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Change Management Policy

Policy Status: Draft

This policy is currently draft.

Purpose

To control changes to Acme Corp's IT environment in a systematic and documented manner, ensuring that all changes are properly planned, tested, approved, and communicated to minimize disruptions and maintain system stability, security, and compliance.

Scope

This policy applies to any change that impacts Acme Corp's IT infrastructure, systems, applications, or services, including but not limited to: - Software updates and patches - Hardware upgrades or replacements - Network configuration changes - Database schema modifications - Cloud infrastructure changes - Security control updates - Application deployments

Policy Statement

Change Request and Documentation

All changes to IT systems must be:

  • Documented: Submitted through the official change request form in the change management system
  • Categorized: Classified as Standard, Normal, or Emergency based on scope and urgency
  • Detailed: Include complete description of the change, reason, scope, and expected impact
  • Tracked: Logged in the change management system with unique change identifier
  • Version Controlled: Changes to code or configurations managed in version control systems

Change Categories

Standard Changes: - Pre-approved, low-risk, routine changes following documented procedures - Examples: scheduled patch deployments, routine backup configuration updates - Require documentation but not individual approval - Must follow established standard operating procedures

Normal Changes: - Non-emergency changes requiring evaluation and approval - Examples: software version upgrades, infrastructure expansions, new feature deployments - Require full change management process - Subject to Change Advisory Board (CAB) review

Emergency Changes: - Urgent changes required to resolve critical incidents or security vulnerabilities - Examples: critical security patches, fixes for production outages - Expedited approval process through emergency CAB - Require post-implementation review and documentation

Risk Assessment and Impact Analysis

Before implementation, all changes must undergo:

  • Risk Evaluation: Assessment of potential negative impacts and likelihood
  • Impact Analysis: Identification of affected systems, users, and business processes
  • Dependency Mapping: Documentation of system dependencies and integration points
  • Rollback Planning: Defined procedures for reverting changes if issues occur
  • Security Review: Evaluation of security implications for changes affecting sensitive systems

Approval Process

Standard Changes: Pre-approved through documented standard change procedures

Normal Changes: - Submitted to Change Advisory Board (CAB) at least 5 business days before implementation - Require approval from: - IT Operations Manager (all changes) - CTO (high-impact changes) - Security Team (security-related changes) - Compliance Team (changes affecting compliance)

Emergency Changes: - Require CTO or designated on-call authority approval - Emergency CAB convened within 2 hours when possible - Full documentation completed within 24 hours post-implementation

Testing and Validation

All non-emergency changes must be:

  • Tested in Non-Production: Validated in development or staging environment before production deployment
  • Peer Reviewed: Code changes reviewed by at least one other team member
  • Documented: Test results and validation evidence recorded in change request
  • User Acceptance: Significant changes require user acceptance testing when applicable
  • Performance Tested: Changes assessed for performance impact on critical systems

Communication and Coordination

  • Advance Notice: All changes communicated to affected stakeholders at least 48 hours in advance
  • Maintenance Windows: Changes scheduled during designated maintenance windows when possible
  • Downtime Notification: Users notified of planned downtime through email, Slack, and status page
  • Status Updates: Regular updates provided during implementation of major changes
  • Completion Notification: Stakeholders informed when changes are complete and systems verified

Implementation and Monitoring

  • Change Windows: Changes implemented during approved maintenance windows unless emergency
  • Implementation Plan: Detailed step-by-step procedures followed during implementation
  • Monitoring: Enhanced monitoring during and after change implementation
  • Validation: Post-implementation verification that change achieved intended results
  • Issue Resolution: Immediate escalation of any issues encountered during implementation

Roles and Responsibilities

Role Responsibility
Chief Technology Officer Final approval authority for high-impact changes, chair emergency CAB
IT Operations Manager Manage change process, chair CAB meetings, approve normal changes
Change Advisory Board (CAB) Review and approve normal changes, assess risks, provide recommendations
IT Team Members Submit change requests, execute approved changes, document results
Development Team Ensure code changes follow proper review and testing procedures
Security Team Review security implications of changes, approve security-related changes
Compliance Team Ensure changes maintain regulatory compliance
Department Representatives Communicate impact to their teams, participate in CAB when changes affect their area

