Managing Organizational Change - Term Paper Example

Organizational Change True to the adage, that "nothing is permanent except change", change is inevitable. Change is an important part of organizational innovation and creativity. The current world we live in has a diverse and a very dynamic environment. It is one where change in organizations is normal, and each of us has to manage change on a week-by-week basis as the need arises. In a situation of continuous change, the status quo no longer exists. Organizational Change is inevitable and unavoidable. It is an essential part of organizational creativity and innovation. Failure to embrace change and offering undue resistance will cause an organization to be left behind its competitors. Change is multi-faceted and may be caused by internal factors like takeovers, mergers and acquisitions or external like emergence of new technologies, economy fluctuations and recessions. Managing organizational Change - Lewin's Force field analysis model Kurt Lewin's theory of the change analysis is a widely accepted and analyzed model. Lewin was a social scientist and a change agent and his theories were better recognized due to their practicality of applying to change occurring in organizations. Before organizational change was taken seriously and processes put in place to manage it, change was accepted as something that just occurred and people just battled it out. It was not embraced with enthusiasm and considered as a part of the growth of an organization. Lewin Introduced a three-stage model of change: unfreeze, change, and refreeze. Lewin's Forcefield Analysis defines an organizational environment in need of change as a state of imbalance between driving forces (legislation, economic imperatives, and competitive pressures) and restraining forces (traditional practices, organizational culture, job insecurity). To achieve change, three steps are required: (1) the driving and restraining forces that hold the organization in a state of equilibrium must be unfrozen; (2) an imbalance must be introduced that enables change to take place, preferably achieved by reducing the restraints; and (3) the new elements must be refrozen. Planned change occurs because of specific efforts by a change agent, while an unplanned change occurs spontaneously without a change agent's direction. Planned change goes through the three processes. Unfreezing is the phase during which an organization is prepared for a change. This phase also will include disconfirmation of expectations, creation of guilt or anxiety and the provision of psychological safety that converts anxiety into motivation to change. Changing is the phase where a planned change actually takes place and moving into a new position is often through identifying a new model or mentor, scanning the environment for new relevant information. Refreezing is the phase at which change is stabilized and the organization is consolidated for the new mode of operation. This model still implies that change is sporadic. Mostly the situation is stable. Every now and then there arises a need for planned change. One does not wait until change is forced upon the organization. One needs to anticipate, strategically plan and implement and be ready to face the change when it does occur. One of the most important consequences is that change is a collective responsibility of the organization. Participation by all the parties involved, which includes, the employees, clients and management, are necessary to achieve successful organization change implementation. The three most commonly recommended strategies are self-explanatory: top down; bottom up; and a combination of these. Restraining forces Changes can be due to a variety of factors. Depending on the internal and external factors, change can be made in the area of tasks, people, culture, technology and structure. Increasing competition, Mergers and Acquisitions, changing legislations and advancing technology can precipitate change. Changing technology is often the harbinger of change. Typically, change of any kind brings in resistance. This is because people are threatened by change and want to hold on to familiar things. Change is perceived as a threat. When organizational change occurs, both managers and employees resist the change. Although, the change that occurs may be a logical improvement over the existing scenario, any change does not occur in isolation and therefore influences the work environment. Some of the common reasons people resist change are, Fear of the unknown, Loss of control, Loss of confidence, Loss of face, Disrupted habits, Work overload, Poor timing and Job Losses. Reducing restraining forces Changes in the organization are successful depending on how well they are communicated, planned and implemented. Communication is the key and sufficient advance information by the management on the purpose, the nature of the change, its timing of occurrence and its effect on the workforce will serve to nullify fears and false assumptions. Once the change is not an unknown entity the propensity for conflicts reduces a great deal. Participation by the employees in the process and implementation of change will enable them to be part of it and will be more committed to it. It will give them a sense of ownership and involvement that leads to knowledge of what is happening around them and this in turn takes away the ambiguity of the change. Guaranteeing the employees that they will not be disadvantaged by the change is an effective method to reduce resistance. Certainty in letting people know where they stand, including job losses is still a great way to keep the lines of communication open. Negotiation is a way in which people and the management reach a middle ground when the change is not acceptable wholly by the two parties. Job security in return for flexibility in the workplace will be an amicable solution to both management and the employee union. Reward is an incentive for people to embrace change and be its pioneers to motivate others to follow. At the time, the extra effort put in by these change agents results in rewards that accelerate the change process among others in the organization. Coercion is used to those who resist change the most, or when the organization needs to implement the change rapidly and hence has to speed up the process. It would be the use of threats or punishments like loss of promotions, transfers, pay cuts or terminations. Refreezing desired outcomes Refreezing the desired outcomes is necessary so that the organization and employees do not fall back into past practices that existed before the change. Reward and motivation should be aligned towards reinforcing the new changes implemented. The whole concept of refreezing is aimed at maintaining the implemented changes. Change agents Change often involves inventing solutions to problems or new paths to goals. Innovation is more likely to come from the enthusiasts than from the resisters. The most valuable starting point for organizational improvement is often with those who are enthusiastic for change. These people are willing to go with the flow and move along. Aiding them in identifying the barriers to movement will speed their transition to the changed state and this in turn motivates and encourages the others to move too, particularly if the organization rewards innovation and achievement. A change