Change Management and Use of Teams (Research Paper Sample)

Change Management and Use of Teams
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Change Management and Use of Teams
As organizations continue to experience uncertainties regarding their future viability, they increasingly prefer to engage in some sort of inter-organizational restructuring to ensure future success in their operations. Currently, programs to improve organizational management have become increasingly common. However, few managers implement them successfully. Organizational success depends on how managers persuade various groups and individuals to adjust the way they work, something most people will embrace if only they are persuaded to think different about their jobs. Therefore, managers should alter the mindsets of their employees in order to ensure change in the organization is effectively implemented (Levasseur, 2001). This is not an easy task, as viable strategies need to be adopted for change to take place in an organization. To ease up change implementation, managers should first determine the extent of the change needed to realize the business outcomes they seek. This paper discusses change management, and the Use of teams in implementing changes in organizations.
Building a sense of teamwork among staff members
The term "team" refers to groups of people that meet overtime to accomplish a project and later on wind down. For instance, a traditional staff in an organization that meets as a group to discuss some operating issues affecting an organization. Many departments in various organizations rarely operate as teams. Employees work on daily basis as individuals, which is unfortunate for these organizations as experts advocate that teamwork is an integral part of any organization's productivity and profitability and should be embraced in all organizations. Downsizing, reorganizing, right sizing and reengineering are all signs of pressure on an organization to reduce its workforce. In order to achieve this without much struggle, organizations need to adopt the use of teams. Five employees working cooperatively in a friendly environment can achieve more than ten employees working as individuals (Gill, 2002). Teamwork gives employees an opportunity to share ideas making problem-solving tasks easy.
When the organization's staff is working together in an environment of accountability and transparency toward a common goal, they put aside differences and focus on the responsibilities assigned to them. With all resources directed to the same goal, they can overcome any barrier, come up with new opportunities, and create a momentum that brings about better problem solving ways, higher productivity, and effective use of resources. Unless managers in various organizations built a sense of teamwork among their staff, there will be no share performance goals, no mutual accountability, no join work efforts, which can skyrocket the organization's productivity (Kirchmeyer, 2002).
Handling Loners in a team
It is rare to have a staff member who does not want to work as a team, but at one point this individuals may exist in an organization. In case of such a territorial/introverted person, the solution is not to let him/her go. A niche should be created that will enable such a loner to be accommodated in the organization. The individual can also be encouraged to modify his/her behavior to cope up with others. They should be explained how their behavior can result to negative feelings from the rest of the staff members. A change will help such an individual to work with others as a team and assist to eliminate resentment from co-workers and us-versus-them attitude that might have cropped in.
Use of teams in implementing changes in an organization
Establishment of a transition team during the process of effecting new changes in an organization creates a venue where individuals who can think, and work with the rest of the organization's team have the opportunity to make decisions. A team approach paves way for knowledge sharing and relationship building. Although use of teams has been receiving considerable attention, it can possess both advantages and disadvantages especially in a case where the team is diverse. Differences may surface in course of coming to an agreement on what ways to adopt in implementing various changes. However, team members should use these differences to better understand and build trust on each other. Therefore, these groups should have leaders who will effectively manage any difference that might arise (Ryan & Tippins, 2004).
The role of team diversity
Due to their potential benefits to increase performance, teams are more frequently used to enhance an organization's ability to maneuver difficult and complex situations. Organizations use both temporary and permanent teams, joining employees into groups to work on emerging problems and make critical decisions. Adoption of work teams enable an organization to respond to changes in the organization's environment in a swift and easy way. Therefore, teams should be used as primary strategy for managing change in an organization. Members of work teams are always involved in frequent interaction and decision-making activities, and cooperative problem solving. As a result, much is normally expected from them. Due to this nature of team's work, the members should be selected from all the levels, and most importantly all the departments in order to ensure a balanced decision making and problem solving approach is in place. Diversity will also ensure that the rest of the organization will be at ease in working with the team since each organization's department will be equally represented (Bordia, Hobman, Jone, Gallois & Callan, 2003).
Team composition: Supplementary Fit
Many organizations use the supplementary fit perspective to analyze fitness among members of a work team. Supplementary fit is usually based on goals, similarities and shared perspectives, and personality. According to research, congruence in all these areas ensures positive outcomes for individuals and groups. Similarity in attitudes among group members creates easiness in interpersonal interactions, makes communication to be effective and reduces differences in the group. In addition, congruence in the personality variables such as conscientiousness, emotional stability, and agreeableness, paves way for a better team viability and performance (Francis, 2003). Despite the many benefits that can be derived from similar personalities and preferences within a work team, too much similarity can affect the success of the organization negatively. For instance, if the team members think and act in the same manner, adjustment to change can be compromised, and the groups' creativity might diminish with time. This will create a situation whereby all the groups are stagnant without any signs of further progress, a condition that can be disastrous to the organization future prosperity.
Potential Drawbacks of teamwork
Social loafing can enter into a team and as a result, few individuals are involved in accomplishment the work assigned to the group. This might cause differences, and a lot of time can be wasted in disputes. Some members may even opt out of the group. This can be experienced mostly when people have a feeling that they are dispensable. In addition, employees of high ability can only work effectively when grouped with other employees of high ability. Therefore, while grouping up employees it is important to note their work abilities.
However, in grouping employees, it is imperative to consider not only individuals knowledge, technical skills or experience, but also their interpersonal skills and ability to coordinate actions. In selecting potential group members, it is important to look for individuals who are willing to work and develop as a team. Preferably, potential team members should be able to commit to a shared goal, be open and honest with their ideas, avoid carrying hidden issues into team meetings, and take up various roles in the team in order to accomplish the achieve the intended goal.
Conditions for changing employee mindsets to initiate a change
It is imperative to note that employees will only embrace a change if they agree with it, and see a point of change, at least enough to try it. For example, the organization's recognition and reward system should be in tune with the proposed changes. Employees should also have the required skills to launch the changes. They should also see the executive staff modeling it actively (Chakraborty, 2004). Below are some of the conditions necessary to initiate changes in an organization.
1 Reinforcement systems
Organizational designers advocate that management and operational processes, reporting structures, measuring procedures (measuring performance or setting targets), and financial rewards should be consistent with the changes to be implemented. Managers can decide to have other employee remuneration ways apart from the monthly salary. They can initiate overtime payments or rewards if an employee produces a remarkable output with the newly implemented changes.
2 A purpose to believe in
In order for employees to feel comfortable while initiating a certain change in an organization, they must understand the role of their actions in the unfolding drama of the organization's fortunes. They should also believe that it is worthwhile for them to be part of the changes in the organization. The process of initiating changes in an organizations demands for more than just telling employees that they will have to do things differently. Employees need to be explained the purpose of the change, and why it is worthy for the running of the organization. This will help to ensure that their contributions make sense to them as individuals.
3 Skills needed for a change
The reason behind the many challenges experienced by many organizations in implementing changes, i...