What Does a Change-Ready Organization Look Like?

Introduction

In this world that is full of opportunities and progress, the idea of transformation seems to be an integral component of any organization development. Despite multiple attempts to create an up-to-date company, employees and their leaders face the necessity to constantly change something and make sure that each step is appropriate to the external and internal environments. In other words, to be successful, people have to be prepared for change. There are many approaches to create an image of a change-ready organization, and this presentation aims at developing a solid background for a Board of Directors to understand how a change-prepared people must look like.

Essence of Change

Any process that is important for an organization and its people should begin with the establishment of priorities and understanding of all the definitions. In this case, the core issue is change. Every researcher or manager is free to develop personal opinions about change, but the essence remains the same: change is ongoing, unavoidable, and necessary (Shah, Irani, & Sharif, 2017). In addition, change is a process that has to be implemented by someone, and it is wrong to believe that it can happen without any guidance and control (Gibbons, 2015). Finally, the essence of change is to make people move or think in a different way. Although this necessity may press even the most prepared people out of their zones of comfort, change should never be something to be afraid of but something to be aware of and accept with ease.

Organizational Change: Definition

Organizational change is not an ordinary process when some evaluations and improvements are promoted within one company. Organizational change is defined as a field of management theory that determines the stages for a company to go through, comprising different beliefs, attitudes, and intentions in regard to available resources and capacities (Vakola, 2014). It is a considerable movement from one state to another for the whole organization, with its leaders, managers, and other stakeholders who may participate, influence, or be dependent on a change process. People should be ready to the fact that change can be difficult. They have to work hard and use their knowledge to take the steps and evaluate their options.

Role of a Leader

The success of organizational change depends considerably on the role of a leader. The acknowledgment of a leader determines the amount of information available to people and the level of support they can obtain during this process. Leaders must understand that their participation and attitudes may help the rest of the company accept and complete change. The following roles cannot be ignored:

1. Role model (leaders must introduce a clear example on how to accept change and make necessary preparations)
2. Decision maker (Leaders are responsible for people, resources, and equipment that are necessary for change, and their decision-making authority defines each step)
3. Sponsor (Leaders must advocate change and make sure that enough attention and capital are spent on change implementation)
4. Communicator (Leaders define the information that should be available to people, listen to employees, and analyze options)
5. Supporter (inspirer) (Leaders motivate and guide all involved people by creating a feeling of urgency, respect and commitment)

Organizational Change: Factors

Any organizational change has a power to impact almost every aspect of an organization. It defines the way of how people can work, what functions they should perform, and when decisions are to be made. There are many factors that may induce change, and all of them can be divided in internal and external.

Internal factors create the environment that is controlled by the organization, its people, and their knowledge.

External factors introduce the environment where the organization does not have control but can neither neglect them.

Internal Factors

Personnel is probably the most significant internal factor in organizational change. This human capital consists of a number of dedicated employees who perform tasks, develop their skills, and create new goals.

A mission is the main reason why an organization exists. A clear sense of a purpose helps answer the fundamental questions like “Why does the company exist?” or “What should people do and why?”.

Communication is the way of how information is shared within the company. All team members should develop open and free discussions to understand their tasks and improve the results.

Working processes include all organizational structures, training, and relationships in the company. A hierarchy of needs is as important as a hierarchy of people, determining their duties, expectations, and outcomes.

External Factors

To succeed in change, any organization must remember that it exists in a certain context. It is usually represented through the list of external factors the company can hardly change but is obliged to follow. Some of them are:

• Technology – the creation of new technological devices and services influence the way of how the organization can work, exchange information, and share ideas;
• Global market – the globalization of marketing relationships makes many companies sensitive to changes, and people depends on global crisis or new measurements;
• Socio-cultural relationships – people’s values and beliefs are reflected through their work, attitudes, and responsiveness, and the role of such factors as education, urbanization, and democracy cannot be ignored;
• Politics – the existing legal rules and norms define the possibilities and responsibilities of the company;
• Economy – inflation, unemployment, and fiscal policies defined by the government influence the decision made in the company.

