Morgan Motor Company - Assignment Example

HRM Assignment Questions Question A change agent is an individual within an organisation who inspires changes within it so that these changes are not only accepted by the entire organisation, but also implemented in order to improve its performance. Those who introduce these new ways of undertaking activities within the organisation can come from either within or outside. Morgan Motor Company is facing many problems as a result of its lack of change agents. This has resulted in its remaining in a situation where it is not able to develop itself into a better functioning entity which not only satisfies customers, but also reduces costs of production hence making high profits. The lack of change agents within the Morgan Motor Company has made this company to become extremely resistant to change and this is despite the need for it to institute changes in almost all of it sectors. This is especially because of the belief by both its management and employees that the means through which it has conducted its activities since the foundation of the company is the best. The advocacy for a traditional system of production, especially when one considers that it only produces handcrafted cars, is not feasible because it is not only time consuming, but it also creates a situation where the company’s cost of production are quite high. The lack of an agency of change within the company can be considered responsible for the fear of change can also be seen among those individuals who have been with the company for a long time. These individuals hold the belief that the old ways are the best because the customers are comfortable with the products that they purchase. This is a mentality which even Morgan’s management has not been able to overcome because it has become too complacent and it does not realise that if much needed changes are not instituted, then there is a possibility that the company might end up losing markets (Burnes 2004, p.981). Under such circumstances, it is essential for there to be a change agent who can act as a catalyst in ensuring that the needed changes within the company are instituted in order to secure its long term future. Because of the attitude taken by Morgan’s management, where it is afraid to take any risks that might help the company in the end become more successful, it has continued to incur high costs of production while at the same time making lesser profits than other motor companies. The lack of an agency for change at Morgan makes the company vulnerable because it does not have the flexibility necessary to increase production so that it can satisfy demand. The only potential change agent in the company was the engineer Morris Owen who, despite his advocating for change for many years, was not taken seriously by the rest of management. However, when Charles Morgan appeared as production manager, and despite resistance from his father, who was risk averse and only wanted incremental changes, real changes began to take place in the company. This allowed for the development of sustainable changes, which would make it possible for Morgan to remain a serious player in the car industry for years to come. Under Charles’ leadership, one of the changes that were instituted by the company was a slight increase in prices because it was essential to cover for its profit margins especially in the case where there was a potential for rising inflation. The increase in the prices of its products made it easier for the company to make a comfortable profit since it had earlier implemented changes to its production system so that the costs during this process were much reduced. In addition, the engines of the vehicles produced by this company were vastly improved and this allowed for its enhanced image especially considering that in the current age, environmental consciousness is a factor in the daily lives of most individuals. The ability of this company to develop vehicles that were environmentally friendly made it possible for it to increase its sales volumes while at the same time receive wide acclaim for its work in transforming its cars to meet environmental requirements. In order to reduce its costs of production as well as save time, Morgan chose to outsource some of its work to other companies and this is the reason why such prominent products as the Aero 8 were powered by BMW engines. The production environment within this company was modernized to such an extent that more space was freed up to ensure that even more cars could be produced within a week; reducing the waiting time for most customers from some 5-6 years, to about only 18 months. Question 4 I experienced organisational conflict firsthand when working as deputy head of human resources at DowTech, a surgical equipment company during a period when it was attempting to make changes to its culture from one using traditional design methods to the use of updated modern technology. Because it was an instance where there was conflict due to differing interests between management and employees, the theory of organisational conflict applies to it. According to the organisational conflict theory, specifically role conflict, the management’s desire to make changes in the company has created a lot of conflict between management and employees, especially older employees within the company. Many of these individuals had worked for it since its founding some four decades ago and their resistance was because they felt that they would end up being laid off since they did not know how to use newer technologies. It is during this period that I came to realize that the institution of changes in the way that things are done within a company should focus on how both management and employees within it will react to them. According to Faulkner, Carlisle and Viney (2005, p.476), it is essential for the management of a company to make a study of how employees resist changes that are imposed on them and then device strategies to help these individuals accept these changes as being part of their work environment. They further state that leaders of companies have to aim at creating an environment, which is highly receptive of change so that they can be able to ensure the success of the company. The adoption of new technology, therefore, became the primary concern for the management of DowTech and it worked towards making sure that its employees were provided with training concerning the advantages of the changes being instituted. As part of human resources, I came to the realisation that the steps DowTech’s management was taking was to ensure that there was the development of an environment that made it possible for the acceptance of changes that it wanted to make by its employees. I further realised that the conflicts that arose as a result of resistance and acceptance to the changes by employees and management respectively directly affects whether the company would become either a success or a failure. This is in line with Nongo and Ikyanyon (2012, p.21) who state that the strategy which is used in changing the company culture is what makes the difference on how well these changes are received by the people involved, and as such, it is what determines the level of success that newly implemented culture has within the company. The conflict that came about as a result