Change Management

The various levels of organizational change programs may be classified into individual level changes, group level changes and organisational level changes. Individual Level Change Programs Individual level changes may take place due to changes in job assignment, transfer of an employee to a different location or the changes in the maturity level of a person which occurs over a passage of time. The general opinion is that change at the individual level will not have significant implications for the organisation. But this is not correct because individual level changes will have impact on the group which in turn will influence the whole organisation. Therefore, a manager should never treat the employees in isolation but he must understand that the individual level change will have repercussions beyond the individual. Group Level Change Programs Management must consider group factors while implementing any change, because most of the organisational changes have their majorContinue reading

When as many as possible of those people involved in a change understand as much as possible about it and its consequences, resistance is likely to be reduced. It is management’s job to develop this understanding. Resistance will be prevented to the degree that the change agent help the change affected people to develop their own understanding of the need for change, and an explicit awareness of how they feel about it and what can be done about their feelings. Such an understanding will occur only when the information provided is sufficient, factual and accurate. Management can transmit information about a proposed change and its probable consequences to those affected or concerned in a variety of ways. Fundamentally, there are only three practical media for communication; written material, audio-visual and oral. No single means, however, should be relied on exclusively. The more complex the change, the greater will be theContinue reading

In the previous post, we deal with the various sources of resistance to change. In this post we discusses strategies and tactics to overcome resistance to organizational change. Kotter and Schelsinger (1979) has identified six general strategies for overcoming resistance to change. Education and Communication : Resistance can be reduced through communicating with employees to help them see the logic of a change. This tactic basically assumes that the source of resistance lies in misinformation or poor communication. If employees receive the full facts and get any misunderstanding cleared up, resistance will subside. Communication can be achieved through one-to-one discussions, memos, group presentations, or reports. Does it work? It does, provided the source of resistance is inadequate communication and that management-employee relations are characterized by mutual trust and credibility. If these conditions don’t exist, the change is unlikely to succeed. Participation and Involvement : It is difficult for individualsContinue reading

The goal of planned organizational change is to find new or improved ways of using resources and capabilities in order to increase an organization’s ability to create value and improve returns to its stakeholders. An organization in decline may need to restructure its resources to improve its fit with the environment. At the same time even a thriving organization may need to change the way it uses its resources so that it can develop new products or find new markets for its existing products. In the last decade, over half of all Fortune 500 companies have undergone major organizational changes to allow them to increase their ability to create value. One of the most well-documented findings from studies have revealed that organizations and their members often resist change. In a sense, this is positive. It provides a degree of stability and predictability to behavior. If there weren’t some resistance, organizationalContinue reading