E-folio Personal insights on Leading Change - Assignment Example

E-FOLIO PERSONAL INSIGHTS ON LEADING CHANGE Culture and leadership Organisational culture is defined categorically as the behavior and values of individuals in organisations. Culture is a product of various factors that include history, marketing strategies, type of employees, management style and operating strategy that represents collective values, beliefs, and principles of individuals. Without a proper culture of operation, an organisation cannot operate under clear norms, values, vision, systems, beliefs, and habits that leadership emphasizes.

However, leadership is the process of giving directions and leading people towards achieving particular goals. Therefore, organisational culture and leadership are like two sides of a coin given that the two aspects influence performance in institution including employee productivity. The cultural theory holds that, organisation culture influences interaction including how employees perceive and identify with the entity. To compete effectively in the current competitive environment, companies should embrace effective leadership culture, management style, employee hiring, market, technology, and culture of change.

These essential aspects facilitate the inculcation of quality behavior and habit among stakeholders that is noble for performance. Based on the presented facts, it is clear that culture influences the leadership style that a leader is to adopt in managing affairs. For instance, a leader in the organization where noble cultural practices are uphold faces limited difficulties in rallying employees towards improving performance. This is because the employees have the requisite willpower, mindset, and positive attitude towards performance as compared to companies with inferior cultural practices.

Subsequently, leadership strategies in the institutions with weak cultural practices are different to those adopted in companies with strong practices. A manager in a company with weak cultural practices will have to put extra effort in transforming employees’ perception and attitude towards work first to prepare them for greater challenges. However, a leader in a well-cultured institution has limited difficulties. He can introduce new changes in production system, use of technology, new management style without facing any resistance.

Innovation and leadership Innovation appertains to creativity, innovation, and adoption of conventional ways of production using technology. It is defined as a new idea, system, and ways of providing creditable solutions to the emerging performance issues in companies. The concept helps companies to plan, organize, and produce quality products and services based on the recommended standards including best practices. Innovation is technology driven in most cases in institutions and its effective achievement requires high level of leadership.

That is innovation cannot be attained without proper leadership in institutions as it involves radical changes that can only be steered with a dedicated leader. Exercising leadership in an innovative environment is easy compared to the institutions without clear innovative programs. This is evident since innovation influences leadership strategies, marketing techniques, production processes, and change processes. It is easy for a leader to influence change in an innovative environment and organise employees towards achieving a common goal as set as compared to a leader in an organization that does not embrace innovation.

In companies that embrace innovation, the groundwork for greater performance is already prepared making decision-making quicker as compared to institutions without innovative programs. Readiness to change and leadership Readiness to change is the ability to accept and embrace new ways of operations adopted in the organisation with limited resistance. Employees should adopt change readiness as a culture if they seek to boost the performance of their institution. It is a powerful performance tool and people who are not ready to accept change are not innovative and creative.

Such groups cannot work towards achieving competitiveness especially in the current business environment. Readiness to change therefore has a direct correlation with leadership since leadership is about exploring and taking up opportunities that require preparedness. Evidently, readiness to change by employees gives leaders the opportunity of introducing new methods of operations, the use of modern technology, current production standards, and new working conditions without facing serious resistance that may stall the execution of activities.

This is contrary in the institutions where readiness to change is not embraced due to continuous resistance on decisions made that may hamper progress. Personal experience of change Based on my personal experience pertaining to change in institutions, it is clear that effective change is attributable to good leadership, innovation, readiness to accept new ideas and positive organizational culture. I experienced the power of the highlighted elements in the realisation of holistic performance at Walmart business unit in New York where I was undertaking my internship.

The company operates under democratic leadership that promotes teamwork and formulation of performance-oriented policies that are acceptable to all stakeholders. The good leadership motivates them to employ extra effort in service delivery. The entity also has a good culture of performance, employee recruitment, marketing activities, teamwork, and corporate governance. The shared cultural practices enable employees to work for a common purpose. Similarly, the chain store is putting more emphasis on innovation and change readiness as a way of improving sales and use of technology.

Its employees are always ready to adopt new changes relating to the use of technology, employee recruitment process and scheduling of duties. They are not resistant to any form of change that is proposed. Therefore, companies that seek to record quality performance must embrace innovation, good leadership, adopt favorable cultural practices, and be ready to accept change.