Strategic and Change Management - Essay Example

? Change Introduction The modern business organizations are increasingly performing their business operations in a working atmosphere which is featured by rapid change along with growing performance related demands. The business organizations often require change while operating their business functions due to various significant reasons. The major reasons include enhancing their different working activities, attaining significant revenue along with market share and maintaining profitability as well as productivity of the corporations. Moreover, the business organizations also prefer change for making alterations in their business objectives, reorganizing the operational functions, making technological related transformations and also for attaining service or product associated changes. In this context, the aspect of change imposes significant impact upon the business organizations in their working procedures, systems, job functions and organizational structures among others. It has been viewed that there are five phases or stages in a particular business organization that include start-up or birth stage, growth or fast growth stage, maturity stage that implies slow or no growth stage, decline stage and finally death or revival stage. The idea of change is vital during the above mentioned stages of a business organization (Vora, 2010). In this paper, a diagnosis about the need for change of Nokia Corporation will be taken into concern. Moreover, a plan would be presented for Nokia in relation to transform its several business procedural functions by utilizing the concept of Kotter’s 8-step approach. Company Overview Nokia Corporation is regarded as a renowned and foremost telecommunication organization which offers broad assortment of superior quality as well as attractive products to its worldwide customers. By considering the fact that the technology of mobile is rapidly changing the world, Nokia has remained focused upon delivering excellent quality products to its large base of customers that would enable its customers to enjoy and to communicate with people with ease. In this regard, the mission of Nokia is quite simple and familiar to everyone in the world i.e. ‘Connecting People’. Nokia performs its business operations throughout the world that include Middle East, Africa, Latin America, Asia Pacific, Europe and North America. The several attractive latest products of Nokia comprise E6-00, Nokia Lumia 800, Nokia Asha and Nokia Belle among others. The organization employs approximately 1,390,000 people around the globe in order to distribute its several quality as well as attractive products to worldwide customers. In relation to the cultural aspect, Nokia emphasizes upon the concept of diversity which has paved the way for the organization to become successful as compared to others especially in the telecommunication industry (Nokia, 2012). Apart from focusing upon the aspect of diversity, Nokia has also emphasized upon making its several products sustainable. In this context, Nokia possesses exclusive production facilities that are situated all across the world. While manufacturing the products, the organization emphasizes upon its production procedure in order to eradicate any sort of negative environmental as well as social impact that may pose threats upon its working performance. The utmost concerns of Nokia towards the idea of diversity along with the concept of sustainability have ultimately assisted the organization to win numerous prestigious awards and recognitions. From the viewpoint of the recognitions and awards, Nokia was viewed as the finest place to work especially in the region of Caribbean and Central America in the year 2011 due to its outstanding business culture and environment. Moreover, Nokia once again was chosen as the most sustainable technology organization in the world for the year 2011 (Nokia, 2012). Diagnosis There are many business organizations that make changes in their business procedural functions dramatically in order to improve their working performance and get ahead in this competitive business world. The other vital factor for which the business organizations realize the need for change is when the products’ demand becomes quite low then it ultimately results towards decrease in their profits and also restricts them from attaining competitive position. The concept of change is quite necessary for the mobile phone manufacturing companies similar to Nokia Corporation because the requirements and the demands of the mobile users are transforming day-by-day along with increasing technological advancements. In this context, Nokia had started its business journey from a riverside paper mill and now it is a leading business organization in the world of telecommunication industry. However, Nokia had felt the need for change because of various major reasons. The several crucial reasons include strengthening the customer interface by ensuring that all the available resources of the organization are well distributed in order to comply with the requirements of the customers and also making especially the Nokia Research Center (NRC) to sharpen its focus upon stronger research areas. Moreover, Nokia has felt the need for change because the organization is planning to reposition its operational functions in a more convenient place and the organization also plans for making smaller adjustments in its worldwide process of operations related to its working personnel. From the perspective of the products, Nokia intends to introduce and to deliver the finest quality brands such as Nokia N8, Nokia X5 and Nokia X6 8GB to its worldwide customers in order to comply with their various requirements and enlarge its overall market share. It has been viewed that a huge number of people in the world are using the products of Nokia as a primary phone. In order to attain the satisfaction of its valued customers, Nokia is still introducing and offering enhanced quality brands in the business market with affordable prices. In terms of the mission of the organization i.e. “connecting people”, Nokia had introduced a new brand for its customers named N series that include Nokia N8 in order to attain competitive position in the telecommunication industry. Recently, Nokia attended a convention in Singapore where the organization promised to serve better to the customers with its latest and new variety of quality products. In this regard, Nokia has renewed its commitment by introducing innovative smartphone i.e. Nokia N8 in the business market that possesses amazing operational features. The product i.e. Nokia N8 possesses a unique music player that has the capability of storing numerous songs as well as movies, an advanced approach of Integrated Messaging Service (IMS) which is suitable for business connectivity and most significantly benefit of social networking facility (Scribd Inc., 2012). The substantial decrease in profits of Nokia is also one of the important reasons due to which the organization felt the need for change by a certain extent. The decrease