Organizational Change Management (Coursework Sample)

Organizational change management
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Organizational change management
In the modern world, organizational change has proven to be inescapable as organizations strive to adjust or encounter collapse in the unstable environments of a multinational economic and political world. The numerous influential forces in these settings such as competition, developments in technology, professional competence, and demographics, among others influence the course of organizational change. For that reason, organizations may change focus, alter objectives, reorganize duties and responsibilities, and establish new forms. In general, although change management may be massy and exhilarating (Palmer et al., 2016).
While the implementation of changes in terms of work processes and other factors such as new technologies is simple and straightforward, the greatest task remains in managing the people side of change. This is because naturally human beings are inclined towards resisting change. Therefore the overall success of any changes initiated within an organization are highly dependent on how the individuals within the organization embrace the changes as well as how effectively the management communicates these changes to them. The leaders of change within the organization should therefore be competent by possessing the capability to effectively lead people through change.
Managing change
In order to lead change effectively, there are some critical skills and traits that a leader needs to possesses which can be used to assess their leadership and determine whether it can be categorized as effective of ineffective. While it is almost impossible to master all of these skills having a significant level of knowledge into how they affect the eventual success of change management and applying them in a systematic manner that ensures the sustenance of the effected changes is paramount (Lawrence, 2015).
Communication
One of the skills that is critical for the successful adoption of change is communication. Effective leaders develop their change communication strategy in a way that it places its emphasis on the reasons for the cause of the change as much as it does on the causes rather than simply focusing all the attention on the causes. Emphasizing the reasons for the changes puts the manager in a position to justify the purpose of the change and associate it with the organization’s values or anticipated benefits. This approach generates a strong approval as well as an urgency for the change (Voet et al., 2015).
Supporting collaboration
Another important skill necessary for leading effective change is the ability to invoke and support collaboration. This is mainly dependent on other numerous factors such as team “building capability, networking skills and tolerance of ambiguity (Palmer et al., 2016).Bringing people together so that they can work collaboratively especially in the face of change when everyone has their opinions regarding the changes is a daunting task. An effective leader should be able to transcend boundaries and divisions and motivate employees to put aside their differences and work towards a common goal.
Commitment to change
The final factor that has a significant impact on the effectiveness of a leader is commitment to the change. Leaders must lead by example and be at the forefront of embracing the changes and committing to their implementation (Paglis & green, 2002). Effective leaders need to constantly motivate themselves and be resilient and persistent. They should be willing to step out of their comfort zones at whatever costs to see that the changes that they lead in the organization are adopted by everyone.
My experience with change management
I have had the opportunity to lead change in an organization before. I would rate that experience as average. This is because although I was totally committed to effecting the changes and took all the necessary actions to ensure that the change is adopted and becomes sustainable such as developing an effective communication strategy, I did not perform as well in developing a collaborative environment. I did not possess adequate skills for conflict resolution and therefore let the tensions among employees cripple my efforts.
Experience receiving change
Organizational techniques
Among the various change managers that Palmer et al. (2016) discusses is the “Great intimidators”. While the intimidation technique has been proven to be quite effective in some instances, it is not always effective. This is because this type of leadership requires the leader to put on a tough face which is matched with similar tactics. Change managers who adopt this style of change management will therefore not make any efforts at being nice. In contrast with other change management approaches whereby leaders place their emphasis on taking advantage of other’s strengths through compassion and soft power, the intimidation technique does the exact opposite by focusing on the weaknesses and insecurities of employees to coerce them and instill fear and anxiety.
My experience receiving change
Great intimidators are not willing to take the actions that sustain change such as proper communication of the change, team building and facilitating collaboration and stimulating enthusiasm in their subordinates among many others. I have been on the receiving end of a change initiative by a “Great intimidator” and it was not a good experience. Although the leader was extremely competent in terms of strategic thinking, he failed in almost all the other aspects of an effective change leader such as influencing others as well as in both communication and interpersonal skills.
The Most Resonating Case from Chapter 12
Palmer et al. (2016) uses a number of cases to illustrate some of the skills that are necessary in leading effective change management. One of the cases which I resonate with is “Age and Treachery: The Inescapable Reality of the Politics of Change”. The reason why I resonate with this case is because it touches on an area of professional conduct that not a lot of many individuals, I included are not able to navigate, the politics within the workplace (Cairns, 2017: Furnham, 2008:Rosen, 2016). The case describes a young police chief who manages significant achievements in bringing about change despite being very young. Proud of his success despite being younger than most of his colleagues, the young police chief puts up a plague that says “Youth and skill will win out every time over age and treachery”. This did not rub well with his colleagues and as a result of a blend of office politics and his own audacity, the young police chief ended up being sidetracked.
This case has a significant influence on how I would act in the future. One aspect that is highlighted by the case is that it is important to know how to maintain friendly relations with colleagues. While one might be highly productive in their job, it is important to know the limits to which you should display your pride because of such agreements. As is stated in Palmer et al. (2016), “know who the key players are, understand how they play the politics game, and know their attitudes and positions in relation to change proposals”. This is an important motto which I will adhere to strictly in the course of my career. This will help in avoiding conflicts and segregation in the workplace which can prove to be a significant obstacle while leading change within an organization.
Flexibility in dealing with unanticipated outcomes
As with any other individual I feel more comfortable and at ease when working with a familiar routine. This makes operations much more smoothly since there is almost a form of automation, it is possible to predict the outcomes that you may get given on the amount of effort that is put in. Unanticipated outcomes on the other hand present a lot of challenges, not only do they present circumstances that one is not familiar with, on most occasions, they usually call for creative problem solving skills which do not guarantee that the solution arrived at will be effective. In this regard, I do not consider myself to have a high level of flexibility when de