The Impact of Imports on Employees Morale in Australian Textile Manufacturers - Coursework Example

The Impact of Imports on Employees’ Morale in Australian Textile Manufacturers Table of Contents I. Introducing Strategic Changes in an Organization…………………………. 3 a. Organizational Change Management ……………………………... 3 b. Individual Change Management …………………………………… 4 b.1 Kurt Lewin’s Model for Change ………………………….. 4 b.2 ADKAR Model for Change ………………………………. 4 II. Defining Resistance ………………………………..………………………. 5 III. The Nature and Causes of Resistance ……………………………………… 6 IV. Managers’ Role in Change …………………………………………………. 6 V. Failure of Change in Management …………………………………………. 7 VI. Resistance to Change ………………………………………………………... 8 VII. Controlling Resistance ………………………………………………………. 9 VIII. Managing Change Smoothly ……………………………………………….... 12 IX. Ways to Increase Self-esteem ……………………………………………….. 13 X. Importation of Textiles from China …………………………………………. 13 References ………………………………………………………………………… 15 - 17 Introducing Strategic Changes in an Organization Change has always been inevitable. It is an element in life that every organization has to accept. Organizations have to view change as a potential opportunity for growth and advancement. Being open to changes allow the business organization to compete and adapt with the new demands that the business is facing. When introducing a strategic change in the organization, the manager should come up with a SMART plan. It means that the future plan should be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound. (Chaudron, 2006) Organizational strategies to be used on change should also be specific and direct. For instance, the company will use ‘SWOT analysis’ to allow the company to define their core competencies, etc. Change in management is very broad subject. Structured approach to change can either refer to an employee as an individual or as an organization. From the prospective of an individual, change could refer to a change in behavior and beliefs. Looking at change on the business side could mean a change in the business process, adopting with the use of a new technology, or implementing a new business goal. In order for change to be successful, engagement and participation of all the people involved is very important. There is a framework specially designed in managing the people to adopt with these changes. It is the combination of the tools used in an organizational change management and the models of an individual change management. Organizational Change Management – Tools There are hundreds or thousands of management tools that can be used in planning and conducting assessments once the organizational change has been implemented. (Chaudron, 2006) The number of available management tools often leads to confusion and leads to the downfall of the business. This is the main reason why organizations should first decide on the kind of framework that will be used in the organizational change. When doing a strategic planning, SWOT analysis can be used in analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of the strategic plan. This model is designed to provide a ‘straight-forward’ observation regarding the strength, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of incorporating the new business plan within the organization. SWOT Analysis can be used together with the PEST analysis, Porter’s Five Forces analysis or Cost-Benefit analysis. According to David Chaudron (2006), Employee Satisfaction Survey or Employee Survey can be used in acknowledging the expectations and opinions of the employees regarding the plan for a change. (Peale, 2006) This type of assessment and measurement can help the managers in diagnosing issues and organizational atmosphere regarding change. Knowing the sentiment of the employees enables the managers to anticipate the level of problems they will be facing in the near future. In fact, this is considered as the best measurement on the individual effects of the organizational change. Individual Change Management - Models Kurt Lewin (1951, 1958) designed a model of change for individuals. He called the three-stage process as: unfreezing/mind set, moving, and refreezing. (Purser and Petranker, 2004) It means that in order for change to be effective, a person has to become ‘unfrozen’ or to move away from his habitual patters and routines. Once the person has been told about the need for a change, the person will be expected to move away from the old habits and routines. This stage can really be stressful for a short period of time. Refreezing stage is referring to the period when an individual has gradually getting used to the new techniques of doing business. (Purser and Petranker, 2004) ADKAR model is also useful in managing individuals for change. This model is designed to highlight the importance of phases of change for employees: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement of the plan for change. In using this model, change happens in two dimensions: the employee dimension (horizontal axis) and