2218: WORK People and Organisations
Organisational Change
BUSINESS
SCHOOL
Setting the scene
- We have people who have been recruited and selected because
of their individual characteristics.
- We have an administrative system of rewards to reinforce
particular targets/objectives.
- We want people to take responsibility for their actions
- We have particular jobs that have developed around particular
technologies.
- We have particular sections/departments that have developed in
response to product/service provision.
- We have tried to engineer (through artefacts, language, stories) a
particular dominant corporate culture.
2
What is organisational change?
Organisational Change is the significant alteration to
organisational structure, strategy, systems, style,
employees, skills and/or superordinate goals.
Managing change (or coping with change) has become one
of the major strategic priorities for HRM, OD and
management generally and thus of central concern to OB.
Organisational change is endemic large organisations
have major changes every 3-5 years
Why is change difficult? There is a tension between stability,
unity and change.
Change often highlights the issue of different interests in
organisations
3
Organisational Change Theory
According to Chia (1999) and Tsoukas and Chia (2002),
two main philosophical theories:
Universe in state of flux (Heraclitus)
Universe basically stable (Parmenides)
Organisational change theorists tend to adopt one of these
two philosophical positions
Sometimes captured by the distinction between
organisation and organising.
Tensions in organisations While organization aims at
stemming change, it is also the outcome of change
(Tsoukas and Chia, 2002: 570)
4
Organisational Change Theory
These two philosophical positions continue to influence
change theory (Weick and Quinn, 1999):
Episodic change
Continuous change
Change is infrequent
Change is constant
Prime mover who
Sense maker who redirects
intentionally creates change the process
The perspective is macro,
distant and global
The perspective is micro,
close and local
5
Change and planned change
Organisations are not fixed or stable this is why some
writers like to refer to processes of organising.
The boundaries between organisations and their environment
are blurred organisations are part of a social system that
generates and experiences change.
For some the un-controlability of human (social agents)
means that organisations are always changing.
Against these ideas are that change can be programmed,
planned and implemented usually in response to changes in
the environment.
A tension on OT is whether change can be i) planned and
managed and ii) necessity to change is used as a way or
ordering organisational life and employee expectations
6
Organisational change: why?
Life cycle (irrespective of change interventions)
- Growth or decline
Evolutionary
- Changing consumer preferences; technology; supply chains
Dialectical
- Struggles in social relations
Teleological
- Based on strategic visions
7
Some external forces for change
Information
technology
Globalisation
& competition
Easier information transfer
Facilitates global structures
Requires new competencies
and expectations
Facilitates telecommuting; new
employment relationships
Demography
More emphasis on knowledge
management
8
Some external forces for change
Information
technology
Global competition
Technology makes it easier
to compete quickly
Globalisation
& competition
Demography
Results in restructuring,
outsourcing, mergers
- produces many employment
changes
9
Some external forces for change
Information
technology
Globalisation
& competition
More educated workforce
- want more involvement; interesting
work
Younger generation
- less intimidated by status
- want a more balanced work life
Demography
Cultural changes
- more individualism in traditionally
collectivist countries
10
YOU as an external force
How do organisations need to change to fit your
requirements?
1.
As an employee: chose a job/organisation/industry where you
would like to work. How can they accommodate you? What
needs to change?
2.
As a customer: chose a product/service you have or will
purchase. How can they accommodate you? What needs to
change?
Some tension in debate around whether change is
demand driven (customers, competitors) or supply driven
(employees).
