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Please see below the two assignments papers that I need to prepare

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Strategic Change Management

Task 1

Introduction

Organizational change refers to the process of an organization or institution moving from one concern to another with certain goals set. The term ‘organizational change’ refers to both the process of an organization changing its strategies, structure, technologies, operational methods, or culture and the outcome or effects of the implemented change on the organization (Cameron & Green, 2019). Organizational change can be short-term or long-term (based on the time taken to implement change), continuous or occur for a specific period, planned or unplanned. Planned change is an organizational change that occurs due to a purposeful decision by the management or the organizational leader, while unplanned change is an organizational change that occurs unanticipated. Organizational change influences how an organization operates and approaches different issues (Brunsson & Olsen, 2018). Organizational change is always designed to improve the performance, operations, and behavior of an organization (Cameron & Green, 2019).

Through the implementation of organizational change, companies solve various problems and challenges that they face in their operations and activities, for instance, poor customer service, inefficient production systems, poor organizational culture and values, misunderstandings, and poor waste management. Effective organizational change implementation removes the current dilemmas that an organization is facing and prepares the organization for any future dilemmas (Hayes, 2018). While organizational change is desirable, the process of implementation is quite complex and determines the outcome of the change. In this paper, various issues related to organizational change and change management are discussed, based on the scenario where an organization is undergoing a period of change. The key objectives of the organization are to ensure employee commitment and realize organizational goals.

Change Management Models

Change management involves the application of certain models that are organized in a manner that aims at steering an organization through the change process (Cameron & Green, 2019). There are various change management models that organizations use, the most common models being Lewin’s Model, McKinsey 7S Model, and ADKAR Model. The decision of which change management model to use depends on the change being implemented since the model used has to be fit for the intended purpose.

Lewin’s Change Management Model

Introduced by Kurt Lewin in 1950, this change management model is one of the most commonly used and effective models today. The model consists of three key stages: unfreezing, change, and refreezing (Hussain et al., 2018). Unfreezing involves the preparation of people for change implementation. Resistance to change is one of the main challenges that organizations face during change management. People prefer processes and strategies that they are already accustomed to. To overcome resistance, people have to be encouraged to evaluate the current strategies and processes with a critical eye while being open to the possibility that new strategies and processes may result in better outcomes. This involves reaching out to the emotional side of employees to eliminate self-righteousness and complacency.

Unfreezing results in an analysis of whether a change is necessary within an organization as well as a comparison of the positives and negatives that may emerge from the change (Hussain et al., 2018). The second stage is the change implementation stage, which begins after the employees have accepted that the organization’s current strategies and processes can be improved. A long-term view is necessary at this stage to maintain morale and confidence, as a lot of challenges and huge costs are incurred. The change stage presents unique challenges as well as an opportunity for skill development within the workforce. It requires a lot of training, effective communication, and management support. The final stage of the model is the refreezing stage. It is the most crucial stage in the change management process as it determines the success of the implementation and the achievement of organizational improvement.

While change implementation may take a short time, refreezing or switching back to the normal operations of an organization may take a long time. It involves the sustenance and reinforcement of the implemented change to ensure that people do not slip back into their old habits and behaviors as the push for change lessens. Lewin’s change model is effective for the implementation of drastic and long-term change within an organization. However, for short-term change, it may be impractical since it is time-consuming. Also, the model is criticized since the freezing stage may render an organization inflexible when a new change is necessary. It also gives little consideration to the experience and emotions of employees in reality. It often results in disagreement and separation between those who support and those who oppose change.

McKinsey 7S Change Management Model

This model is mostly used in circumstances where an alignment outlook is important. It involves seven key factors that are interrelated and inter-reliant: strategy, structure, system, style, skills, shared values, and staff. The McKinsey 7S model considers how change affects these factors and how they should be properly aligned to support the change and ensure successful implementation of the change. a proper course of action is taken where certain factors do not align with the proposed change. This change management model is criticized for ignoring the role of the external business environment and lacking enough empirical evidence to support its explanation of key change factors.

ADKAR Model

The ADKAR Model of change management is a goal-oriented model that aims at helping managers and employees during the change process and transitioning. This model has been proven to be effective and ensure the realization of change objectives. ADKAR stands for Awareness (knowledge of the necessity for change and the requirements for the process), Desire (the desire to be involved and to participate in the change process), Knowledge (knowledge of the change process or transition), Ability (ability to implement change consistently), and Reinforcement (to ensure successful transition). The model is highly effective since it does not discriminate the roles and purposes of leaders and employees. It also considers the emotional dimension of employees.

