Handbook Change Management E-Book

Georg Kraus

• Herausgeber: Books on Demand
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 472

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Beschreibung

This handbook, translated from the German, deals with change processes in companies and organizations. It provides information on the fundamental principles, background and methods and instruments of change management and is aimed at those responsible for change management within companies and organizations, as well as at external consultants, coaches and trainers. The book combines the focal areas of organizational development and human resources within a single holistic approach to the planning and management of change processes, offering guidance on: - The fundamental principles, leadership, dynamics and management of change processes and corporate/organizational culture - Typical errors to avoid; success factors - Specific instruments of change management, divided into structural and analogous interventions - Environment and limiting factors, organizational forms and consulting issues The authors are experienced change management consultants: Prof. Dr. Georg Kraus is owner of Dr. Kraus & Partner Bruchsal, one of the leading change management consultant firms in Germany and professor for leadership and interpersonal skills, Christel Becker-Kolle is a psychologist with a deep understanding of personal transformation and Thomas Fischer a highly-experienced change management trainer.

Leseprobe

The Authors

Dr Georg Kraus

Dipl.-Wirtschaftsingenieur (equiv. to a Master’s degree in industrial engineering). Georg is a lecturer at the Clausthal University of Technology and possesses long-standing experience as a change management consultant. He supports companies in the execution of turnaround processes.

Christel Becker-Kolle

Dipl.-Psychologin (equiv. to a Master’s degree in psychology) and business economist with formal education in business philosophy and business culture management. In her work as a consultant and coach, Christel builds on the experience amassed during her time as human resources manager and manager of organizational and HR development departments in a variety of companies. She has advised these companies during both the set-up and dismantling phases.

Thomas Fischer

Dipl.-Psychologe (equiv. to a Master’s degree in psychology). Thomas began his professional career as a change management consultant at a business consulting firm. He then went on to gain several years of experience as a management trainer and coach at a large bank, where he led change projects and supported project managers and senior management in the implementation of change processes. He has worked as a freelance consultant since 1998, training senior management and project managers, as well as advising companies on change projects.

Table of Contents

The Authors

Summary

What is Change Management?

