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Importance of Effective Change Management
An old adage goes that "change is inevitable." It is a constant phenomenon. Organisations exist in an ever-changing world. Factors such as competitive pressure, regulatory changes, shifts in consumer tastes and preferences, technological advancements, workforce changes, globalisation, and industry adjustments compel organisations to initiate change initiatives targeting strategy, leadership, management, workforce, structures, and processes (Lam, 2009; Nehar, 2013). The initiatives are primarily aimed at improving organisational efficiency, productivity, and performance. Indeed, the ability to adapt to change has been termed as an important source of competitive advantage in today's world (Nehar, 2013). This largely explains why the subject of change management has attracted a great deal of scholarly attention in the last few decades. Nonetheless, managing change may often not be an easy undertaking for organisations. If improperly managed, change may not generate the desired outcomes. In fact, many change initiatives have failed due to ineffective management.
Effective change management is important for thriving in a rapidly changing environment (Nehar, 2013). Organisations face increasingly complex change, underscoring the necessity of effective change management. In such an environment, there are those who succeed and those who do not. The difference between successes and failures is effectiveness. It is not just enough to implement a change initiative. An organisation must understand how to effectively implement that change. It is not uncommon for organisations to implement change for the sake of it, or simply because everyone else is doing it. Failures implement change without a proper understanding of what the change should achieve and, most importantly, how to go about it. What results is a failed change initiative -- change that does not deliver the expected results. Ineffective change management may, therefore, hamper an organisation's ability to thrive in a changing environment.
Indeed, effective change management increases the likelihood of change success (Lam, 2009). Any organisation implements change with the aim of achieving a certain goal or objective. The goal, for instance, may be to expand geographical presence, diversify product portfolio, improve decision-making structures, increase market share, or enhance competitive position. However, without the necessary level of effectiveness, the change initiative may turn out to be a waste of time, effort, and resources. In fact, most change initiatives tend to be time and resource consuming endeavours, often involving several months or years as well as hundreds of millions or billions of dollars. Such costly and time involving undertakings cannot be taken casually. The right procedures, processes, and activities must be used to ensure an acceptable return on investment. Essentially, effective change management ensures the set objective is accomplished within the anticipated timeline and within time and budget.
Effective change management is also important for ensuring change initiatives do not disrupt the day-to-day operations of the organisation (Lam, 2009). In most cases, organisations do not temporarily halt operations to implement change -- they implement it while still continuing with their activities. It takes a great deal of discretion to guarantee a smooth transition while still in operation. Without prudence, the implementation process may turn out to be chaotic. Work flow may be interfered with, records may be lost, customers may be negatively affected, and employees may lose focus and motivation. These outcomes may have disastrous consequences on the organisation. An organisation must ensure concurrence between everyday business and the change management process. This calls for effective change management. It calls for proper planning, extensive stakeholder involvement and consultation, comprehensive identification and management of the associated risks, as well as effective communication (Lam, 2009). On the whole, change management is a challenging process. The process can, however, be rewarding if effectively managed.
Significance of Employee Participation in the Change Composition
An important ingredient of successful change management is employee participation. In fact, change initiatives where employees at all levels of the organisation are involved are more likely to be successful compared to those where employees are only expected to follow orders and instructions (Pihlak & Alas, 2012). It is quite unrealistic to expect support from stakeholders who were not individually involved in formulating a change that would directly affect them. Indeed, Kotter's 8-step model of change implementation and other popular change management models recognise the importance of employee involvement in change management (Kotter & Schlesinger, 2008; Hayes, 2014).
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Individuals are more likely to embrace change when they are given an opportunity to be part of it. Even if the ideas employees provide may not be incorporated in the final decision, providing a chance for them to articulate the ideas demonstrates that the organisation values their involvement.
An organisation can rely on a number of techniques to involve employees in the change process. These include employee surveys, feedback sessions, meetings, and discussion forums (Busby, 2015). These platforms provide an ideal opportunity for employees to contribute to the design of the change strategy or plan. Informal channels can also be helpful in encouraging employee involvement. The management can take advantage of lunch and/or tea breaks, team building activities, office parties, and other informal setups to talk to employees about the proposed change. Employee participation can also be forged by ensuring representation of employees from all levels of the organisation in the change team. It is common for the management to appoint to a change team to coordinate the change implementation process. Rather than focusing only on top managers, the team can also have representatives from middle and low levels.
Involving employees in devising change has important advantages. Employees readily buy into the proposed change initiative, they feel appreciated, they own the change process, and demonstrate enthusiasm towards the change (Busby, 2015). This can result in positive employee outcomes such as commitment to the organisation and the proposed change, engagement, morale, as well as increased productivity and collaborative willingness. Employee participation is also important for overcoming resistance to change, which is one of the major barriers to successful change implementation (Van Dijk & Van Dick, 2009). Resistance to change results from factors such as lack of clarity over how the change will affect individuals, perceived loss of authority or autonomy, possible disruption of relationships and communication channels, as well as the fear of the unknown. Change may also be resisted due to concerns over likely relocation, dismissal, and changes in workload, work schedule, and compensation. Involving employees can be important for eliminating or minimising the fear and anxiety associated with change (Pihlak & Alas, 2012). Employees get a chance to voice their opinions, thoughts, and feelings, which a prudent organisation should pay attention to if the change initiative is to be more successful.
It is, however, important to note that ensuring maximum employee participation as possible may not completely avoid resistance to change. Even with all inclusivity that can possibly be granted, there could still be individuals unwilling to let go of the status quo. Another limitation of employee participation is that it may slow decision-making (Pihlak & Alas, 2012). A participatory environment means that different views, perspectives, and concerns are taken into consideration prior to making the final decision. As a result, a lot of time may be spent in making decisions so as to satisfy virtually everyone. The need to consider diverse perspectives may further lead to conflicts, which may also be detrimental to the change implementation process. These shortcomings perhaps explain why some organisations may choose not to meaningfully involve employees in the change composition. Even so, the significance of employee involvement cannot be understated.
Development Plan for a Subordinate on How to Manage Change
In the previous section, the significance of involving employees in the change process has been demonstrated. It is important to not only provide room for subordinates to participate in designing the change, but also prepare them for the change. The significance of subordinate preparation is informed by the fact subordinates are directly affected by the change process. More importantly, subordinates are with time assigned more complex roles and responsibilities when the current leaders take on other assignments or leave the organisation. This underscores the need for continuous enhancement of subordinates' skills, knowledge, and capabilities. This section provides a plan for developing a subordinate for change.
There are a number of steps that can be taken to develop a subordinate for change. The first step….....
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