Creative Problem-solving Techniques

Problem-solving is a process that involves the selection of different techniques and strategies for eliminating organizational problems and challenges. Change management begins with the identification of a problem, then moves to the identification of an appropriate strategy to eliminate the problem, and ends with the implementation of the selected strategy. Having problem-solving skills enables leaders, managers, and employees to identify problems easily within the workplace, identify the best way to resolve them, and implement changes effectively. Creative problem-solving techniques are used to evaluate problems and come up with ingenious solutions. They also provide guidance on how to proceed with the implementation of change systematically or logically to eliminate the identified problems.

To ensure the successful implementation of change and steer the organization through the change period, reproductive thinking and idea generation techniques should be utilized. Reproductive thinking involves scrutinizing problems based on previous practices and coming up with methods of resolution based on previous methods. The management of the organization changing should evaluate previous changes that have been introduced and how they were managed. The method of change implementation used, including strategies and outcomes should be used to come up with ways of implementing the current change. Idea generation involves employees and customers of an organization to discuss ideas and opinions and coming up with good ideas that can result in the improvement of the organization. The employees and customers of the organization undergoing a change period should engage in conversation and idea generation to come up with ideas on how to ensure the successful implementation of change and how to improve the organization. This may be done through interviews and questionnaires. Communication is very important during the implementation of change.

Implementing Change

The current challenges and problems that the organization is undergoing should be evaluated, after which the management should ensure that every member understands the current issues. A conversation should then be started to come up with good ideas on how to improve the organization and eliminate the problems identified. After the evaluation of the ideas forwarded and how each suggested strategy links the current state of the organization to the preferred state, an appropriate change strategy should be adopted to steer the organization through the change and the transition. By adopting an effective change model, such as the ADKAR model, the organization will improve its current state by effectively making better connections among design, structure, procedures, and plans.

An organization must have an effective change management plan to realize the goals of a change. Proper change management results in the reduction of costs, time, and inefficiencies associated with change, as well as ensures that the goals that motivated the change are achieved. The ADKAR model provides an effective change model for the organization undergoing a period of change to steer its employees and customers through the period, ensuring their commitment while guaranteeing the achievement of organizational goals set. The implementation of change is important since it will result in improved organizational performance, efficiency, and productivity (Hayes, 2018). All these are in alignment with the future goals and targets of the organization, as every organization’s main goal is to increase performance and profit while realizing growth.

Task 2

Change Implementation Models

Organizational change is inevitable since organizations need to evolve and adapt to changes in their environments as well as achieve growth. There are many changes that organizations go through in an attempt to adapt to changing market conditions and industry changes. The successful implementation of change largely depends on the change management and change implementation models adopted by management. Various change implementation models have been developed over the years for organizations to use during change. The most commonly used change implementation models include Kotter’s 8 step model and Lewin’s 3 step model.

Kotter’s 8 Step Model

This model was developed by John Kotter and involves eight steps through which change is implemented in an organization (Calegari, Sibley, & Turner, 2015). The model begins with the identification of urgency for change. The second step is the development of a core association. Third, a strategic vision is developed. The fourth step is to gather the board members to discuss the change. The next step is the elimination of barriers to minimize resistance to change. The sixth step is the formation of short-term wins (Calegari et al., 2015). After that, the process is accelerated and finally, change is implemented. The eight steps proposed by Kotter are effective for change implementation as they ensure that a sense of necessity and requirement is developed, convincing people about the importance of change. Kotter’s model ensures that teamwork is promoted during the implementation of change, improving the chances of success.

Lewin’s 3 Step Change Model

This model was introduced by Kurt Lewin and comprises of three key steps in the implementation of organizational change (Bridgman, 2016). The first step in Lewin’s change model is unfreezing. At this step, an evaluation of the organization’s current state is conducted to determine areas that can be improved and how they can be improved. The management can gather all the relevant information on change and how it will benefit the organization. The second stage is the change implementation stage, which begins after the employees have accepted that the organization’s current strategies and processes can be improved (Choi, 2011). A long-term view is necessary at this stage to maintain morale and confidence, as a lot of challenges and huge costs are incurred. The change stage presents unique challenges as well as an opportunity for skill development within the workforce. It requires a lot of training, effective communication, and management support.

