Technological Strategies and the 5 Stage Planned Change Model - Literature review Example

TECHNOLOGICAL STRATEGIES PRESENTATION REPORT By Name (s) Course Professor’s Name University Name Date Introduction The implementation of technological change is an important aspect in the management of people. Business environments today are characterized by an attempt to improve management hence there is a progressive introduction of new features such as robotics, Information and telecommunications technologies. These offer better performance and efficiency in addition to improvement of employee well-being. There is need for change at Steele Enterprises, mostly because of the organizational conflict that has been witnessed. The strategy presented seeks to offer a change model which if well implemented side to side with behavioural and structural strategies, will definitely help to eliminate the challenges currently faced by the company. With the help of a team of external change agents, a strategy involving workplace restructuring, job design, utilization of internet technologies, creation of virtual teams, GRID Training and a Quality management System will be implemented. The 5 Stage Planned Change Model The recommended change process will be executed in five stages: a) Identification of the problem. This has already been done, and conflict has been noted as being highly prevalent at the workplace b) Striking a rapport with all staff. Contact information for every member will be given out to the staff and in the process a cordial, professional relationship will be pursued c) Creation of an Organizational Change Platform. There will be the comprehensive identification of all problem areas and gathering of relevant information to create a workable change strategy d) Implementation of the strategy e) Quality Management. This will help to check on progress with the change Workplace Restructuring Restructuring at Steele Enterprises will involve a change in production, methods and processes. The restructuring is expected to help ensure the retention of key employees while communicating the available opportunities promptly to potential staff. In addition, there will be the enforcement of values such as transparency and honesty in communication in addition to strategic planning for eventualities. a. The anticipated benefits of restructuring under this technological strategy are; b. Cost reduction c. Enhancement of productivity and Competitiveness d. Improvement of quality e. Reduction of Wastage Job Design Job design basically involves the organization of work. It may take the form of replacing or re-arranging olds approaches to work for instance workgroups, teaming, division of labor or automation. It may also involve assigning more responsibilities or tasks to individuals for instance through job enlargement, introducing job rotation, changing location or introducing telecommuting (Erez 2010). Job redesigning has acquired an almost uniform characteristic worldwide, with evaluation taking a similar characteristic everywhere (Davis, 2010). Job design will in this case cover; i) Process selection and layout ii) Work design and iii) Maintenance According to Fahr (2011), all of these processes are beneficial to the company in both the short and long-run. Apart from enabling the change process, the pursuit of job redesign is expected to raise the level of job satisfaction and therefore improve the organization in general. In the process, jobs could be enriched, and in general, there will be a chance to reorganize the allocation of roles and duties in the company. The best managerial decisions can then be made on how to promote cooperation and productivity. Job enrichment here refers to the enhancement of job design vertically in terms of increasing autonomy, and horizontally, in terms of task variety. This is one of the aspects of change recommended by the agents. According to Kilduff & Brass (2010), social relations are a useful component of the workplace relationship. Having a social relationship between the various employees is likely to improve the perception and execution of tasks. In achieving job design, the most important thing is to ensure greater autonomy, and this is often affected by the existing structure of relationships. There should also be the provision of feedback regarding job performance under the new environment and creation of an open network where different cadres of employee can easily interact with seniors. Utilization of Internet Technologies There will be the use of the internet in recruitment. Because of its wide reach, job postings will be advertised online. The company’s intranet will also be promoted to ensure the clarification of staff roles, which will help in dealing with the noted conflicts. The company will therefore embrace e-commerce. According to Derek (2010), this implies the conducting of trading activities over the internet. It is a popular way of cutting the limitations that are associated with time. Just the way it reduces the time businesses spend in any transaction or activity, it will also help to remove barriers to communication. Creation of Virtual Teams The introduction of virtual teams is one of the strategies suggested. According to Lin et al. (2008), the virtual team comprises of an interdependent group that works on some project across space and time and relies on Information and Communication Technologies in the process. At Steele Enterprises, members may be geographically dispersed and their work coordinated by