Managing Change Flashcards

1
Q

how can a change in leadership/management lead to further changes

A

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

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2
Q

how could strong performances lead to a change

A

there could be the decision to expand the business, in order to take advantage of increased profits

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3
Q

how could weak performances lead to a change

A

it may lead to changes such as retrenchment

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4
Q

how could changes to the staff lead to a change

A

it could mean that the business no longer has the required skills and further changes need to be made.

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5
Q

how can business growth lead to changes

A

a business expanding into international markets may have to adapt its product range to match the needs of customers in other countries

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6
Q

how can the type of business influence change

A

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

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7
Q

how can the availability of new technology cause change

A

the business might change their production methods if new technology means production can be faster or cheaper.

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8
Q

what can new production methods lead to

A

shorter product life cycle

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9
Q

how can a change in consumer tastes lead to change

A

if consumer tastes change, the business might need to alter its product range to fit in with changing demand

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10
Q

what happens if the economy slows

A

people will have less disposable income, so product prices may need to be reduced

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11
Q

how can changes in the law lead to change

A

government restrictions on pollution may force businesses to alter their methods of production or change to a local supplier

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12
Q

how can changes in ethical views and social awareness lead to change

A

it may result in companies purchasing ethically sourced products from fair trade suppliers

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13
Q

how can changes in competition lead to a change

A

businesses could lose market share for particular products, and thus may need to act to regain their market share or prevent further losses

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14
Q

how can changes be beneficial

A

they can allow a business to take advantage of new, effective ideas, possibly saving time and money in the process

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15
Q

how may businesses be forced to change

A

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

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16
Q

why is incremental change gradual

A

it is usually the result of a strategic plan being put in place and often attempts to minimise disruption.

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17
Q

what do managers decide when it comes to change

A

a timescale for the necessary changes and then timetable strategies for achieving them

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18
Q

what speed is a disruptive change

A

it is sudden

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19
Q

what does disruptive change do

A

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.

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20
Q

what model is used to explain the change

A

lewin’s force field analysis

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21
Q

what is changing the organisational structure of a business known as

A

restructuring

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22
Q

why is beneficial to be a business that can restructure quickly and efficiently

A

they can adapt their structure in order to keep up with changes in the external environment or to implement a new strategy

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23
Q

what is the main reason for restructuring

A

to maximise the efficiency of decision making, communication and division of tasks in the business’s current situation.

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24
Q

what can restructuring do

A

it can reduce costs, which can make the business more competitive

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25
Q

why may a business decentralise in fast-changing environments

A

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

26
Q

what is important to have during a time of hardship

A

a flexible organisational structure

27
Q

why may a business with a flexible structure delayer

A

to reduce their costs, improve communication and give more responsibility to employees at lower levels of the hierarchy.

28
Q

what do flatter structures usually have

A

quicker communication, as there are fewer poeple to pass messages through. this can help with decision-making in changing environments

29
Q

what can delayering negatively do

A

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

30
Q

what are the two basic types of business structure

A

mechanistic and organic

31
Q

what is mechanistic business decision making

A

it uses a centralised, traditional structure, with a well-defined hierarchy of power. Decisions are made by managers at the top of the hierarchy

32
Q

why do messages take a long time to travel through a mechanistic structure

A

because they have a tall structure

33
Q

who is a mechanistic structure suited to

A

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.

34
Q

what are employees like in a mechanistic structure

A

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

35
Q

what does an organic structure use

A

a decentralised structure, meaning employees get more say in decision making

36
Q

what is communication like in an organic structure

A

it uses a flat structure, which allows fast communication throughout the business

37
Q

what is an organic structure best suited to

A

an uncertain, changing environment as information can be acted upon quickly

38
Q

what are employees like in an organic structure

A

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

39
Q

what is knowledge and information management

A

the collection, organisation, distribution and application of knowledge and information within a business

40
Q

what is the most useful data

A

directly relevant, correct, up-to-date and easy to analyse

41
Q

what needs to happen to the data

A

it needs to be maintained and updated to make sure the most up-to-date information is accessible

42
Q

what allows businesses to be more flexible

A

flexible employment contracts

43
Q

what is the benefit of having zero-hours contracts

A

they can easily cope with increases and decreases in demand

44
Q

how can a flexible workforce be achieved

A

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

45
Q

how can a flexible business manage change

A

it can outsource some of its work

46
Q

what are the downsides of flexible contracts

A

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

47
Q

what is the most common barrier to change?

A

resistance

48
Q

who came up with the four reasons for resistance to change

A

kotter and schlesinger

49
Q

what are the four reasons for resistance to change

A
  • 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
50
Q

what is the first way to overcome resistance

A

education and communication

51
Q

what do education and communication involve

A

managers need to raise awareness of the reasons for change and how it will be carried out. It involves discussions, presentations and reports

52
Q

what is the second way to overcome resistance

A

participation and involvement

53
Q

what do participation and involvement

A

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

54
Q

what is the third way to overcome change

A

facilitation and support

55
Q

what do facilitation and support involve

A

listening to the concerns of the workforce by holding regular meetings will help workers to adjust as they’ll feel supported

56
Q

what is the fourth way to overcome change

A

negotiation and agreement

57
Q

what do negotiation and agreement involve

A

giving stakeholders opportunities to negotiate and compromise over key sticking points can lead to a full agreement on the proposed change

58
Q

what is the fifth way to overcome change

A

manipulation and co-option

59
Q

what do manipulation and co-option involve

A

an employee who is resistant to change may be given a desirable role in the decision-making process to gain their co-operation

60
Q

what is the sixth way to overcome change

A

explicit and implicit coercion

61
Q

what do explicit and implicit coercion involve

A

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.