the business dimension (vertical axis). (CMLC, 2006) (See Diagram on below) Diagram I – Change in Business and People Dimension Source: CMLC, 2006 Defining Resistance Understanding the term resistance will help us understand the concept behind employee resistance better. As early as 1950, Alvin Zander a researcher defined change as “behavior that is intended to protect an individual from the effects of real or imagined change.” (Dent & Goldberg, 1999) Folger and Skarlicki (1999) defined resistance as “employee behavior that seeks to challenge, disrupt or invert prevailing assumptions, discourses and power relations.” (Folger and Skarlicki, 1999) Piderit (2000) believes that the definition of the term resistance should incorporate a much broader scope. She states that resistance is “a review of past empirical research reveals three different emphases in conceptualizations of resistance: as a cognitive state, as an emotional state, and as a behavior.” (Piderit, 2000) The Nature and Causes of Resistance Hutman (1995) states the importance of being able to distinguish the difference between the symptoms and causes of resistance to change. (Hutman, 1995) These behavior can either be an ‘active-resistance’ or ‘passive resistance.’ The symptoms of active-resistance include fault finding, ridiculing, appealing to fear, and manipulating while the passive-resistance symptoms include agreeing verbally but not following through, withholding information, or feigning ignorance. (Hutman, 1995) According to Hutman, identifying a symptom of resistance can be dangerous and misleading because it involves understanding a person’s state of mind. (Hutman, 1995) Folger and Skarlicki (1995) the investigated nature and causes of resistance to change. They found out that resisting change is due to the treatment that employees receive during the process of change. (Folger and Skarlicki, 1995) During the process of informing the employees about the plan for a change, as soon as they realize that the plan for a change is not beneficial for them, these people would try to get even by creating ways to avoid the implementation of a future strategic business plan. These people may start to perceive that they are being mistreated by the management. (Folger and Skarlicki, 1995) Managers Role in Change Organizational Changes should be done as a strategy in achieving the desired goal for the company. (McNamara, 2007) To implement a change within a business organization, it is necessary that the managers should come up with a well-defined vision and plans. (HIPAA, 2001) Managers should be responsible in detecting the macroeconomic environment as well as the microeconomic environment prior to establishing a new business plan. Upon coming up with a concrete study about a future business plan, the managers should start assessing the possible reactions of the employees once the plan is announced. The bottom line is that the managers should be able to help the team members to easily accept changes needed in order to maintain the productivity and efficiency of the company. Normally, any attempt to change the business culture of an organization will definitely cause a lot of internal and external pressures. Most of these pressures would usually come from employees who are afraid of change. Managers who are planning to implement major organizational changes should clearly determine the commitment of the entire team who would lead the organizational culture changes. It will also help to evaluate the history of the company. Any past experiences associated with a major organizational change will be useful in determining the possible positive and negative impacts of the plan. (HIPAA, 2001) Managers should make it a point not to repeat any mistakes done in the past. The success of major organizational changes lies in the hands of the managers. (Clemmer, 2007) Managers should be firm yet considerate with the situation of the employees. Once the managers have already won the acceptance of the people, the program for change should be immediately implemented and disseminated to each department. At this point, managers should carefully monitor the effectiveness of the plan and make necessary changes along the way as needed. Failure of Change in Management Strategic changes normally fail when the stakeholders do not support the new strategy being implemented by the top management. In order for any strategy to work out, communication and change management should be present. Communication is very important. (Waddell and Sohal, 1998; Waddell and Sohal, 1998; Teare, 2002) It should always be open between the top management and the employees from the lower rank. Managers should openly talk about the benefits and consequences of major plans including the ways on how these changes should be implemented. Upon implementing these strategies, the Board members should understand that significant change in the strategy may have a short-term detrimental which could result to a good and better position for the future. (Waddell and Sohal, 1998) During