One problem or incident

• Review urgent Change Requests that are driven by IT Projects

• Review requests for Pre-approval or Exemption to the Change Management

process


• Review requests from Support Teams for Change Request Templates.

If invited to attend the CAB meeting, to discuss the implementation of a Change Request

that resulted in an incident, it is necessary for the Change Owner to complete the ‘CAB –

Change Incident Form’, Appendix C.1.

If attending the CAB meeting to discuss the implementation of a Change Request, then

the Change Owner must complete the ‘CAB – Change Review Form’, Appendix C.2.

The Change Owner should distribute these Forms and any other relevant information

regarding the Change Request, to the distribution list, ‘IT CAB’, ahead of the meeting.


5. CHANGE CONCEPTS

5.1 Change Classification

The classification of a Change Request will be one of the following:

• Planned

• Urgent

• Retrospective

• CAB Pre-Approved

The relevant classification will be based upon the implementation timeframe, risk, the

date of Line Manager approval and whether CAB Pre-Approval has been sought.

5.1.1 Planned Changes

Planned Changes are those that do not need to be implemented urgently, and can be scheduled for implementation within the published Change Management lead times.

Change Lead times are outlined below in section 5.4.

5.1.2 Urgent Changes

Urgent Changes are those that have a clear business requirement for implementation in

the shortest possible time, and would usually have one of the following Reasons for

Change:

• Problem Resolution

• Incident Resolution

• Preventative Maintenance

• Company / Project Request

The CAB may invite a Change Requestor to the next CAB meeting to discuss why a

Change Request did not meet the standard lead times.


5.1.3 Retrospective Change Requests

If the time to schedule the implementation for a fix to a business critical incident isn’t

available, the change can be implemented without a Change Request, however a

retrospective Change Request is required where that change is:

• A system configuration

• A code change

Retrospective Change Requests must be raised no later than 24 hours following the

implementation. These types of Change Request only require Line Manager approval.

5.1.4 CAB Pre-Approved Changes

For regular changes of minimal risk that meet the criteria below, teams may request CAB

Pre-approval. CAB pre-approved changes still require a change record, but have only a

24-hour lead-time and line manager approval.

The CAB will decided on the appropriateness of Pre-Approval based on the following

criteria:

• Frequency of the Change Request, two to three times a month

• Simplicity the of Change Request

• Low or Negligible Risk

• If the implementation is, or can be automated

• If the implementation process is documented, proven and repeatable

To request CAB Pre-Approval, complete the ‘CAB - Change Pre-Approval Form’, Appendix C.4.


5.1.5 CAB Exempt Changes

For regular changes of minimal risk that meet the criteria below, teams may request CAB

Exemption. CAB exempt changes do not require a change record.

The CAB will decided on the appropriateness of CAB Exemption based on the following

criteria:

• Frequency of the Change Request, hourly or daily

• Simplicity of the Change Request, for example an administrative function within

a role

• Low or Negligible Risk

• If the implementation is, or can be automated

• If the implementation process is documented, proven and repeatable

To request CAB Exemption, complete the ‘CAB - Change Exemption Form’, Appendix

C.5.

5.1.6 Change Templates

For regularly occurring Change Requests that do not meet the requirements of a CAB

Pre-Approval or Exemption, a Change Template maybe requested.

When a Change Owner flags a Change Request as a potential Template, the Change

Owners Line Manager and CAB will review it.

If approved, the Change Owner can reuse the template for similar Change Requests in the

future.

5.2 Reason For Change

The Reason For Change is a simple explanation as to why the change is required and is

determined by the Change Owner when creating the Change Request.


5.2.1 Problem Resolution

The Problem Resolution Change Driver is to be used when a Change Request is made to

resolve an outstanding problem.

5.2.2 Incident Resolution

The Problem Resolution Change Driver is to be used when a Change Request is made to

resolve an outstanding incident.

5.2.3 Preventative Maintenance

The Preventative Maintenance Reason for Change is used for instances where action is

required to maintain the stability of an operational system or service.

It is to be used for Change Requests where the likelihood of a service interruption is

considered significant. This may include taking action to prevent the likely occurrence of

a Priority One or Two problem or incident.

5.2.4 Company / Project Request

The Project Request Reason for Change is to be utilised when a Change Request is made

at the request of a Project.

5.2.5 Hardware Maintenance

This Reason for Change is used for any scheduled hardware maintenance required to

keep hardware at Vendor supported levels.

This Reason for Change is not used to correct an immediate Hardware problem or

incident.

5.2.6 Software Maintenance

This Reason for Change is used for any scheduled software maintenance required to keep

software at Vendor supported levels.


