Head Offices of Queensland Rail Limited in Brisbane - Case Study Example

Interview Report Name Institution Interview Report Interviewee Name: Mr. Kevin Wright Title: Chief Operations Officer Date of the Interview: Interview Venue: Head offices of Queensland Rail limited in Brisbane The interview was conducted with Mr. Kevin Wright. He is part of the leadership team at the Queensland Rail Limited where he is the Chief operations Officer. He is in charge of the safe administration of the rail system including train control and crewing, maintenance, yard operations, planning, train operations and infrastructure. Mr. Wright has over 48 years of experience in rail operations, customer service and safety. In addition to these roles, he also administers a safe, incorporated transport structure for the South and the North Queensland rail branches. Mr. Wright was chosen for this interview because of his wide role in the organization as well as his long standing experience of leading and managing change in the same organization. This is because the aim of the interview is to analyze the context of change and the roles of the leader in the change as well as critical analysis of change leader’s competencies and effectiveness. The interview was conducted face to face at the Company’s head offices in Brisbane. Mr. Wright was contacted by telephone call requesting him for the one hour interview session and he accepted. As indicated above the interview sought to gauge the connection between a change leader and the changes he initiates within his leadership territory. This connection will be looked into in relation to some theories and concepts of leadership and change within the organization. The leader’s competence and influence skills will also play a significant part in this analysis. Experience of Change Mr. Wright stated that in his many years of experience particularly as a leader, he has experienced a number of changes in the organization some of which he has championed. According to him, an organization that seeks to be on the trajectory of growth must embrace changes that are directed towards growth. He stated that organizational growth is also realized when the entire staffs grow in one aspect or the other and staff growth is achieved when there is an element of change in them (Cummings and Worley, 2008). Among the many changes he has championed within his current organization include; introduction of Wi-Fi wireless internet technology to face out or complement the usual video technology for passengers. The second is creating a network of mobile presentation attendants and the third is the initiation of station upgrade program. According to Mr. Wright, the internal events that led to the introduction of Wi-Fi was the need to change the traditional video technology as a form of entertainment for customer. He felt that they needed to change their entertainment package for their customers and this he attributes to the pillar of customer which underpins the organization’s business strategy (Beerel, 2009). Mr. Wrights also indicated that according to the organization, most passengers took considerably short time to reach their destination. Hence, entertainment package inform of video would not appeal to the passenger. Wireless internet technology would come in handy since the customer is able to browse the internet however the short time it takes to reach the destination. On the external front, He said that passengers also signaled this change as most of them complained of getting used to current entertainment package they were being offered. Mr. Wright indicated that implementation of this change called for funds allocation and deployment of a number of IT specialists on boarded trains. He said that this was not easily achieved as some members of staff showed reluctance when deployed to various stations. Based on this change, Mr. Wright appears a change leader since he was able to challenge the status quo and created a readiness for introduction of new entertainment package (Anderson and Ackerman, 2010). This change falls in the category of developmental transitions since it is uninterrupted incremental change intended to expand the organization’s capacities (Beerel, 2009). The change from centralized customer care to mobile customer care was influenced by the need to ensure presentation of trains for customer take place within the reach of customers. According to Mr. Wright, a number of their customers missed out on getting efficient train presentation since this was centralized. Through centralized train presentation, only a limited number of customers are reached. Mr. White mentioned that this was also in line with the pillar of customer satisfaction which underpins the organization’s business strategy (Beerel, 2009). Externally, this change was influenced by numerous customer suggestions that the organization comes with a better way of reaching them instead of the then centralized system. To implement this change, Mr. Wright pointed out that they had to come with various outlets within the cities and regions they covered. This involved funds allocation as well as bringing more customer care representatives on board to carry out the duty of mobile presentation attendants. This kind of change falls in the category of task-focused transitions. Establishing network of mobile presentation in place of a centralized system is an incremental change premeditated to improve task competence and output (Burke, 2010). This is because through creating this network of presentation more customers will be reached signifying and improved task as well as improved productivity. By championing this kind of change Mr. Wright turns out to be a true change leader. The third change championed by Mr. Wright is the initiation of station upgrade program. According to him this was a change they discussed with the entire management and the board committee on development since decision on this is not a one man’s shot. Mr. Wright stated that this was a huge change and it would be implemented in various phases. This change was inspired internally by the need to improve customer service delivery and to be competitive in the market of transportation. Mr. Wright mentions that Queensland and the larger Australian nation have not been at the fore front in terms of developing a cutting age rail