The final stage of the model is the refreezing stage (Bridgman, 2016). It is the most crucial stage in the change management process as it determines the success of the implementation and the achievement of organizational improvement. While change implementation may take a short time, refreezing or switching back to the normal operations of an organization may take a long time. It involves the sustenance and reinforcement of the implemented change to ensure that people do not slip back into their old habits and behaviors as the push for change lessens. Lewin’s model is best suited for organizations that follow the traditional hierarchy of organization (Bridgman, 2016). It ensures a smooth transition during change implementation. However, no step can be skipped, which means that the model may take a long time to implement. This may be a problem as people may be frustrated when the implementation of change becomes a lengthy process.

Also, the model does not provide essential instructions that should be followed at each step, only providing a checklist for each step. Lewin’s model pays little attention to emotions and feelings and requires equal participation from each employee to become successful. Where harmony and agreement are not achieved, the process may fail. The success of the change implementation process while using Lewin’s model depends on the skills and knowledge of the group or employees involved in the process.

Criteria to Select a Change Implementation Model

Organizational change is based on an organization’s need to bring about improvement in management and performance (Hayes, 2018). Change implementation models guide the change process, make it simpler and easier, and ensure a smooth transition and successful implementation. Proper management of the change process ensures a better outcome for an organization and results in the improvement of employee skills and competencies. Any change that is intended needs to be organized or structured in a way that covers all the key aspects that require improvement. Structured change management ensures that all the aspects related to the functions of an organization are addressed during change, including the workforce. The manpower of an organization ensures the smooth running of the organization. Therefore, employees must be involved in change planning and implementation (Choi, 2011). The change implementation model selected has to take employees’ feelings and roles into consideration.

Organizational performance is another important aspect to consider during change (Hayes, 2018). Organizational performance is determined by the performance of employees, which guides decision-making and the change implementation process. During the change implementation process, the key performance indicators of the workforce should be considered to identify what needs to be improved. Also, all the key aspects on which a change strategy is built should be considered, including the stakeholder and impact analysis, communication strategy, training plan, and employee involvement. By conducting stakeholder and impact analysis, an organization can identify risks involving different stakeholder groups with regards to change management and its impact. The communication strategy used should ensure that proper communication between the stakeholders and the organization regarding change and its implementation. It should ensure that all stakeholders acknowledge and clearly understand the change process (Choi, 2011).

A training plan should involve the determination of the necessary skills and the sort of training needs that an organization has. All these requirements should be met through a change implementation model. As such, these should be considered when deciding on the appropriate model.

 

Task 3

Monitoring the Progress and the Effects of Change

Organizational change should result in the modifying and redesigning of activities and operations to improve organizational culture, operational methods, technology, and organizational performance. There are various analytical tools that the organization undergoing change can use to monitor the progress and effectiveness of change management (Hayes, 2018). These tools are used to measure, quantify, and evaluate the outcome of change within an organization. They include SMART goal criteria, the Balanced Scorecard, and the use of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

Balanced Score Card

The balanced scorecard is a strategic management tool that is used to monitor the outcomes of change by evaluating the internal activities of an organization (Lewis, 2012). Data is collected from the internal processes of an organization, after which interpretation and analysis are conducted. Areas that require improvement are identified from the analysis and the necessary feedback is provided to improve organizational performance. For proper analysis and monitoring, the internal processes of an organization will be divided into four main sections: business process, customers, learning and growth, and finance (Biazzo & Garengo, 2012). Data collected and the analysis done using a balanced scorecard aims at improving these four sections to realize organizational improvement.

SMART Goals

Organizations determine their success and performance by determining whether set goals are achieved (Lewis, 2012). Goals are set for purposes of providing direction to an organization and its employees. SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goals) are developed by management to ensure accountability and to make it easier to achieve strategic targets. They ensure operational transparency and provide guidance to the employees of an organization. Clear organizational goals ensure that an organization has more chances of achieving success. SMART goal setting involves the setting of deadlines and timelines, which ensures that change implementation remains on track (Anderson & Anderson, 2010).

