Organizational Development Application Concepts to Introduce Change at Old Navy - Term Paper Example

?Organizational Development Application Concepts to Introduce Change at Old Navy Table of Contents Organizational Development 3 About The Company 3 Issues Likely to be Faced by Old Navy Retailer Stores 4 Solutions to the Problems for Old Navy Retailer Stores 6 References 9 Organizational Development Organizational development can be defined as an enduring effort which is conducted and endorsed by the management at the higher level of the organization for the purpose of stimulating the organization’s empowerment and problem-solving processes (NPTEL, “Planned Change Introduction to OB”) This is done by emphasizing on the culture where there are efficient work teams. The main characteristics of organizational behavior include its tendency to focus upon the culture as well as various processes. In addition to this, organizational development tends to focus its attention upon the human and social sides of the organization as well (NPTEL, “Planned Change Introduction to OB”) About The Company Old Navy is one of the major clothing retailers situated at San Francisco. The company tends to offer its customers with denim, sunglasses, blouses, shirts, handbags and other fashion products at cheaper prices than its competitors in its physical stores and through its websites. Customers have been observed to prefer its fashionable style and the prices at which the company offers its goods and services to a large extent (WhaleShark Media, 2011). Issues Likely to be Faced by Old Navy Retailer Stores There might be losses to the retailers in the form of external threats such as theft, damage or loss of merchandise along with transaction fraud which is considered to hamper the Old Navy Retailer Stores at large. It has been noted by Aberdeen research reports that approximately 60% of the retailers experienced a write-off of nearly 1.75% of the total inventory (Aberdeen Group, “Retail Loss prevention System”). It can be stated that retail loss prevention is generally dependent upon the efforts of all the employees. Therefore, it is significant for the organizations to identify the realities of human resource problems in retailing. The Old Navy Retailer Stores significantly consider part-time employees which can also raise a few employment related issues. For instance, it might consist of part time or temporary employees’ related issues, including employees’ dissatisfaction with the working conditions resulting to high turnovers of the employees which can hinder the successful operation of the organization in its long-run. These problems in conjunction to poor performance may prove to be quite problematic for the retailers since such employees tend to be in direct contact with the customers. This may further impact on the brand image of the company influencing the aspect of customer loyalty as well (Purpura, “Security and Loss Prevention: An Introduction”). With the rising trend of use of the information technology, the maintenance cost for the companies is surmounting day by day. Maintenance cost is considered to be an important factor in the profitability of the organization (Haroun & Duffuaa, “Maintenance organization”). Rewards systems are considered to be another issue for the retail organizations. The main objective of the reward system is to attract potential employees and retain the productive ones, to draw out good performance and to maintain commitment to the organization (Koala Consulting and training, “Reward Systems”). Each organization must have reward systems as without such systems, companies will not be capable of having talented staffs in the organization. At times it has been noted that an incentive scheme which is capable of enhancing the sales of the organization and motivating the staffs may as well have a negative impact upon the teamwork within the organization. Therefore, this can be considered as an issue for the retail organization. With the increasing effect of globalization, more and more companies are coming up with their product offerings which are giving rise to competition to a great extent. Such environmental issues also impact the successful operation of the retail organizations to an extent (University of Southampton, “Reward & Motivation: A Case Study in Incentivizing Retail Sector Staff”). Solutions to the Problems for Old Navy Retailer Stores In order to effectively solve the issues that the retailers face in the organization, it is quite essential to develop strategies so that required changes can be introduced in the organization. If Old Navy Retailer Stores face with the similar issues that have been discussed above such as loss prevention, rewards systems dissatisfaction and environmental issues, it will be significant to bring about major structural changes so that such issues do not hamper the efficiency in the organization. It needs to have proper reward systems which are capable of motivating the staffs and encouraging team work as well. The board members of the organization need to provide support when implementing such changes. Thus, it can be mentioned