BUS643: Leading Organizational Change

Organizational change occurs when changes affect the organization as a whole; these changes might include changes in company goals, the development of new products, former products being eliminated, changes in management, or changes in operations. Watch this short video about leading change in business today.

Change can be productive and move us forward in our personal lives and also in business. Some people fear change, and it can paralyze some employees. This video by Simon Sinek addresses change and how we can learn to embrace change.

This section reviews organizational change and why it is necessary for business today. Read about the fundamentals and types of organizational change. After you read, answer the two concept check questions at the end to check your understanding.

Many times, organizations are not successful when they try to implement change. Employee involvement is one of the key components of organizational change. Watch this video about why organizational change is important.

Managing your employees through change can be a difficult process. Change is, for the most part, difficult for employees because they have experienced it before and perhaps did not go well. Employees may resist change because they like the familiar. Read the fundamentals and types of organizational change. After you read, answer the three concept check questions at the end to check your understanding.

Good leadership is important when it involves the change management process. Developing good leadership skills can take time, and getting people to follow leadership takes time and trust. The leadership process involves the leader, the follower, the context and process in which this situation occurs, and the outcome. For your understanding, feel free to read about the leadership process and answer the two questions in the case study box at the end and the one concept check question.

Now that you have read about why employees might resist change and what a good leader can do to help implement change, let's see how much you understand about the process. Read the critical thinking case study and answer the three questions at the end.

Before we get into the best leadership styles for change management, let's review some bad leadership qualities. Watch this video about nine bad leadership skills, how they affect others, and how to avoid making these same mistakes.

This video covers the three classic leadership styles and includes the autocratic, democratic, and laissez-faire styles. Consider which leadership style might work best with organizational change as you watch. Would you want to work for this type of leader as your organization underwent a large change?

Two more leadership styles are transactional and transformative. These two styles have great success in leading change in an organization. Transformational leaders can successfully lead during massive change, and employees easily follow these types of leaders. Watch this video that represents both of these leadership styles.

Now that you have reviewed some of the leadership styles, and understand how they might be useful in change management, let's review some information that might help you to assess your leadership style. You may strongly lean toward one leadership style, or you may be a blend of a few different leadership styles. This video will help you assess your leadership style and understand the type of leader you want to be. Watch this video and review the extra materials as you assess your leadership skills.

This video explains how great leaders are different from average leaders. Great leaders inspire people and are easily followed; they make people feel the leader's mission is their own. They lead by their actions and inspire an open-minded management style that allows for opinions from all employees. These are the type of leaders who encourage conflict and know that it will only help to make their team stronger.

With technology frequently changing how we do business, constant change seems to be the new normal. Some organizations must be able to keep up with their competition, so constant change occurs.

Now it is time to show what you have learned in this unit. Read these managerial decision exercise questions. How would you respond?

There are many reasons that organizations find it difficult to make effective changes when they need to and why so many fail when trying to implement change. Building employee trust is vital during change management, and good leaders can easily get employees to follow their lead when trying to implement change. After you read this section, answer each practice problem. If you are not currently working, choose a company you know about for your responses. What are your thoughts about the practice? What might you do in that situation? How would you want to respond?

As this chapter has covered, organizations need to get employees on board with the changes the organization needs. There are numerous examples in business today of failed change management programs and employees who refuse to cooperate with the change. Good leaders can make effective changes and get people to follow their example, while bad leaders may fail. Answer these review questions to help your understanding.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 1 Assessment.

As discussed in the first unit, change is difficult for companies to implement, and many factors may cause this. By understanding the various change models, methods, and theories, you will become better informed to facilitate organizational change. Read this section to see why change can be difficult and how change might be organized.

Each organization will use and implement change differently. Because of that, change will need to be specific to the organization. It is important to understand the culture, employees, management, and how a company has dealt with change in the past before choosing a change management system. This video about change theory gives information about what it is, what to expect, and how it works.

After completing organizational research about the change process, and before you choose a change management model, method, or theory, you will create a framework to work and understand change. A change management framework is a plan for change and a process to follow to implement that change. By better understanding how the company operates and the culture in which the change will occur, you can develop a change plan to make it easier to implement change. Read this case study for Sustainability and Response Management about the NHL implementing change and what information needed to be collected first. When you are done, write a two-page summary answering the two questions at the end to improve your understanding.

Kotter's change model is one of the most popular and includes eight steps to assist organizations in making change. These steps include creating a sense of urgency, building a guiding coalition, forming a strategic vision, enlisting a volunteer army, enabling action by removing barriers, generating short-term wins, sustaining acceleration, and instituting change.

Lewin's Change Model describes organizational change in three phases. Lewin explains the change using the words unfreeze, move, and refreeze. He focuses on the change process and what occurs in each stage.

