Current Research Literature On Change Management In Today’s Organizations

Content

Thesis statement – the change management concept and its relevancy in the modern corporate world.

The following report discusses about the different models and articles about change management. The ideal models for change management have been effective in the companies from the last century. However, with changes in the company’s needs, the need for change has also evolved. The following discussion about the change management considers the models that had been used by the companies as well as the new notions of the leaders and managers that have replaced them. The Kotter’s model, the Edgar Hues model, Action Research model and Lewin’s models, Bullock and Batten planned change models have been very important, part of organisational change (Voehl and Harrington, 2016). These change models are applied in different industry according to the need.  Changes in organisations are not deliberate in nature; it is followed by the some conditions that happen to be related to the change in managerial personnel, technological changes, psychological changes, government and political changes (Teixeira et al. 2017). These changes stimulate the ultimate change management to occur in the company. There are three categories of models which are, process based, content based, and integrated models (Burke  2017). These models are taken in the context specifically in briefing the application of the company.  

The notion of change management is evolving in the modern age. According the definitions of the change management, the main criteria to adopt the change is done by people. There is different part of change level. This change will be first effective in the individual level, and then the change will be applied in the organisational level. The last stage is to use the organisational level of change management. According the model of Kurt Lewin change management process three steps must be considered. The steps are unfreezing, change and refreeze(Cummings 2016). This is also considered as a positive reinforcement process. The key activities under the major steps are to be reinforced. Whereas Edgar Hues seven step model is known as the basic steps change model. The basic steps to this change model is scouting the organisation with the help of consultant, entry and development of mutual agreement, diagnosis of the underlying organisational process, planning of the series of intervention, the action plan for implementation, the stabilisation and evaluation and termination process of different project (Teixeira et al. 2017). Schein’s model of changes is simultaneous with the three-step process of Lewin’s model of change.

Process-Based, Content-Based, and Integrated Models

 These models equip the company with articulated steps of change or what needs to be done in the change matter. For every other organisation, the problems are of different nature. Therefore, the effectiveness of the change process cannot be determined in a standardised process. Behavioural change in the company’s employees and staff as well as other personnel’s are known as the most difficult part of this transformation process. Managing the change is a tough based on different person have different ideas for the success of the organisations. The perspectives depend on the profitability, reputation, identity and other accompanying factor (Teixeira et al. 2017). Different approaches to change are done through incorporating change in culture, leadership, and process of motivational change (Harvard Business Review 2017). The transformation is done through the accumulation of the soft and hard factors of motivation. The soft factors help enhancing the outcome of the company. In addition, behavioural change cannot be gauged from survey or interview in an exclusive way. However, the transformation can be gauged in culture and motivation on different levels through survey and interviews. The hard factors are very important part to check upon. The main criteria for adopting and adapting change are to achieve the peak for hard factors. The correlation among the soft skills and hard skills stimulates change (Harvard Business Review 2017).

The four key factors according the Boston Consulting Group, which contributes to the change management is duration of change, integrity of the organisational structure, commitment of the employees and effort of the employee as well as the transformation efforts by organisation. Scheduling the identity gaps and risks related to day-to-day activities of a project, whether a longer or a shorter project. The main criteria are to achieve the milestone as well as achieve the desired effect from the company. The senior executives give special attention to the dynamics of the teams, perceptions and communications from the top. The integrity in performance should be assessed. The integrity of teams in companies implementing the change should be the main criteria (Teixeira et al. 2017). To construct a right portfolio of skills should be given emphasis to incorporate integrity in the company. There is a difference between the leaders and managers and their supervisory roles that changes the “status quo” of the company’s ultimate motives; however, the transformation cannot be approached if people are motivated enough (Harvard Business Review 2017). The commitment factor stimulates the outcome of the company’s projects. The top-level managers should back the projects and lead them in a necessary way. It has been seen that most of the time the new change process are inconsistent and they gives a negative impact in the employee’s mind, jobs and lives. Nonetheless, the framework of change should be communicated in the employees as well as the staff that engages with the change especially.

Factors Contributing to Change Management

Change or shifts construct the portfolio of transformation. These well-defined shifts are interdependent, iterative and experimental too. The business models are also revised  in the process. For example, a senior leader in the team checked that his company’s sales constitutes of the 90% of the sales (Teixeira et al. 2017). Therefore, to optimise the production the CEO launched an change strategy to be incorporated in the business model, as they would not be able to survive maximum sale in one of their product (Harvard Business Review 2017). The shift was focused internally. The externally focused product development and ramp up search for adjacencies and acquisitions. Performance management of the company has also taken initiatives in the matter. The transformation was done through process discovery and through experimentation. According the CEO, the success factor lied mostly in the people’s change management skills.

