Change Management Policy

Change Management Policy

Overview & Purpose

[Company Name] is committed to maintaining the stability, security, and performance of its systems and services. This Change Management Policy establishes a structured approach for planning, reviewing, and implementing changes to production environments to minimize disruption and reduce risk.

Scope

This policy applies to all employees, contractors, and vendors involved in deploying or modifying code, infrastructure, configurations, or business-critical processes. It covers changes to both cloud-based and on-premises systems, including software, hardware, and third-party services.

Policy

• Types of Changes
  All changes must be classified into one of the following categories:
  • Standard Change: Pre-approved, low-risk, and repeatable changes.
  • Normal Change: Routine changes that require review and approval.
  • Emergency Change: Urgent changes required to resolve a critical issue or security vulnerability.
• Change Request Process
  All proposed changes must be documented in a change request ticket or system that includes:
  • Description of the change
  • Reason and risk assessment
  • Affected systems or services
  • Implementation plan and rollback steps
  • Scheduled date and time
  • Approver(s)
• Review & Approval
  • Standard and normal changes must be reviewed by the system owner or a designated reviewer.
  • High-risk or customer-facing changes may require approval from engineering leadership or a Change Advisory Board (if applicable).
  • Emergency changes must be documented as soon as possible after implementation.
• Testing & Validation
  Changes must be tested in a staging or development environment before deployment to production, unless otherwise approved as an emergency. Testing should verify functionality and assess for potential negative impacts.
• Communication
  Relevant stakeholders (e.g., engineering, product, support) must be notified before any production change. For high-impact changes, users or clients may be notified in advance, where appropriate.
• Change Implementation
  All changes must follow version control, deployment, and rollback procedures. Deployments should be logged, with timestamps and responsible parties documented.
• Post-Change Review
  Significant or failed changes must undergo a post-implementation review to evaluate:
  • Success or failure of the change
  • Unintended consequences
  • Lessons learned
  • Required corrective actions
• Separation of Duties
  Where feasible, individuals who develop code or changes should not be the only person to approve or deploy them in production.
• Change Documentation Retention
  Records of all change requests and approvals must be retained for at least one year and be accessible for audits or security reviews.

Compliance

Violations of this policy may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination. [Company Name] reserves the right to audit compliance with this policy at any time.

Review History