the final presentation of the strategic plan, the Board members should introduce a simple change management process to help the rest of the employees understand how the strategic plan will be implemented and how these changes will be introduced and managed. In the end, the Board, staffs, and other key holders should be united into one goal. Resistance to Change Resistance is always a part of change in management. Resistance to change can cause dramatic chaos and uncertainties that could transform change into disaster. Many times, it could result to the collapse of the whole organization. In line with this matter, a lot of theorist like Waddell and Teare among others have been trying to respond to resistances more objectively. (Waddell and Sohal, 1998; Teare, 2002) Resistance has always been viewed as a negative thing. It often creates barriers to the success of the plan for a change. According to a lot of management experts, “resistance will bring nothing but unconstructive consequences to management.” Based on the journal of Waddell regarding ‘Resistance: a Constructive Tool for Change Management (1998)’, resistance should be analyzed in a constructive and objective manner. (Waddell and Sohal, 1998) She added that resistance to change is a negative factor that could influence the success of the process of change. In Mabin’s ‘Harnessing Resistance: Using Theory of Constraints to Assist Change Management (2001)’, she highlighted that changes could fail because of resistance to change. (Mabin, Forgeson and Green 2001) She also mentioned the different kinds of resistance and that there are advantages behind being able to over come resistance. Teare (2002) said that the only way for an individual and organization to survive is to accept change and continuously innovate ways on how to improve the business. He tried to analyze the concept using different management scenarios where change is present. He said that the best managers are those who would examine and analyze problems as a whole. A good manager is someone who is not afraid to take risk going beyond the traditional practices and “view change not as a threat but an opportunity.” (Teare, 2002) It is important that managers that are assigned to implement change should have the convincing power, time management skills, and available resources to make the plan work. Piderit (2000) claims that the three conceptualizations of resistance: the employees’ behavior, emotion, and belief are important part of our responses to change. (Piderit, 2000) Dent and Goldberg (1999) added that individuals are not really trying to resist change but rather these people could be resisting the possibility of losing a professional status, decrease in pay, or even to the extend of losing comfort at work. (Dent & Goldberg, 1999) The factors that make employees worried are the main reason for them to resist change. Controlling Resistance Some people consider change as a threat. These people are often living in a conservative world. They would always be happy if change does not push through. According to McGuire (2003), change can either bring success or failure – for this reason, many employees feel unsecured with their future employment. (McGuire, 2003) The usual thing that worries them includes the possible changes in their salary, how difficult would the new tasks be, or the worst case of losing their job. It is true that behind any changes within the business organization has a goal of making more profits. Therefore, many times, job lay-offs and restructuring happens. This way, career opportunity is given to competent workers rather than those who are not. According to Waddell, there are a lot of managers believing that “change process that occurs with only minimal resistance is considered as a change that is managed well.” (Waddell, 1998) She added that there are four factors that could result to reasons why resistance is always present with change. These factors include: rational, non-rational, political, and management factor. It is a fact that each person thinks differently. Therefore, people will always have their own way of understanding the possible outcome of change within the management plan. This kind of factor is called ‘rational.’ ‘Non-rational’ is referring to people’s reaction based on their own ego. They simply criticize the change without even knowing deeply the reason and the need for a change. ‘Political factor’ focuses more on ‘power-grabbing’ in order not to allow change to happen. ‘Management factor’ such as the failure of the management team to provide adequate information about the plan. This normally leads to resistance to change. McGuire (2003), Teare (2002) and Waddell (1998), all agreed that the only way to avoid resistance is by giving the shareholders enough information regarding the entire process of change. If possible, allow these people participate throughout the change in order to ease the resistance. (McGuire, 2003; Teare, 2002; and Waddell, 1998) There are many ways whereby the management team could inform