that in order to face the issues related to maintenance cost, the company needs to identify the additional costs which is hampering the overall profitability of the company and therefore should try to reduce them. By enhancing the inter-dependent association with the employees, Old Navy Retailers will be capable of managing the loss prevention related issues. In addition, training is quite significant which will assist in alleviating the risks related to internal as well as external threats. In order to minimize the risk of loss, it is also significant for Old Navy Retailer Stores to apply loss prevention business intelligence as well as predictive tools which will assist the company in evaluating and reporting theft and fraud data trend (Aberdeen Group, “Retail Loss prevention System”). Competitive advantages can be obtained through the development of strategies which will help the company to attain significant competitive advantages and will also assist in enhancing the sales and productivity of the company. It is vital to have a close watch on the competitors since it will help Old Navy Retailers to comprehend the strategies followed by them. When implementing all the above mentioned solutions, major changes in the policies and rules of the company can be apparently triggered. By effective organizational development strategies Old Navy Retailer stores can cope up with the changes in the organization. It may be suggested to Old Navy Retailer stores to emphasize upon team building so that the organizational functioning can be enhanced. However, it is to be remembered that before initiating the changes, it is vital for the organizations to plan the strategies carefully and therefore forecast the potential issues that the organization may face in the near future. Through organizational development the company will be capable of diagnosing and resolving the various issues that it faces. If the change initiatives are implemented effectively, Old Navy Retailer stores will be capable of improving the organizational effectiveness. Since the company will be capable of focusing their attention as well as the resources on the key goals, the members of the organization will also be able to gain the skills and knowledge which can be used during the process of change (Cummings & Worley, “Organisation Development & Change”). In addition to the above mentioned solutions Old Navy Retailer stores can as well consider introducing structural changes in order to make the work interesting, productive as well as challenging. By forming autonomous work team the company will be capable of managing the issues to a certain extent (Jeritt, “Organization Change and Development”). Leaders and managers play a vital role in introducing changes in the organization. It is through their leadership strategies and strategic vision that the company is capable of implementing new strategies and therefore embracing changes take place in the organization. A culture of change needs to be fostered in the organization so that the employees of the organization accept the changes that take place in the organizations. Most of the employees tend to resist the changes. It is the duty of the manager or the leader to develop effective techniques so that they can overcome resistance to change. Prior to implementing the change in order to resolve the issues, it becomes significant for the management to communicate regarding the strategic changes in the company. Failure to communicate the strategy shall lead to various issues and therefore it is likely to hinder the achievement of the organization. The stakeholders such as employees, clients, stockholders as well as the community members must be taken into confidence regarding the strategic changes so that they can contribute towards the success of the plan. Training and development of the members of the organization also plays a pivotal role in resolving the issues and in effectively implementing the strategies at Old Navy Retailer stores (Jeritt, “Organisation Change and Development”). It can be concluded that if Old Navy Retailers stores is capable of anticipating the issues it will be proficient in preparing its strategies accordingly and therefore will be successful in managing the change too. References Aberdeen Group. “Retail Loss Prevention System”. November 04, 2011. Aberdeen, 2009. Cummings, Thomas, G. & Worley, Christopher, G. Organization Development & Change. Cengage Learning, 2008. Haroun, Ahmed, E. & Duffuaa, Salih, O. “Maintenance Organization”. November 04, 2011. Introduction, 2002. Jeritt. “Organisation Change and Development”. November 04, 2011. Introduction, 2011. Koala Consulting and Training. “Reward Systems”. November 04, 2011. Types of Rewards, 2008. NPTEL. “Planned Change Introduction to OB”. November 04, 2011. Organizational Development, No Date. Purpura, Philip. Security and Loss Prevention: An Introduction. Butterworth-Heinemann, 2007. University of Southampton. “Reward & Motivation: A Case Study in Incentivizing Retail Sector Staff”. November 04, 2011. Research, 2003. Whale Shark Media. “Old Navy Coupon Codes”. November 04, 2011. View, 2011. Read More