Organisational Change Essay

Submitted By cg223
Words: 1664
Pages: 7

Contents
1. Introduction 2
2. Change models & their effectiveness to Human Resource Management and Organisational Change 3
2.1. Stage 1: Unfreeze 4
2.2. Stage 2: Transition 6
2.3. Stage 3: Refreeze 7
3. Conclusion & Recommendation 7
4. References 8

1. Introduction

To begin with an in depth explanation and definition of organisational change, it a process that has been developed over the years in terms of discovering the best techniques to implement at different stages of a company’s life; an important issue that every firm must constantly adopt in order to maintain competitiveness and efficiency. As a result of the ongoing external changes in its environment, whether at the strategic or operational level, companies must act accordingly in response to changes in taste, a crisis or whether the change was triggered by a leader within the organisation with motives to improve efficiency (Moran and Brightman, 2001: 111; Burnes, 2004; Hayes 2014). Change models are used as a means of making the necessary changes to an organisation’s development as effective as possible through the guiding of managers through the various stages of a model.
The process of change within organisations can be tricky should there not be good enough leadership nor the appropriate methods implemented to lead employees through change with confidence to avoid declines in performance. 70% of change initiatives fail as a result and the company may end up in a worse position after returning to its original state, or as close to it as possible (Higgs and Rowland, 2000; Quirke, 2008). This report will apply and demonstrate change models to Procter and Gamble’s (P&G) organisational change with regards to technological advances implemented as a means of innovating and improving the lives of their employees as well as their consumers.

2. Change models & their effectiveness to Human Resource Management and Organisational Change

While it is debateable which is the most effective model to implement to assure change within organisations it is of the opinion of the author that Lewin’s model (Figure 1) functions best across a wide range of industries. Its three step sequence of unfreeze, transition and refreeze will provide the foundation for this critical explanation. For the sake of application, this report will focus on the company’s implementation of new IT as it can help to maintain competitive advantage by making sure that information is managed properly.

Figure 1: Lewin’s Unfreeze Freeze Model (1943)

As a means of demonstrating the use of change models and their effectiveness in bringing about change within organisations, the author will also use Kotter’s 8-step linear model, found in Figure 2. The smaller stages of this model allow for organisations to be guided through an easier step-by-step process with which managers can also use to help assess what direction they should be going in with the intention of adapting a company’s culture.

2.1. Stage 1: Unfreeze
The purpose of the unfreeze stage is for managers to interact with organisational members using multifarious techniques, whether using soft HRM policies or hard policies, to establish a sense of urgency to the need for change within the company (Kotter, 1995 taken from Hayes, 2014). In the case of P&G, the company’s intention of implementing IT was to discontinue the problems that could be organised easily through machines.
Once this need for change is conveyed managers must choose their team, whether internal or from outside the company, to help portray a vision of a more desirable and realistic future state. In P&G UK’s case, the coalition was from Cincinnati headquartering by Passerini as the coalition conforms to the international operation of the company.
The company’s vision must be developed next as well as an effective strategy to give unconvinced employees a direction. P&G’s focus was on how new technologies should find purpose in its organisation, while the