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

KPIs are certain, agreed upon, variables or values that are measurable and that indicate the performance of an organization in the quest to achieve its goals (Parmenter, 2015). Targets are set by management or the team responsible for change implementation, after which certain performance indicators are agreed upon for purposes of monitoring. The performance of an organization is evaluated using high-level KPIs, while departmental performance is monitored using low-level KPIs (Parmenter, 2015). Departmental KPIs are developed from the operations of every department. For instance, the production department in an organization will have KPIs related to monthly production targets and daily material consumption. KPIs are measured within a specified period, after which the values obtained are compared with the past values obtained from past observations to determine progress. Outcomes from the measurement of KPIs inform decision-making on strategies and future changes.

Monitoring and Measurement Techniques for Tracking Change

Besides monitoring change progress and outcomes, the techniques discussed above are also used for the monitoring and tracking change. A balanced scorecard is used for measuring the performance of an organization against the set strategic goals and improving external and internal communication. It uses a balanced and inclusive approach to evaluate and manage the performance of an organization (Biazzo & Garengo, 2012). It helps in the integration of the financial and non-financial goals, considering the strategies used by the organization and how they can be improved to achieve organizational goals. The balanced scorecard focuses on four perspectives or sections: financial, customers, learning and growth, and business and internal processes. However, other perspectives are important and should be considered during change, such as managerial development and the social responsibility perspective.

The balanced scorecard also fails to deliver a bottom-line score, since it is a list of metrics. There are no standard goals or standards performance measures, which means that the method cannot fully control the performance of an organization (Biazzo & Garengo, 2012). KPIs are quantifiable measures that organizations use to measure and compare departmental and overall performance based on the achievement of strategic and operational goals. Every KPI has a direct relationship with or connection to the goals of the organization (Parmenter, 2015), which means that KPIs can be used to keep track of specific goals and organizational objectives. KPIs help in the measurement of financial and operational goals within an organization (Anderson & Anderson, 2010). They provide a reliable and effective manner of monitoring the effects of change implementation. SMART goals are another way of monitoring organizational performance and change effects.

SMART goals are not vague since they are specific, measurable, and time-bound. They help an organization remain focused on its goals. More than one objective can be included in a single organizational goal, which can then be measured to determine whether it has been achieved or whether the organization is on track towards its achievement. Any missteps can be identified and corrective action is taken. However, having too many SMART goals makes it difficult to focus and may result in the management or employees being greedy of achievements and impatient. People may become addicted to achievement, which results in overworking and impatience.

Minimizing the Impact of Adverse Effects of Change

To minimize the adverse effects of change, the adaptability of staff members and departments must be measured before change implementation. The following are some of the strategies that can be used to minimize the adverse effects of change and their impact.

Readiness Assessment

The evaluation of the adaptability of the organization. It should be conducted to ensure that a clear vision of the proposed change is achieved and that all the necessary resources and skills are available. Employee training may be provided where necessary skills are absent and to minimize resistance to change.

Forcefield Analysis

Here, the factors hindering change are analyzed to determine how they can be dealt with to minimize resistance to change. A forcefield analysis helps managers to determine the factors influencing change negatively.

Effective Communication

Effective communication flow should be ensured between the stakeholders and the organization to ensure that everyone is on board during the change management and implementation process. The concerns and questions of employees and other stakeholders should be addressed to ensure effective communication. Support should be provided to employees to ensure that they understand what needs to be done and what is expected of them.

Task 4

Processes required to Review the Impact of Change

Organizational change is important as it improves organizational performance. Proper change management is necessary to ensure successful change implementation and minimize any adverse effects of change. Monitoring, evaluation, and review of the impact or outcome of change are important to ensure that organizational performance is improved by change (Bradley, 2016). It is important to evaluate both the financial and non-financial outcomes of change to properly understand the impact of change. The most convenient and effective methods of reviewing the impact of change include the following:

Calculation of the Net Present Value (NPV)

The Net Present Value is used to evaluate and measure the financial impact of change in an organization. It helps in the calculation of an organization’s revenue. From the NPV, the management of an organization can compare current revenue with the expenditure or previous year’s revenue to determine the value added by change (Cameron & Green, 2019).

Calculation of the Return on Investment (ROI)

The calculation of an organization’s return on investment is a technique that can be used to measure the impact of change by comparing returns before and after the change implementation. The amount of investment incurred in the change implementation can also be determined.

Conducting an Audit of Operations

Conducting internal and external audits after a change has been implemented is a good way of evaluating how change has affected the organization (Cameron & Green, 2019). This way, management can determine whether the change has resulted in the increased efficiency of internal processes or has had no impact at all (Lenning & Gremyr, 2017). An external audit is important since it enables an organization to acquire the opinion of a third-party on the impact of an implemented change.

