Why Organisations Need to Change

The book Influencer tells us that attempts at implementing change initiatives often fail for 3 reasons. One – fuzzy, un-compelling goals; Two – infrequent or no measures; and Three – bad measure. Some would say that experiencing this is not a privilege, however I will say that I have had the privilege to experience a management change initiative fail first hand in the recent future. Not privileged in the fact that it was a great experience to be in the middle of, however it did provide for a boundless learning environment, showing me exactly how to not go about the process if I aim to be a successful leader. In this paper I will explain the change initiative and how management failed in all three areas listed by the authors, along with one more reason I feel the initiative failed.

Change is a constant in today’s organisations. In a Recent CIPD survey it found more than half of all employees said that their organisation has been going through some kind of major change during the last year. Most organisations more than ten years old look nothing like they did even five years ago. And it is likely that in the next year or two organisations will not look as they do today. Below are 6 factors that drive and influence change In any organisation.

Change is inevitable in this world, how we handle it is what makes the difference. While most agree that change is typically a challenging issue for an organization it does not mean that is can not be accomplished with little to no upset. Be it a simple change or a major project there are strategies that can be used to make the change a positive experience for both sides of the change; but first an understanding of resistance to change must occur.

The importance of change suggests that effective change management practices and financial performance should move forward, regardless of the type of the resistance. Ultimately, involving those who are influential in persuading

CHANGE is unavoidable in order to remain competitive in today’s fast-paced market environment. Management guru, Tom Peters puts it that ‘change or die’ has been the bottom line for countless firms (Jick & Peiperl, 2011). Change can be large or small, evolutionary or revolutionary, sought after or resisted (Hayes, 2010) and is a general feature of organisational life, both at an operational and strategic level (Todnem, 2005). Burnes (1992) expressed that ‘change management is not a distinct discipline but rather, the theory and practice of change management draws on a number of social science disciplines and traditions’ (Kitchen & Daly, 2002). It is also defined as ‘the process of continually renewing an organization’s

Organizational change is not just change for the sake of change itself. The major precursor for organizational change is some form of exogenous force such as an external

Managing change is important in seeking the final component of successfully managing strategy, process, people and culture in most modern organizations. More and more, staying competitive in the face of demographic trends, technological innovations, and globalization requires organizations to change at much higher rates than ever before. Few people will argue with this statement, but fewer still will say their organization does a good job at managing those changes. Managing change well is a continuous and ongoing combination of art and science that assures alignment of an organization¡¦s strategies, structures, and processes (Worley & Vick, 2005).

For this assignment I will be looking at the recent organisational restructure which took place in our work place. Having a background in senior management for over 20 years I have always viewed this sector with continual improvement as a key to stay one step ahead and in the words of Isaac Asimov “The only constant is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be.”

Organizational change can be described as the process of moving away from a current condition to realize some future state. Change management involves managing the process of achieving this future state. 1 (Nickols, 2004) Change can be viewed from two vantage points, that of the people making the changes and that of the people experiencing the changes. 2 In the top-down, or strategic viewpoint associated with management, the focus is on technical issues such as the investment required, the processes for implementing the change, how soon the change can be realized, and the outcome. In the bottom-up viewpoint of the employee, the focus is on what the change means to the individual, how they can

The need to quickly implement far-reaching and often complex strategic change has led many managers and change agents to search for simple solutions and the one right way.... The appealing aspect of the promise held out for these types of change technologies is that they can absolve the manager from the onerous task of critically reviewing the full range of other competing approaches or devising a custom-made change program. They cut through complexity. However the offer is often illusory, for particular change approaches usually apply to particular situations, and simple solutions sometimes ignore the complexities of real life.

Change must be introduced effectively and efficiently to ensure those affected adapt and so that the benefits of the change are fully realised. Change management involves “identifying and resolving potential problems that we anticipate – risk management” (Young, 2014). During the three stages below the following needs to occur to permanently secure the benefits of change:

But, for organisations to survive and succeed in the current environment change is no longer optional. Organisations have to learn to love change to stay ahead of competition.

Change is inevitable. Change brings rebirth, renewal, an opportunity to redefine and refocus on how individuals and organizations interact within its environment. Change management seeks the acceptance and adoption of new creative and innovative ways of performing their duties. Change can come in the form of a systems, procedures, policies, or structures. The important focus in organizational change is in the behaviors and results-based production of its employees. Value is delivered to the organization when individual employees take ownership and

Without doubt, change management issues budges out mainly due to communication. When processes, procedures, management or even the redesigning of a workplace is never brought up to the employees or staff, anger and resistance will burst out and maim the progress of that certain project. No matter the size of its change, if communication does not exist between the ones in charge for it and the rest, they will be unaware and when they soon realize it, things can turn out

Change in the management processes and organisational change is always essential for the development of organisations. It upsurges plan and project success and enhance the efficiency of overall organisation. One of the greatest importance of change management is that it provides conceptual framework for people, the process, and the organisation implementing change.