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essay paper on organizational transformation
essay paper on organizational transformation
similarities between organization development and organization transformation.
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Overview
Throughout the history of organizational literature, many scholars have suggested that change initiatives need to originate at the leadership level in order to be successful (Bennis, 1999). However history has shown that the majority of change initiatives fail, especially when mandated by top management (King & Peterson, 2007). This paper will examine why this dichotomy exists, what the role of top management should be in a change program, and how top managers can utilize key leverage points to increase their chances of a successful change implementation.
The Evolution of Organizations and its Impact on Change
The invention of modern management by theorists, such as Frederick Taylor, was founded at a time when many manufacturing organizations existed in the United States. These firms sought semi-skilled employees such as production line workers, who could perform systematized tasks that required little brain power and training (Denning, 2010). The prevalence of manufacturing organizations rendered theories that focused on efficiency where operations and changes within the organizations could be more easily planned and controlled (Shafritz, Ott, & Jang, 2011). These theories have suggested that it is the role of top management to create, identify, and implement the changes that need to occur within an organization (Robbins & Judge, 2010).
In the twentieth century, Taylor’s management approach has been less effective for service-based organizations that require skilled employees (Denning, 2010). The management and change approaches used during the manufacturing boom are less successful in an era where the global environment and workforce is changing (Denning, 2010). Steven Denning (2010), author of The Leader’s Guide to...
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Robbins, S. P. & Judge, T.A. (2010). Essentials of Organizational Behavior (10th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Shafritz, J.M., Ott, J.S., Jang, Y.S. (2011), Classics of Organization Theory. Boston, MA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Shanker, M. & Sayeed, O. (2012). Role of transformational leaders as change agents: leveraging effects on organizational climate. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 47(3), 470-484.
Simon, S.S. (2011). The essentials of employee engagement in organizations. Journal of Contemporary Research in Management, 6(1), 63-72. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/920826469?accountid=11243
Sirkin, H.L., Keenan, P., Jackson, A., (2005). The hard side of management. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing. Retrieved from: http://www.changeleadershipgroup.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/HardSideChangeMgmt.pdf
Leading Change was named the top management book of the year by Management General. There are three major sections in this book. The first section is ¡§the change of problem and its solution¡¨ ; which discusses why firms fail. The second one is ¡§the eight-stage process¡¨ that deals with methods of performing changes. Lastly, ¡§implications for the twenty-first century¡¨ is discussed as the conclusion. The eight stages of process are as followed: (1) Establishing a sense of urgency. (2) Creating the guiding coalition. (3) Developing a vision and a strategy. (4) Communicating the change of vision. (5) Empowering employees for broad-based action. (6) Generating short-term wins. (7) Consolidating gains and producing more changes. (8) Anchoring new approaches in the culture.
Workers feeling, which includes competitive compensation and reward strategies, professional growth and development, career paths and succession plans and the organizations leadership and culture are contributing factors of employee engagement
Boston, MA: Pearson Sivarethinamohan, R. R., & Aranganathan, P. P. (2011). Determinants of employee engagement
He is also a praised keynote speaker and consultant, who has applied corporate change initiatives throughout the years. Ron McMillan, vice president and cofounder of the Covey Leadership Center, was over the research and development department (Patterson, et al., 2002). McMillian’s experience as a consultant and a sought-after speaker, has helped him work with numerous influential leaders, high level managers, and executives. Lastly, Al Switzler is part of the Executive Development Center at the University of Michigan. Also as a consultant and speaker like the other authors, he directs special training and management initiatives with many leaders worldwide.
Change is a double-edged sword (Fullan, 2001). Change is a word that might inspire or put fear into people. Leadership is challenging when it comes to dealing with change and how individuals react within the organization to the change. Marzano, McNulty, and Waters (2005) discuss two orders of change in their book School Leadership that Works; first and second. Fullan (2001) also adds to the discussion in his book Leading in a Culture of Change, with regard to understanding change. In Change Leadership, Keagan and Wagner (2006) discuss many factors of change and the systematic approach to change. Change affects people in different ways. Leaders need to be able to respond to the individuals throughout the change process.
Wagner, T., Kegan, R., Lahey, L., Lemons, R.W., Garnier, J., Helsing, D., Howell, A., Rasmussen, H. T. (2006). Change Leadership: A Practical Guide to Transforming Our Shcools. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Taylorism is a system that was designed in the late 19th century, not only to maximise managerial control, but to also expand the levels of efficiency throughout workplaces. With this being said, productivity levels increased and fair wage distribution was the main result. However, with other, more recent theories and systems, such as Maslow and Herzburg’s theories, these helped to focus on the satisfaction and motivation of the workers rather than the concern of managerial control and empowerment. Fredrick W. Taylor ended up developing 4 main principles to help increase the work efficiency and productivity in workplaces; these will be discussed later on. Other theories relating to this include, Fayol, Follett, Management Science Theory as well as Organisational-Environmental Theory. All theories listed have an influence on the way businesses work effectively and put their skills to action. This essay will highlight how Taylorism was designed to maximise managerial control and increase productivity, furthermore, showing how more recent theories were developed to focus on empowering employees and to extend the use of organisational resources.
Shanker, M., & Sayeed, O. B. (2012, January). Role of transformational leaders as change agents: Leveraging effects on organizational climate. The Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 47, 470-484. Retrieved from www.srcirhr.com
“Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail” is an article written by John P. Kotter in the Harvard Business Review, which outlines eight critical factors to help leaders successfully transform a business. Since leading requires the ability to influence other people to reach a goal, the leadership needs to take steps to cope with a new, more challenging global market environment. Kotter emphasizes the mistakes corporations make when implementing change and why those efforts create failure; therefore, it is essential that leaders learn to apply change effectively in order for it to be beneficial in the long-term (Kotter).
Organizational change is a very big risk for organizations. The process of change can be very difficult for employees as well as the leaders implementing the changes. The changes are usually planned to improve the company. However, sometimes change can destroy a company when things don’t go as planned. From a change in management to a change in the company structure, or way of doing daily task, organizations must carefully execute the process of change and use change strategies that will ensure success.
Jones, G. R., & George, J. M. (2011). Contemporary management. (7 ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Kotter, J. P & Schlesinger, L. (2008). ‘Choosing strategies for change’. Harvard Business Review, July-August, 130-139.
Employee engagement, a term devised by Gallup research group, is viewed as an important management tool for any company who wants to be an effective and productive organization. Researches have shown that employee can contribute positively to the organization vision and goal when a company engage them effectively. The employee will also feel more passionate about their work and have a sense of belonging.
Numerous styles of management exist that the executive can adopt in leading the organization, such as autocratic, participative, as well as democratic. The management should adopt a style that incorporates the views and values of its workforce within the organization. The staff in an organization is the best assets that an organization can have. It is not enough for an organization to have the most qualified, experienced and professional workers in the field, rather it requires a dedicated team of workers willing to sacrifice and give their all to the success of the organization. The skills that an organization has, such as its corporate strengths, help in shaping its values and cultures, as well as boosting the esteem of its workers to enable them become more productive. Lastly, the organization needs to cherish the shared values within its midst. These elements bind the workforce and management of a company
Frederick Taylor and Henri Fayol are both considered classical contributors to management theory. Both were developing and expression their viewpoints at similar time period with the aim of “raising standard of management in industry” (Brodie,1967, p7) in a period were very few publications and theories on management. While both theories were developed with the same influencing factors such as war, social struggles and industrial revolution (Urwick. 1951, p7) each developed quite different management theories. Frederick Taylor is considered the Father of Scientific management and he developed scientific principles of management, focusing on the individual,...