Comparison of Productivity

The organization may gather information on the output of employees, customer service performance, and production output after the implementation of change and compare it with the data obtained from previous years. The level of productivity of the organization before and after the change can then be compared to determine the impact of change (Cameron & Green, 2019).

Results of a Change Impact Review

Evaluation of the impact of change on the organization is important as it provides an understanding of whether the change was beneficial, resulting in the improvement of performance, or not. The assessment of change impact is part of the development of a change plan, which enables management to manage the implications of change effectively. Organizational change affects all the stakeholder groups, the operations and processes, organizational culture and behavior, employee skills, systems, and organizational values. The results of a review of the impact of change can either be positive or negative. Positive results mean that the change implemented within the organization resulted in the improvement of the organization’s performance, while a negative result means that the change implemented did not result in any improvement. Through conducting a review of the change impact, an organization and those responsible for change management can take action to rectify the areas where change implementation was successful or did not achieve the set goals. Challenges faced during implementation can be discussed and lessons learned for better change management in the future.

Presenting Change Analysis Findings

After the analysis of the impact of change on the organization, the final process is the presentation of the findings to the stakeholders (Anderson, 2019). Change impact evaluation begins with data collection. Data collection is conducted using primary and secondary data collection methods (Chambers, 2017). Primary methods of data collection include conducting interviews and surveys to determine the impact of change. Questionnaires can be provided to employees and customers to determine the change impact through their responses. Staff members can be interviewed to collect data on the effect of change and whether it has resulted in positive outcomes. Secondary data can be collected from the organization’s website and documents that show the outcome of the change implemented. After data collection, the second step is the analysis of the data, where data is assessed through reasoning.

Techniques such as text analytics, business intelligence, and data mining can be used for data analysis (Chambers, 2017). Data interpretation is the third step in the review process. The results obtained from the data analysis section are interpreted at this step. The significance and meaning of the qualitative and quantitative data analyzed are obtained. The final step in the process is the discussion of interpreted data. The implications of the results obtained are discussed to better understand the significance of the results. All the potential and practical implications are determined at this stage. Data is compared with data from previous studies (before change implementation) to determine the impact of change. The results are then tabled before the stakeholders either in writing or through a discussion during a meeting. Any recommendations for the improvement of change outcomes are forwarded and implemented.

References

Anderson, D. L. (2019). Organization development: The process of leading organizational change. SAGE Publications, Incorporated.

Anderson, D., & Anderson, L. A. (2010). Beyond change management: How to achieve breakthrough results through conscious change leadership. John Wiley & Sons.

Biazzo, S., & Garengo, P. (2012). Performance measurement with the balanced scorecard. Springer.

Bradley, G. (2016) Benefit Realisation Management: A practical guide to achieving benefits through change. Florida: CRC Press.

Bridgman, T. (2016). Unfreezing change as three steps: Rethinking Kurt Lewin’s legacy for change management.

Brunsson, N., & Olsen, J. P. (2018). The Reforming organization: making sense of administrative change. Routledge.

Calegari, M. F., Sibley, R. E., & Turner, M. E. (2015). A roadmap for using Kotter’s organizational change model to build faculty engagement in accreditation. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 19(3), 31.

Cameron, E., & Green, M. (2019). Making sense of change management: A complete guide to the models, tools and techniques of organizational change. Kogan Page Publishers.

Chambers, J.M. (2017) Graphical Methods for Data Analysis: 0. Florida: Chapman and Hall/CRC.

Choi, M. (2011). Employees’ attitudes toward organizational change: A literature review. Human Resource Management, 50(4), 479-500.

Hayes, J. (2018). The theory and practice of change management. Palgrave.

Hussain, S. T., Lei, S., Akram, T., Haider, M. J., Hussain, S. H., & Ali, M. (2018). Kurt Lewin’s change model: A critical review of the role of leadership and employee involvement in organizational change. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 3(3), 123-127.

Lenning, J., & Gremyr, I. (2017) Making internal audits business-relevant. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 28(9-10), pp.1106-1121.

Lewis, A. (2012). Finding a model for managing change. Training & Development, 39(5), p.6.

Parmenter, D. (2015). Key performance indicators: developing, implementing, and using winning KPIs. John Wiley & Sons.