Organizational Analysis: Managing Organizational Change - Example

Running head: MANAGING ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE Organizational Analysis: Managing Organizational Change Name Institution Tutor Date Executive summary Organizational development is an aspect that many organizations have to go through due to increased dynamism in the corporate world. This report summarizes the features of change management in a selected organization. It provides brief description of the organization including its situational analysis. The report further analyses the problems encountered in the bid to develop the organization. It looks at possible causes of the problems that have been identified and resisting factors towards change. The paper also evaluates ways in which change can be managed and how it can be implemented in the organization. It finally recommends ways of monitoring the changes that have been implemented. Table of Contents Executive summary 2 Table of Contents 3 1.0 Introduction 4 2.0 Situation analysis 5 3.0 Problem statement 5 4.0 Causes of changes within the university 6 4.1 Competition 6 4.2 Technology 6 4.3 Desire for growth 6 5.0 Causes of resistance to change 7 5.1 Poor communication 7 5.2 Self interest 7 5.3 Lack of trust 7 6.0 Ways of managing change 8 6.1 Organizational development (OD) 8 6.2 Incorporating change management and proper leadership 8 6.3 Redesigning the university work structure 9 7.0 Implementing Change 10 7.1 Change and Management 11 7.2 Change and personal learning 11 7.3 Change and organizational culture 12 8.0 Monitoring of Change 13 9.0 Conclusion 13 10.0 References 14 MANAGING CHANGE 1.0 Introduction Increased pace of change that businesses have encountered in the past decade has been dramatic. Organizational change is often brought about by major external forces such as decrease in market opportunities, substantial cuts in funding and the constant increase in services. Evidently, organization needs to undertake various strategic, structural and technical shifts so as to adapt positive change. These shifts require an organization to evolve in different stages in their life cycles such as shifting from what is known as a highly reactive organization to a more proactive and stable environment. The increased use of leverage as a way of increasing shareholder wealth has left most of the world biggest organization in disarray. Change is evitable and this is why as the world becomes more interrelated and complex within the business sector, changes seems to affect organizations more increasingly. It is for this reason that change within organization seem to appear frequently while other time randomly. Organization need to be cognizant on their holistic nature and understand their implication to the universe. Organization development is an important field of study in implementing and managing change within organization. It assists in addressing change and how it affects employees and organization at large. It is evidence that effective organization development highly assists employees and the whole organization to cope with changes accordingly (Bridges, 2003). 2.0 Situation analysis It is quite evident that within the educational sector not only at national level but also globally, there are numerous substantial changes facing the sector. Many organizations within the educational sector are undergoing fundamental changes of transformation. Further, the continuous transformations of workforce expectation by both media and education have resulted to; many employees seeking out for different rewards from work and on various kinds of relationships that exists within workplaces. Further within educational background, it is noted that planned change is normally triggered by the fact that people fail to come up with better ways of adapting and managing these changes. In most organizational reports which are based on managing change, they tend to follow the sequence which indicate that initially there were losses which was followed by planned of change whereby its implementation resulted to unexpected results (Kotter, 2003). 3.0 Problem statement Key changes within university of Adelaide are those in connection to competitive position against both national and international universities not forgetting those in connection to Group of Eight (Go8). Further, the constant review within the tertiary sector, upcoming educational changes, outlook that is emerging from global economy, increased completion for higher education researches, additional external forces and finally, increased completion for global universities who are fighting to be the best globally. In order to respond positively to these described problems, University of Adelaide need to come up with various options and strategies so as to improve and change the way in which they deliver research and educational services as a measure of meeting both student and community needs. 4.0 Causes of changes within the university While external forces such as competition and regulation continue to play a major role within the education sector in the ability of University of Adelaide to deliver proper educational services, internal factors within this university will increasingly inhibit the delivery of educational services to meet global demands unless it adapts to global and economic changes. Causes of changes within University of Adelaide are namely; 4.1 Competition The emergence of new and competitive higher learning institution across the globe is one of the main causes of change within Adelaide. The university has been forced to constantly change its image within the market place whenever a larger university opens other branches. 4.2 Technology With the constant growth of technology, University of Adelaide is forced to adapt change so as to maintain the standards of world class universities. By implementation technological change, the university is able to meet the standard requirements within the education sector thus benefiting both students and community. Change may also be in the sense that employees need to be trained on how to handle new and emerging technology. 