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Change Approval Policies

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In this lesson, you will learn:

  • What a change approval policy is
  • SNWR’s approval rules by risk
  • How the policy picks approvers
  • How to read and adjust a policy

🔁 Quick look back: Last time: The Change Schedule. You learned how the change schedule shows all planned changes on a calendar.

1 “Why does every change go to CAB?”

In week one, every normal change waits for Tuesday’s CAB.

  • The CAB agenda has 40 changes.
  • Most are low risk and take 30 seconds to approve.
  • The risky ones get rushed at the end.

🎯 The problem: One approval path for every change wastes CAB’s time and rushes the risky ones.

👉 The fix: let the change’s type and risk pick the approvers, with an approval policy.

2 What is an approval policy?

Key term: Change approval policy

A set of rules that decides who must approve a change, based on things like type and risk.

Key term: Approver

A person or group who must say yes before the change can move on.

SNWR's change approval policy. Low risk: the assignment group's manager approves. Moderate risk: the group manager and the change manager, Mei, approve. High risk: the group manager, then CAB at the weekly meeting. Emergency: the emergency CAB, any two of Mei, Beth and Daniel. Standard changes are pre-approved.
Figure 1. Risk picks the approvers.

3 How it works

  • The policy looks at the change when it reaches Authorize.
  • It checks rules in order, like a decision table.
  • The first rule that matches decides the approvers.

💡 Good to know: Keep the rules few and simple. If Mei can’t explain a rule in one sentence, it’s too complex.

📝 Note: The CI’s Change Success Score can also be used. For example, a team with a low score always needs Mei’s approval.

4 Let’s try it: read and adjust the policy

  1. Search Change Approval Policies in the All menu, and open the baseline policy for normal changes.
  2. Read its decisions. Which inputs does it use (risk, type, and so on)?
  3. Copy the policy, and set the Low risk rule to ask only the assignment group’s manager.
  4. Raise a Low risk normal change, move it to Authorize, and check who is asked to approve.
  5. Record the policy in the design decisions log.

5 Quick recap

  • A change approval policy decides who approves
  • It uses the change’s type and risk
  • SNWR: low → manager; moderate → manager and Mei; high → CAB
  • Emergencies go to the emergency CAB
  • Keep the rules few and simple

6 Check yourself

Think of your answer first. Then tap to check.

1 A normal change is Low risk. Who approves at SNWR? Show answer

The assignment group’s manager.

2 A normal change is High risk. Who approves? Show answer

The group manager, then CAB.

3 When does the policy run? Show answer

When the change reaches Authorize.

4 Who approves a standard change? Show answer

Nobody. It’s pre-approved.

Nice work! SNWR’s changes now get the right approvers. 🎉
Next up: Approvers, Approval Groups and Delegation

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