3.6 managing change

Question 1

what are internal causes of change ?

Answer 1

a change in business size
poor performance
new ownership
restructuring

Question 2

what are external causes of change ?

Answer 2

p
e
s
t
l

Question 3

what are the effects of change on competitiveness ?

Answer 3

• swift improvements
• pursue a long term competitive strategy
• brings management and employees together

Question 4

What are the effects of change on productivity?

Answer 4

• reduced as employees need to get used to new processes
• once embedded productivity returns to earlier levels

Question 5

What are the effects of change on financial performance?

Answer 5

• expensive
• market research
• promotional activity needed
• new strategies needed

Question 6

What are the effects of change on stakeholders?

Answer 6

• customers may be dissapointed if businesses cant meet demand
• employees may be made redundant

Question 7

What 4 factors affect business change ?

Answer 7

Organisational culture
Organisation size
Pace of change
Resistance to change

Question 8

How does organisational culture affect the business?

Answer 8

• employees may be hesistant
• could affect communication
• strong culture can support employee engagement
• affect adaptability

Question 9

how does the size of the organisation affect change ?

Answer 9

• larger organisations make it harder to make decisions
• more people involved so more delays
• larger businesses will have more resources

Question 10

how does pace of change affect a businesses?

Answer 10

too fast :
- create resistance
- not properly thought through
- difficult to communicate

too slow :
- lack of adaptability
- delays
- disengagement and disinterest

Question 11

why are employees resistant to change ?

Answer 11

• job security
• may not understand
• reluctant to learn new ways

Question 12

why are owners resistant to change ?

Answer 12

• could affect productivity
• personal time and commitment
• mat not have expertise to implement

Question 13

why are customers resistant to change ?

Answer 13

• uncomfortable or unfamiliar
• fear losing something they value
• used to old products so will not want to buy

Question 14

why are suppliers resistant to change ?

Answer 14

decrease in quality
additional costs
lack of expertise to implement

Question 15

how can you manage resistance to change ?

Answer 15

• communication
• involve stakeholders
• provide training and support
• address concerns
• realistic expectations

Question 16

What is scenario planning?

Answer 16

process of anticipating possible changes in a business’s situation and devising ways of dealing with them

Question 17

what hazards are commonly covered by business risk assessments?

Answer 17

natural disasters
it systems failure
loss of key staff

Question 18

what is risk mitigation?

Answer 18

this is where you identify and assess risks then prioritise and plan responses

Question 19

what is a business continuity plan?

Answer 19

how a business will operate following a serious incident or disaster and how it expects to return to normal as soon as possible

Question 20

what are the stages in a business continuity plan?

Answer 20

1. risk assessment - identify risks
2. impact analysis - assessment impacts
3. develop strategy - approaches to be taken
4. plan development - outline steps
5. testing and training - ensures plan is effective
6. maintain and review - regular review and updating

Question 21

what is succession planning?

Answer 21

Succession planning involves identifying and developing current employees who have the potential to move into key roles in the future

Question 22

what are the stages of succession planning?

Answer 22

identify successors
develop a plan
train and mentor
communicate with stakeholders
review and update the plan