1.1 Reasons and Causes for Change Management

1.2 Segments of Change Management

1.3 Aspects of Change Management

1.4 Standard Procedure of Change Management

Types of Change Processes

2.1 Reengineering, Restructuring and Crisis

2.1.1 Positioning

2.1.2 Process description

2.1.3 Process redesign

2.1.4 Controlling

2.1.5 Conclusion

2.2 Strategic redesign

2.2.1 Interventions

2.2.1.1 Role interventions

2.2.1.2 Relationship interventions

2.2.1.3 Communication interventions

2.2.2 Conclusion

2.3 Organizational Development

2.4 Lean Management

2.4.1 Group work

2.4.2 Kaizen

2.4.3 Conclusion

2.5 Learning organizations

2.5.1 Single-loop learning

2.5.2 Double-loop learning

2.5.3 Deutero-learning

2.5.4 Conclusion

Leadership in the change process

3.1 Basics of leadership

3.2 Typical management behavior patterns

3.2.1 Management

3.2.1.1 Driver

3.2.1.2 Willing spectators

3.2.1.3 Objector

3.2.1.4 Disgruntled observer

3.2.2 Top Level Management

3.3 Leadership tasks during change processes

3.3.1 Change concept design

3.3.2 Provide direction and motivation

3.3.3 Guide and stabilize implementation

3.3.4 Individual change

3.4 Dealing with resistance

3.5 Leadership styles during change processes

3.5.1 How to lead drivers

3.5.2 How to lead willing spectators

3.5.3 How to lead disgruntled observers

3.5.4 How to lead objectors

3.6 Leadership and steering impulses during the change phases

3.7 Strategic leadership

3.8 Application of leadership techniques and tools in the change process

3.8.1 Management by objectives

3.8.2 Managing of goal achievement through praise and critique

3.8.3 Coaching

3.8.4 Employee appraisals and annual employee evaluations

3.9 Leadership at the edge of chaos – organization and self-organization

3.10 Requirements for change managers

Dynamics of change

4.1 General information

4.2 Level of change

4.2.1 Surroundings and environment level

4.2.2 Behavior level

4.2.3 Abilities and skills level

4.2.4 Values, norms, and beliefs level

4.2.5 Identity level

4.2.6 Meaning and spirituality level

4.3 Phases of change

4.3.1 Shock phase

4.3.2 Denial and rejection phase

4.3.3 Curiosity phase

4.3.4 Testing phase

4.3.5 Realization phase

4.3.6 Consolidation phase

4.4 Individual preferences in change dynamics

4.4.1 Personality aspects in change dynamics

4.4.2 Individual experiences in change dynamics

4.5 Group processes as a reaction to change

4.5.1 Solidarity and Coalitions

4.5.2 Exclusion

4.5.3 Power plays, intrigues, and micro politics

4.6 Differences in the pace of change in an organization

4.7 Demands on leadership and management during change processes

4.7.1 Awareness

4.7.2 Interpretation of indicators

4.7.3 Reactions

Systemic management of change processes

5.1 Develop a sense of urgency for the need to change

5.2 Build coalitions

5.3 Developing a vision and clear strategies

5.4 Share the vision

5.5 Empowerment of employees to overcome resistance

5.6 Ensure short-term wins

5.7 Consolidate improvements and drive forward change

5.8 Anchor the changes into the organizational culture

Organizational culture / corporate culture

6.1 Developing awareness of organizational culture / corporate culture

6.2 Definition and objective of corporate culture

6.3 Basics of organizational culture change

6.3.1 Unplanned changes in corporate culture

6.3.2 Planned changes in corporate culture

6.4 Steps during change in organizational culture

6.4.1 Analysis of previous organizational culture

6.4.2 Concept of a new organizational culture

6.4.3 Measures for implementation / change of organizational culture

6.4.4 Evaluation of cultural change

6.5 Things to consider in cultural change

6.6 Criticism of the usefulness of organizational culture

6.7 Mission statement and corporate governance

Typical mistakes in change processes

7.1 Blind start – insufficient analysis of status quo

7.2 Insufficient problem awareness (it’s all good)

7.3 Truth in installments – bad communication and information

7.4 Eat or be eaten – bad choice of approach

7.5 Throwing bombs and not invented here – unprofessional stakeholder management

7.6 Everything at once – too much, too quickly

7.7 Benefit or emotional pressure – never heard of

7.8 Why methods, if we can do without

7.9 Controlling is fine – but we are already way ahead

7.10 Political games

Factors for success in change processes

8.1 Each change needs to be based on a diagnosis

8.2 Start at the root of the problem

8.3 Focus on the customer

8.4 Professional design of the awakening

8.5 Create individual benefit and / or use emotional pressure

8.6 Create transparency and clarity

8.7 Support from top management

8.8 Winning over middle management

8.9 Including and involving affected employees

8.10 Right timing and right pace

8.11 Project management planning and implementation

8.12 Professional controlling

8.13 Consistent actions

Role of stakeholders in the change process

Structural interventions

10.1 Benchmarking

10.1.1 Determination of benchmark object

10.1.2 Description and analysis

10.1.3 Benchmarking partner

10.1.4 Analysis of differences

10.1.5 Plan of action

10.1.6 Securing the results

10.2 Strategy development

10.2.1 Strategy horizons

10.2.2 Key questions for strategy development

10.2.3 Portfolio analyses

10.2.4 Strategy as a loop

10.3 SWOT

10.4 Organizational diagnosis

10.5 Intervention design

10.6 Network of committees

10.7 Communication matrix

10.8 TCP matrix

10.9 Project management

10.9.1 Project contract

10.9.2 Project kick-off

10.9.3 Project organization

10.9.4 Project structure plan and milestone plan

10.9.5 Reporting

10.10 Employee surveys

10.10.1 Term and function of an employee survey

10.10.2 Variations of employee surveys

10.10.3 Employee surveys as a tool for continuous organizational development

10.10.4 Results of employee surveys as an element of change management

10.10.5 Process of employee surveys

10.10.6 Special problems, dangers, and mistakes

10.10.7 Conclusion

Analogue interventions in change processes

11.1 General information

11.2 Definition and goals of analogue interventions

11.2.1 Criteria of analogue interventions

11.3 Possible applications of analogue interventions

11.3.1 Analogue methods and interventions in strategy processing

11.3.2 Analogue methods and interventions in development of organizational culture

11.3.3 Analogue methods and interventions in organizational communication

11.3.4 Analogue methods and interventions in organizational development

11.3.5 Analogue methods and interventions in human resource development

11.3.6. Analogue interventions in other applications

11.4 Criticism of analogue interventions

11.5 Special considerations during implementation and application of analogue interventions

Organizational structures

12.1 Functional structure

12.2 Functionally centralized and decentralized structures

12.3 Regionally centralized and decentralized structures

12.4 Customer and service orientation

12.5 Organizational integration models

12.5.1 Group work, manufacturing islands

12.5.2 Workflow

12.6 Outsourcing models

12.6.1 Telecommuting

12.6.2 Centers

12.6.3 Outsourcing, globalization

12.7 Hierarchies

12.8 Anticyclical trends

12.9 Conclusion

External and internal consultants during change processes

13.1 Role of external consultants

13.2 Consulting from internal human resources and organizational development departments

13.2.1 Consulting, conception, and implementation of change management processes

13.2.2 Changes in human resource development concepts caused by change management measures

13.2.3 Criticism of “the magic of change”

13.2.4 Conclusion

13.3 The role of finance in change processes

13.3.1 Transformation of corporate accounting in financial controlling

13.3.2 Finance as a co-creator of change processes

13.3.3 Changes in financial controlling caused by change processes

13.3.4 Implementation of changes in the finance department

Index

Summary

This handbook, translated from the German, deals with change processes in companies and organizations. It provides information on the fundamental principles, background and methods and instruments of change management and is aimed at those responsible for change management within companies and organizations, as well as at external consultants, coaches and trainers.

The book combines the focal areas of organizational development and human resources within a single holistic approach to the planning and management of change processes, offering guidance on:

The fundamental principles, leadership, dynamics and management of change processes and corporate / organizational culture

Typical errors to avoid; success factors

Specific instruments of change management, divided into structural and analogous interventions

Environment and limiting factors, organizational forms, and legal and consulting issues

Case studies for prototypes of change processes

The authors draw on a corresponding spectrum of qualifications and experiences: Christel Becker-Kolle is a business economist and trained psychologist, Thomas Fischer is a trained psychologist and Dr. Georg Kraus is a trained industrial engineer. All three authors are active as consultants.

1 What is Change Management?

Change is part of life. Despite this fact, people strive for stability. The desire to have control, security and order often shape the way we think and act. It is difficult to determine the source of this need. Is it an early childhood longing for security? Is it because we constantly attempt to reduce the complexity of reality to a point where it makes sense? There are several models that attempt to explain why humans tend to hold on to the present state. Though the analysis of these basic patterns is an interesting and revealing study, this work will focus on the symptoms and behavior patterns rather than the psychological and evolutionary biological explanatory models of the human being. The following axioms are the basis of this study in change management.

Nothing is stationary, everything constantly changes

We change biologically every day as we grow older. Through age and information, our knowledge changes, as does our way of thinking. Organizations change, even unconsciously as employees change their base of knowledge through experience. Regardless of these daily shifts, many hold on to the status quo.