means of ICT and electronic information. According to Brandt et al. (2011), virtual teams comprise the best way of ensuring teamwork in cases where the people are not in one location at the same time. Virtual teams are popular in cost-cutting measures and are guided by the same basic rules that guide traditional teams. The only major difference is in the way the members communicate with one another, so that instead of face-to-face exchanges, there is now the reliance on new communication channels. Through a virtual team, management will be able to pay greater attention to maintenance of clear performance standards, goals and rules of communication. In the case of Steele Enterprises, there will be the laying of clear protocols and rules which should be understandable and agreeable to everyone, especially with regard to communication. There is the expectation of a challenge in the form of building and maintenance of trust amongst members, while sustaining motivation levels for everyone. The change team will try as much as possible to give attention to this always. The collaboration needed in a virtual team system will require effort, but is always a worthwhile venture in terms of opportunities. Setting of the Virtual Teams Virtual teams will be created specifically in the Research and Development, problem-solving task forces and customer services. For Steele Enterprises, virtual work will include telecommuting and its subsequent creation of virtual groups. Having virtual teams will imply the acquisition of a number of technological tools namely; Skype - This will be the main medium of communication. The software will enable video link communication about projects, with the added option of instant messaging Webinars - There will be an online seminar training system in which managers may conduct trainings or introduce new projects to staff Learning Management Systems - Steele Enterprises will, through these provide employees with the resources they require for specific projects, and other useful information can also be posted Team Conflict Resolution Conflict resolution will in this case be pursued in four phases: a. Preparations phase. Here, the tasks and decisions relating to virtual team creation will be presented b. Launch phase. Here the activities to reinforce teamwork, for instance training and workshops will be outlined c. Performance Management phase. Here, the necessary leadership, communication and motivation strategies will be set out d. Team Development phase. Team training, assimilation of members and other team processes will be handled A Stream Analysis Chart will be used to guide the implementation of virtual teams. This will involve first training then allocation of the new technology before eventually having a follow-up training session. The activities will flow as follows; Week 1 - The holding of a one-day seminar to introduce the concept and have employees test the software. Feedback will then be sought and evaluated Week 2 and 3 - Assessment of feedback and where necessary, alteration of software to fit Steele Enterprises’ needs Week 4 - launch of the virtual program and more training GRID Training With adoption of new technology, learning will be facilitated. According to Jarmo & Arja (2011), learning is a good way of effecting change, as a good knowledge organization will seek to enhance individual knowledge through different kinds of learning and especially apply teamwork in the creation of social capital. Most importantly, there should be the effective management and dissemination of knowledge through a well-designed information and communication infrastructure. A Global Remote instructional Delivery (GRID) training facility will be instrumental in such learning. According to Davis (2010), GRID training refers to a kind of education tool provided online that provides career development and training programs specifically for professionals in the Information Technology sector. Having it will enable the utilization of the convenience and efficiency associated with online training, and simultaneously offering some of the strengths of classroom training. While it is an online arrangement, it is actually live and facilitated by an instructor that is face to face with participants through the computer. Objectives of the GRID Training a. Generating more information on the organization as an interactive system and applying it in problem diagnosis b. Helping to understand the rationale of systematic change c. Evaluating leadership styles and participation techniques so as to generate desirable outcomes The GRID Training Process GRID training will take the form of managerial grid development, teamwork development, inter-group development, creation of an Ideal Strategic Corporate Model, Implementation of the Ideal Strategic Model and finally its critique. This will constitute the evaluation. Because of the noted challenge of task overlapping between the two PR branches at Steele Enterprises, having virtual teams will help eliminate conflict through ensuring that the two are always up-to-date on what is happening and in so doing avoid the double-handling of tasks that was witnessed. Virtual teams will be helpful as they do not require physical contact for any tasks to be tackled together. Contact will be constantly maintained between individuals and meetings may be summoned whenever required, and can be conducted even from a distance. Having an online forum will ensure everyone can communicate their concerns just as if they were in one