Leadership and Change Management - Essay Example

 Leadership and Change management The understanding of the various issues affecting management of change is vital because it facilitates the development of skills. Throughout the year, we have conducted various meetings covering a wide area in the human resource management process. The meetings handle six areas of study that were vital in the management process. These areas addressed in the meeting include the change management, barriers to change, overcoming the barriers to change and the development of communication between the set groups. Leadership development is a complex process as I witnessed over last year and the issues covered by the meetings proved vital in changing my perception about human resource management and how to influence change in the organization structure. The failure to address challenges in the process could be highlighted in the preceding meeting. The process was a complex one although the challenges were diverse. I learnt vital issues in change management, which will be addressed later in this reflective analysis. One of the vital issues addressed by the meeting is group cohesion and participation. The participation of individuals in the meeting helped to make the meetings interesting. In fact, the availability of the group members ensured that the objectives of the meeting were met. The individual performance of the group members ensured that all the vital issues in management were handled perfectly and even resolved amicably. The delegation of duties to the individual made the tasks easy to complete (Paton, Paton, & McCalman, 2008, p. 56). I learnt from the process the vital nature of communication when handling human labor or education members. It was not easy to establish the code of practice among the members, but we were able to work due to mutual trust and cohesion. The change management strategy and collective responsibility are essential issues on the addressing of change within the organization such as the development of leadership skills and experience. As the meeting progressed, several issues could be raised that needed to be solved by the group members. Planning of the meeting was left to the chair-lady because she was the facilitator of the meeting and could handle leadership issues effectively. Under her leadership, several issues were addressed and the issues include the role of every group member. Through development of group cohesion, she ensured that the group could operate better than expected. The resistance to change was evident within the group during the initial stages of operation. This indicated the power of inertia and the role of perception on trying to reach and change an established system (Okbor, 2001, p. 23). The planning of the meeting was perfect and led to the effective completion of the project and attainment of the set goals and objectives of the study. The planning of the ideas or themes to be discussed during the meeting was done by the chair lady with the support from the group members. The group used consensus building in the development of a meeting plan and the issues to be addressed by the group. It was not easy to resolve certain issues in the first meeting. Such vital issues were deferred and were addressed in the later meetings including the third meeting (Lusardi, 2012, p. 89). However, after the completion of the planning process, it was easier to develop and come up with the necessary plan of the meetings throughout the year. The direction and facilitation of the meeting was left to the chair-lady and the group members were in charge of the participation. The participation of the various members was monitored by the facilitator who recommended a plan of action, which included the probing of the group members and evaluating their understanding of the concepts discussed through the meetings. The meeting leader was tasked with the duty to ensure that the members are up to task with the set activities. The breaking down of activities into smaller workable units was done during the meeting leading to the improvement of personal skills and improvement of the understanding of the members (Dagron & Tufte, 2006, p. 34). The usefulness of what was learnt could be evaluated in the process by allowing each member to contribute by adding some points or asking questions. For instance at the end of every meeting Laura would ask the group if any of them had additional points or questions. The scope of the meeting was emphasized when concluding the meetings to ensure that the points were passed across effectively. The power of the approach can be seen in the participation of the members of the group in the whole process. The personal evaluation of the videos was important because it facilitates the understanding of the change process. The barriers to change could be established through various activities that encouraged the development of personal knowledge on the issues in discussion. In fact, the issues of discussion were the focal point of every meeting compared to the final objective of the meetings. Meetings were always ended by a question or comments on the basis of the idea discussed. The process made me feel part of the group based on the actions of the various members. The evaluation of performance of the individual was done by peer review and evaluation. The review ensured that the personal ratings are compared with the group rating allowing me to evaluate and understand my strengths and weaknesses. The power of communication and the ability to instigate change in the organization set up was developed during the meeting, which encouraged the development of management skills. In response to the change management meeting, I was able to learn the vital issues affecting change and the role of different members in addressing the change process. However, several drawbacks were witnessed