Change is not always easily recognized by the observer

There are changes that are not visible to the observer. The homo sapiens does not recognize the evolution of the homo sapiens. We can develop an evolutionary theory based on the past, but we cannot see that we are caught up in this biological process of change ourselves. This also applies to observations of natural phenomena such as mountains. Erosion is so minimal to the observer that he cannot see the change within his conception of time. Change managers like to bring up the “boiled frog” example. If you throw a frog into hot water it will jump right back out. If you put the frog in cold water, however, and slowly heat it up, it will not be aware of the gradual increase in temperature. More often than not, it will miss the point at which it could jump out of the pot. The water is then so warm that the frog’s extremities are numb and it can no longer jump, even though it wants to. This example symbolizes how dangerous it is to overlook change.

It is often difficult to recognize one’s own change

We are often not aware of our own change. Our surroundings then serve as a mirror for our change. People who have developed a good defense mechanism towards feedback and criticism are at risk of changing in a certain direction without noticing. This is often referred to as “step-by-step realization”. We don’t recognize our own change until an outside impulse, such as an event, feedback, or a crisis make us realize that

our self-image needs to be revised.

Change brings uncertainty and is therefore often avoided

We prefer to live in a state of clarity. Rituals and traditions make us feel as though the world is controlled and manageable. This longing for perceived security can be observed in small settings (e. g. marriage) as well as in large settings (e. g. traditions and religions). The creation of illusions as a form of security is an important engine in human behavior.

Change often requires physical and psychological energy and is therefore often avoided

It is exhausting to deal with change. It is uncomfortable to observe, evaluate, and adjust to change in our surroundings and within ourselves. Therefore, if we can sidestep change, we often will.

With any change, there are winners and losers

Change usually leads to a shift in power, as social structures and hierarchies alter. Benefits that we have grown accustomed to are removed or given to others, responsibilities are adjusted, and social demands are questioned. Some individuals are affected, while others are involved. “Scrambled eggs with bacon” is a good analogy. When you make scrambled eggs with bacon, the chicken is involved and the pig is affected. Change is similar and resistance is therefore more or less intense. Those involved agree or observe, while those impacted fight openly or secretly against the change. Each person focuses on their own well-being and can individually reject and boycott necessary change if they believe they will emerge as losers. An example are dictators, who are not willing to support change in their country because of their own need for self-preservation.

Time strengthens structures (in thinking and in organizations)

The longer people have experienced and approved of certain structures, the more difficult it is to let them go. Because of this, older people tend to struggle with a change in their thinking more than others. Traditional organizational structures are often perceived as “given” and are, therefore, not questioned. The ability to mirror observations with our own encounters and to make judgements based on these experiences makes daily life easier, because we do not need to constantly question everything. But it also leads to an acceptance of familiar phenomena and a failure to question the status quo. This, in turn leads to a so-called “operational blindness”.

Most changes in the history of change processes were so-called “big bangs”. Big changes, apart from those caused by nature, such as volcano eruptions or periods of drought, were often attributed to a crisis. Generally, a situation was exhausted and stretched to the limit until people were ready to act. In some cases, the resistance to change was so strong, that entire societies perished rather than adjust to the new circumstances. While reacting to a crisis can be viewed as “dealing with change”, it is not considered a rational approach, as the focus becomes crisis management. A continuous process of change, during which people constantly confront and adjust, is much more desirable. This applies to leaders as well as followers.

The objective of this book is to explain why change management is the one of the most important leadership skills and to illustrate how leaders should approach change. The term “change management” has only become popular in the past few years and originates with the Anglo-Saxon language, as do many management vocabularies. The term “organizational change management” is also a common business term, but is aligned with the people side of change management. For the purpose of this book and in following the latest trend, we will use the term “change management” to describe professional management of change rather than tie it to a methodological concept. Change management should therefore be considered a metaconcept that summarizes individual enhancing or contradicting concepts. We will describe each facet of managing change in addition to describing entire concepts as an integrated approach to the subject.

Although change management has played a role for as long as mankind exists, we will focus on the modern definition within this book. Change management has its roots in the 1950s. Until the 1960s most organizations had a strong hierarchical structure. Employees were generally given clearly defined tasks. The organization was seen as absolute and the authority of superiors was generally accepted without question.

The generation of 68, those that protested the social constraints of the time, called for a stronger focus on employees. Activities around group dynamics, team training and team development began popping up in organizations. These employee-oriented approaches further evolved over time and were labelled “organizational development” in the 80s. Most of these organizational development approaches continued to focus heavily on influencing employee behavior and showed signs of evolving into the group dynamic approach. Until the mid-1990s, there was a clear distinction between structural and strategic changes in an organization and employee focused reform. Since the proponents of these approaches represent different practices, this is understandable. A more integrated view of “driving change” has emerged only in the past ten years.

The Springer Gabler business dictionary defines change management as the strategy of planned and systematic change, which happens when organizational structure, corporate culture, and individual behavior is influenced, with the greatest possible inclusion of all involved employees. The chosen holistic perspective takes into consideration the interaction between individuals, groups, organizations, technology, environment, time and communication patterns, value structures, power constellations, etc., which exist in the relevant organization.

1.1 Reasons and Causes for Change Management

There are multiple reasons for change. The following list gives examples of possible causes of change processes:

Financial crisis

Change in the market

New technologies

New management

Global projects / cooperation

Knowledge management

Management training

Changes in the environment (i. e. privatization or new legal requirements)

Organizational changes

Mergers

Outsourcing

Process changes

Project work

New forms of work organization

There are generally three ways in which change can occur:

Crisis / Revolution

Renewal / Change

Adaptation / Evolution

A crisis constitutes a change due to external factors and requires quick action and deep cuts. The organization must adapt in order to survive. Renewal or planned change is a planned strategic restructuring of an organization. Management recognizes it and reinvents the organization. Adaptation is an evolutionary approach, where those involved continuously work on their personal development.

1.2 Segments of Change Management

Although most change processes and methods are distinctive, we were able to identify certain common characteristics on a higher level. The following three categories should always be considered when approaching change.

Strategy-Structure-Culture Triangle

Change therefore requires direction (strategy), clarification of processes and organization (structure), and involvement of people (culture). No matter how complex the change process, these three levels will help you ask the questions necessary to achieve a successful transformation.