 According this article in Harvard business review, the change management is also done thorough momentary capability, the increase in sales, implementation of acquisition, job market change are also part of the change (www.deloitte.com. 2017). Today’s change management are very difficult to change with different aspect of work. The rapid improvement has also become part of the organisational life and day-to-day activity of work (Harvard Business Review 2017). The most important part of the professionalism is induced with change. The thinking pattern of the leaders and managers has changed with the evolution of globalisation. The digitalisation of the economy has also made it imperative that the organisations evolve with this. People are resistance to change, but communicating the proper goals can ease the process. The change-oriented transition should be focused on goals (Harvard Business Review 2017). The main criteria of the organisations are that the teams must carve out the goals as the main aim and properly communicate them to the employees to smoothen the process. The involving steps should also be communicated in the mean time (Harvard Business Review 2017). The modest innovation in the companies starts from the shifts in change. As per the hierarchy level, the changes must be considered equipped with goals that are more ambitious. For example, the president of XL’s Catin’s North American Construction insurance company formulated some short-term strategic goals for the company (Harvard Business Review 2017). The launched aspects of the short-term projects were focused on achieving the strategic goals. People experimented on the innovation and tested the ideas learnt from them. The incorporation of the new ways of the company worked wonderfully into the fabric of the organisation. The 50 short “result seeking projects” of the company is brought forth $8 million of new business. The president’s project centric strategy developed the overall capacity of the teams and continual process brought $1 billion of premium revenue after the launch of the strategic short result seeking goals. He nearly demonstrated that the company’s can achieve goals from change management constructs (Harvard Business Review 2017).

Shifts in Change Management

The recent article of change focuses in the notion that the age-old concepts have nearly became unproductive in the modern organisation (www.deloitte.com. 2017). The theories and models like Kotter’s eight factors, Blanchard’s moving cheese and age-old concept of engagement, small wins, communication have become the side elements of change management framework. It is argued that change management content and aims are same (Hiatt and Creasey 2013). However, the managerial capacity of the company personnel are very much under developed. Therefore, the ability to manage and accountability issues does not work. The way of thinking must be changed before implementing those strategies (www.deloitte.com. 2017). The manager’s thinking process and accountability issues were identified to be the most common error factor according the article (Harvard Business Review 2017). The experts implemented change in the company by communicating the standards and specific rules like HR specialists as well as six-sigma process in operations. It became only part of the work projects and every day work stream. Instead of new way of thinking, the activity got every day work plan. Some framework and tools are significant to change. The challenges in the process are very important to make change (www.deloitte.com 2017). The accountability of the managers should increase with certain behaviours. The change management process, based on the certain activities should be rewarded or punished accordingly. The core competence of the managers is questioned in this article of changing the change management (Tan 2014).

The first misconception according to change management is to consider if there is any change needed or is it just matter to be considered (Hussain 2016). The design of the strategic change is a relevant to achieve fundamentals of the process. Another misconception of the process is also relates to the notion of senior management. The leadership always matters but the commitment of the employees is also essential to achieve the goal (Hiatt and Creasey 2013). The strategic changes of the companies are only successful if the employees are participative and leverages, the implementation of strategic changes (Harvard Business Review 2017). The individuals are more manageable if the change initiatives are considered and adopted. The necessary prerequisite is the acceptance of the people (Harvard Business Review 2017). The financial and significant changes in investments are also part of the process. Change is about people and their discipline and courage to change. Other misconception of change is about the people’s reluctance to change as well as the resistance of them in an operational level (Harvard Business Review 2017). The successful development is about considering context sensitive approach.

Conclusion 

The dynamic ability of the company is to balance the principle of resistance and key managerial skills of management. The main criteria of the company to consider the leadership role and people involved in change. According the new views the change must be incorporated in all level of organisation. The initial level as well as the senior management level. According the new view change management, it should not be a part of everyday work stream; it should be noticed, evaluated and tested with the implementation process. The project goals must be achieved with the accomplishments in the shorter goals, which consolidate the main goal. Therefore, it can be said that change management concept is changing with the dynamic and evolving nature of organisation. The concepts represented in the theory or provided framework may be used in the basic way but the soft factors can be very useful part in order to implement change.

Reference

Burke, W.W., 2017. Organization change: Theory and practice. Sage Publications.

Cummings, S., Bridgman, T. and Brown, K.G., 2016. Unfreezing change as three steps: Rethinking Kurt Lewin’s legacy for change management. human relations, 69(1), pp.33-60.

Harvard Business Review. 2017. All Management Is Change Management. [online] Available at: https://hbr.org/2017/10/all-management-is-change-management [Accessed 7 Dec. 2017].

Harvard Business Review. 2017. Change Management Needs to Change. [online] Available at: https://hbr.org/2013/04/change-management-needs-to-cha [Accessed 7 Dec. 2017].

Harvard Business Review. 2017. The Hard Side of Change Management. [online] Available at: https://hbr.org/2005/10/the-hard-side-of-change-management [Accessed 7 Dec. 2017

Hayes, J., 2014. The theory and practice of change management. Palgrave Macmillan.

Hiatt, J. and Creasey, T.J., 2013. Change management: The people side of change. Prosci.

Hussain, S.T., Lei, S., Akram, T., Haider, M.J., Hussain, S.H. and Ali, M., 2016. Kurt Lewin’s process model for organizational change: The role of leadership and employee involvement: A critical review. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge.

Tan, C.C., 2014. The theory and practice of change management.

Teixeira, B., Gregory, P.A. and Austin, Z., 2017. How are pharmacists in Ontario adapting to practice change? Results of a qualitative analysis using Kotter’s change management model. Canadian Pharmacists Journal/Revue des Pharmaciens du Canada, 150(3), pp.198-205.

Voehl, F. and Harrington, H.J., 2016. Change Management.

Www2.deloitte.com. 2017. Cite a Website – Cite This For Me. [online] Available at: https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/lu/Documents/public-sector/lu-demystifying-change-management.pdf [Accessed 7 Dec. 2017].