Procedures

Submitting a Change Request

  1. Access System: Log into change management system (e.g., Jira, ServiceNow)
  2. Create Request: Complete change request form with all required information:
  3. Change description and justification
  4. Systems and components affected
  5. Implementation plan and timeline
  6. Risk assessment and mitigation strategies
  7. Rollback procedures
  8. Testing evidence
  9. Categorize: Select appropriate change category (Standard, Normal, Emergency)
  10. Attach Documentation: Include diagrams, test results, and supporting materials
  11. Submit: Submit request for review and route to appropriate approvers

Change Advisory Board (CAB) Process

  1. Weekly Meetings: CAB meets every Tuesday at 10:00 AM to review pending changes
  2. Agenda Distribution: Change requests distributed to CAB members 24 hours before meeting
  3. Review: CAB reviews each change request for:
  4. Completeness of documentation
  5. Risk and impact assessment
  6. Testing adequacy
  7. Schedule appropriateness
  8. Decision: CAB approves, requests modifications, or rejects changes
  9. Documentation: Meeting minutes and decisions recorded in change management system
  10. Emergency CAB: Convened as needed for emergency changes via Slack and phone

Change Implementation

  1. Pre-Implementation Check: Verify all approvals obtained and prerequisites met
  2. Communication: Send notification to affected users and stakeholders
  3. Backup: Create system backups before implementing changes
  4. Execute: Follow documented implementation plan step-by-step
  5. Monitor: Actively monitor systems during and after implementation
  6. Validate: Verify change achieved desired results and no adverse impacts
  7. Document: Record implementation details, any issues encountered, and resolutions
  8. Close: Update change request with completion status and actual vs. planned results

Post-Implementation Review

For significant changes (within 5 business days of implementation):

  1. Success Evaluation: Assess whether change met objectives
  2. Issue Analysis: Review any problems encountered and resolutions
  3. Lessons Learned: Document insights for improving future changes
  4. Process Improvement: Identify opportunities to improve change management process
  5. Update Documentation: Revise system documentation to reflect changes

Rollback Procedures

If issues occur during implementation:

  1. Issue Assessment: Evaluate severity of issues and impact
  2. Decision: Determine whether to proceed, fix forward, or rollback
  3. Execute Rollback: Follow documented rollback procedures if needed
  4. Verify: Confirm systems restored to pre-change state
  5. Incident Response: Treat as incident if rollback required for emergency change
  6. Root Cause Analysis: Investigate why issues occurred and update change plan

Exceptions

Exceptions to this policy may be granted for: - Business Emergencies: Critical business needs requiring immediate changes - Security Incidents: Urgent security vulnerabilities requiring immediate remediation - Regulatory Requirements: Changes mandated by regulators with tight deadlines

Exception process: - Request in writing with detailed justification - Require CTO approval - Must include compensating controls - Full documentation completed within 24 hours - Exceptions reviewed in next scheduled CAB meeting

Compliance and Enforcement

  • Change Tracking: All changes logged and tracked in change management system
  • Audit Trail: Complete audit trail maintained for all changes including approvals and communications
  • Monthly Metrics: Report change success rate, rollback frequency, and compliance metrics
  • Quarterly Audits: Review change management process compliance and effectiveness
  • Annual Review: Comprehensive review of change management policy and procedures
  • Violations: Unauthorized changes result in:
  • Mandatory incident report
  • Root cause analysis
  • Corrective action plan
  • Potential disciplinary action for repeated violations
  • Continuous Improvement: Regular review of change failures and near-misses to improve process

References

  • ITIL Change Management Best Practices
  • NIST SP 800-128: Guide for Security-Focused Configuration Management
  • ISO/IEC 20000-1: IT Service Management
  • SOC 2 Trust Service Criteria: Change Management Controls
  • HIPAA Security Rule - Configuration Management

Revision History

Version Date Author Changes
1.0 2025-11-08 IT Team Initial version migrated from Notion

Document Control - Classification: Internal - Distribution: All IT staff, department heads, CAB members - Storage: GitHub repository - policy-repository