Leadership & Change

The world is changing. Technology, perception, age, even love, there seems to be hardly anything in life that does not change. According to Haanaes (2016), a company can only fail if it fails to change or it changes to fail. A successful leader maintains a good balance between the business’ strength and opportunities, or simply the balance of management and leadership, which reflects my last blog (Yukl 2013).

Figure 1 Balance between opposites (Murphy 2007)

Obviously, not everyone has the same attitude towards change. Individuals might aggressively resist it due to avoidance behaviour and fear of the unknown, some might actively involve in change from habits and personal perception, or some might simply be neutral (Murthy 2007). Organisational culture, availability of resources and the need for stability and power might also influence the resistance to change from an organisational perspective (Mullins 2016). This then leads to the next question: can the resistance be managed?

Lewin’s ‘Calm Waters’ process

Lewin’s ‘Calm Waters’ process gives a guideline on 3-step planned approaches to change, which French et al. (2013) later modified to 8 steps. He suggested that to implement a change. A manager should first recognise the problem then establish a plan to implement the most promising approach (Yukl 2013). The final stage involves stabilising the change and creating a new organisational culture which could be reinforcing the change or further decreasing the resistance or both (Mullin 2016, Murphy 2007).

As one of the first theories in change management, ‘refreezing’ is often criticised for its relevance to today as organisational change should be a continuous process (Burnes 2004). However, Elrod and Tippett (2002) defended by comparing later researches like Bupp’s theory and found most approaches are built on the foundation of Lewin’s model.

Figure 2 Comparison in different framework on change management (Adapted from Elrod and Tippett 2002)

       The second step of Lewin’s model is often the most challenging as the resistance level is highest (Mullins 2016). Kubler-Ross described followers might demonstrate the emotions of ‘anger’, ‘bargaining’ and ‘depression’ which should be carefully managed (Elrod and Tippett 2002). CMI (2014) suggested to implement a successful change programme and reduce cost and risk from resistance. Managers should follow a checklist which includes; agreeing on a strategy, setting timeframes, clear communication, employee participations, personalisation on the change programme, employee motivations, skills development e.t.c. A successful manager not only should plan and identify the possible outcomes from change, but also could demonstrate transformational leadership including charisma, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation and individualised consideration as suggested by Bass (Mullins 2016). A good balance of legitimate authority and attention to subordinates’ values could also help manage resistance (Mullins 2016). Nevertheless, most studies suggested that a successful manager should embrace the indifferences and reduce the cost and risk of change from resistance (Murphy 2007).

This then recalls to my first blog that a successful leadership is a combination of change and ethics integration. The Xerox example shows how the company has transformed from hardware and technology provider to a customer-facing service provider (CBC News 2014). Burns effectively used her charisma, idealised influence and expression of confidence to gain trust from the board and shareholders to implement the change (Hymowitz 2013). She did not reinvent Xerox in one go. She first started off with identifying Xerox’s financial problem, then moving to dismantle the organisation’s loss-making manufacturing unit. She would then pause to check whether the transformation is successful enough to support a second change (CBC News 2014). This is reflecting the Lewin’s 3 step model. Although there was strong resistance from employees as reflected in the bad reputation she had received during the transition, after the success of Xerox she is often considered as a powerful and visionary leader (Burns 2015).

To implement successful change, the top priority should be to create a relationship of trust and commitment. Feeling of involvement can create a willingness to accept change. In this accelerated changing business environment, it is sometimes not a ‘need’ to change but a ‘must’ to change especially towards digital advances. Famous business examples of failing to adapt like Nokia and Kodak is often related to technology. A successful change manager should always have high awareness and understanding of the social factors and human behaviours surrounding the business.

References

Burnes, B. (2004). Managing change. Essex: Pearson Education.

CBC News (2014). Xerox CEO Ursula Burns on how she transformed the company.

CMI (2014). Implementing an Effective Change Programme.

Elrod, P. and Tippett, D. (2002). The “death valley” of change. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 15(3), pp.273-291.

Fresh Copy: How Ursula Burns Reinvented Xerox. (2017). Fast Company.

Mullins, L. and Christy, G. (2016). Management and organisational behaviour.

Murthy, C. (2007). Change management. Himalaya Pub. House Pvt. Ltd.

Two reasons companies fail and how to avoid them. (2015). Directed by K. Haanaes. London: TED.

Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in organizations. Boston: Pearson.