1.3 Aspects of Change Management

Apart from strategy, structure, and culture we have observed an emphasis on the architecture of change. One of the change manager’s main tasks is therefore to design and support the process in a concise and professional manner.

Factual level

(information, organizational structures and staff planning)

Change management is often related to changes in the organization. People will be required to work together in a different way. A critical function of change management is to professionally analyze, plan, and implement these shifts.

Process level

(with a focus on direction, steps and efforts)

The importance of the process level has been underestimated in the past. Change cannot happen with the click of a button. Sometimes it can take years to implement. The successful design and support of the change process within an organization is one of the most important tasks in change management.

Historical level

(history and corporate culture)

It is important to understand and integrate the history of an organization. Change managers can only design the right change processes if they understand where people come from and what traditions and rituals shape the organization.

Personal or psychological Level

(behavior, attitudes, fear, motivation and resistance)

Recognizing the resistance to change, identifying winners and losers, relieving fears and reaching people on a personal level are all important features of successful change. This is often underestimated, as many managers approach change mechanically and fail to involve the people that will be affected.

1.4 Standard Procedure of Change Management

Change management is often seen as a “project”. The need for change is recognized, management agrees that it is the right time for change, goals are formulated, and the project is realized. The following illustrates the “standard sequence” of change.

Standard procedure of a change process (as a project)

Analyze

Outline problems

Formulate the “case for change”

Identify resources for the transformation

Formulate objectives

Create a vision

Inventory existing ideas for future conditions

Set goals

Determine criteria for successful goal achievement

Generate commitment

Involve and gain buy-in from key stakeholders

Set rules

Design the intervention

Shape and establish the organization of change

Determine projects that need to be completed

Design communication structure

Define benchmarks

Project management

Implement projects

Monitor change progress and adjust if needed

Determine next steps

Perform review and conduct feedback loops

End process or establish a standard operating procedure

Add new processes as needed

This project approach is commonly viewed as the most effective method for implementing change. Within the past twenty years, a strong demand for “continuous change” has emerged, however, this cannot be accomplished through a single project plan. Concepts like kaizen (continuous improvement) and “learning organizations” emerged. This type of change management is subtler and not tied directly to one single need for change. Rather, it is important to keep an organization “fit” and flexible, so that it can recognize and react to change in its environment.

Dealing with change in a systematic way will be increasingly important in the future. But we must also recognize undesirable developments. Some organizations seem to believe that change is simply a trend. Contemporary managers put the subject of change on their agenda, but intend to conduct methodical change, which results in employees being confronted with new concepts on a semi-annual basis. We believe this to be a misinterpretation of the term change management, especially because it ignores certain levels (i. e. personal level, historical level).

Most change managers are faced with the challenge of change needing to occur alongside regular business operations. The organization cannot be shut down while implementing change. Instead, change must happen during regular business hours. Organizational change is like an airplane that needs to be completely remodeled in flight without compromising the security of the passengers. This scenario places a great deal of pressure on employees, as well as the entire organization. Successful change management, therefore, involves balancing daily operations and with the change process.

2 Types of Change Processes

Over the course of the 20th century, several concepts in the practice of “dealing with change in organizations” have been established. The effectiveness of the relevant concepts depends on the specific situation in the organization. Organizations that are in crisis, for example, and need to completely re-invent themselves, require a different approach than organizations that are well-positioned, but seeking improvements. Leadership should, therefore, assess the organization and determine to what degree change is needed and gage employees’ willingness to change. The greater the need for change in an organization, the more aggressive and sturdier the concepts for implementation must be. The higher the willingness to change, the more involved and employee-focused the process will be.

The following diagram introduces the most well-known concepts used in organizational change within the past fifty years.

2.1 Reengineering, Restructuring and Crisis

Hammer and Champy initiated Business Process Reengineering (BPR) trend in 1993 with their book “Reengineering the Corporation”. The objective of this practice is to attain increased customer satisfaction and organizational performance of revolutionary magnitude – “we are talking quantum leaps”. The business model needs to be fundamentally redesigned in order to prepare the organization for new market demands. To lower costs and increase service quality, a radical redesign and reorganization of an enterprise is necessary. The concept is fundamentally top-down oriented and is especially successful when a high pressure situation, or crisis, dictates perception.

The principles are:

Alignment of core business processes

Focus of critical business processes on the customer

Emphasis on core competencies

Use of modern information technologies

Reengineering concepts are rather mechanical in their approach, while people play a minor role. Focus is on a strategic remodeling and restructuring of the organization. The change manager follows these four steps: positioning, process description, process design and controlling.

2.1.1 Positioning

Positioning is the base for a successful initiation and fulfillment of the BPR process. The change manager must:

Analyze the performance of existing processes

Redesign operational and strategic goals of the organization

Outline organizational infrastructure

Describe existing corporate culture

The change manager can use the following Business Reengineering tools:

Benchmarking

Monetary models

Value chain (according to Porter)

IT tools

Process cost mapping

Change Management

Controlling

2.1.2 Process description

Process analysis and description are very important in this concept and are conducted using the following steps:

Tool

Technique

Process modeling

Illustration of business processes in an organization Illustration of process related functions (tasks, responsibilities) within the content and time related dependencies with the use of link operators (and, or, exclusively) due to high complexity performed with computer support

Process simulation

Time simulation (for separate tasks) Simulation of probability distributions Horizontal positioning of vertical operational practices in relation to operational processes

2.1.3 Process redesign

In process redesign, operational practices are aligned with strategic challenges pursuing the following targets:

Decisions and responsibilities are transferred to the process teams

Consolidation of positions, minimizing of interfaces

Performance of tasks by optimal location (principle of origination)

Parallelization of process steps

Combination of centralized and decentralized tasks

2.1.4 Controlling

Applied measures and reorganizations need to be monitored. If necessary, processes will be continuously improved.