The appreciative inquiry model assists an organization in uncovering strengths, weaknesses, or opportunities by asking questions and having conversations with individuals who understand the organization. This model allows an organization to better understand what needs to change and helps create a story about your organization and how you want that business to grow and change. It uses ideas from employees as a group and includes the culture of the business in the background as a guide for how to change.

Complex adaptive systems are a way of analyzing patterns and relationships in an organization to determine where they are, where they want to go, and how they might get there. Review this section, which gives an overview of this change management tool.

Read this section about the McKinsey 7-S Model. What are your most important takeaways about this model? Can you answer the two concept check questions at the end of this section?

This video gives a good overview of the ADKAR change management model, how it works, what to look for, and what to expect when using it.

Another change management system is Lean Six Sigma which helps to change efficiency in an organization. Lean Six Sigma works well with assembly line production to improve continuously. This short video shows how the Lean Six Sigma process works.

Kaizen is another change management system developed by the Japanese and is part of Six Sigma. Kaizen is the process of using small incremental changes to constantly improve. This process can be used in the workplace or for personal change.

This section covered information on change in various management models and systems. Can you outline a change management model and framework that best fits your organization? Why would you choose that model? If you are not currently working, choose a company you want to know more about and consider how you would respond if you were part of that organization.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 2 Assessment.

Some organizations are uncomfortable with change and may fear the unknown when it comes to change. Some leaders may not completely understand the organization's goals or may disagree with the goals and are unwilling to make the changes needed to move forward and be successful. Some leaders may not have the skills or are incapable of enacting change and following through with the needed changes. In addition, employees who have not been fully apprised of why change is needed may fight the change and be unwilling to follow through with proposed changes. This theory of change video addresses a non-profit business, how change occurs, and why it may fail.

As mentioned above, there are numerous reasons that an organization fails at implementing change. The culture of the business may not be matched with the change management system chosen to facilitate change. Employees may not buy into the change or may not be trained properly. Additional funding may not be available when it is needed. This page addresses the reasons some small businesses may succeed when large organizations fail to do so. Be sure to answer the concept check questions at the end of the section.

This short video explains a different understanding and focus of business today. Many businesses focus on making money, while in reality, any profit should go back into the business to help further develop the business.

A lack of teamwork, employee buy-in, and engagement can create chaos and disorder at the department and business levels. Teams must work well together to effect change.

The restaurant industry is one of the leading industries when it comes to business failures, and most businesses fail in their first five years. This video addresses the failures of restaurants and the reasons that most close within a few years of opening.

When your team lacks accountability, follow-through, or structure, chaos can ensue. The organization must have structures set in place that will follow up on assignments to ensure the team as a whole meets its commitments. Setting clear expectations and following up to ensure accountability occurs, the more successful a business can be as they move forward. This video has a step-by-step guide to keep accountability and ensure structure in each department and the company overall.

This page shows Kodak's company history, why the business failed, and how a new resurgence has occurred over the last decade. Read this page to better understand how this company failed to keep up with changing times.

The Hummer brand of SUVs is another example of a business failure. The extra-large tank-like vehicles were extremely popular in the 1990s and early 2000s, but as gas prices continued to rise, the massive gas-consuming SUVs had difficulty finding a market. Read the History section on this Wikipedia page.

Blockbuster Video may be the most famous business failure in the last few decades. The large video chain has numerous reasons for its failure, and most people believe that it was Netflix that created problems for this video/DVD renting chain, but Netflix and its DVD mailing and online streaming were only one of the reasons the company failed. Over the last few years, the last Blockbuster Video in the world has once again created some buzz over the fact that they are the last of the video chain stores. Several documentaries have been made about Blockbuster, and a new comedy show on Netflix has made the video chain popular again. This video explains the rise and fall of Blockbuster Video.

Read this case study about Netflix and disruption. How would you answer the three questions at the end?

Sears is another company that survived for over 100 years and could not keep up with change. Their mail-order catalogs were one of a handful of companies that did a successful business for decades. But with the development of the internet, they could not compete and filed for bankruptcy.

A good leader will naturally take the change needed in their department or business and communicate it to employees, who will then lead it. Read this section about why good management is essential and what might occur when it is not, and be sure to answer the concept check questions at the end.

As reviewing these case studies of failed businesses shows, we can learn from the mistakes of companies that, for one reason or another, did not change. This also shows why it is so important for organizations to change and keep up with the rest of the business world. Keep in mind that businesses that are successful today will also be challenged in the future and will also be forced to change or become obsolete. As technology advances further and further, organizations need to keep pace with those changes. This is why it is so important to effectively use change management. This video addresses why business transformation fails for so many and what a good leader can do to prevent that change from occurring.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 3 Assessment.

Employees have the power to drive change or stop it from occurring. Change can be something that employees do not want to see, and they may be afraid of any changes. It is very important to have employee buy-in when making business changes today. This short promotional video covers why transformational change often fails. It is important to involve employees in the change process so that they understand that changes may make their job easier.