This Reason for Change is not used to correct an immediate Software problem or

incident.

5.2.7 Infrastructure Improvement

This Reason for Change is used for Change Requests to improve service capabilities,

such as increasing bandwidth, capacity or performance.

5.2.8 Pre-Approved

This Reason for Change is to be used for regularly occurring Change Requests previously

approved by the CAB.

For more information on CAB Pre-Approved Change Requests please see section ‘5.1.4

CAB Pre-Approved Changes’

5.2.9 Disaster Recovery Test

This Reason for Change is to be used for testing of Disaster Recovery functionality and

fail over.


5.3 Lead Times

5.3.1 Urgent Changes

Urgent Change Requests do not require a lead-time. It is recommended however, that the

Change Owner allow some time to gather the relevant approvals before initiating the

Change Request.

5.3.2 CAB Pre-Approved Changes

CAB Pre-Approved Changes require one day lead time, however a pre-approved change

may require less than one day lead time, in which case it is an Urgent Pre-Approved

change.

5.3.3 Planned Changes

The following table provides a summary of the lead times required for both Planned

Impact and Non Impact Change Requests.

The Lead Time is calculated from the time the Change Owners Line Manager approves

the Change Request.

Planned Change Requests (Non Impact and Impact)

Risk Lead Time

Negligible 1 Days

Low 7 Days

Medium 14 Days

High 21 Days

Change Requests that do not meet these lead times will be considered urgent.


5.4 Other Change Attributes

5.4.1 Risk

The risk level for a Change Request indicates the potential of the Change failing or

causing an unexpected impact during its implementation. It will be categorised as

Negligible, Low, Medium or High.

The risk level is calculated automatically when creating the Change Request, by the

Change Owner’s responses to the risk analysis questions.

The risk level calculated for a change will determine the lead-time for planned changes.

5.4.2 Impact

Changes Requests are categorised as having an impact of either negligible, low, medium

or high. The category is automatically calculated while creating the Change Request,

based on the Change Owners response to questions regarding system availability.

If during the time of the Change Request a system or application would normally be

available, but due to the actions being taken it will be unavailable, even briefly, then the

responses to the relevant availability questions should be no.

5.4.3 Business

The Change Originator should include in the Change Request all businesses that will be,

or could be affected as part of the Change.

5.4.3.1 Business - Coles Group

The Coles Group business should be selected for Change Requests affecting any Shared

Service function provided across the organisation, such as Finance or Human Resources.


Change Requests may also be considered Coles Group, if a change is being made on an

IT system that doesn't have any Users. An example of this would be the installation of a

new server that isn't yet being used.

5.4.3.2 If the Business is Unknown

The Change Owner is responsible for ascertaining the businesses that may be affected by

their change. If the owner is unsure which businesses may be affected, they should seek

clarification from the Line Manager, the Change Coordinator, or Service Delivery team.

If it is unclear if a business may be affected by the change, then that business should be

included in the change.

This ensures businesses are aware of changes, and reduces the risk of a Change Request

unexpectedly impacting businesses, other than those listed in the Change Request.


6. CHANGE MANAGEMENT – PROCESS FLOW

6.1 Creating the Change Request

As some of the Approvers may not have a thorough Technical understanding of the

change, Change Owners should take care to clearly and concisely describe the change

without being unnecessarily technical.

6.2 ServiceCenter Approval Process

Approvals occur in the following order:

• Line Manager

• Secondary Support Team Leader

• Change Coordinator

• Service Coordinator

The need for any additional approvals is dependent on the Change Request classification,

as well as the risk and impact.

Change Requests that are considered to be Medium or High Impact will require the

approval of the CAB, while Change Requests during the Focus or Freeze periods are

subject to increased scrutiny and approval, as documented in section, ‘7.4 Focus and

Freeze – Approval Process’.

All approvals must be recorded within the change record. This can be performed by using

the ‘Approval’ function of ServiceCenter, or by forwarding an email to the ‘IT Change

Co-ordinator’ mailbox with the relevant approval.

Approvers may deny a change if they have concerns with the Change Request. When a

Change Request is denied an email will be sent to the Change Owner with an explanation

as to why it was disapproved. The Change Owner is then responsible to discuss the

concern with the approver that denied the Change Request, so that it may again be

reviewed and submitted for approval.


6.3 Change Implementation

Before implementing a Change Request it is the Change Owners responsibility to ensure

the Change Request is fully approved, and all due diligence has been taken to maximise

the success of the implementation.

If it’s identified that the system is unstable, being used, or Team Members performing the

implantation are unavailable, then the Change Request must be withdrawn and

rescheduled to a later date.

