3.6 - Managing Change (only 2 and 3 so far) Flashcards
4 factors affecting business change
Organisational culture
Organisational size
Resistance to change
Pace of change
Organisational culture
The personality and character commonly referred to ‘the way things are done here’.
Made up of shared values, beliefs and assumptions about how people behave both personally and professionally.
Strong organisational culture
Supports employee engagement and ownership of change.
When employees feel valued and part of a supportive culture their more likely to embrace change and work to implement it successfully.
Size of the Organisation
Larger organisations = complex structures, so change is more difficult to implement.
Communication is difficult due to sheer number of people involved.
Pace of change
Important to find a pace of change that is appropriate for the situation and takes in needs and concerns of all stakeholders involved.
If pace of change is too fast
Resistance from overwhelmed workers who feel unprepared.
May not properly be thought through or planned, resulting in poor execution.
Difficult to communicate effectively all stakeholders leading to misunderstandings and confusion.
If pace of change is too slow
Lack of adaptability and innovation.
Loss of momentum leading to delays, or even the abandonment of change.
Communication efforts becoming stagnant leading to disinterest and disengagement.
Stakeholders who are resistant to change
Employees
Owners
Customers
Suppliers
Employees resistance to change
Worry about job security and work environment.
Owners resistance to change
Changing their current processes may cause disruption to daily operations and affect productivity.
Customers resistance to change
Hesitant to try something new or unfamiliar.
Fear of loosing something they value.
Suppliers resistance to change
Reluctant to change their processes or systems.
May lead to a decrease in quality or additional costs.
Scenario planning
The process of anticipating possible changes in a business’s situation and devising ways of dealing with them.
Risk assessment
Where a business identifies, evaluates and prioritises risks and the precautions that may be taken to protect them.
3 hazards commonly covered by business risk assessments
Natural disasters
IT systems failure
Loss of key staff.
Natural disasters
Unpredictable and impact can be devastating to business operations.
Identify and implement measures to reduce risk (e.g. evacuation plans).
IT systems failure
Data breaches when confidential data is lost due to cyberattack, human error or negligence.
Downtime can result in a reduction in productivity.
Loss of key staff
Can influence the morale of remaining employees as well as the culture and direction if the business.
Business continuity planning process
Risk assessment - identifying potential risks.
Impact analysis - potential impact of these events.
Strategy development - approaches taken to respond to disruption
Plan development - Steps taken in the event of a disruption.
Testing and training - ensures the plan is effective and all stakeholders understand roles and responsibilities.
Maintenance and review - regular review and updating of plan to ensure it remains relevant and effective.
Succession planning
Identifying and developing current employees who have the potential to move into key roles in the future.