agent does not feel threatened by change; he feels challenged by it and takes responsibility. A change agent is willing to take responsibility to make things happen during times of change. The situation requires being alert to people needing changes and proactively respond to it. Diffusing change Diffusing change is best attained by starting with pilot projects that introduce change and later diffuse its effects. This allows more flexibility and less risky because any corrections can be made. A successful pilot project creates visibility and appeal for the change process, which is better accepted. A non-ambiguous and sufficiently flexible project is a great aid in implementing change. Approaches to organizational change Action Research approach Argyris and Schon define the goals of action research as threefold: (a) to improve a practice; (b) to improve the understanding of the practice; and (c) to build an understanding and responsiveness in the system to support change of the practice. This approach strives to comprehend the assumptions and values that drive the organization. Action research is a way of using research in an interventionist way, so that the researcher is both a discoverer of problems and solutions, and is involved in decisions about what is to be done and why. It sees organizational change as a cyclical process where theory guides practice and practice in turn informs theory. Typically, we operate on a more superficial level, working only with the espoused theories, not realizing the power of the underlying assumptions (theories-in-use). Without this deeper work, new practices are not likely to move beyond the espoused level to be institutionalized into organizational systems and procedures. Appreciative Inquiry approach Cooperrider and Srivastva contrast the commonplace notion that, "organizing is a problem to be solved" with the appreciative proposition that, "organizing is a miracle to be embraced". Inquiry into organizational life, they say, should have four characteristics. It should be: Appreciative, Applicable, Provocative and Collaborative The Appreciative Inquiry approach is often worked out in practice by using the '4-D' model: Discover-people talk to one another, often via structured interviews, to discover the times when the organization is at its best. These stories are told as richly as possible. Dream-the dream phase is often run as a large group conference where people are encouraged to envision the organization as if the peak moments discovered in the 'discover' phase were the norm rather than exceptional. Design-a small team is empowered to go away and design ways of creating the organization dreamed in the conference(s). Deliver-the final phase is to implement the changes. The approach is based on the premise that 'organizations change in the direction in which they inquire.' Therefore, an organization that inquires into problems will keep finding problems but an organization that attempts to appreciate what is best in itself will discover more and more that is good. It can then to use these discoveries to build a new future where the best becomes more common. Parallel learning structure approach Parallel learning structure involves groups of people who can collectively address issues of importance to the organization as a whole. By doing so, they could learn something new and valuable that would contribute directly to their own professional development and indirectly to the success of the organization. Typically a parallel learning structure, allows people to break free of the normal constraints imposed by the organization, engage in genuine enquiry and experimentation, and initiate needed changes. They provide a mechanism, especially in large traditional organizations where the forces of inertia, hierarchical communication patterns, and standard ways of addressing them inhibit learning, innovation and especially, change. In effect, this approach accelerates the change process by learning the right way to change the system. Since the group of people involved may come from various levels of the organization, this method seems to increase productivity, improved decision making and increased employee morale. Cross-cultural and Ethical Issues in Organizational Change Organization development holds a lot of promise as a process and a set of tools to improve organizational effectiveness. OD interventions increase a management's power by inducing compliance and conformity in its workplace. It aims employees getting involved voluntarily than forcibly. This system wide activity may include obtaining personal information from the employees thus invading their privacy rights. Another ethical concern is that these activities may undermine the individual's self-esteem. Voicing their frank views may place them in a delicate position. It also creates an ethical dilemma of not knowing how they are placed in the client relationships. Being objective and detached in the world of politics of organizational change may be a difficult phenomenon. Personal change for the road ahead When an organization changes, it is inevitable that the individuals involved will go through the change process as well. It is imperative to understand that while an individual may want to change, his pace of change may not exactly be compatible with the pace at which the organization changes. An individual's pace of change depends on the following five factors: Safety: The need to feel secure before trying something new Specificity: The need to start small and be specific Age: Less adaptable to make changes as age increases Time: More time allows overcoming past practices Attitude: Your belief that you cannot change to become self-fulfilling prophecy A road map to managing your personal change would be as follows: Understand needs and values: Identify what is in your control to change. Remain flexible. Strive to achieve balance and perspective. Competencies: Examine your attitude. It is important to know one's own pace of change and not set oneself up for failure by going too fast or too slow. Set career goals: Identify your options and evaluate them. Knowing where you want to go will help determine how the change will assist you in getting there. Maintain networks: Create a support system and network with colleagues and management to be aware of change and its outcomes. Keeping you informed through networking helps keep abreast of the happenings in the workplace. Get a mentor: Finding a person to guide you will take you through the process of change more easily than doing it alone. Sources McShane, S and Glinow, Von. Organizational behavior: McGraw-Hill. 3rd edition. Argyris, C. & Schon, D. (1978). Organizational Learning: A Theory of Action Perspective Reading MA: Addison-Wesley Effecting changes in HE "Approaches to Change: Ways of doing - Action research" Retrieved January 12, 2006 from University of Luton web site: http://www.effectingchange.luton.ac.uk/approaches_to_change/index.phpcontent=actionresearch Srivastva and Cooperrider (1990) Appreciative Management & Leadership: San Francisco Jossey-Bass Retrieved January 12, 2006 from New Paradigm Consulting web site: http://www.new-paradigm.co.uk/Appreciative.htm Change Inventories: Personal Change Styles - Tips for managing personal change Retrieved January 12, 2006 from National School Boards web site: http://www.nsba.org/sbot/toolkit/chinv.html Read More