Mullen-RhoadsRMGT7110-4: Assess Leading Change, Groups, and Teams
Organizations frequently experience change for a variety of factors including consumer demands, competition, technological advances, a desire for organizational growth, to improve processes, and government regulations (Langley, Smallman, Tsoukas, & van de Ven, 2013). Organizations that endure and prosper are often the ones that easily adapt to change. Leaders can facilitate change at the organizational level as well as within group and teams (Langley et al., 2013).
The Importance of Top Level Leadership When initiating change, the role of top level leadership is vital and can be one of the most demanding elements of leadership. Leading change entails directing,
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When the goal of change is to modify attitudes and values, rhetoric for transformation, training curriculums, team-building endeavors, and cultural changes are often implemented. Research has suggested that when roles, attitudes, or values are being modified fairness and ethical behaviors on the part of upper level management are keys to successful change (Marzucco et al., 2014; Shin, Sung, Choi, & Kim, 2015).
Technology
Frequently, organizational leaders introduce technology as a method to improve overall performance (Kapoor & Lee, 2013; Yukl, 2013). Technological changes are often seen in areas such as information systems, inventory and order processing, sales, and workstations. Although technology may be necessary for an organization to remain competitive, without modifications to the roles, attitudes, and values held by members of the organization the introduction of technology can be challenging and offer limited success (Kapoor & Lee, 2013; Yukl, 2013).
Strategy
Organizational changes are often initiated because of an adjustment in strategy (Yukl, 2013). Examples of strategic changes include the introduction of new products or services, entering new markets, or changing or adding partners, suppliers, or distributors. Because strategic changes often require multiple changes in roles, attitudes, values, and technologies, this type of organizational modification can be especially difficult to implement and sustain (Szabla, 2007; Yukl,
Step 2 is forming a powerful guiding coalition. Leadership will have to be on board and on the same page in regards to the change. Kotter and Cohen reveal the core problems people face when leading change. Their main findings are that the central issue concerns not structure or systems but behavior and how to alter it (Farris, 2008). The success of the changes will depend on the ability of the managers to show their commitment to change and motivate the employees to do the same. Without any process to track the implementation, the change can also fail.
As we head into the future, it important for any business organization to be prepared. The evolution of business technologically is rapid, and it’s important to
Organizations must respond to their internal and external environment. Therefore, organizational success heavily relies on leaderships ability to manage change. Unfortunately, many leaders struggle to effectively lead change initiatives. In fact, Ashkenas (2013, para. 1) reported 60 – 70% of organizational change initiatives fail to meet their objectives.
Leadership is critical when executing a strategic change initiative. By differentiating leadership and management, leadership styles and the key factors of change we can better understand what should be done to successfully lead change. Success is not obtained through leadership alone but by developing a group of individuals from all levels of the organization who work together as a team. . (Leban and Stone, 2007)
Businesses have to adapt to the ever-changing economy. It is not much of a choice for business leaders to change elements of their organization to stay in competition with their peers. The hardest part, most of the time, is changing the people in the organization to develop the necessary outcome or goal. As a business leader getting rid of people or changing their job specifics is one of the many responsibilities they have to be comfortable performing. Organizations have to take into consideration their competitors, customers, shareholders, employees, and the community to make decisions. Change is an aspect that many people are afraid of. In the new millennium, organizational leaders have to embrace
Leading and managing change require a solid theoretical foundation. This assignment will research the theoretical elements of change and change management. Addressed will be the following: Organic Evolution of Change, Formulating Strategic Development Approaches, Leadership and Management Skills and Gathering and Analyze Data. As societies continue to evolve and changing demand creates the need for new products and services, businesses often are forced to make changes to stay competitive. The businesses that continue to survive and even thrive are usually the ones that most readily adapt to change. A variety of factors can cause a business to reevaluate its methods of operation. According to literature from the past two
Throughout the Business Program, students learned how motivating and facilitating change can often be a challenging mission in an organization. MAN3240 Organizational Behavior highlighted the different types of leadership styles, emotional intelligence, motivational theories, team building, goal setting, and the importance of implementing change. Organizational change is not just making physical modifications within an organization; it can apply to business strategies, culture, and human resource management. Change is constant in the competitive business environment due to market trends, consumer demands, competitors, and the global economy, however it often met with resistance from employees. Leadership style is of the utmost importance
Week 3, the lecture on Managing Change describes organizational changes that occur when a company makes a shift from its current state to some preferred future state. Managing organizational change is the process of planning and implementing change in organizations in such a way as to decrease employee resistance and cost to the organization while concurrently expanding the effectiveness of the change effort. Today's business environment requires companies to undergo changes almost constantly if they are to remain competitive. Students of organizational change identify areas of change in order to analyze them. A manager trying to implement a change, no matter how small, should expect to encounter some resistance from within the organization.