2.1.5 Conclusion

Hammer and Champy themselves admitted that reorganizations fail approximately nine times out of ten. The presumption is that revolutionizing organizations is not a model for success from a mechanical point of view. It is difficult to illustrate the complexity of reality in a purely mechanical way. Excluding employees in the process generates a resistance that works against an otherwise reasonable concept.

2.2 Strategic redesign

Reengineering concepts are the basis for an approach that is similar in thought, but focuses more on maintaining resources and self-organization. Like reengineering, the goal is to adapt the organization to the needs of the environment and is a top-down process. The considerable difference lies in the involvement of employees and middle management in the thought process and implementation. In addition to the methods for “operational optimization”, methods for employee involvement are introduced, allowing employees to identify with the change process. An intervention design is created to identify when and to what extent employees are being engaged in the process and what “interventions” are being employed.

When designing interventions, it is important to realize that they can happen on different levels (Willke, 1995):

Factual dimension:

The main focus and objectives of the processes, such as promoting potential options for the organizational structure within the change process framework.

Timely dimension:

The scheduling of interventions to create a timetable for framework and contexts of meaning, such as a clear beginning and end of a process, benchmarks and content delivery deadlines for plenary and group processes, locations and time off, or even content related working depth.

Social dimension:

Who is working with whom in what kind of structure to come to what type of events? Are decision makers included, whose attendance is required to solver certain problems, what topics can be discussed in what type of social settings (i. e. a conflict in a large group setting of more than 20 people, in several smaller sub-groups of 5 – 20 people, in small groups of 2 – 5 people, or individually).

Spatial dimension:

Where are interventions held – inside the organization or outside, in a hotel or outdoors, what does the work area look like (tables, seating arrangements, location for securing results, rooms for small groups, all the way to the atmosphere in the room, such as lighting or colors)?

2.2.1 Interventions

Within the framework of intervention design these three types of interventions should be considered:

Role interventions

Relationship interventions

Communication interventions

2.2.1.1 Role interventions

In a role intervention, those involved in a change process are assigned a role. Roles tend to broaden, especially during phases of change, which often leads to uncertainty about the division of responsibilities, resulting in frustration. The main goal of role interventions is to provide involved and concerned parties clarity about, or to redefine, their roles.

Management Workshops for those involved in the change process can be helpful in answering the following questions:

Competencies and responsibilities

Are employees ready to take on specific roles?

Do they understand the responsibilities involved in these roles?

Can they achieve their personal visions in the redefined roles?

Mental models

Which mental models (images of self and environment) role definition and responsibilities are being used by team members?

Which collective mental model of shared work can be identified?

Are there differences between “thought” and “action”?

Common goals

Are defined roles aligned to reach a common goal?

What responsibilities need to be outlined in order to reach the common goal and how are the tasks assigned?

How are the various roles distributed across the dimensions of highly engaged (commitment) to unengaged (apathy)?

Know-how

What is the “know-how” of the team across the given role distribution?

As in sports, if individuals play together as a team, is the result less or more than the sum of the individual pieces?

Does common knowledge exist? If not, what are the obstacles in achieving it?

2.2.1.2 Relationship interventions

Social relationships are shaped by personal, social, factual, and emotional factors and can be observed in verbal and non-verbal communication. Relationship interventions target patterns of social relationships. Communication is the basis of social activities, but each communication has a relationship aspects. These relationship aspects are often apparent when observing the differences between verbal and non-verbal communication, as well as between formal and informal relationships. Workshops can help in determining the following:

Relationship network:

Where are the observed relationships across the dimensions of consensus and control? Can relationships be described as passive, overloaded, floating, or active?

Relationship pattern:

Where do relationships between members stand across the dimensions of autonomy and coherence? Are they clear forms (hierarchy, network, and democracy) or mixed forms?

Allocation of tasks:

How are tasks distributed among employees? Are there tasks conducted the majority? Are there dependencies across tasks? How are tasks relevant to others?

Evaluation of intervention opportunities:

Which parameters of social relationships appear to be critical intervention points? Are there correlations between tasks and relationships?

2.2.1.3 Communication interventions

The pre-requisites for successful communication are 1) relevant information, 2) penetrating connection (docking), and 3) willingness to communicate. Communication interventions target patterns of communication that allow and support the acceptance and transparency of communication. To achieve successful communication, three steps are crucial:

Parting with the telephone model (problem of information)

Communication is not simply the transfer of complete information parts from the sender to the receiver. One of the biggest factors in unsuccessful communication is the belief that the quality of communication depends solely on the accuracy of given information. It is important that information also makes sense and is relevant to the receiver. In the telephone model of communication, ambiguity and misinterpretation represent the biggest obstacles to successful communication. When these hurdles can be eliminated, communication should be successful.

Parting with the command-obedience model (problem of arrival of information)

In complex and professional relationships, the command-obedience model cannot be used to achieve a desired steering effect. There are too many opportunities to be evasive and to object. The sender is responsible for his message to be heard – and understood. Within the command-obedience model of communication, there are two sources for communication barriers: the extent of the sender’s authority and the receiver’s willingness to obey. If the manager or consultant has the required authority and if required motives to obey are present, communication should be successful.

Using the dialogue model

Communication is the processing of relevant differences. An effective model for social communication must be more complex. Communication is a process of transformation, which is dictated in large part by the operational terms of the communicating systems (i. e. people, groups, departments, organizations). The dialogue model of communication outlines the actual extent of barriers to communication that must be overcome in order to be able to communicate effectively and successfully. Communication is not just the sending of complete messages, but also, a system of understanding information, accepting information, and processing information. Communication will rarely be successful without translation. Since each system values only its own relevance, speaks its own language, and processes information according to its own preferences, translation is needed to achieve successful communication.

Within the framework of change processes, the change manager is responsible for creating a platform that accommodates the necessary translation. Groups can be assembled for this purpose, but the goal must be to involve all parties to ensure understanding of the goal and the process of change.