6.3.1 Problems or Incidents during Implementation

If an unexpected problem or incident occurs during implementation, the first course of

action should be to perform a backout.

If backout is not possible, then the mode of operation will alter from change management

to problem management, and a ServiceCenter problem record logged. At this point, the

Change Owner should escalate to their Line Manager and the Change Coordinator.

For the contact details of the Change Coordinator, see ‘Change Coordination’, Appendix

D.1.

6.3.2 Implementation Exceeding Change Window

If during the implementation of a Change Request it becomes apparent the scheduled

change window will be exceeded, then the Change Owner must:

• Confirm if any additional impact will occur if the implementation continues

• If a further impact may occur, take steps to commence a back out of the Change

Request

• Notify the Change Coordinator of the situation and the actions being taken


If the impact in extending the Change Window is minimal, then the Change Coordinator

will contact the relevant Service Coordinators and ensure their approval for continuing

the implementation of the Change Request.

For the contact details of the Change Coordinator, see ‘Change Coordination’, Appendix

D.1.

6.4 Change Closure and Notification

Once the implementation of a Change Request is complete, it is an audit requirement for

the Change Owner to update the status and close the Change Request within 48 hours of

its scheduled completion.

6.4.1 Change Requests Not Successfully Implemented

If the Change Request was not successfully implemented, then the Change Owner must

close the Change Request by choosing the relevant ‘Closure Status’, and provide a

description of why the Change Request did not go ahead as planned, including a brief

comment on what action is to now be taken.


7. CHANGE FOCUS AND FREEZE PERIODS

7.1 Overview

Change Focus and Change Freeze Periods are scheduled to increase the stability of IT

environments and maintain service levels during critical trading periods.

For the dates of the Focus and Freeze periods, select ‘Focus & Freeze Dates & Approvals

08/09’ from the following Connect site:


t

7.2 Change Focus

Change Focus periods are scheduled for busy trading periods and business sensitive

times.

7.2.1 Focus Period Criteria

Only changes that meet the following criteria will be approved during Focus Periods:

• Single Business: Where the Change Request has been initiated and approved by

a business and the Change risk is isolated to that business (excluding IT)

• Incident Resolution: Change Requests that are required to resolve an open

priority one or two incident

• Problem Resolution: Change Requests that are required to resolve a known error

• Preventative Maintenance: Change Requests required to prevent potential

problems, or to ensure that the integrity of services is maintained throughout the

Focus Period

• Change Requests to Non-Production environments, including Test and

Development systems

• CAB Pre-Approved Change Requests




7.3 Change Freeze

Change Freeze periods are scheduled for critical trading periods and business critical

times.

Changes that do not meet the specified criteria are actively discouraged during Freeze

periods.

7.3.1 Freeze Period Criteria

During the Change Freeze Period, Change Requests that meet the following criteria are

permitted to proceed:

• Incident Resolution: Change Requests that are required to resolve an open

priority one or two incident

• Problem Resolution: Change Requests that are required to resolve a known error

• Preventative Maintenance: Change Requests required to prevent potential

problems, or to ensure that the integrity of services is maintained throughout the

Freeze Period

• Change Requests to Non-Production environments, including Test and

Development systems

7.4 Focus and Freeze– Approval Process

Change Requests that do not meet the above criteria will need extra approvals in order to

proceed, these include:

• A member of the IT Leadership team, or their delegate, within the Change

Owners line of reporting structure

• The Production Services Manager for the affected Business(es), or a delegate of

the Production Services Manager


The Change Owner should either ‘paste’ these approvals into the Change Request, or

forward an email to the ‘IT Change Co-ordinator’ mailbox displaying the Change

Request Number, and its approval.

If the Change Owners Line Manager provides approval of the Change Request prior to

approval being given by the relevant IT Leadership Team Member (or delegate) or

Production Services Manager (or delegate), then the Change Coordinator will deny the

Change Request.

Once the additional approvals have been received, the normal approval process is

followed.

For more information on the approval process, see section, ‘6.2, ServiceCenter Approval

Process’.