4.3 Desire for growth For Adelaide to attain its mission, goals and vision, it requires to change its method of operation. Change of operation may be through changing processes of running the university so as they become more efficient and attractive. 5.0 Causes of resistance to change It is evident that organizations cannot avoid change as new ideas promote growth within organizations. Kotter and Rathgeber (2006) argue that while change may be seen to create new opportunities, it is normally met with criticism from individuals within the organizations. The following are the main causes of resistance to change within University of Adelaide. 5.1 Poor communication It is evident that changes within any given organization start with major decision making. It is the duty of University of Adelaide to pass any necessary change and information to other employees and allow room for questions and complains before the said changes are put into effect. As news of change spread across the university, some information becomes skewed where employees end up receiving information that is in accurate thus employees resist change. 5.2 Self interest Ego among top university officials interferes with ability of adapting change. It is noted that top official in Adelaide want to maintain their status so as to advance their personal image while others are perceived to have different motivation. As a result, employees are forced to work in their own interest as opposed to organizational goals thus resisting any kind of change. 5.3 Lack of trust Within University of Adelaide, trust plays a major role in running all educational programs. It is evident that when employees feel they cannot trust each other in decision making it makes it difficult for adaptation of any change. They may tend to assign the changes to various underlying issues. 6.0 Ways of managing change 6.1 Organizational development (OD) Organizational development is defined as that process that diagnoses problems in an organization by way of searching for incongruence’s between employees, structures, processes and environment. This usually ensures that positive change is adapted within an organization thus improving effectiveness within an organization. Organizational development ensures that a formal assessment is carried out within Adelaide University by way of surveys and interviews thus identifying the kind of changes needed to be implemented. After assessment, intervention are undertaken so as to identify the implication of designed changes both to the company and its employees. Organizational development researches on each intended change so as to determine whether it may result to either failure or success focusing on future outcome. Organizational development is known to be a long range approach to change that places emphasis on long lasting other than temporary change. In addition OD seeks to change norms and culture by changing structures, behaviors, knowledge and attitude within an organization. 6.2 Incorporating change management and proper leadership It is important to note that implementation of any significant change within Adelaide may either succeed or fail because of leadership especially that involved in change process. In Adelaide University, management is considered to be a discipline that focuses on systems and processes whereas leadership focuses on engaging people to adapt, create and meet students demand. Ensuring that proper measures are placed in order to manage change, good leadership should be put in place so as to inspire transition. Proper leadership energizes people ensuring that they are able to sustain change in approach and behavior. Leadership is known to engage the mind and hearts of staff. 6.3 Redesigning the university work structure In order to effect the proposed change, Adelaide University might be required to undergo a complete restructuring of its overall work structure. The most appropriate way to accomplish this would be use of diagnostic guidelines to help determine the most effective structure to match the university’s environments and conditions. Restructuring can be done in two main ways; downsizing or re-engineering. Downsizing refers to the process of reducing the size of the organization by reducing the number of personnel. It is achieved by either lay off some of the workers or outsourcing for specific work position from outside contractors. The aim of downsizing is to reduce the bureaucracy in the university and to reduce the cost of running it. On the other hand, re-engineering involves radical change of the university core work processes with the aim of establishing cohesiveness and co-ordination among the various departments in the university. This results to more integrated work flow system hence a more responsive and faster task performance. In downsizing the university may lay off some of its lecturer and instead hire less expensive part timers who can either be temporary or permanent. Other competence positions such as that of the organization auditor, chief strategic planner, lawyers among others maybe occupied by outside contractors hired only when there is need for the specific activity they offer. In many cases, downsizing is done whenever the university it is redefining its strategic goal plans or when major changes are being experienced. For instance, introduction of new courses in the university may call for opening up of new branches or increase of facilities such as lecture halls within the already existing premises. In such a case, the there is need for extra financial resources which can be partly obtained from downsizing. Research finding have showed that adequate application of all the stages of downsizing can result to successful outcomes. Evidently, many universities across the world are characterized by numerous bureaucracies in their operational systems. Many students in universities have forwarded complaints concerning the issue and they would rather join those that portray less bureaucracy. Complete re-engineering of Adelaide University’s work flow will therefore place it in competitive position. Besides improving the task performance, the streamlined and integrated system will become more flexible and fast hence more responsive to meeting student’s demands (Kotter, 2002). 