2.2.2 Conclusion

Strategic redesign is currently the most integrated approach. The combination of change on a structural level and involvement of employees yields the greatest chances for success. This approach is also fueled by the logic of “change over time”. The goal is to adjust an unsatisfying situation and to establish a new one. However, the model lacks the logic of permanent change.

2.3 Organizational Development

Organizational development (OD) is a professional tool for the design of change processes that originated in a socio-psychological environment about sixty years ago. The concept of organizational development can be traced back to three sources: the “laboratory method” and the “survey-feedback” approaches developed by psychologist Kurt Lewin, a modern pioneer of organizational, social and applied psychology, as well as the social science work of the London Tavistock Institute of Human Relation.

OD methods and concepts are characterized by a process oriented evolutionary development approach. They are dedicated to the activation and expansion of the potential that exists within an organization and its members. The organization and its members are empowered to influence the requirements of internal and external environments. They are tasked with identifying relevant answers and implementing solutions in coaching and assessment sessions, workshops and seminars, team and department development meetings, group events and certifications. These are the basic intervention levels:

Interventions on an individual level (i. e. coaching, supervision, feedback, training)

Interventions on an interpersonal or team level (i. e. coaching, supervision, role clarification, training, process consultation, team building)

Interventions on an intergroup and organizational level (i. e. organizational analysis by a consultant, introduction of feedback tools such as evaluation by a supervisor or employee feedback)

Based on a relevant analysis of the situation, measures will be developed to improve work success as well as work satisfaction.

While work satisfaction is viewed as a necessary condition for development and improvement in other concepts, it is the starting point and catalyst of change in organizational development.

Organizational development philosophy:

Actively involve people and groups in the development and implementation of solutions and answers.

Use problems and opportunities as starting points and catalysts for change.

Continuously design and steer change measures in a process oriented way.

The goal of OD, above all, is to further the development of an organization at the cultural level. The following effects should be targeted, according to Cornelli (1995):

Shift in leadership style towards employee involvement

Environment improvement

Open and direct communication

Efficient cooperation

Improvement in conflict resolution

Improvement in decision making through participation

Increase in trust in the organization, which results in less resistance of necessary structural adjustments

Application of effective teamwork techniques

Increase in change awareness and change readiness

Increased engagement

Increased satisfaction

The success of organizational development is tied to certain conditions. The main requirement is that the organization is ready for the process, so that participatory organizational development methods are not overwhelming. In addition, there needs to be awareness that a problem exists. Organizational development as a participative method is relatively time consuming. Therefore, it is important that there is no time pressure. It is critical to conduct a problem analysis at the beginning of each organizational development process to ensure that measures are in place. To ensure that those involved can handle the process and can be successful, measures should be taken in small steps. The purpose and goals of change must be clearly defined to ensure and clarify everyone’s involvement. Full disclosure, trust, and transparency must be present throughout the process of organizational development, and progress and success should be noted accordingly. The involvement of an external consultant, who oversees the change process and conducts supervision sessions, can be beneficial for a successful organizational development.

2.4 Lean Management

This approach originates in the automobile industry. With the publication of The Machine that Changed the World in 1990 by Womack, Jones, and Ross, based on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) study of the automobile industry, a new approach to organizational design was introduced. Never before had the differences in performance measures among large organizations in Japan, Europe, and the United States, resulting in the failure of the western automobile industry, been highlighted in such clarity (Haug, Martens & Pudeg, 1993). Only a change in manufacturing organization and corporate culture could avert a descent into insignificance. The MIT authors also presented possible solutions for the western industry: the prevalent and most successful management principle of that time was lean management, or lean production. The philosophy of these principles was described with terms such as kaizen or continuous improvement process (CIP). With the help of a lean production, the advantages of mass production (cheap and fast) were linked to the advantages of manual production (quality and flexibility). During the course of reorganizing, several similar management concepts surfaced in the 90s, all of which have their roots in lean management. These management approaches are especially effective in improving work organization and better utilizing employee skills.

Lean management is implemented in the following steps:

Definition of the organization’s vision, culture, and identity

Deduction of lean management strategies and goals

Description of essential factors for success

Determination of measures for implementation of lean management

The following parameters are important:

The emphasis of lean management is on optimizing manufacturing organization. Though advocates of the lean management approach insist that it can also be applied to administration, practice shows that manufacturing organizations introduce lean concepts regularly. The emphasis is on the introduction of “new forms of work organization”, which encompasses the following management principles: Group work and kaizen or continuous improvement process (CIP).

2.4.1 Group work

Group work as a central new form of work organization is a requirement and starting point for the development of competencies. The group is responsible for reaching a common goal. Since the group organizes itself, communication and cooperation are necessary and are the responsibility of the group members. The idea of group work is to bring employees together in teams to make them collectively accountable for a clearly defined task. This form of job enrichment leads to a higher level of identification with the job and therefore a higher level of engagement.

2.4.2 Kaizen

Kaizen is a Japanese form of employee-oriented management, which is generally defined as a philosophy of continuous change and the flexibility to react to change in the environment:

Kaizen is a long-term development and change process that involves the entire organization.

Kaizen happens fundamentally between natural organizational entities in the workplace.

Kaizen solves problems at work and requires direct involvement of employees.

The Japan Juman Relations Organization (1994) calls for a long-term commitment when introducing and establishing kaizen. Kaizen means “change for better”, where “kai” means change and “zen” for the better (Imai, 1986). It is often referred to as continuous improvement process (CIP).

According to Kaizen philosophy: “Never let a day pass without having achieved organizational change.” It is important to note that not only refers to big and expensive investments, but to managing all the incidents in daily work routine. Kaizen deals with real tasks and real knowledge and develops leadership and organizational methods for an active, transparent, and value oriented self-management of organizations.

