Managing Change Flashcards
how can a change in leadership/management lead to further changes
if the director of a company leaves or is replaced, the new director may have different ideas about how the business should be run, which could lead to changes in the organisation’s culture. E.g. Satya Nadella replaced Steve Ballmer at Microsoft
how could strong performances lead to a change
there could be the decision to expand the business, in order to take advantage of increased profits
how could weak performances lead to a change
it may lead to changes such as retrenchment
how could changes to the staff lead to a change
it could mean that the business no longer has the required skills and further changes need to be made.
how can business growth lead to changes
a business expanding into international markets may have to adapt its product range to match the needs of customers in other countries
how can the type of business influence change
if a business is innovative, it may keep coming up with better methods of doing things, so the business may continually change to use these new methods
how can the availability of new technology cause change
the business might change their production methods if new technology means production can be faster or cheaper.
what can new production methods lead to
shorter product life cycle
how can a change in consumer tastes lead to change
if consumer tastes change, the business might need to alter its product range to fit in with changing demand
what happens if the economy slows
people will have less disposable income, so product prices may need to be reduced
how can changes in the law lead to change
government restrictions on pollution may force businesses to alter their methods of production or change to a local supplier
how can changes in ethical views and social awareness lead to change
it may result in companies purchasing ethically sourced products from fair trade suppliers
how can changes in competition lead to a change
businesses could lose market share for particular products, and thus may need to act to regain their market share or prevent further losses
how can changes be beneficial
they can allow a business to take advantage of new, effective ideas, possibly saving time and money in the process
how may businesses be forced to change
the rate at which technology advances is speeding up, so change becomes more and more essential. For example, in the car manufacturing industry, it is necessary for businesses to be constantly developing up-to-date technology for their cars
why is incremental change gradual
it is usually the result of a strategic plan being put in place and often attempts to minimise disruption.
what do managers decide when it comes to change
a timescale for the necessary changes and then timetable strategies for achieving them
what speed is a disruptive change
it is sudden
what does disruptive change do
it forces firms to suddenly do things in a different way than usually. They may have to close or sell off subsidiary companies, spend heavily on promotions to raise customer confidence or totally restructure the way the firm’s organised.
what model is used to explain the change
lewin’s force field analysis
what is changing the organisational structure of a business known as
restructuring
why is beneficial to be a business that can restructure quickly and efficiently
they can adapt their structure in order to keep up with changes in the external environment or to implement a new strategy
what is the main reason for restructuring
to maximise the efficiency of decision making, communication and division of tasks in the business’s current situation.
what can restructuring do
it can reduce costs, which can make the business more competitive
why may a business decentralise in fast-changing environments
to give more power and flexibility to different departments or sites. E.g. in fashion chains, each store manager might be allowed t choose the stock for their store because they know what fashions the customers in their particular store are likely to be interested in
what is important to have during a time of hardship
a flexible organisational structure
why may a business with a flexible structure delayer
to reduce their costs, improve communication and give more responsibility to employees at lower levels of the hierarchy.
what do flatter structures usually have
quicker communication, as there are fewer poeple to pass messages through. this can help with decision-making in changing environments
what can delayering negatively do
it can lead to job losses. The business risks losing some vital skills and experiences, which could reduce the flexibility of the business in the future
what are the two basic types of business structure
mechanistic and organic
what is mechanistic business decision making
it uses a centralised, traditional structure, with a well-defined hierarchy of power. Decisions are made by managers at the top of the hierarchy
why do messages take a long time to travel through a mechanistic structure
because they have a tall structure
who is a mechanistic structure suited to
businesses that don’t need to adapt to change very often. Departments are given tasks which don’t vary much so it’s easy to assign resources efficiently, but I can be slow to make changes within the business.
what are employees like in a mechanistic structure
they are specialised in certain tasks and tend to work separately on them. For example, each marketing employee may focus on a specific market rather than all of them looking at the whole market
what does an organic structure use
a decentralised structure, meaning employees get more say in decision making
what is communication like in an organic structure
it uses a flat structure, which allows fast communication throughout the business
what is an organic structure best suited to
an uncertain, changing environment as information can be acted upon quickly
what are employees like in an organic structure
they usually work in teams to complete tasks, rather than each person having a strict single role. These teams can be adapted to suit the situation
what is knowledge and information management
the collection, organisation, distribution and application of knowledge and information within a business
what is the most useful data
directly relevant, correct, up-to-date and easy to analyse
what needs to happen to the data
it needs to be maintained and updated to make sure the most up-to-date information is accessible
what allows businesses to be more flexible
flexible employment contracts
what is the benefit of having zero-hours contracts
they can easily cope with increases and decreases in demand
how can a flexible workforce be achieved
By employing a mixture of core workers and peripheral workers - core workers can provide a stable environment for the change to take place and the peripheral workers can help with any additional work
how can a flexible business manage change
it can outsource some of its work
what are the downsides of flexible contracts
allowing people to work flexi-time could result in poor communication and teamwork between staff who work at different times. This could make it a lot more difficult to manage change effectively and businesses may need to put a strategy in place to deal with it
what is the most common barrier to change?
resistance
who came up with the four reasons for resistance to change
kotter and schlesinger
what are the four reasons for resistance to change
- self-interest - people are more concerned with their own situation
- misunderstanding - people resist change when they don’t fully understand
- low tolerance to change - they will resist change if they fear they won’t be able to develop the new skills
- different assessments of the situation - they may not be able to see the advantages brought about by the change
what is the first way to overcome resistance
education and communication
what do education and communication involve
managers need to raise awareness of the reasons for change and how it will be carried out. It involves discussions, presentations and reports
what is the second way to overcome resistance
participation and involvement
what do participation and involvement
key stakeholders should be involved in the design and implementation of change. If they participate in the decision-making process then they will feel more engaged and their ideas from part of the change
what is the third way to overcome change
facilitation and support
what do facilitation and support involve
listening to the concerns of the workforce by holding regular meetings will help workers to adjust as they’ll feel supported
what is the fourth way to overcome change
negotiation and agreement
what do negotiation and agreement involve
giving stakeholders opportunities to negotiate and compromise over key sticking points can lead to a full agreement on the proposed change
what is the fifth way to overcome change
manipulation and co-option
what do manipulation and co-option involve
an employee who is resistant to change may be given a desirable role in the decision-making process to gain their co-operation
what is the sixth way to overcome change
explicit and implicit coercion
what do explicit and implicit coercion involve
as a last resort, in order to speed up the process, a person may be threatened to comply with the planned changes or face consequences.