in the revenue of the organization was identified particularly from the beginning of the third quarter of the year 2009. Nokia reported in its quarterly financial statement that the organization had experienced with considerable decline in its earnings from the third quarter of the year 2009 as compared to the year of 2008. The organization also stated that the profit dropped to 391 million Pounds and also its sales were reduced by 20 percent to 9 billion Pounds in the year 2009. The figures are quite less as compared with the third quarter of the year 2008. In response, Nokia decided to reshuffle its organizational arrangement in order to get rid of the vulnerable situation. In order to make the situation comfortable, the organization separated its entities belonging to the division of mobile phones and smartphones and expected that it might impose vital affect upon the working behavior of the organization and can produce better results in its financial performance (Scribd Inc., 2012). Thus, by focusing upon the above mentioned discussed reasons, it can be stated that the aspect of change has become an essential part for the organization for effective functioning of the business. Kotter’s 8-Step Approach Dr. John Kotter propounded the 8-step model of change which signifies that by implementing the 8-step procedure, the business organizations might be able to evade the failure and can increase their probable chances of success in the long term. Thus, it can be stated that the 8-step approach of John Kotter will assist the business organizations to succeed in future in this competitive and ever-changing world. The 8-step approach of John Kotter includes the guiding principles of establishing a sense of urgency, forming a powerful coalition, creating a shared vision and communicating vision. Moreover, the other guiding principles of the 8-step approach of John Kotter include empowering others to act, planning for and creating wins, changing improvement checkpoints and institutionalizing new approaches (Scribd Inc., 2012). In relation to the aspect of establishing a sense of urgency associated with the 8-Step approach of John Kotter, the early task for Nokia is to develop a practical sense of urgency in order to attain competitive position in the industry. In this context, Nokia can develop urgency by resolving the problem with its shareholders about the unsuccessful launch of its newly developed operating system of Windows Mobile. The shareholders asserted that Nokia has deceived them about the specifications of the product. In response, Nokia should present explicit explanation to the shareholders on the enhanced operational functions of the product. From the perspective of the factor of forming a guiding coalition in relation to Kotter’s 8-step model, Nokia requires a strong leadership approach as well as active support from its key working personnel within the business organization. However, this coalition of effective leadership and strong support of the employees ultimately would engage a broad representation of formal as well as informal power-base within the entire organization. Moreover, the coalition will also generate more momentum and would enable to form the required urgency in relation to the necessity for change. In terms of the aspect of developing a powerful vision and strategy, Nokia should develop a comprehensible vision for the purpose of attaining its expected business objectives. In this regard, Nokia should lower the cost of its various highly quality products so that everyone can buy them which might assist the organization to raise its market share and profit considerably. From the viewpoint of the feature of communicating with the mission, Nokia should introduce more advanced and stable working atmosphere for its working staff that would help the organization to communicate with its vision successfully. By providing stable working circumstance for the employees, the organization would get immense support from them and thus can attain competitive position. In relation to the aspect of empowering others to act in relation to the 8-step approach of John Kotter, Nokia should initiate effective planning about empowering others to act while performing its business operations. Moreover, Nokia should reorient its other members in the organization in order to comply with the needs of the new realities. From the perspective of the factor of creating short-term wins, Nokia should deliver adequate training to its working staff if there lays any sort of transformation especially in the technological procedure in order to generate a win–win situation within the business organization. In terms of the feature of changing the improvement checkpoints related to the 8-step process model, Nokia should ensure accessibility of various valued spare parts in every area of its business operational regions so that the customers can avail their requirements with ease. This would ultimately raise the business activity and facilitate to change the business structure as well as procedure of the organization that might support the company to attain its expected business goals. From the perspective of the important factor of institutionalizing new approaches within the entire business organization, Nokia should transform its business culture. In this similar context, Nokia should increase its various business promotional activities and execute important operational activities. It might include providing warranty in case of defects in any of its products, consumer oriented warranty terms and conditions, implementation of improved technologies and application of effective planning methods in relation to business operational functions (Scribd Inc., 2012). Conclusion It can be stated that change is quite essential for any business organization in order to ensure its survival in this competitive business world. While making any significant change, initially the business organizations should recognize the causes for change and then make a decision accordingly. Nokia started its business journey from a paper mill and now it has transformed as a leading business organization especially in the telecommunication sector. This noteworthy transformation of Nokia has ultimately proved to be quite beneficial for the organization that has supported it towards attaining huge market share, competitive position and preferred business objectives. In this context, John Kotter had developed 8-step process model in which he stated that change is necessary for every business organization which includes Nokia that can ultimately lead them towards success in the long run. References Nokia. (2012). Our company. Retrieved from http://www.nokia.com/global/about-nokia/about-us/about-us/ Scribd Inc. (2012). Strategic management. Retrieved from http://www.scribd.com/doc/36881392/Strategic-Management Scribd Inc. (2012). Leading change. Retrieved from http://www.scribd.com/nducie/d/37995019-John-Kotter Vora, M. K. (2010). Introduction to change management. Retrieved from http://asqchicago.org/Presentations/1201%20Manu%20Vora%20CM%2010-13-10.pdf Read More