The kaizen movement started in the 1950s, when Taiichi Ohno was production manager for Toyota, which at the time following World War II was a tiny and hopelessly outdated car manufacturer. Ohno, observed the Ford plant in Detroit and determined that workers on the assembly line were not able to use their knowledge to the company’s advantage. Japanese managers struggled to keep up with the industrial advancements in the US, yet were critical of western manufacturing systems. Taylorism was flawed with waste in regard to work, material, and time. Ohno began to adapt the assembly line to Japanese standards in small steps. One of the first steps was to group workers in teams with a team leader instead of the more prevalent foreman. Teams were given a part of the assembly line with instruction to identify the best way of conducting the work. Through practice, this concept has developed over the years into an economic principle that is now referred to as lean management. There does not seem to be a theoretical basis, and development has still not concluded or been systematically explained – least of all by the Japanese.

When implementing kaizen, the networked consideration of tools and goals is of utmost importance. Customer service and employees are the focus of observation when implementing kaizen in an organization. Top management is charged with initiating and establishing the kaizen process. Employee oriented management systems are a prerequisite for the establishment of kaizen. Imai (1986) names mutual trust, the creation of team spirit, and an appreciation of improvement methods, especially during the early stages, as other important prerequisites.

Kaizen reflects Japanese values and the roots can be traced back to Buddhism and the mentality of Japanese society shaped by Confucianism. Since kaizen was also applied in American quality management, American concepts play a role as well. Kaizen philosophy describes life as constantly changing and therefore as a process of continuous change (Jung, 1993). In Japan, kaizen manifests itself in business as well as private life. The world, according to Buddhist beliefs, is continuous change. And within a changing world, humans change as well. The environment influences humans, as humans influence their environment. Whoever is not ready to continuously change themselves and their behaviors will hit a dead end. This is core concept of kaizen.

Essential kaizen criteria:

Process oriented achievements are being honored

Leadership thinks and acts in a process oriented way

Introduce innovation slowly and in small steps

Small quantitative changes as basis for new quality

Immediate optimization

Each new quality becomes the new binding standard

Principle: the end as the beginning. The end of an innovation process is the beginning of an optimization process.

Kaizen as active leadership task (actively request employee suggestions)

Motivation system (bonuses for employees)

Customer orientation

Mechanization, automatization

Extensive quality and production control

Quality circle

Kanban, the direct supply of production with necessary material

Work is done in small groups that are self-managing and self-optimizing

Cooperation as work and leadership behavior

Kaizen requires goals (target objectives)

2.4.3 Conclusion

Kaizen continues to be the most integrated approach. It targets gradual and continuous improvements of organizational performance in all departments with involvement of all employees. Cost efficiencies, quality improvements and lead time reductions are the most important areas of success. By eliminating waste and synchronizing workflow, kaizen aims to optimize production.

The application of kaizen leads to an increase in productivity, reducing time, errors and waste, yet many organizations applying kaizen still fail in their attempts to change. These failed attempts to reduce cost and improve processes show that a qualitative change in corporate culture is not easy. A study by A. T. Kearney consulting from 1985 shows that about 80 % of top 500 organizations started quality improvement programs since 1980, and that 83 % ended these endeavors within 18 months of starting them (Sekine, 1994). The most common reason is that employees are not being engaged in the new philosophy. A shift in corporate culture and a change in employee mentality is not possible in the short term, but must be planned long term. Organizations that have followed the concept and have stuck with it, however, have reached impressive production advantages.

2.5 Learning organizations

The term learning organization is not new and has been used in various forms for several decades. There are several definitions, and we prefer the following (vgl. Groth, U. & Kammel, A.,1998):

A “learning organization” is a continuously changing organization. It supports individuals, groups, and the organization in a continuous change process to transform with regards to structure, leadership, market perception, knowledge, and behavior. Organizational learning is an active confrontation of its relevant environment and targets the continuous improvement of collective knowledge and behavior in order to increase operational efficiency.

One of the main architects of the current conception of learning organizations is Peter Senge, whose book “The Fifth Discipline” is widely viewed as the “benchmark of clarification of the model”. He emphasizes “soft factors” when describing an organization’s flexibility to adapt. His concept is built on five pillars or disciplines:

Personal mastery (self-guidance in the interest of the organization)

Images of self and environment (critical questioning of thought and behavior patterns)

Shared vision (collectively held middle and long term vision)

Team learning (exchange of individually and collectively gathered experiences to develop the organization’s operational competencies)

System thinking (systemized thinking, integrated problem analysis)

The fifth discipline, system thinking, should guarantee an integrated approach of all five factors in organizational design, according to Senge. In this context, the definition of the different approaches to learning is important as well. Literature generally distinguishes between three models of learning:

Single-loop learning (adapted learning, assimilation of knowledge)

Double-loop learning (change in behavior, evolutionary learning)

Deutero-learning (learn how to learn, transformational learning)

2.5.1 Single-loop learning

Single-loop learning involves connecting a strategy for action with a result. For example, if an action we take yields results that are different than what we expected, through single-loop learning, we will observe the results, automatically take in feedback, and try a different approach. This form of learning targets increasing changes and the problems that have risen as a consequence of those changes. However, it ignores the core cause of the problem.

(Illustration from Argyris, C.: Overcoming Organizational Defence. Boston 1990)

2.5.2 Double-loop learning

This cyclical process of applying a new strategy to achieve an expected or desired outcome may occur several times without success. Running out of strategies may push us to re-evaluate the deeper governing variables that make us behave the ways we do. Re-evaluating and reframing our goals, values and beliefs is a more complex way of processing information and involves a more sophisticated way of engaging with an experience. This is called double-loop learning and examines consequences from a wider perspective.

Double-look-learning

(Illustration from Argyris, C.: Overcoming Organizational Defense. Boston 1990)

2.5.3 Deutero-learning

The term Deutero-learning describes the context in which learning processes occur. At this stage, single-loop learning and double-loop learning are combined with the goal of improving awareness and learning. People learn from the mistakes of the present and the past and they must be capable of acknowledging it.