The purpose of this paper is to discuss organizational change and the management of that change. I will talk about the different drivers of change, the factors a leader needs to weigh to implement change effectively, the various resistances a leader may encounter while trying to implement change, and how various leadership styles will effect the realization of change. I will also discuss the knowledge I have gained through the completion of this assignment and how I think it might affect the way I manage change in my workplace.
Change is a double-edged sword (Fullan, 2001). Change is a word that might inspire or put fear into people. Leadership is challenging when it comes to dealing with change and how individuals react within the organization to the change. Marzano, McNulty, and Waters (2005) discuss two orders of change in their book School Leadership that Works; first and second. Fullan (2001) also adds to the discussion in his book Leading in a Culture of Change, with regard to understanding change. In Change Leadership, Keagan and Wagner (2006) discuss many factors of change and the systematic approach to change. Change affects people in different ways. Leaders need to be able to respond to the individuals throughout the change process.
In order to examine this issue further, this research will look at a number of different sources. Contemporary managerial sources are explored in order to understand how other voices in the field are describing similar methods for change. First, popular structures for change management are examined, especially within their correlation to Palmer & Dunford (2009). This is followed with an extensive
Competitive imperatives of market forces and customer demands in today’s environment have led to the emergence of less hierarchical and more flexible organisations (Doyle, 2001). In working towards this paradigm shift, a distinction and clarification of the relationship between leadership and management in the change process needs to be addressed. According to Caldwell (2003), change leaders are executives or senior managers at the very top of the organisation who envision, initiate or sponsor strategic change of far-reaching or transformational nature by challenging the status quo, communicating a vision that employees believe in, and empowering them to act. In contrast, change managers are usually middle level managers and functional
As defined by Katzenbach (1995), change leadership is “the process whereby individuals who lead initiatives that influence dozens to hundreds of others to perform differently—and better—by applying multiple leadership and change approaches.” Leadership alone is defined as setting a direction and developing the strategies necessary to move in that direction – that is, creating and achieving a vision – leadership is thus a process to do with change (Kotter 1999). Change leadership is critically important to the continuing success of organizations everywhere. Tennant Company understands and invests in change leadership by employing a Sr. Organization Development Manager named Annelise Larson, M.B.A. whose efforts includes setting direction, developing strategies, and leading initiatives through organizational change efforts. An interview was conducted with Annelise Larson to discuss and learn about her change leadership abilities. For the purposes of this paper, the interview questions will be shared, a summary will be provided, and five recommendations are made for Annelise Larson as a change leader.
In order to move forward and keep ahead, I believe an organization need change leaders who have capabilities to have their workforce go from change avoidance to change acceptance. “One of the most significant strengths of an effective leader is the ability to create a positive work climate where people are energized to do their best work, free of unnecessary distractions” (Cronkite, n.d.). During this part of the change process I feel the change leader would have better success if he would be tactful and harness the skills of others by working in a collaborative rather than hierarchical way. Leadership in an organization involves instilling motivation and enthusiasm in the employees. An effective leader knows how to manage and tackle difficult situations and people. Many reasons can cause a force of change in organizations but I feel it’s up to change leaders to manage these planned and unexpected changes. (Word count: 548)
For any business in the rapidly evolving world of business, planning and implementing successful organizational change is indispensable. Essentially, organizational change refers to a process whereby an organization strives to optimize performance in order to achieve its ideal state characterized by high performance and profitability (Côté & Mayhew, 2014). Any business would be more likely to lose its competitive edge, as well as fail to meet the demands of its loyal consumers if it doesn’t plan and implement change. Weiss (2012) emphasizes that all organizations ought to embrace change, and it’s imperative to note that successful organizational change doesn’t involve simple process of adjustments; instead it requires appropriate change management capabilities.