Text seems to suggest the former
11
Lewins model of planned change
Lewins classic 3 stage model
The status quo is an equilibrium point
1. Unfreezing
-
Disconfirmation or lack of confirmation
Creation of guilt or anxiety
Provision of psychological safety
2. Changing through cognitive restructuring
-
Identifying with new role model
Scanning for new information
3. Refreezing
-
Integrate the new point view of into total personality and selfconcept, and
Significant relationships
12
Lewins Force field analysis
Restraining
forces
Desired
conditions
Restraining
forces
Driving
forces
Restraining
forces
Driving
forces
Current
conditions
Driving
forces
Before
change
During
change
After
change
13
Planned change and internal forces
Power bases
Change
strategies
Managerial
behaviours
Predicted
outcomes
Formal authority
Top-down
Authoritarian;
one-way
communication
Frustration and
annoyance
Rewards
Punishments
Legitimacy
Force-coercion
Unilateral action;
command
Temporary
compliance
Expertise
Rational
persuasion
Persuasion;
expert testimony;
demonstration
Long-term
internalisation
Reference
Shared power
Empowerment;
group process
Longer-term
internalisation
14
Resistance to change
Direct costs
Saving face
Forces for
change
Fear of the unknown
Breaking routines
Incongruent systems
Incongruent team dynamics
15
Minimising resistance to change
Communication
Coercion
Negotiation
Learning
Minimising
resistance
to change
Employee
involvement
Stress
management
16
Dealing w. resistance
Method
Use when
Advantages Disadvant.
Education and
involvement
Lack of info or
inaccurate info
Willingness to
change
Participation and
involvement
People have
power to resist
Build commitment Time consuming
Facilitation and
support
Resource
problems
Satisfies specific
needs
Time consuming
and expensive
Negotiation and
agreement
People will lose
due to change
Helps avoid
resistance
Expensive; more
deals
Manipulation and
cooptation
Last resort
Quick and
inexpensive
Create future
problems
Coercion
Change agent
has power
Quick; overpower Risky
resistance
Time consuming
17
Kotters 8 step model (1995)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Establish a sense of urgency
Form a powerful guiding coalition
Create a vision
Communicate the vision
Empower employees to act on the vision
Plan and create short-term wins
Consolidate the change (reward, review, reinvigorate)
Institutionalise the change (embed in culture, model
through leadership, explain success)
Note that the model attempts to build in strategies for
managing resistance throughout
18
Images of managing change
Assumptions
about change
outcomes
Assumptions about managing
Controlling
Shaping
Intended
Directing
Coaching
Partially
intended
Unintended
Navigating
Interpreting
Caretaking
Nurturing
Palmer and Dunford (2008)
19
Managing change
Organisational development:
- A planned system-wide effort, managed from the top with the assistance
of a change agent, which uses behavioural science knowledge to
improve organisational effectiveness.
Change agent (transformational leadership):
- anyone who possesses enough knowledge and power to guide and
facilitate the change effort
- Develop the change vision
- Communicate the vision
- Act consistently with the vision
- Build commitment to the vision
20
Action Research Process
Establish
ClientConsultant
Relations
Diagnose
Need for
Change
Introduce
Intervention
Evaluate/
Stabilise
Change
Disengage
Consultants
Services
21
Critique of traditional change
management
Based on a frozen world, while the world is moving:
organization vs. organizing
Top-down, while most change happens bottom-up.
n-steps guides assume universal logical steps, singularity of
interests and goals, and fail to recognize the complexity of
organizing
Bounded rationality and after-rationalizations.
Nothing about how change is actually accomplished.
22
Cross-cultural and ethical issues
Cross-cultural concerns
- Linear and open conflict assumptions different from values in some
cultures
Ethical concerns
- Privacy rights of individuals
- Management power
- Individuals self-esteem
- Consultants role
23
Determinants of organisational change
Context of Change
External Context
Internal Context
Human resources
Administrative Structures
Technology
Product or Service
History and Culture
The Change
process
Substance of Change
Scale of Change
Defining Characteristics
Perceived centrality
Organizational
timeframe
Politics of Change
External political activity
Internal political activity
24
Ten lessons about change
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
There are no simple universal prescriptions for how to best
manage change.
Change strategies must be sensitive to people and
context.
Major change takes time.
Different people experience change in different ways.
We can learn from all change experiences, not just the
successful ones.
25
Continued..
6.
Employees need to be trained in new methods and
procedures, often overlooked.
7. Communication must be ongoing and consistent.
8. Change strategies must be tailored to fit the substance
and context.
9. Change is a political process.
10. Change involves the complex interaction of often
contradictory processes.
Dawson (2003)
26