of the changes proposed almost brought the organisation to a standstill because the managers failed to recognise that it is normal human behaviour to resist change and that they had to be directly involved, from the outset, in the implementation process. The fact that the management of DowTech later realized this ensured that they found strategies, which were useful in the implementation of the proposed change, and the most important of these was to make sure that they did not just implement the changes with the expectation that their employees would automatically accept and adapt to them. Instead, the management of DowTech ensured that the employees, who were the ones who would be most affected by the changes, had a complete understanding of the reasons behind the changes within the company. This played a significant role in the evolution of the culture of the company from one using traditional methods to modern technology when making surgical equipment. It is because of the involvement of the employees in the implementation of changes at DowTech that the conflict ended since the employees came to understand the various changes to their company that were being made by its management. This helped to ensure that employees came to feel that they were working not only in their own best interests but also for those of the company. Therefore, it is important for a company to ensure that it involves employees whenever it attempts to implement changes because it creates an environment where there is less conflict in the implementation process. This way, DowTech’s management was able to take an active part in explaining the reasons for the implementation of the new policies of the company to its employees. The understanding that was later brought about by this involvement meant that all the employees accepted the changes that were implemented after the resistance that led to conflict because they did not initially understand what was at stake for the company. Question 6 Greiner (1998, p.1) states that there are many different situations that have to be considered before a company takes the initiative to develop a model and these include the following; age of the company, its size, its stage of development (whether evolutionary or revolutionary) and the status of the industry in which it is involved. When the age of the company is considered, there has to be a study of its management practices from the time when it as founded as a means of developing an understanding of what practices worked and those that did not. In this way, it becomes easier to make necessary changes because the management will have knowledge concerning the weaknesses within the company and develop changes accordingly. Furthermore, it allows management to make a study of how the company has been managed over time and whether there are any constraints to its expansion in such a manner that they are able to make changes before it is too late. The size of the company is also an important consideration and this is mainly because it allows the management to study how the company’s expansion has come to affect the level of interaction between employees and management. In this way, it is possible for there to be initiatives, which ensure that communication barriers between management and employees that has developed in the period of expansion are overcome. Greiner (1998, p.3), further states that it is important to understand the evolution of the company, and this in such a way that the management is able to make the adjustments necessary to cater for the company over a long period. The evolution of a company is a slow process which takes many years and this allows for only minimal changes to be made within it especially in situations where it is experiencing continues success. In this way, understanding the company’s evolutionary process allows its management to develop proven strategies, which can help the company to weather any crises that it might encounter over a long period. Understanding the evolutionary process also provides the company with the necessary background information that helps in knowing whether its expansion might be either too risky or beneficial. The evolutionary period for a company can be considered to be one where very little happens that might be considered as a threat to its progress because it is often one where very few adjustments have to be made to ensure that it continues to function smoothly. This process allows the company to grow at its own pace using the structures that have already been put in place, and this growth happens in such a manner that it ensures not only stability but also a sense of continuity that helps both management and employees to perform their functions with little disruption. There are several phases of growth as proposed by Greiner (1998, pp. 4 – 8) and these include creativity, direction, delegation, coordination, and collaboration. In the creativity period, the management and employees tend to work together in an informal manner where employees work hand in hand with managers to set up the company. The informal nature of the company during this period makes it possible for there to be enhanced motivation among employees, which makes them more productive. The direction phase is also quite informal because despite the development of a hierarchical structure, the managers are still easily accessible since the structure has not become too rigid. This phase normally makes way to the delegation stage where managers work with intermediaries to communicate with their employees. The delegation phase is where management delegates responsibility to individuals who act as supervisors over their fellow employees, essentially creating a sort of barrier which if not checked might create administrative problems. The coordination phase allows for the creation of smaller working units each of which is specialised in the development of different products and it involves the hiring of more personnel to work within these units. Finally there is the collaboration phase which leads to the creation of teams designed to ensure that problems are solves as they come about so that these problems do not affect the day to day functions of the company. The model discussed above is highly applicable in the organisational design because it allows for the development of strategies, which ensure employee effectiveness as well as high output. Each of the phases shown is appropriate for a particular stage in the growth of the company so that they fit perfectly into the growth patterns of the company. Finally, the phases discussed above can only be effective if a company’s management notices changes early enough to take necessary action to institute changes. References Burnes, B., 2004, “Kurt Lewin and the Planned Approach to Change: A Re-appraisal.” Journal of Management Studies, vol. 41, no. 6, pp. 977 – 1003. Faulkner, D., Carlisle, Y.M. & Viney, H.P. 2005, "Changing corporate attitudes towards environmental policy", Management of Environmental Quality, vol. 16, no. 5, pp. 476-489. Greiner, L.E., 1998, Evolution and Revolution as Organizations Grow, Harvard Business Review, 1-11. Nongo, E.S. & Ikyanyon, D.N. 2012, "The Influence of Corporate Culture on Employee Commitment to the Company”, International Journal of Business and Management, vol. 7, no. 22, pp. 21-28. Read More