The challenge of change – dealing with
change management
What is change management? How do I initiate and followed a structured
strategy? What are the casual factors in success or failure? How do we ensure
a lasting sustainable change?
This paper examines ideas surrounding the nature of change management.
From the notion that change is ordered and followed blindly from below, to
concepts that recognise the need for all staff level involvement and
ownership.
The need for constant change is ever-present. Pressures such as, greater
consumer power, the break down of geographical barriers, political policy
and the need to achieve ‘first mover advantages’ means managers and
organisations can find themselves in a catch 22. Change needs to be timely
and efficient, but staff ownership, commitment and understanding needs
securing if change strategies are to be more than superficial and bring about
long-term strategic benefit.
Change Management – Process or people
To understand change management, you need to appreciate its origins –
engineering business performance and psychological human approaches.
Frederick Taylor (1856-1915) was an American industrial engineer, who whilst
working at the Midvale Steel Company studied industrial productivity. This led
to the production of detailed systems to gain optimum staff and machine
productivity. In 1911 his management methods were published in The
Principles of Scientific Management. This led to his nickname ‘The Father of
Scientific Management’, and to him being one of the founders of the
Efficiency Movement. He was however, of the opinion that workers were
incapable of understanding what they were doing, and so change and
efficiency had to be managerially enforced.
This mechanical ‘clock like’ organisational view can be seen in continual
development processes such as TQM (Total Quality Management) and more
radical BPR (Business Process Reengineering) as described by Michael
Hammer. It focuses on observable, measurable elements that can be
improved or changed. Companies using this approach often lack a robust
change framework, and aim to isolate any ‘people problems’.
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On the other side of the coin sits the psychological perspective, and it is
William Bridges who is often credited as one of the founders of this ‘people
approach’. In 1980 he wrote Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes. This
was picked up by organisations entering the first round of mergers,
reorganisations, and strategic shifts that dominated the last quarter century,
and were aware of the need to train managers in change transition, moral
and productivity. Bridges recognised a 3-stage ‘re-birth’ of; ending, neutrality
and beginning, which is mirrored in Kurt Lewins process of unfreezing (mindset
dismantling), change (confusion & transition) and refreezing (crystallising &
returning to comfort).
Other three stage models include Hughes (1991); exit (departing from an
existing state), transit (crossing unknown territory), and entry (attaining a new
equilibrium) & Tannenbaum & Hanna (1985) where movement is from
homeostasis and holding on, through dying and letting go to rebirth and
moving on.
Whichever model is chosen it is clear that a successful change management
will folow a convergence of both the mechanical and psychological paths,
an extreme of either will be unsuccessful.
Engineering
Mechanical change focus - Process,
systems structures (BPR / TQM ). Starts
with business issues / opportunities
Psychological
Human change focus – people, HR.
Starts with personal change & actual
/ potential resistance
Convergence = New
paradigm of change
management
An engineering approach will measure financial and statistical ‘hard’ business
data, whereas a people approach will observe job satisfaction, employee
turnover and productivity loss.
What skills do you need?
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We have already stated the need to walk a line between engineering and
people approaches, but what in practical terms does this mean for you as a
manager?
There are 7 initial questions that any change initiative should start with;
 Time Frame
 Nature of expertise
 Willingness to compromise
 Degree of resistance
 Degree of change
 Numbers involved
 Stakes (perceived or real)
These questions will then determine your overall approach;





Directive
Expert
Negotiating
Educative
Participative
Using an iterative 6-step model and ‘change kaleidoscope’ navigation of a
change process is achieved in a systematic controlled manner. This ensures
context judgements and design choice decisions are considered in there
entirety free from ‘halo and horns’ influences
Personal challenges

Do you know how to recognise the need for change?

Can you locate within your organisation the most suitable ‘change
agents’

Do you have a culture of knowledge sharing, negotiation, education
and reflective learning?

Can you recognise the skills, resources and capabilities that you will
require?

Can you place your change process in both an internal organisational
context and in a wider external environmental arena?
Finding out more
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effectiveness. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Argyris, C. and Schön, D. A. (1978) Organizational learning: A theory of action
perspective. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley
Argyris, C. and Schön, D. (1996) Organizational learning II: Theory, method
and practice. Reading, MA: Addison Wesley.
Bridges. William (1980), Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes
Hammer, Michael and Champy, James (1993), Reengineering
Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution, Harper Business
the
Lewin K. (1943). Defining the "Field at a Given Time." Psychological Review. 50: 292310. Republished in Resolving Social Conflicts & Field Theory in Social Science,
Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 1997
Taylor, Frederick, Scientific Management (includes "Shop Management"
(1903), "The Principles of Scientific Management" (1911) and "Testimony Before
the Special House Committee" (1912), Routledge, 2003
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