Having the support of employees during the change process is important and may be the one thing that stands between making an effective change or not. This section covers managing change and employees during that process. After you read, answer the concept check question at the end.

Each week, you should meet with each of your employees one-on-one. These meetings will help you better understand your employees and how they might better fit in with your team. When attempting to effectively make a change, you will need to completely understand the change and then work with your employees to implement that change. One-on-one meetings will help you to do just that. These videos give tips for making one-on-one meetings more effective. How can you use one-on-one meetings to help facilitate change in your department?

Good leaders know that there is a balance between understanding employees, their needs, and fears and how to relate to them when making workplace changes. This video gives a few great examples of how leaders can assist in transforming their businesses and employees simultaneously.

This short promotional video covers how leaders can help lead their people into change.

As a leader, you must deal with employees who do not follow instructions easily. You must deal with these types of employees when attempting to facilitate change. This video explains seven steps for better communication with employees who do not follow instructions. Can you give an example for each step in this process? How might you help an employee who is struggling to listen and communicate with your team?

Once you receive the change plan from upper management, it will be important for you to plan what changes your department will need to make. These changes will include a timeline or deadline of when the change needs to be implemented, who on your team will complete specific tasks, and you will need the plan to follow through on the change to ensure the tasks have been completed or implemented. This video explains various tips for managers as they delegate to employees.

Your communication skills will be important as you assist your organization during the transformational stage. It is important to understand how to communicate with your employees and those in a position above your own. Understanding the change and then relating that information to your employees will become fundamental to your job. Read these sections about reinforcement, motivation, and behavioral change strategies.

This reading explains how you can better motivate employees and their performance using various reward strategies. These rewards may include monetary rewards or things your employees value that you may discover during your one-on-one meetings. After you read, answer the concept check questions at the end.

Follow-through is important for any function of your job. But as a leader, you must also follow through with each of your employees. During change, this follow-through may occur daily or weekly to determine if the changes are being implemented. You may have employees who are underperforming during the change process, and it is important to deal with this situation as soon as possible to ensure success in your department while facilitating change. This video gives examples of how to deal with underperforming employees and how to follow through with those employees.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 4 Assessment.

Once you understand the changes your department is expected to make, it is important to create a plan and goals to complete the change. This will require creating a list of what needs to be done and then matching those changes with the right people. This video covers setting goals with employees and ensuring the goals are met.

As a manager, it will be important for you to ensure employees are working to implement the needed changes. There may be instances when employees are not making the necessary changes; at this point, you will need to set a performance improvement plan. This video covers the basics of helping employees to improve their performance.

One of the tools you can use to track change management and create a timeline of those changes is Microsoft Project. By creating a timeline, you can keep track of your project and ensure that changes are made promptly. You can also adjust your timeline as things change or need to be updated during the change management process. This short video gives an overview of creating a timeline in Microsoft Project.

It is important to measure the performance of employees and the change management process itself. Developing key performance indicators will assist you in measuring the performance of your team and team members. This video will give you ideas of the indicators you can develop to track your teams' performance.

Keeping track of and following through with employees is important to ensure that change happens. This video explains how to take action to ensure that employees meet their targets and are on track to complete the needed changes.

It is important to successfully track communication with employees and ensure they understand what tasks must be completed and any timelines you've previously set. This video covers communicating with employees and streamlining that communication as much as possible to ensure success.

Emotional intelligence is important when implementing change and managing your employees. Emotional intelligence will help you better understand your employees and make you more relatable as a manager. After you read, answer the three questions at the end.

You will use emotional intelligence almost every day in your job. It might also become necessary to teach others about this useful skill. This video explains the skills needed to develop emotional intelligence. How would you explain the importance of emotional intelligence in change management?

If you are a manager who is in charge of several teams, it will be necessary for you to track what each team is responsible for, when the changes will be complete, and who will make the changes. There are numerous project management systems that you might utilize to track this information. Some project management systems also work within the change management system. This video explains the various options that might be utilized in lean project management.

As a manager of a global change management project, you must consider many issues. These issues may include culture, people, needs, communication, creating a strategy that may be localized, etc. International competition is another consideration regarding change management on a global scale.

At some point, your domestic business may consider expanding internationally, and numerous issues must be considered. This section discusses developing a change strategy and considerations for change management. After you read, answer the managerial leadership case study and concept check questions.

Understanding culture when conducting international business is important because it can change how you operate. Culture may affect how you do business since it includes traditions, behavior, and beliefs or values related to potential employees or the business. Before conducting business in any country, you must understand the culture. This video explains why it is important to understand the culture of the country where you plan to conduct business.

Over the last few decades, technology has changed the way business is conducted on a global scale. As a manager who may conduct business globally, it is important to understand what trends impact how business is conducted. This video explains trends that may impact the future of international business.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 5 Assessment.

Watch this as you prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

Watch this as you prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.