Managing the Whole Messy Business - Case Study Example

Case Study Analysis Name: Course: Tutor: Date: Introduction Description of the case study The case involves a large telephone company (Telco) whose board of directors wants its executives to make the organisation more environmentally friendly by encouraging employees to reduce waste in the workplace. The government and other stakeholders expect the firm to conduct the exercise so as to be publicly successful. As a result, the managing director wants the company to reduce usage of paper, refuse as well as other waste throughout the company’s offices. Regrettably, a survey indicates that the company employees do not value environmental objectives and do not know how to “reduce, reuse, and recycle.” The key issue in this case is to develop a strategy that might help bring out meaningful behavioural change towards the environmental goal. To achieve this, it is important to diagnose the scenario at the company and determine the most appropriate set of change management practices. This paper thus presents the practices that should be introduced in order to create an urgency to change, minimise the resistance change, put in place appropriate strategies to communicate change, and finally to refreeze the situation to support the change initiative. The paper commences with an overview of organisational change management. Overview of organisational change management Organisations are continually changing whether those within those organisations embrace the changes or not. Some changes are planned in order to enhance efficiencies (as in the current analysis of Telco) or meet new market opportunities or take advantage of new technology (Kuriger, 2004). As well, some changes are unplanned, such as unanticipated departure of key staff. Any form of change in an organisation causes individuals to experience a reaction process (Kyle, 1993) [cited by Bovey and Hede (2001)]. It is therefore necessary to understand the kind of change required and how it is likely to affect the employees. From the current case study, it is worth noting that the employees do not value environmental objectives and do not know how to “reduce, reuse, and recycle.” In other words, the employees are likely to resist the anticipated change if they are not convinced of the benefits that are likely to accrue from the change. In line with this, the strategy to be applied must be one that eliminates this tendency to resist change. According to Mills, Dye and Mills (2008), resistance to change is likely to occur in any organisation. The same authors also argue that people tend to resist change or alterations of the status quo. This resistance is more than the simple opposition to any given change; and it is more widespread than a particular individual’s or group’s refusal to accept a particular change. There is always a wish among most people to maintain the consistency and comfort that is associated with the status quo. This resistance stems from various sources, which can be broadly categorised into three groups: barriers to comprehension, barriers to acceptance, and barriers to acting (Mills, Dye & Mills, 2008). Del Val and Fuentes (2003), breaks down some of these barriers by highlighting the causes of resistance to change at the initial stage as: myopia, or inability of an organisation to look into the future with clarity; denial or refusal to acknowledge any information that is not anticipated or desired; perpetuation of ideas, implying the tendency to go on with the present thoughts although the situation has changed; implicit assumptions, which are not discussed due to implicit character and therefore misrepresent the reality; communication barriers, which lead to distortion of information or misinterpretations; and organisational silence, which obstructs the information flow with individuals who do not express their thoughts, implying that decisions are made without all the necessary information. The points above show that there are many reasons for resistance to change. Therefore, Telco must understand these reasons so that the strategies that are formulated toward making the organisation environmentally friendly are not only understood by the employees, but that the employees embrace them. i) Creating an urgency to change Establishing the need for urgency is the first step of Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model (Ronnenberg, Graham & Mahmoodi, 2011). It is also the first step in Doppelt’s Wheel of Change, which states that change begins by disrupting and altering the dominant mindset and establishing a compelling need for achieving change (Smith, 2011). The core challenge in this step is to change people’s perceptions and get them ready to move. This involves informing people of the need for change and how the change will affect them. For instance, at Telco the core challenge is to create an environmentally friendly organisation, and the aim is to encourage employees to make the familiar with the concept of “reduce, reuse, and recycle.” To initiate change, Telco executives must demonstrate a great deal of cooperation with other employees, commit their time and energy to attaining the objective, and be willing to make sacrifices. Of course the employees will be expected to emulate the executives’ efforts. The most important thing here is that leaders in the organisation must convince the other members that there is an urgency need to change (Proehl, 2001). The urgency to change is the energy that propels the organisation ahead, and without much hassle. Without this energy, the change effort sputters and ultimately wanes for lack of interest. Hence, it is important to for the organisation to focus on both the human and organisation needs, and appreciate that organisational change is driven by personal change. That is, to change the perception of employees toward an environmentally friendly organisation, the executives must aim at changing the attitudes of individuals, and hence the organisational culture. Bovey and Hede (2001) emphasise the point that individual change is required in order for organisational change to succeed. Creating an urgency need to change can also be likened to the first phase of Lewin’s Freeze Phase model – the “Unfreeze” phase. Lewin recognised that people like the safety, comfort and feeling of control of the status quo within their environment (Warrilow, not dated). He referred to this as a “frozen” state, and argued that significant effort may be required to unfreeze people so as to initiate change. For instance, Telco employees need to be made aware of the consequences of using too much paper and producing other refuse in the workplace. The company should then