Elements of Change

Every organization is able to develop its own elements of change, and the task of a leader to evaluate the current situation and check what can be done. In this case, the Board of Directors should recognize the following elements of a change process:

1. Shared vision (a common thought about the future of a company and its importance);
2. Team building (a number of people who are ready to be united and cope with new tasks);
3. Change urgency (the reasons for innovation and an understanding of a change process);
4. Communication (an ability to identify and discuss options within one team);
5. Plan (a list of steps to be taken by a team with the same vision of change);
6. Action (the evaluation of the work done and the achieved outcomes).

Concepts of Change

There is one simple rule for all change takers: change is a process with its goals and outcomes that should not be confused with those of a company. To be prepared for change, an organization has to be aware of its main concepts and apply them in regard to the existing needs and expectations. Gibbons (2015) identifies several important aspects of change management:

• Change agility is a possibility of a person to use his/her special skills and accept or adapt to change;
• Change mechanisms introduce the processes with the help of which the organizational staff can defense itself and use the tools to encourage improvements and engagement;
• Expecting reactions include human emotions, organizational results, and new structures that are associated with change.

Systemic Change Model

There are many ways and models developed for leaders to develop and succeed in change management. Every author focuses on the aspects he/she finds crucial for this process, and almost every approach will be a correct decision for a particular company. For example, Shah et al. (2017) suggest developing a model that is based on needs and expectations of people to predict and deal with their behaviors and emotions. Lewin’s change model is also frequently used in organizational management. In this case, the Board of Directors is recommended to follow a general systemic change model that consists of four crucial elements and promotes a radical transformation from a change-fragile organization to a change-agile one (Gibbons, 2015). The elements a leader should pay attention to in the organizational change process are People, Culture, Structure, and Process.

People

The first question that should be asked to a leader who wants to create a change-ready organization is “Are the people ready for change?” Agile people should have the right (growth) mindset that imposes the necessity to get rather than to have (Gibbons, 2015). Such personal qualities as resilience, communicativeness, and self-development help deal with internal challenges and outside obstacles, see the available efforts, and accept criticism to improve future outcomes. They are the main internal factors that promote change and facilitate the process of its acceptance. People in a change-ready company should focus on their learning abilities and career advancement. Finally, the relationships between the leader and the staff must be trustful and open to support each other and motivate.

Culture

The establishment of agile culture is another important aspect to prepare the organization for change. Such external factors as technology, globalization, and social relationships play a vital role in understanding this concept. Culture is a set of shared values and principles according to which companies have to work. People learn how things should be done around and make their contributions. Gibbons (2015) defines the importance of culture through the prism of its direct connection to change. Culture can promote change as well as be changed because of different outside and inside factors. The role of a leader in the explanation of culture is vital as all necessary symbols and concepts are given to employees in a way that is clear for a team.

Structure

Another important question that helps to check if the organization is ready for change is “Does the company have an appropriate structure?”. Organizational structure defines the division of labor and the ability of employees to recognize their tasks, functions, and specializations. The development of a structure organization depends on both internal and external factors, including political and economic conditions, personal relationships, and mission understanding. Company’s groups have to be structured in accordance with their skills and interests. It is recommended to create small groups and focus on efficiency rather than on the amount of work done. Such concepts as authority, delegation, and control influence the matter in which information is shared, and missions are explained.

Processes

Agile processes cannot be neglected in change management in the company. To understand better the essence of this aspect, Gibbons (2015) recommends to narrow it to “idea management, change execution, and learning processes” (p. 64). People are usually responsible for their decisions on whom to trust, under which circumstances to work, and how to promote respect (Vakola, 2014). Idea management is the organization of all thoughts in a clear and comprehensive way when all members make their contributions and exchange their experiences to create one common solution. Change execution depends on the skills of employees and their desire to cooperate and promote change. The staff should gather, communicate, and share their opinions to make a successful change execution. Finally, learning processes are necessary for the company that gets prepared for change. Change is something new and unknown to people, and they must be willing to improve their awareness, read additional sources, and ask questions to accept all internal and external factors of change.

References

Gibbons, P. (2015). The science of successful organizational change: How leaders set strategy, change behavior, and create an agile culture. New York, NY: Pearson Education.

Shah, N., Irani, Z., & Sharif, A. M. (2017). Big data in an HR context: Exploring organizational change readiness, employee attitudes and behaviors. Journal of Business Research, 70, 366-378. Web.

Vakola, M. (2014). What’s in there for me? Individual readiness to change and the perceived impact of organizational change. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 35(3), 195–209. Web.