When change comes, you can be prepared for it by creating a great transition plan. Not everyone will experience the same changes in life, but everyone will experience some sort of change. Having a plan to guide you through those changes helps you adapt and get used to the new situation better.
To learn how to create a great transition plan for you, continue to read our article. It has the information to help you be like the boy scouts and be prepared for transitions that change your life.
What is a transition plan?
A transition plan guides you through the upcoming change. It provides the steps you need to take in order to complete the transition smoothly. There is no one size fits all transition plan so you will have to make a new one every time a different change enters your life.
Some examples of transitions are a child graduates from high school, a death in the family, a marriage, or even a move to another home across town or across the country. These plans help you prepare for everything and lets you get ready without any pressure.
Transition Plan Templates
What to include in a transition plan?
While there are different elements involved with each transition, there are some basic steps that are in every transition phase of your life. Each plan will have to be customized and include those details not found in other changes that occur throughout life.
Here is a basic list of what to include:
1. The date the transition will occur- not always known as some transitions happen when you least expect them.
2. What is affected by the transition- identify key areas that will be changed because of the transition and write down steps to deal with those effects.
3. Filling the void- each change may leave some sort of void and you need to be prepared to fill with it some other activity or ways to cope with the void.
4. The cost of the transition- there will always be some sort of cost involved and you should make list of potential costs even though the numbers may be different when the transition actually occurs.
How to Create a Transition Plan
There are good transition plan templates on the internet but these are samples and may not cover the change you have to plan for. Most deal with business or employment transitions which are helpful but leave you wondering how to plan for other changes in life. Here are a few steps to follow:
1. Write the name of the change- this can be done on your computer and your preferred document program, or you can go old school and write the name of the change on a piece of paper
2. Create a list- this list will vary from transition to transition, and as an example, if your child is going off to college, you can write down how they will get there, who will pay the costs, what do to with their room, or other details that you feel are pertinent to the transition.
3. Create alternative activities- for example, if your child is off to college, you will need to fill the void they leave behind with other things to do. You will have extra time on your hands that need to be used constructively, and having some plan will help you achieve that objective
4. Stick to your plan- there is no sense in creating one if you are not going to implement it.
What is a project transition plan?
A project transition is a business-orientated change that may not affect anyone’s employment status. It will affect the members of the team working on that project, and the basics we already mentioned will be included in this plan.
You will need to have the date the change will occur, who will be affected by the change, what qualifications the next person should have to fill the void that is left by the change, and how much this change will cost the company.
There are many templates covering this topic already on the internet, and they are designed to help you answer all those questions. The transition plan only needs to be one page, maybe two at most. It can also identify the person who is conducting the transition to make sure it all goes smoothly.
What is a job transition plan?
This is one of the harder transitions to make as you may have settled into a comfortable routine. A job transition upsets that routine, but if you have a good transition plan, you can make the change and adapt fairly easily to your new schedule.
The purpose of the job transition plan is to help you go from one job to another or retire smoothly. You layout your goals, activities to fill the new void or make travel arrangements if you are simply moving to a new job.
Also included in a job transition plan are the details of your duties, responsibilities, and instructions on how to meet them. This information is left for your replacement, so they know what to do when they assume those aspects of your former employment life.
Finally, you lay out a schedule for you to complete ongoing projects and other duties before you leave the firm.
What is a transition plan in business?
This is a document that guides you through the process of replacing an employee who is leaving the firm for whatever reason they may have. There is a list of items that should be covered by this plan:
- Who replaces the departing employee
- What duties will be transferred to another person, if applicable
- Who will be told of the changes
- What duties will the departing employee do up to their departure date
- Conduct exit interviews and who will lead them
- The official date of the transition
- Will people change offices or workspaces
- Deal with minute details like directory changes, etc.
- Begin processes that change benefits enrollments
- Instructions to the employee to prepare something for their successor
- Training schedule for successors, if applicable
Final Words
Transitions are never easy, for the most part. What makes them easier to handle is if you have time to prepare a good transition plan. With those guiding steps, you should be able to handle any change that comes your way.