(Illustration from Argyris, C.: Overcoming Organizational Defence. Boston 1990)

Within the framework of introducing a learning organization, the following roles must be assigned:

Creation of infrastructure framework, which encourages learning

Development of an environment in which people can learn

Encouragement to learn

In order to sustain a learning organization in its practical application and to ensure long-term functionality and success, leadership and employees need to continuously face three key challenges:

They need to be able to gather individual knowledge and know-how without the influence of personal characteristics, because knowledge that is only accessible to an individual cannot contribute to organizational learning.

The available knowledge and know-how must be applicable and relevant to the organization. Simply gathering knowledge that cannot be applied is not beneficial.

The gathered operational processes must be sustainable, which can be achieved through motivation by leadership and project management.

Role

Leadership task

The organizer

Create an infrastructure for knowledge management Explore internal / external learning sources

The learning facilitator

Explain complex operational contexts of organizational change Initiate specialized trainings (methodical, factual, social competencies)

The learning promoter

Establish an open learning culture (climate that allows errors, learning from others as goal, high appreciation of innovation) Create incentives for learning, compensation for innovation from highly motivated employees (champions)

2.5.4 Conclusion

The learning organization is probably the closest to the idea of continuous change. Unfortunately, it has been proven that this model lacks operational guidelines. Many innovative ideas, therefore, get lost in the reality of operational routine.

3 Leadership in the change process

Organizational change from a leadership perspective can often feel like trying to quickly change the course of a heavy tank. Clear and forward-focused leadership, as well as responsive navigation skills, are crucial. The complexity of organizations has dramatically increased over the course of the past twenty years due to higher customer demand, technical advancements, globalization, and stronger competition. New and difficult challenges for leadership design result from transformations such as mergers, reorganizations, business process reengineering, and change processes.

In the past, supervisors assigned tasks, monitored task completion, checked the outcome, and provided feedback. The premise was delegate, control, and guide. Difficult problems were often dealt with by the supervisor himself. As organizations became more complex, leadership was expected to not only manage employees, but to influence their thinking and attitudes. Not all managers were able to keep up with these requirements.

Today, managers are often in charge of leading employees safely through the often rough seas of change processes. Visions and strategies need to be designed and conveyed in a motivating and inspiring manner. Employees’ abilities to motivate themselves and work independently must be activated. At the same time, managers must implement change and discuss uncomfortable problems during the process. They must maintain employees’ willingness to work and perform even under the pressure of continuous change, all while creating a productive and constructive working environment for the employees. Many managers are simply not equipped to meet these challenges and seek shelter in securing their own position through micropolitical activities.

Managers are, however, the most important engine and therefore the most critical factor in the success of change processes in an organization. Our consulting experience has shown that many change processes cannot succeed without support from all leadership levels.

3.1 Basics of leadership

Leadership can be defined as “leading and steering people’s behavior to realize a vision”. Leadership tasks can be described based on a model by Rosenstiel’s (1984):

Establishing goals and responsibilities and ensuring their achievement,

ensuring employees and teams performance capabilities,

ensuring employees and teams performance readiness.

In addition, leaders need to take on the task of representing the team to outsiders, such as customers and clients, other companies, other departments, and higher levels of leadership. Leaders are also responsible for following labor law regulations.

Leadership, within the organizational context, supplies leaders with professional and disciplinary leadership tools, such as warning, caution (written warning), termination, promotions, transfers etc. Practice shows that the entire pallet of disciplinary leadership tools in many organizations are often only available at middle or higher leadership levels. Entry-level leadership positions, such as team leaders or group leaders, are commonly only tasked with leading in the sense of “who should do what, when, how, and where”. In addition, they may also make vacation time or paid time off decisions. It may be self-explanatory, but the lower levels of leadership positions in such set-ups provide less leadership and take less responsibility then they could and, in some instances (such as during change processes), should.

Apart from the question of what tasks should be involved in leadership, many leaders also wonder how and in what way they should best lead; the question of their leadership style. Leadership styles emphasize “authoritarian” or “participative resp. democratic” leadership behaviors. Over the course of time, the situational approaches have developed into an optimal management style. The leadership style of an executive should be appropriate in the respective situation.

The model by Vroom & Yetton suggests that a leader needs to make decisions based on certain criteria in the situation at hand, and should then choose the leadership style appropriate based on those findings. The criteria are:

Is the quality of the solution or the decision important (the more important, the more participatory the leadership style)?

Is necessary information available (the less information is available, the more participatory)?

Is the problem structured (the more structured, the more authoritarian the leadership style)?

Is it important that employees accept the decision (the more important, the more participative)?

Will the employees accept a decision made by one person alone (authoritarian)?

Are the goals accepted (the more accepted, the more authoritarian)?

Is conflict after the decision likely (the more likely, the more participative)?

The model by Hersey & Blanchard (1977) gives normative advice on how to adapt the leadership style to a specific employee situation. The main thought behind this model is that different employee qualifications and motivations demand different leadership behaviors. It differentiates between task and employee focus.

An employee, who is highly motivated, but not (yet) highly qualified should therefore be led by “command and instruction”, which means that tasks and goals need to be clearly defined and structured by leadership. If necessary, operational support and feedback, and possibly even appropriate training, should be given. According to this model, highly qualified and motivated employees should not be led too closely, while less qualified and motivated employees should not be lead to loosely.

Leaders have two common leadership behaviors:

Content related, operational leadership measures:

Factual leading impulses and behaviors of leaders that are intended to steer an interaction into a certain direction. Behavior can be called a factual management measure if leadership, for example, defends a position that an offer should be calculated with 10 instead of 8 % margin, the drawing should be 1:8 instead of 1:10, the software program should not include more than 24 looks, the IT-network should include a certain type of active components, etc.

Process oriented leadership measures

: These are measures that are intended to guide behavior in an interaction or action. A behavior could be referred to as a process-oriented leadership impulse if the leader tells the employee in the above