highlight the benefits that could accrue to the organisation if employees reduced paper and minimised other wastes, especially given that the government and other stakeholders expect the company to do so. For instance, sending emails instead of writing on paper would help reduce litter in the workplace, and sending emails instead of letters would help the company save a lot in terms of yearly purchases of paper and ink cartridges. The executives would also emphasise that a clean working environment is healthy for the employees and customers – and positively influences the organisation’s image. Importantly, the leaders should communicate to the other staff regarding the organisation’s challenges, opportunities, strengths and weaknesses as pertains to the goal of the change. The goal is basically to make everyone have a reason for accepting and participating in the anticipated change. Once the employees realise that there is need for change, they will be more willing to embrace it and participate in it. ii) Minimising resistance to change There is no guarantee that after creating an urgency to change everyone will be willing to comply. As Carnall (1986) and Darling (1993) put it, not only do individuals experience change in different ways, they also differ in their ability and willingness to adapt to change [cited by Bovey and Hede (2001)]. According to Peccei, Giangreco, and Sebastiano (2011), resistance to change is hypothesised to be related to two crucial factors linked to the content and process of change respectively. The first factor is the extent to which employees perceive the change as being either beneficial or detrimental to their own interests. The second factor is the extent to which employees are involved in the process of change itself. These factors are referred to as the favourableness and fairness of change. It is therefore noteworthy that Telco employees will be receptive change if they are assured that the change is not only favourable but fair to them. This requires a well planned communication strategy and an approach that ensures that the employees partake in the change process. Effective communication of the objective of the intended change is destined to eliminate the uncertainty that is associated with change. For instance, employees at Telco may be wary of using email rather than paper for communication in the workplace, but if they are informed that such an initiative is meant to save on paper, they may as well appreciate the essence of the change. Additionally, they may be hesitant to keep their documents in soft copy, but if they are informed that doing so will save their time for perusing through files, as well as the company’s expenditure on ink cartridges and power, they may slow embrace and appreciate the initiative. This however requires openness and clarity (WBS Group, not dated). Involvement of the employees is also vital to reduce resistance to change. It is also important to assess and improve the participants’ readiness and identify potential opponents to the change (Spiro, 2010). Bringing them on board minimises the ability to derail the intended change process. For instance, some employees may not support the initiative, but if the organisation convinces them that the change would help improve how they are perceived and that compliance is a government requirement, they are likely to change their mindsets. Of course the leaders must show their commitment by helping those employees who may need any kind of assistance through problem-solving or brainstorming teams. Generally, if people are involved in change and comprehend the reasons for it they become supportive of the whole idea and hence the change process (WBS Group, not dated). Hence, if the employees of Telco are given the opportunity to take responsibility and accountability for certain contributions to a change programme, their sense of ownership will make them even stronger campaigners for the change. iii) Appropriate strategies to communicate change The communication strategy should be structured such that it can eliminate the uncertainties that are associated with the consequences of change. This is in line with the fourth stage of Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model, which stipulates that those involved should communicate the vision widely, repeatedly and consistently (Smith, 2011). As mentioned earlier, the communication should run from the leadership down through all organisational levels, both in language and in actions and behaviours. As the employees of Telco are not cognisant with the phrase “reduce, reuse, and recycle”, the aim of the involvement should be to make them familiar with the essence of the phrase. The company can say for instance that instead of using disposable cups to draw water from dispensers, employees should use cups that can be washed. This will ensure that the company reduces its usage and disposal of plastic materials. Some employees may regard washing cups as a tedious exercise, but with practice and having understanding of what the change means, they may slowly adapt the practice. The employees should also be informed of the benefits of collecting all waste paper and having it in a place where it can be collected for recycling. Effective communication about changes and their likely outcomes can reduce speculation and allay unfounded fears (Cummings & Worley, 2008). For instance, merely saying that employees should not keep information as hard copies (prints) may make some employees have the perception that the company is facing financial constraints and cannot afford to purchase paper. However, if the employees are informed that through this strategy the company aims to reduce its usage of paper and thus conserve the environment, they will shake off these fears. Usually in an organisation people constantly receive information about current operations, and future plans as well as informal rumours about people, politics and changes (Cummings & Worley, 2008). Managers at Telco must therefore think seriously about how to break through information that may be misleading as regards the intended change. For instance, if the tradition of the company is to deliver information through emails and memos, then it can deliver the change information through meetings and presentations, such that people can interact and ask questions pertaining to the change. Another strategy to communicate change is to deliberately alter the normal operations in the workplace (Cummings & Worley, 2008). For instance, the company can reduce the number of printers in the office such that employees have one that is shared. This sends a clear message to the employees that they can print information only when