How to manage IT changes without interrupting the operation

What controls does a technological change need before it is executed?

It must have objective, scope, responsible party, expected impact, window, backup or return point, verification and authorization steps. The depth of control can vary, but even a small change should allow you to know what was changed and how to go back.

Risks to review

• Apply urgent changes without recording dependencies or previous state.
• Confusing that a task has finished with that the service is working correctly.
• Failure to inform affected users, suppliers or managers.
• Discover during the intervention that there is no configuration copy or console access.

Safe recommendations

1. Classify the change by impact, urgency, and possibility of reversal.
2. Document scope, responsible parties, commands or steps and expected result.
3. Check backups, alternate access and rollback procedure.
4. Communicate window, impact and monitoring channel to affected people.
5. Test business functions, not just the technical condition of the equipment.
6. Record the result, incidents, evidence and subsequent tasks.

When to seek specialized help

• The change affects email, billing, servers, firewall, network or remote access.
• There is no validated backup, alternative console, or clear path to rollback.
• Several suppliers participate and there is no coordinating person.