in the meeting. One of the main drawbacks was the failure to address the vital issues of time keeping. The meetings times were not controlled effectively. In fact, the meting times were either delayed or even affected by the extensions. For instance the presentation by Callum was complex involving the use of videos. In spite of the effective nature of the presentation, it surpassed the time allocated for its presentation. In fact, it needed more than double the time allocated for Callum’s presentation. I believe that the problem should have been solved by editing the videos to fit in the time span given for the handling of the presentation. The videos were lengthy with some basic information being repeated. The twelve videos had vital information, but did not need to be presented as whole during the meetings. Despite the videos consuming more than the allocated time, Shane argued that it was vital to obtain the necessary knowledge rather than complain about the time. This argument to me is false and could have led to further time constraints to other presenters within the group. The challenge of not planning the time usage is the collapse of the initial plan and the development of emergency meeting. However, for our case, we were able to control time allowing us to capture the six areas of discussion clearly and extensively. The videos presented by Callum covered the broad issues that were to be addressed during the meetings and encourage conceptualizing of the challenges and the impact of the process of change. It was a complex process that required the participation of all the group members. It was possible to achieve the desired outcome from the work of individuals. According to Ledwith and Springett, individual participation is integral in the development of personal knowledge which includes the ability to identify and solve change management problems. It is considered the most common, but complex process in organization development (Ledwith & Springett, 2010, p. 68). A review of the meetings indicates success in the interactive learning process, which was part of the meeting’s goals. The use of meeting to offer an interactive platform of learning proved successful. In spite of the challenges, it encourages participation learning and helped develop the necessary development skills. In fact, I gained a lot of experience in group management and the procedures of communication. I understood the reasons for change in organization development and the process of preparing for change. It was a complex process, but the meetings encouraged learning through participation and listening. The videos presented during the meeting covered the issues of concern and allowed better understanding of the learning process. It was fascinating and joy to see and realize the importance of human resource in change management. In addition, I was able to learn the difference between managing and leading through the action of the chair-lady. The chair-lady allowed participation of all the members of the group making the meeting fun, but educative. The participation of all the group members is vital to ensure success of the whole process. It was a successful plan and system of learning which encouraged the development of the various themes and ideas. In conclusion, the whole process was very effective as a platform for learning and participation. The understanding of the various platforms of operation in business encouraged the development of skills and the improvement of personal image. It was a powerful activity that encouraged group cohesion and development. Five Alive Business Meeting Meeting called to order at 12:05 p.m. by chairlady Laura Carpenter. Employees present: Laura Carpenter, chairlady Callum Jones-Bray, Acting secretary Jake Falconer, Member Leanne Greening, Member Shane Allen, Member Sion Lewis, Member Members not present: (none) Approval of minutes: Motion: To review the findings of the members of management. After extensive research on the impact of leadership and change management, impact of vital issues is presented. Vote: Motion carried Resolved: Minutes from the inaugural meeting approved without modification Business: Laura Carpenter, Chairlady: Introduction of the members present at 12:00pm. The agenda for discussion was change management and resistance. The selection of acting secretary was conducted by the chairlady. The acting secretary for the meeting was Callum Jones-Bray. Motion 1: findings of Jake Time: 12:10 to 12:40 Yes, I looked at the article creating climate and culture for sustainable organisation change by Benjamin Schneider. He says that what happens too often is that companies introduce change with too high expectations of performance, and when the changes fail, the unfulfilled hopes lead to managers introducing further changes that they too ultimately fail and the sequence repeats creating a downward spiral. There are several possible reasons for this, one key reason for this is that changes introduce fail to change psychology or feel of the organisation. The focus company is AT&T. they went through going about change, their greatest challenge was to change employee psychology. It takes a crisis to push on this change. Whatever stimulus it takes equally radical stimulus through the organisation, through structure, technology and people, the main one being people. It says that, to create change it has to be through people. Change can be managed through the action of the human resource department and communication. Motion 2: The findings of Leane This is the report by Leane I looked at choosing strategies for change by Cotter. Mainly it is about diagnosing and dealing with resistance throughout the change process. Re-organisation tends to be feared as it means causing a disturbance to the status quo. Most efforts of change encounter problems, they often take longer than expected, they