7.0 Implementing Change In the radically changing global environment, Adelaide University needs to set itself in a position that will give it a competitive advantage in the international market. The first step towards a successful change implementation is to change the mindset of the members including the staff and the students in terms of the way they perceive, think and behave. It also involves altering the prevailing assumptions regarding the way the organization functions and shifting it to match corporate norms and values. It should be noted that the input of each member of the university is vital in the implementation of the proposed change. 7.1 Change and Management The role of senior executive and department managers is key to effective implementation of transformational change. It is their responsibility to lead the transformation by giving the relevant directions involved in the operations. Since the existing executives may lack the skills and the talent to deliver the change, the university might have recruit external executives. Findings from transformational change researches have indicated that externally employed executives are three times more effective than the existing executives in terms of initiating change. It is crucial for management to articulate a credible and clear vision for orientation of the strategic change. In addition to this, new performance standards must be set as well as strict measures to follow for instance harsh penalties on members who defy them. The executive members need to lead by example by demonstrating excitement and infecting energy to other members about the expected success of the change (Tosti, 2000). The management has the duty of providing the required resources necessary to implement the transformation. It is recommendable to appoint a steering team, preferably a portion of the executive board, to support and manage the change process. 7.2 Change and personal learning Innovation and learning are two fundamental aspects of transformational change. Members of the Adelaide University must be ready to adapt to the new changes that are occurring in the organization. Substantially, acquiring different ways of perceiving things, learning, thinking and behaving will help to incorporate change into the university systems. Kotter (2002) asserts that learning how to manage change as quickly as possible is an added advantage for any organization that strives towards keeping pace with ever changing environment. Furthermore, the change process might require incorporation of new skills and knowledge. In such a case, some members of the university staff will be required to undertake training programs or even extra courses that comply with the needs of the change process. For instance, if technological aspects are involved, training conferences might be organized to equip the members with necessary skills. 7.3 Change and organizational culture Organizational culture includes norms, values and artifacts that are used by members of the organization in their day to day activities. Culture can indirectly affect the ability of implementing change. If well managed and conceived, culture can be used as a stepping stone to effective implementation of the transformational change. However, portions of the organizational culture might be a hindrance towards implementation of change if not well managed. Adelaide University management should therefore focus on aligning its organizational culture with the new strategic change. By emphasizing on direct participation of all the members in decision making, establishing a stable communication system and provision of security and equality is an effective tool for persuading members to embrace the change. Productivity of Adelaide University can increase tremendously if emphasis is placed in the spirit of team work, employee involvement and adequate flow of information in the university. 8.0 Monitoring of Change Evaluation and monitoring is a must for any change process. Adelaide University management needs to acquire a strategy of monitoring the effectiveness and performance of the changes that will be put in place. The university can utilize external experts to measure the productivity of the transformation to be conducted on regular intervals. Such practitioners including professional auditors and lawyers should be able to assess the implication of the transformational change in all the departments of the university. In addition this, appraisal sheets can be prepared for both staff members and students. Analysis of these sheets will give a clear indication of the level of satisfaction experienced by the members as a result of the change (Marsh, 2001). 9.0 Conclusion With the ever growing dynamism in the corporate world it is important for Adelaide University to place itself in a strategic position that will give it a competitive advantage. Clearly, change cannot be implemented by the management alone hence participation of all the members is crucial to the success of the transformational change. Change involves several aspects of the organization such as leadership, information systems, and culture. Putting this in mind, the management of Adelaide University has to ensure these key features undergo major alteration in order to implement the change successfully. 10.0 References Bridges, W.(2003). Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change. New York: Nicholas Brealey Publishing. Kotter, J. (2003). Leading Change. Massachusetts: Harvard Business School Press. Kotter, J. and Rathgeber, H. (2006). Our Iceberg is Melting. Changing and Succeeding Under any Conditions. Massachusetts: Harvard Business School Press. Kotter, J.(2002). The Heart of Change. Massachusetts:Harvard Business School Press. Marsh, C. (2001). Degrees of Change – Resistance or Resilience. Performance Improvement, v40 n3 pp 29-33. Tosti, T. (2000). Systemic Change. Performance Improvement, v39 n3 pp 53-59. Read More