room. With such, it is hoped that incidents such as the PR dinner will be avoided as instructions will be handed out in advance and anyone can reread them anytime they need to. The Human resource department can find ways of monitoring the online communication to ensure that whatever is exchanged is beneficial to the workplace and hence prevent abuse. Training should always be evaluated to check on effectiveness hence need for quality control. Implementation of a Quality Management System A Quality Management System (QMS) is necessary in trying to ensure maintenance of competitive advantage. Having a QMS in place is a definite way of ensuring sustained excellence (Sanuri et al. 2013). It will ensure that interactions across the organization are guided by standardization in the people, management, processes, reviews and preference of continual improvement (Rao, 2006). According to Subhash (2013), a QMS has the effect of raising standards to an international level, enhancing efficiency and customer satisfaction, increasing levels of employee morale, facilitation of decision-making and creating uniformity in the way things are done. All these are desirable elements in any organization. Quality management always has to be standardized hence need for a Quality Management Plan (QMP). A QMP is an important instrument in the change process because it will set out the quality priorities and goals for the programme. In addition, it will clarify the kind of activities to be pursued and helps to attain some standardization in the way that the goals are pursued. The plan will ensure that there is an effective way of reviewing and improving what has been achieved at a given time. It will set out the periodic patterns of evaluation and provide for the correction or improvement of points where the change process might have gone wrong. Performance measurement will therein be defined, in addition to the organization and structuring of activities. Following the QMP will facilitate maximum returns on the change effort. Because there will be the adoption of new technologies in the change process, the QMP will seek to help the people in coping with the new applications. The QMP will comprise of three tiers: a. The conducting of multiple training seminars. Every employee is to attend one b. Regular check-ups to see if departmental requirements are being satisfied c. Monitoring of quality through interviewing key users from each specialized area There will ultimately be the creation of a Quality Management System that will support the employees at Steele Enterprises. This will enable the accessing of organizational goals and objectives much more easily and all over the organization. This is expected to increase the level of understanding of the employees on the organizational ideals, as a result of which cooperation will be boosted. The Steele Enterprises QMS will set a timetable for the holding of meetings by staff and in these, ideas will be shared and knowledge exchanged. This will help to promote cooperation and innovation further. The conflicts of the kind between Richard and Donna will be avoided as a result. Conclusion A technological strategy will be sought in which restructuring will be followed swiftly with the implementation of recommended change. The change agents propose a review of the organization’s job design, mainly because it has the potential of enhancing employee satisfaction and commitment. The Grid Organisational Development theory will also be applied with a greater focus on organizational effectiveness, employee involvement and productivity in general. Virtual teams and application of technological features such as Skype, video conferencing, Learning Management Systems and webinars will also be central in the strategy. The change strategy adopted will pursue a quality management plan that will support the organizational intervention that has been suggested. A quality management system will be set up, and with adequate leadership and acquisition of support from employees, the technological change strategy is expected to take off.   Bibliography Brandt, V, England, W and Ward, S, 2011. Virtual Teams. Research Technology Management, Vol. 54 (6), pp. 62-63 Davis, G., 2010, Job design Meets Organizational Sociology. Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol 31, pp. 302–308 Derek, M, 2010. Ecommerce: Ongoing Challenges. Journal of Internet Banking and Commerce, Vol. 15 (2), pp. 1-4 Erez, M, 2010. Culture and Job Design. Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 31, pp. 389–400 Fahr, R., 2011. Job Design and Job Satisfaction- Empirical Evidence for Germany? Management Review, Vol. 22 (1), pp. 28-46 Jarmo, S and Arja, J, 2011. The Benefits of a Quality Management System: The Case of the Merger of Two Universities and their Libraries. Library Management, Vol. 32 (3), pp.183 – 190 Kilduff, M and Brass, D, 2010, Job design: A Social Network Perspective. Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol.31, pp. 309–318 Lin, C, Standing, C and Liu, Y., 2008, A Model to Develop Effective Virtual Teams. Decision Support Systems, Vol. 45 (4), pp. 1031–1045 Rao, S, 2006. Quality Management System-Some Reflections. Defence Science Journal, Vol. 56 (1): pp. 53-59 Sanuri, S, Nur, A, Nordin, K and Mohd, I., 2013. Sustaining a Quality Management System: Process, Issues and Challenges, Business Strategy Series, Vol. 14 (4), pp.123 - 130 Subhash, D, 2013, Quality Management in Healthcare. Indian Journal of Public Health, Vol 57 (3), p. 138 Read More