Ajax Minerals and the Problems at Perrier - Assignment Example

Ajax Minerals and Perrier Case Study Resistance by employees and the reason of resisting is discussed in the case study of Ajax Minerals and Perrier. Resistance by employees in any company has a negative impact on the operational activities of the business. In this paper, the case study of Ajax Minerals and Perrier will be discussed how both companies dealt with the problem of resistance. Change management is an important factor which helps in dealing with various situations within an organization. In addition to covering the aspects mentioned above, we will also extract the main reasons of resistance of change in Ajax Minerals and Perrier. Resistance to Change at Ajax Minerals The leadership team at Ajax Minerals wanted a change in the operational activities as they were planning for future activities. They were concerned about the challenges they have to face in the near future from their competitors. In order to continue their operations easily, they required certain changes without which the future of Ajax Minerals was considered to be in danger. The supervisors and workers did not foresee any such threats which the leadership considered dangerous. All of the labor force at Ajax Minerals was poorly managed, and there has always been poor management and labor relation. The employees (labor) always considered that any meeting held would result in redundancy or cut-offs. The laborers resist to change because of their past experiences (Hall & Hord, 2014). The main reason of resistance to change at Ajax is because of the lack of coordination between the management and the lack of job security. The laborers have always resisted to change because of such reasons and at this moment they had the same perception about the change which the leadership team wanted to implement. The leadership team at Ajax was aware of the reaction of the employees and tried to deal with this situation opposite to the customary manner (Hiatt & Creasey, 2003). Before implying any changes, the management team and the supervisors interacted and discussed the changes. This policy was never opted in the past, but they considered it important as it was the only way to implement the changes. In the meetings, the managers discussed the problems that the company was expected to face and even asked for their advice. The managers at the company also used an open book approach through which all the employees gained access to the financial performance of the company. The above two strategies were opted by the managers at Ajax to avoid resistance to change by the employees (Hall & Hord, 2014). Resistance to Change at Perrier In every organization, the starting point to any resistance begins when there is a lack of communication and interaction between people. Management at Perrier wanted to make some changes in the course of the work and considered a 15% lay-off would be beneficial for the company financially. The workers at Perrier protested against the change, and they considered this action morally unethical. The resistance to change was because of lack of interaction and poor relationship between managers and workers; this caused a lot of problems for operational activities to continue (Samson & Bevington, 2012). The management team at Perrier blamed their workers who formed a CGT union, which grew strong as no actions were taken against them at the time of formation of CGT union. The management team found it very difficult for them to solve the issue of resistance to change and had no specific plan to stop employees from resisting the change. Despite dealing with such situations, they implemented their strategies, which were not supported by the workers. The management team did not consider to solve these issues and implemented what they thought was best for the organization (Hiatt & Creasey, 2003). The lack of concern towards workers shown by the management of Perrier resulted in the resistance to change. All the changes made by the management were strongly resisted by the worker and was supported by the CGT union. The act of management team to motivate their workers also went in vain as workers believed that the change in the ordinary course of work may lead to lay-offs and pay cut (Paton & McCalman, 2008). From the case studies of Ajax Minerals and Perrier, it is observed that both the companies faced resistance of change from their employees. Both the companies tried different strategies in solving the problem, but the management team was not able to deal with the resistance of change in an effective manner. Ajax Minerals analyzed the real problem behind the resistance and was able to deal with the problem in an effective manner (Hall & Hord, 2014). The strategy to communicate and involve supervisors in the meetings helped Ajax Mineral to overcome their problem. The management team at Ajax Minerals analyzed the issue clearly and worked on it before implementing the change. They explained their employees why the change is important and what can be the consequences if such changes are not made. In addition to it, they also allowed their employees to check the financial performance of the company (Paton & McCalman, 2008). On the other hand, the management team at Perrier was not able to diagnose the issue, which resulted in further problems. They avoided interaction with the workers, which worsened the situation. They implemented their strategies without concerning others and wanted the workers to work according to their style. This strategy of the management team at Perrier was strongly opposed by the action of the workers because of which the company had to face problems in developing the business strategies. The reason because of which Perrier failed in solving this issue was that they only focused on implementing their strategy and avoided taking opinion from the employees. They were not able to communicate with the employees the reason behind implementing change (Robbins & Coulter, 2009). As a consultant with Ajax Management, it would be advised to the management team that communication with employees must be made compulsory, and the issue must be shared. The main adjustments, which are required to implement changes, are that they must motivate their employees and build a trust relationship. By building a trust relationship the employees will account to no fear of losing their jobs and motivating them will provide them job satisfaction (Samson & Bevington, 2012). To improve the quality of work, motivating the employees is the most important thing, which every organization must do. If the employees are motivated then they will be satisfied from their job and will be comfortable in accepting changes in their working activities. Building trust relationship with employees will eliminate the job risk from the employees and because of this factor they will not resist changes in the working activities. The activities of building trust relation and motivating the employees must be followed by every organization as they are important and helpful in bringing about the changes in the company (Holland & Rohe, 2012). As a consultant at Perrier, it is advised to the management team that they must interact with its employees and develop a relationship with the employees. The mentioned adjustments are compulsory for Perrier to bring changes in the company. If the management team at Perrier adopts such adjustments then, the employees (workers) will not resist the change. The above-mentioned adjustment will be most suitable for Perrier to adopt at this level if they want to avoid resistance to change. By interacting with employees, it will be easier for the management team at Perrier to discuss the issues, which workers are facing regarding their work and issues related to the company can also be shared with the employees. It is necessary to share the issues with the employees, and they must be made aware of the consequences that will occur if such changes are not made. By such actions, employees will be willing to work according to the directions of the management team and will not resist to changes. Furthermore, they must also build a trust relationship with employees so that the employees do not have any fear of losing a job. By such actions, employees will also be motivated and do their work effectively and efficiently. If the management team at Perrier adopts such adjustments, there will be fewer chances of employees resisting the change (Hiatt & Creasey, 2003). It is noted through the case studies that the both the companies had to face a similar problem of resisting changing, which was caused mainly because of lack of communication. There must be communication and coordination between the employees (workers) and the management team. Communication is crucial in every organization to deal with all types of situations. If the management team of both the companies had communicated with their employees earlier it would have been easier for them to bring the required changes in the company. The management team must let the workers focus on the progress rather than a change. The companies must always make strategies before implementing any plan and must communicate the plan with its employees in order to obtain a positive feedback and avoid the resistance to change. Reference List Hall, G. E., & Hord, S. M. (2014). Implementing Change: Patterns, Principles, and Potholes. New Jersey: Pearson Education. Hiatt, J., & Creasey, T. J. (2003). Change Management: The People Side of Change. Georgetown: Prosci. Holland, D., & Rohe, D. (2012). Successful Organizational Change: Completing Healthcare Projects on Target on Time and on Budget. Bloomington: Xlibris Corporation. Paton, R. A., & McCalman, J. (2008). Change Management: A Guide to Effective Implementation. New York: SAGE. Robbins, S., & Coulter, M. (2009). Management. New Jersey: Pearson Education. Samson, D., & Bevington, T. (2012). Implementing Strategic Change: Managing Processes and Interfaces to Develop a Highly Productive Organization. London: Kogan Page Publishers. Read More