change management - implementation

Managing the change

Preparation for change

• Environmental analysis.
• Set out the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation

– Current provisions
– Resources
– Roles and responsibilities

• Identify the change required
• Determine the major issues
• Identify and assess the key stakeholders
• Win the support of key individuals
• Identify the obstacles
• Determine the degree of risk and the cost of change
• Understand why change is resisted
• Recognize the need for change, identify current position, devise a suitable method

Building the vision

• Develop a clear vision
• Make it people clear about what a change involves and how they are involved in it

• What is involved
• What is the proposed change
• Why should we do it
• What the major effects will be
• How we can manage the change

Plan the change
• Devise appropriate strategies to introduce change
• Design the change
• Identify the significant steps in the change process
• Discuss the need for change and the full details of what is involved
• Allow people to participate in planning change
• Communicate the plan to all concerned
• Produce a policy statement
• Devise a sensible time scale
• Produce action plans for monitoring the change
• Allow people to participate in planning change
• Get all parties involved in and committed to the change
• Inspire confidence by forestalling problems and communicating regularly
• Devise a sensible time scale for implementation of change
• Anticipate the problems of implementation
• Understand why change is resisted

Implementing the change
• Check on and record progress
• Make sure that change is permanent
• Evaluate the change
• Improve on any weak areas
• Overcome resistance
• Involve all personnel affected
• Keep everyone informed
• Devise an appropriate reward system
• Be willing to compromise on detail
• Ensure that strategies are adaptable
• Select people to champion change
• Provide support and training
• Monitor and review

Two types of change
(1) Step change

• Dramatic or radical change in one fell swoop
• Radical alternation in the organisation
• Gets it over with quickly
• May require some coercion

(2) Incremental change

• Ongoing piecemeal change which takes place as part of an organisation’s evolution and development
• Tends to more inclusive

Step v incremental change

Techniques to help implement change
Teams building across units
Internal communication
Negotiation
Action planning
Change agents or champions of change
And a certain amount of compulsion manipulation and coercion

Change agents
Managers should be able to act as change agents:

• To identify need for change
• Be open to goods ideas for change
• To able to successfully implement change

Advantages of using a change agent:

• Forces trough change
• Becomes the personification of the process
• Responsibility for change is delegated thus freeing up senior managers to focus on future strategy

Helping people to accept change

• Consider how they will be affected
• Involve them in the change
• Consult and inform frequently
• Be firm but flexible
• Make controversial change as gradually as possible
• Monitor the change
• Develop a change philosophy

Six ways of overcoming resistance to change

• (1) Education and communication - if people understand the needs for change and what is involved they are more likely to co-operate.
• (2) Participation and involvement - to encourage people to feel ownership of the change.
• (3) Facilitation and support - listening to the real concerns of people affected.
• (4) Negotiation and agreement - agreement and compromise if necessary.
• (5) Manipulation - e.g. “buying off” leaders of resistance.
• (6) Explicit and implicit coercion - threats where necessary but this is a high risk strategy.

(source: Kotter and Schlesinger In HBR 1979)

Monitor and review

• Adapt as necessary
• Recording and monitor the changes
• Measure progress against targets
• Have the desired results been achieved?
• Has the process been successful?
• How do those affected feel about the new situation?
• What might have been done differently?
• How can those not responding well to the change be helped?
• Sustain the change.- prevent any back sliding

Kotter’s change phases model

• Establish a sense of urgency
• Create a coalition
• Develop a clear vision
• Share the vision
• Empower people to clear obstacles
• Secure short term wins
• Consolidate and keep moving
• Anchor the change

Change management failures

What not to do
Ways to increase resistance to change:

Managers can increase resistance by:

• Failing to specific about a change
• Failing to explain why change is needed
• Not consulting
• Keeping people in the dark
• Creating excess work pressure
• Expecting immediate results
• Not dealing with fears and anxieties
• Ignoring resistance

Reasons why change can fail

• Employees do not understand the purpose or even the need for change
• Lack of planning and preparation
• Poor communication
• Employees lack the necessary skills and/ or there is insufficient training and development offered
• Lack of necessary resources
• Inadequate/inappropriate rewards

Eight common reasons for failure of change management:

• Allowing too much complexity
• Failing to build a substantial coalition
• Failing to understand the need for a clear vision
• Failure to clearly communicate that vision
• Permitting roadblocks against that vision
• Not planning for short term results and not realising them
• Declaring victory too soon
• Failure to anchor changes in corporate culture

(John Kotter)

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