their staffs about the change process as well as the background of the business’ new mission. It can be through conducting an information session, a motivational workshop, or a counseling session. (McGuire, 2003) Before starting the introductory sessions, the management team should have already come up with concrete information regarding the possible source of resistance from the employees. In line with the introductory sessions, McGuire stated that the management should be aware of the source of resistance to change and top management team is always in a strong position to overcome resistance and that these resistances appear to be the result of miscommunication or lack of understanding about the entire plan. (McGuire, 2003) This is the main reason why openly discussing the plan and strategies with the employees as well as taking into consideration their curiosity and fears would eventually solve the complex problems. (McGuire, 2003) Deutsch has a different point-of-view regarding this matter. He said that is important for these people to feel that they are part of the change. (Deutsch, 2002) Depending on the situation, giving them the opportunity to suggest how to go with the plan and giving them a little authority to implement the change and allowing them to suggest on what to do next can be beneficial to the enforcement of the plan. Some upper management team may not agree with the idea of allocating decision power to his subordinates but it only through an effective communication that change can done successfully. Open communication with the subordinates would give them enough time to adjust physically, mentally, as well as to be emotionally ready to accept changes. Slowly, communication would eventually transform the people’s negative outlook regarding changes in the management plan into a positive one. Teare suggests that the management needs to learn the techniques and strategies on how to benefit from resistances in order to prosper with the new business plan. (Teare, 2002) Dym also agree with the idea that the management team should sit down together with the employees. Allowing the employees to speak out whatever they are thinking and respecting their questions would be useful for the management in the sense that the leaders would be able to interpret where the resistances are coming from and who among the loyal employees are willing to participate with the enforcement of the new plan. (Dym, 1999) Unity in the work force can be achieved by empowering them up to a certain point. Managing Change Smoothly In McGuire’s ‘How to Manage Change (2003)’, the writer observed carefully resistance and discusses ways on how to manage them. In order to convert resistance into a positive outcome, careful planning should be done so that employees who will be affected with the change can be convinced to participate in the whole process of change. The four steps on how to manage change include: pressure to change, vision, explore capabilities, and come up with an action plan. Pressure to change is the first thing that will be felt upon declaring some major changes within the business. It could come from within or outside the organization. (McGuire, 2003) In case of mass lay-offs, it is the lower ranking employees who would be highly affected by the changes. McGuire sees pressure coming from different sources while Teare was more concern on several ways on how to initiate the process of change. (Teare, 2002) According to Teare (2002), the process of change within a business organization could start from ‘organizational de-layering.’ Also, dedicated and competent teams including the expert-driven change in Business Re-engineering Process should be considered as the front-liner of this project. (Teare, 2002) The business management team should have a clear vision with regards to the changing plan and goal of the project. (McGuire, 2003) At this point, the managers and each employee should participate in the learning process of change. McGuire also emphasizes the need for the business team members to analyze the capabilities in dealing with change. Problems are likely to occur during the process of change. Therefore, the strength of each team members should be explored and be known by the management team. (McGuire, 2003) Lastly, the management team should come up with a well-defined action plan. Ways to Increase Self-esteem There are many ways to increase the morale of each employee aside from receiving an increase in salary. One of the best ways that managers can do is to extending an exclamatory remark or praises to these workers. (Kirschbaum, 2006) Giving praises to these people is enough to boost their self-esteem. People who are on the upper top management level normally have a better self-esteem than those employees belonging to the lower rank. It is said that a well-built self-esteem develops when a person has ample power or having more money over the others. (Kirschbaum, 2006) For this reason, promoting a well-deserving employee could help develop the self-esteem of the workforce. Giving