7.5 Focus and Freeze - Approvers

7.5.1 IT Leadership Team Members / Production Services Managers

A list of members of the IT Leadership Team and the Production Services Managers is contained below:

Coles Liquor IT Manager Phil Fisher

Merchandise Systems IT Manager John Kelvie

General Manager Infrastructure

Services and Operations

Ken

Harmsworth

Coles Express IT Manager Mark Freeman

Logistics Systems Manager Paolo Azzali

IT Manager Shared Services Terry Court

Program Delivery Manager Helen Brunt

PMO Manager Sally Duncan

IT Leadership Team

IT Manager Carole Ackland

Supermarkets & Coles Liquor Group David Hooley Production Services Managers

Supply Chain, Coles Express &

Retail Support

Lindsay Watson

For a Change Owner to locate the name of the relevant IT Leadership Team Member, Production Services Manager, or any of their delegates, please view the Organisation Chart from the following Connect site:

http://portal.cmlconnect.org/portal/wps/portal/HRonline/content?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/CML+Connect/HR+online/Indexes/Organisational+Charts/Organisational+Charts

If still unsure, please speak to your Line Manager.





APPENDIX A: TABLE OF DEFINITIONS

The following terms, acronyms and abbreviations are referred to in this document.

Table 1 - Table of Definitions

Term Definition

CGL Coles Group Ltd

Production A critical IT environment required for the delivery of Business and IT

Operations, including redundancy

Non-Production A non-critical IT environment typically used for Development and

Testing. These systems are isolated from Production and provide no

operational functionality to the Business or IT

Assignee Group Specialized skill groups that work on incidents, problems and raise

Changes Requests

Incident An event that isn’t part of the standard system operation

Problems An unknown underlying cause of one or more incidents

ServiceCenter The tool used for the recording of all incidents, problems and Change

Requests

Change Request A documented account of planned changes within, or affecting an IT

environment.

Retrospective Change

Request Raised within 24 hours of implementing a fix for a business critical

incident. Retrospective Change Requests are only required for fixes

that involved updates to system configurations or code

Change Tasks Change Tasks are allocated to additional Support Teams when their

assistance is required

CAB Change Advisory Board, made up of senior IT Managers who provide

review and approval of certain Change Requests

Approval Acceptance of a Change Request

Pre-Approval Granted by the CAB for recurring Change Requests that meet a set

criteria. Pre-Approved changes require a Change Request, but have

a reduced lead time

Exemption Granted by the CAB for regularly occurring Change Requests that

meet a set criteria. A ServiceCenter Change Request is not required

when Exemption is received


Term Definition

Change Template Change Templates can be requested to make the process of raising

Change Requests for regularly occurring work more efficient

Change Classification The urgency of the Change Request, planned, urgent or Pre-

Approved

Reason for Change The reason for the Change Request, for example Problem

Resolution, Business Request, Project Request etc.

Lead Times The period of time required for a Change Request to be reviewed

and approved before being implemented

Impact A description of the effect the implementation will have on the

environment

Urgent An urgent Change Request that must be implemented as soon as

possible typically to resolve a high priority incident or problem

Planned A non urgent Change Request that can be implemented based on

the published lead times

Back Out The action taken to return a system to its pre-implementation state

Change Window The period of time allocated for the Change Request to be

implemented

Focus Period Change Focus periods are scheduled for busy trading periods and

business sensitive times. During Focus periods certain Change

Requests are actively discouraged while others require additional

review and approval

Freeze Period Change Freeze periods are scheduled for busy trading periods and

business sensitive times. During Freeze periods certain Change

Requests are actively discouraged while others require additional

review and approval

Risk Level An indication of the potential risk in implementing the Change

Deny The action taken when an Approver disapproves a Change Request


APPENDIX B: EXTERNAL REFERENCES

Document Title Source Location

IT Service Delivery – Connect Home Page Home > Retail Support > IT > Managing IT

Focus Calendar Home > Retail Support > IT > Managing IT

Incident / Problem Management Guide Home > Retail Support > IT > Managing IT

Urgent Change Procedures Home > Retail Support > IT > Managing IT

Change Management Risk Assessment Table \\Goanna\Grpdata\Service Delivery\Change Co-

ordination\New Change Process\New Change

Process\Risk Assessment

Change Approval Contacts \\Goanna\Grpdata\IT IS&O Change co-

ordination\Change Approval Contacts.htm


APPENDIX C: FORMS AND TEMPLATES

C.1: CAB – Change Incident Form

CAB - Change Incident Form

C.2: CAB – Change Review Form

CAB Change Review

Form

C.3: CAB – Change Pre-Approval Form

C.4: CAB – Change Exemption Form

CAB - Change Exemption Form

The CAB Form’s are available via the following page of the Portal:


CAB Change Pre Approval Form



APPENDIX D: ADDITIONAL CONTACT DETAILS

D.1: Change Coordination

The on site hours of coverage for the Change Coordinor is 08:00 to 16:30, Monday to Friday.

The Change Coordination contact details are:

• Email: IT Change Co-ordinator

• Business Hours: 8544 7461

• After Hours: 0408 569 194

change management guide

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