transportation system. In order to have a regional presence, then Queensland Rail Limited has no option but initiate an upgrade program. This therefore is the external influence that led to this change. According to Mr. Wright, this upgrade program would cost the company about $ 200 million and they plan to upgrade more than fifty stations. This change to upgrade the rail system would also mean that more staff would be brought on board with others being deployed to take up roles in other sections or stations. Getting this change proposal approved was not easy as Mr. White indicated. They were forced to sit up to late hours coming up with the upgrade plan with the cost associated with it as well as proving the viability of the upgrade. It was clear from Mr. Wright’s narration that most managers did not easily welcome the proposed upgrade program. This kind of change is classified as charismatic transformations. This is because it would be a radical decision the organization had to make considering that it was out of its strategic position although time was available for a turnaround (Cameron and Quinn, 2011). According to Mr. Wright such a radical change needs a radical leader who could counter all possible obstacles along the way to ensure the change is realized. Leader’s Change Diagnosis According to Mr. Wright, the primary and in some ways the most vital stage of any change efforts is diagnosis. In diagnosing for all these changes, Mr. Wright states that he attempted to find out what was actually happening then in all those situations that change took place. He also attempted to find out what was prone to happen in the future if no change effort was made (Cummings and Worley, 2008). Most importantly as Mr. Wright pointed out is that he tried to find out what would people ideally like to be happening in these change situations. He also tried to find out the blocks or restraints impeding movements from the actual to the ideal. To get full picture of the changes, Mr. Wright sought to look at the situations from the point of views of as many as possible of the people who will be affected by these changes. Mr. Wright highlighted the importance of identifying problems as a means of diagnosing change. In light of this, Mr. Wright stated that he explored available leadership, decision making and problem solving skills. He also sought to know the readiness level of the people involved and if they are willing and able to take significant responsibility for their own performance (Anderson et al., 2010). According to Mr. Wright’s description of his assessment of readiness for change, it appears that his tactics fall into two categories; readiness audit and predictors. This is because Mr. Wright points out that he was able to create valuable discussion among leaders and employees. He was also alert to the areas that would pose problems during the implementation and he identified preliminary actions that would be required before the launch of the change initiative (Beerel, 2009). He stated that his assessment for the readiness of these changes was backed by his deep knowledge and understanding of the organization’s culture. According to Mr. Wright, it is very vital that organizational culture be prioritized before assessing if it was ready for these changes. This can only be possible if one is aware of these cultures. Mr. Wright said that resistance to proposed change is normal in any social set and that he also has moments when he is very apprehensive about some changes. In handling opposition to these changes, Mr. Wright stated that he strived to communicate and in the process educating others about the proposed changes. He also stated that he drewn in and supported those who resisted these changes. Above all Mr. Wright indicated that as a leader his influence skills played a huge role in trying to win back those who appeared to have resisted these changes (Cameron et al., 2011). According to Mr. Wright any change that is to be implemented in an organization needs a leader who knows what he wants to achieve and as well the leader should not be forceful but one who communicate well with his team and colleagues. In other words he referred to a charismatic and a visionary leader. He made it clear during the interview that he is working out to being that kind of leader. His limited charismatic character and being visionary enabled him to get on with these three proposed changes. According to him a charismatic and a visionary leader would bring on board just about any change he/she deems fit for the organization. Views on Business Ethics In a direct relation to leadership position, Mr. Wright indicates that a leader must observe business ethics in all its phases. According to him, it is the duty of the leader to protect the right if his team as well that of the organization. In the course of initiating a change, a leader should not use his/her position and influence to intimidate other below him for selfish gain (Cummings et al., 2008). They should also not propose changes that are geared towards misusing the resources of the organization. References Annabel, Beerel. (2009). Leadership and Change Management. London: Sage Publications Dean, Anderson, & Linda Ackerman. (2010). The Change Leader's Roadmap: How to Navigate Your Organization's Transformation. San Francisco CA: Pfeiffer. Thomas, Cummings, Christopher, Worley. (2008). Organization Development & Change. Mason OH: South Western Cengage Learning. Kim, Cameron, & Robert, Quinn. (2011). Diagnosing and Changing Organizational Culture: Based on the Competing Value Framework. San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Warner Burke. (2010). Organization Change: Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, Inc Appendix Interview Questions 1. Have you ever initiated any change in your current position and could you name at least three of these changes? 2. What external and internal factors led you to propose these changes and where there any resource input involved? 3. As a change leader, how did you diagnose these changes? 4. How did you assess that these changes were imminent? 5. Were there any resistances to these changes? How did you handle them? 6. What kind of a leader do you think is appropriate to handle each of these changes? 7. As a change leader, what is your view on business ethics? Read More