it is very necessary, thus reducing power consumption by several printers, as well as paper usage in the office. Importantly, the entire communication strategy should promote participation of all employees to increase acceptance of the change and hence its value. iv) “Refreezing” the situation to support the change initiative “Refreezing” is the final phase of Lewin’s Freeze Phase change model. It is the process of making new behaviours relatively permanent and resistant to further change (Griffin & Moorhead, 2009). It involves stabilising the new learning with the actual results that are observed due to the change (Schein, 2010). After convincing members of an organisation to accept a change, the change process slowly begins, but the change cannot be regarded permanent until it is absorbed by everyone. This means having the change integrated into people’s personality or the organisation’s functioning. Refreezing is facilitated when the change pattern is internalised, such that it fits naturally into the organisation’s culture (Gautam & Batra, 2007). If the executives at Telco have correctly diagnosed what needs to be done to create an environmentally friendly organisation, then the new behaviour will produce better results and be confirmed. For example, employees may be accustomed to turning off lights that are not necessary during the day; saving information on their desktops rather than printing it; washing their cups or plates rather than littering the workplace with disposables; turning computers off or to standby mode when not in use; using wastewater to water the company’s garden and lawns, and so forth. As discussed above, refreezing makes new behaviours relatively permanent as they are incorporated into individuals’ personality (Griffin & Moorhead, 2009). During this phase, it is important to repeat any newly learned skills and role play them to highlight how they can be used in the day-to-day operations of the organisation. The process is important because without it, the old ways of doing things might soon crop up, making the new ways or habits to be forgotten. For instance, having regular meetings and presentations to reinforce the new behaviour may inform the employees at Telco that the management is actually concerned about what they are doing. This notwithstanding, there is always a tendency for people, even after attending a training session, to go back to the old ways. To ensure that the change becomes permanent, leaders at Telco should continuously monitor the situation to ensure that the new habits are followed by offering the required support. According to Marquis and Huston (2008), for refreezing to occur, the change agent must be supportive and reinforce the individual adaptive efforts of those affected by the change. The management at Telco should not expect change to occur instantaneously as it is a gradual process. Ideally, change needs at least three to six months before it is accepted as part of the system (Marquis & Huston, 2008), hence the executives must work hand-in-hand with the junior staff until the change is completed. Conclusion In conclusion, change is inevitable but must be handled well to avoid inconveniences. As shown in this paper, planned change follows a number of steps, which are also highlighted in various change models from literature. Although there are many models of the change, it is evident that a number of steps are inevitable for any given change. These include creating an urgency to change, which involves preparation for the change; minimising resistance to change by discouraging the uncertainties that may be associated with the change; using appropriate strategies to communicate the change; and ensuring that the change is embedded in the system (refreezing). The aim of these steps is to reduce the barriers to change; which include barriers to comprehension, barriers to acceptance and barriers to acting. The discussion has been linked to the case study of Telco, and it has been shown that the mentioned steps are necessary to ensure that employees are informed of the benefits of change, which in this case is making the organisation environmentally friendly. References Cummings, T. G. & Worley, C. G. (2008). Organization development & change (9th edition). New York: Cengage Learning. Del Val, M.P. & Fuentes, C. M. (2003). “Resistance to change: A literature review and empirical study.” Management Decision. 41(2):148-155. Gautam, V. &.Batra, S. K. (2007). Organisation development systems: A study in organisation behaviour and organisation management (4th edition). New Delhi: Concept Publishing Company. Griffin, R.W. & Moorhead, G. (2009). Organizational Behavior: Managing People and Organizations (9th edition). New York: Cengage Learning. Kuriger, C.C. (2004). Organizational Change: Case Studies in the Real World. London: Universal-Publishers. Marquis, B. L. & Huston C. J. (2008). Leadership roles and management functions in nursing: theory and application (6th edition). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Mills, J. H., Dye, K. & Mills, A. J. (2008). Understanding organizational change. New York: Taylor & Francis. Peccei, R., Giangreco, A. & Sebastiano, A. (2011). “The role of organizational commitment in the analysis of resistance to change: Co-predictor and moderator effects.” Personnel Review. 40(2):185-204. Proehl, R.A. (2001). Organizational change in the human services. London: Sage. Ronnenberg, S.K., Graham, M. E. & Mahmoodi, F. (2011). “The important role of change management in environmental management system implementation,” International Journal of Operations & Production Management. 31(6): 631-647. Schein, E. H. (2010). Organizational Culture and Leadership (4th edition). New York: John Wiley and Sons. Smith, I. (2011). “Organisational quality and organisational change: Interconnecting paths to effectiveness.” Library Management. 32(1/2):111-128. Spiro, J. (2010). Leading Change Step-by-Step: Tactics, Tools, and Tales. London: John Wiley and Sons. Warrilow, S. (not dated). “Practitioners' Masterclass: Leading your people through change putting it all together, and managing the whole messy business,” Practioners Masterclass (online). Retrieved 5th July 2011, from http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=3nYl6zgJ2CkC&pg=PA83&dq=Kotter%E2%80%99s+8-Step+Change+Model&hl=en&ei=s0YTTrvICs7o-gbzgLGBDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CDMQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=Kotter%E2%80%99s%208-Step%20Change%20Model&f=false. WBS Group (not dated). “Reducing Resistance to Change.” Retrieved 5th July 2011, from http://www.wbsgroup.com/downloads/Website%20Reducing%20Resistance%20to%20Change.pdf. Read More