often kill morale and cost a great deal in terms of managerial time and emotional upheaval. The second section was diagnosing resistance, efforts often run in to some form of human resistance. To predict what form their resistance will take the managers have to consider the four major reason resist change. The first one is self-interest, people think they will lose something or value as a result and there becomes a clash between organisation and individual interests. The second reason is misunderstanding and lack of trust. People resist change when they do not understand it. Such situations occur when there is a lack of trust and misunderstanding. An example given was the introduction of flexible working environment. employees for example felt that the hours only suited employers, not them themselves. The third reason was that employees assess the situation differently to their managers. The fourth one was a low tolerance for change as people feel they cannot be able to develop the new skills required. Cotter said the main problem is that managers cannot bring in the change quick enough to take effect in time. Motion 3: The finding by Sion I went through the videos in section C and these are my findings. Urgency is the toughest step for change and most often overlooked in the process of designing change. It is critical to set the stage for making a challenging leap in a new direction, there is a constant need in a focus of what is important. Many people confuse urgency as being misguided; this can have negative effects as it becomes frantic due to anxiety and fear. This prevents people from learning things and exploiting opportunities in a fast changing world. Sticking with the status quo can lead to disaster. Response by Leane Leanne: The first video was about overcoming resistance to change, saying the idea that is not it obvious how we should overcome the resistance to change. Figuring out what the others will get from the change. Find out what individuals want from it, and that is how you overcome the resistance. Video are important, but to be honest that video was not very useful at all. The second video looked at the organisational change model, being freeze, unfreeze, and refreeze. The third video was about Cotter and the heart of change, he said in the change process you have to get people to believe in the change, get them to embrace it and take part in management. Motion 4: Shane’s finding Shane: All of my videos were quite short and to the point, I think the longest was 7 minutes. Some had good points, but some did seem unreliable as they were from companies marketing and stuff trying to get their own point across. So I have listed all 12 and there main points. The first one was Dan Heath speaking on changes chaotic and complex; people do not resist change because they are lazy but because the process can be long and tiring. Video 2 was Gavin Murdoch, what is change management? Change gurus earn millions each year selling tools to managers on how to change effectively, but the truth is in a globalised world, managers are dealing with constantly changing external factors, organisations must change or adapt their business model. His 7 points to manage change effectively are communicating change effectively, involving the team, minimizing uncertainty, celebrating success, explain the reasons to change, transparency to stakeholders. A good methodology, key influences, common enemy or target. Video 5 Was Gary Brand, on disaster inspired success, he told a story of a gentleman who created his own business empire which was torn apart by a tornado, this was seen as a tremendous opportunity to this man, and he sold all his remaining stock and marketed it as a tornado sale. It was so successful it changed how they did business and changed his business model to a bargain basement store. Video 6 was a fresh approach to the business benefits and 5 receptarys of change. Video 7 was Ruth Mary Webster on planned organisation change and how to add value to the business model and why to change and how the intended benefits are achieved. To be honest it wasn’t a very good video it was just her talking about her research mainly. Video 8 spoke to a small organisation who had used change consultants, they make change easier for employees by giving them a clear picture. Video 9, Arthur Comazzi again, positive change adds value to the company, employees have to feel valued when making change. Video 10 was The Mayo Clinic, how to implement employee interaction and change, it’s important to make employees feel engaged in the change process and have their say. Video 11 was change is the only constant in an organisation and it is necessary to engage staff to be successful. Video 12 was Henry Kurtzen, obstacles to learning, without learning there can be no change. We need to suppress negative feelings and behave rationally and don’t make employees nervous. There’s a culture of keeping strategy secret in an organisation, making it complex as it is difficult to learn if you don’t know the strategy. Leane comments The videos are an integral part of the learning process because they help develop the ideas of growth and development. Bibliography Dagron, A. G., & Tufte, T. (2006). Communication for Social Change Anthology: Historical and Contemporary Readings. Paris: CFSC Consortium, Inc. Ledwith, M., & Springett, J. (2010). Participatory Practice: Community-Based Action for Transformative Change. Chicago: The Policy Press. Lusardi, P. (2012). So You Want to Change Practice: Recognizing Practice Issues and Channeling Those Ideas. Critical Care Nurse, 55-60. Okbor, J. (2001). Critical theory and the Hegemony of Corporate culture. Journal of organizational change management , 590-602. Paton, R. A., Paton, R., & McCalman, J. ( 2008). Change Management: A Guide to Effective Implementation. London: SAGE Publications Ltd. Read More