them the opportunity to be promoted would give them a better mind frame to do their best in their work performance. Importation of Textiles from China China is one of the world’s fastest growing economies over the past two decades. (Gallagher et al., 2003) China’s influence over the global market has been continuously increasing. In fact, China is considered as an exporter of goodwill as well as consumer durables. (Shambaugh, 2004/2005) Aside from the high exportation of goods within the Asian countries, the value of exportation of finished products throughout the United States, Russia, Australia, and the European Union is equally high. In 2003, the total trading volume between China and Australia has reached US$13.56 bn. (Beijing: World Affairs Press, 2004) According to the Official Chinese Customs Statistics, the trade between China and the rest of the world is expected to increase over the next few years to come. During the first eight months of 2004, it was evident that China’s total export and import has been increasing. To sum it all, the Chinese trade and other direct investment is becoming the engine of the economic growth within Asia. (Trish, 2001 and Financial Times, 2003) References: 1 Beijing: World Affairs Press (2004) ‘China’s General Administration of Customs’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, China’s Foreign Affairs, 2004. 2 Chaudron, D. (2006) ‘Begin at the Beginning in Organizational Change’ Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.organizedchange.com/ > 3 Clemmer, J. (2007) ‘Balancing Top-Down and Bottom-Up Change Processes’ Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.clemmer.net/ > 4 CMLC (2006) ‘ADKAR – A Model for Change Management’ Change Management Learning Center. Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.change-management.com/ > 5 Dent, E. & Goldberg, S. (1999) ‘Challenging Resistance to Change’ Journal of Applied Behavioral Science. pp. 34 6 Deutsch (2002) ‘How to Handle Resistance to Change’ Retrieved: April 8, 2007 < http://www.susanto.id.au/ > 7 Dym, (1999) ‘Organization: How to Recognise, Understand & Respond to It’ 8 Folger, R. and Skarlicki, D. (1999) ‘Unfairness and Resistance to Change: Hardship as Mistreatment’ Journal of Organizational Change Management, pp. 35 – 50. 9 Gallagher, M. et al. (2003) ‘The Labor of Reform in China’ The Journal of the International Institute. Vol. 11, No. 1, Fall 2003 Retrieved: April 19, 2007 < http://www.umich.edu/ > 10 HIPAA (2001) ‘HIPAA Security White Paper Organizational Change Management’ January 2001 Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.hipaadvisory.com/ > 11 Kirschbaum, J. (2006) ‘Improving Employees’ Self-esteem’ Journal of Irreproducible Results. Vol. 48, No. 3. Retrieved: April 19, 2007 < http://www.pamij.com/ > 12 Mabin V., Forgeson S., and Green L. (2001) ‘Harnessing Resistance: Using the Theory of Constraints to Assist Change Management’ Journal of European Industrial Training. Bradford: Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 168-190, 2001 13 McGuire, R. (2003) ‘How to Manage Change’ Continuing Professional Development. The Pharmaceutical Journal. Vol. 270, pp. 161 –162, 2003 Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.pjonline.com/ > 14 McNamara, C. (2007) ‘What Provokes Organizational Change?’ Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.managementhelp.org/ > 15 Peale, NV (2006) ‘Employee Survey, 360 Feedback, Assessments & Balanced Scoreboard’ Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.organizedchange.com/ > 16 Piderit, S.K. (2000) ‘Rethinking Resistance and Recognizing Ambivalence: A Multidimensional View of Attitudes Toward an Organizational Change’ Academy of Management – 794. A, 783 17 Purser, R. and Petranker, J. (2004) ‘Unfreezing the Future: Exploring the Dynamic of Time in Organizational Change’ The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science. DOI: 10.1177/0021886304268157 Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://userwww.sfsu.edu/ > 17 Shambaugh, D. (2004/2005) ‘International Security’ Vol. 29, No. 3 (Winter 2004/2005) pp. 64-99. The President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Retrieved: April 19, 2007 < http://mitpress.mit.edu/journals/ > 19 Teare, R. and Monk, S. (2002) ‘Learning from Change’ International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management. Vol. 12, No. 7. pp. 334-341, 2002 20 Trish, S. (2001) and Financial Times (2003) ‘Powering Asia’s Growth’ Far Eastern Economic Review. August 2, 2001; and ‘Why Europe Was the Past, the U.S. is the Present, and a China-Dominated Asia is the Future of the Global Economy’ Financial Times, September 22, 2003. 21 Waddell D. and Sohal A. (1998) ‘Resistance: A Constructive Tool for Change Management’ Management Decision; Vol. 36, No. 8; 543-548, 1998 Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.ub.unimaas.nl/ > Further Reading: McNamara, C. (2007) ‘Organizational Change and Development’ Retrieved: April 7, 2007 < http://www.managementhelp.org/ > Read More