Change Management is the process of identifying the need for change, deciding on what change is required, evaluating the implications of change, developing and implementing change programmes, overcoming resistance to change, seeing that change takes place as smoothly, and ensuring that the change is embedded and effective.
Other definition of Change Management
Change management is also regarded as the conception, planning, organization, implementation, control and stabilization of the change process of a company, with the aim to maximize the effectiveness and the efficiency of the change process and to reach the widest possible acceptance of managers and employees.
Characteristics of Changes of Modern times.
- Change is a process and not an event.
- Change is normal and permanent.
- The speed of change is increasing.
- Change is natural if a result of internal development, and adopted if it takes place as a result of external conditions and pressure.
- Change can be an order if it is carried out by the top management, or a participant, if the people concerned will be involved in the carrying out.
- Change can be incremental or sudden.
- The effect of change is not predictable precisely.
- Change is unsystematic and the planned change often need adjustments.
- There is a relationship between the change and organizational environment and culture.
What Change mean in general
We can see every institution are part of an environment which is subject to both incremental and discontinuous change:
- Political – increased control from central government
- Sociological – the information age
- Educational – the mass HE system
- Technological – networking, computing, and telecommunications
- Organizational – new structures
- Economic – increased demand for value for money
- Cultural – changed norms and values
What we change mean to somebody in business.
- New ways of doing work
- New system or tools
- New reporting structures
- New job roles
- New product or services
- New markets or geographic locations.
Effect of Change management in an organizational system.
- Promote collective process thinking
- Build confidence in one strength
- Align the organization of new system thinking
- Allow learning and development across the organization
- Strengthens the networking through commuication
- Employee or staff resistance
- Middle-management resistance
- Poor executive sponsorship
- Limited time, budget and resources
- Corporate inertia and politics
Resistance to Change: Types of Resistance to change:
- Open resistance: in the form of reports, meetings, personal exchanges of views or by other public means – more constructive.
- Hidden resistance: may aim to undermine the whole change.
- Hindering factors on the organizational side: Norms, System relations, Inflexibility of the infrastructure.
- Mistakes of managing resistance dealing with the resistance effectively
- Individual resistance
- Organizational resistance
Effective Remedies to deal with Resistance to change in an organizational system.
- Maintain clear focus
Keep both long and short term view
Persevere
- Acknowledge resistance
Listen to objectives
React to emotion
- Adjust the plan if necessary
Look for shared interests and concerns
Be open to suggestions
- Hear people’s concern
Listen actively (non) verbal communication
- Understand their concerns
Show understanding by paraphrasing
Understanding is not the same as agreeing
- Focus on common objectives
Make it a win – win situation
Approach to Change Management in an organizational system
- Mobilize commitment change through the joint analysis of problems.
- Develop a shared vision of how to organize and manage to achieve goals such as competitiveness.
- Foster consensus for the new vision, competence to enact it, and cohesion to move it along.
- Spread revitalization to all departments without pushing it from the top- don’t force the issue, let each department find its own way.
- Institutionalize revitalization through formal policies, systems and structures.
- Monitor and adjust strategies in response to problems in the revitalization process.
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Thank you for sharing. How difficult do you think it is? How long after the change should the results be seen?