Category: Organizational Change

Organizations that implement change successfully will record positive outcomes within a short period. Any form of transformation will present new ideas, practices, and initiatives that can deliver desirable results. The issue of proper leadership is critical since it supports the entire process. This paper describes some of the key aspects that business firms should consider whenever introducing, implementing, and managing organizational change.

Impact of Change on Employees

Many successful and progressive companies encourage all employees to embrace and be part of every change. Some of the recommended transformations will deliver better working conditions. In most of the cases, the emerging situations tend to be appropriate and admirable to the workers. For example, a company might decide to introduce superior computer systems for delivering the intended services to different customers. This move will have a positive impact on different employees and make it possible for them to achieve their goals (Batras, Duff, & Smith, 2016). Most of the proposed changes eventually deliver advanced procedures and strategies that can empower the targeted employees.

Change is usually associated with new organizational structures and cultures. Such introductions tend to resonate with the companys business model. This means that workers in such firms will be able to solve their problems much faster, engage in decision-making, and empower one another (Muraliraj, Zailani, Kuppusamy, & Santha, 2018). Positive leadership styles will also emerge whenever a new change is suggested. Such aspects will result in better working conditions and make it possible for them to achieve their personal and organizational objectives.

Change Models

Business organizations that want to transform their processes and strategies should embrace the power of change. Throughout the initiative, leaders and managers use powerful theories to diagnose the need for transformation. The application of different models emerges as an evidence-based approach that guides professionals to record positive results. For example, Kurt Lewins change model has three stages for leading every process of change. The first stage of this tool empowers managers to refreeze the situation. This strategy is usually aimed at examining the reasons why new procedures, styles, or products are needed (Palmer, Dunford, & Buchanan, 2009). During the same phase, supervisors prepare all employees and partners for the proposed new change.

Similarly, the Lean Six Sigma model presents the DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control) approach to support leaders intending to implement new change. The first phase of this tool is appropriate since it makes it possible for companies to diagnose the need for change (Muraliraj et al., 2018). This revolves around the analysis of potential gaps, weaknesses, and sources of wastes that might disorient performance. The next stage is to measure and understand how new strategies will make a difference for the firm and eventually promote continuous enhancement.

Leadership Model

Organizations can implement different types of change depending on the targeted objectives. These transformations might focus on various areas, such as the introduction of a superior culture and the transformation of processes. However, there will always be external, multi-level, or internal levels of organizational factors that tend to drive change (Muraliraj et al., 2018). This means that companies should have powerful leadership models to support any form of transformation.

For a change focusing on product enhancement, a charismatic leadership model is necessary since it will encourage different employees to focus on the best services or goods. The manager will have to offer incentives and inputs to support the initiative (Batras et al., 2016). A democratic style or model of leadership is essential if a company intends to introduce a new culture. This approach will ensure that all workers are empowered.

They will also make superior decisions to support the process. Servant leadership is a powerful model for managing a transformation focusing on new organizational procedures. Such an approach will make it possible for the followers to be involved and eventually deliver positive results. These models are evidence-based and can address various factors, including political situations, social factors, economic performance, existing organizational structure, and corporate social responsibility (CSR).

Mission and Vision

Whenever implementing change, leaders should always ensure that every initiative is aligned with the existing mission and vision. This means that the intended practices or procedures should be founded on the unique goals that define the companys business model. The mission gives a clear image of every companys future expectations and service to all stakeholders and partners (Palmer et al., 2009). Throughout the change process, managers will have to ensure that the existing culture resonates with it. All persons involved in the process will understand why a new transformation is necessary.

The mission and vision will become powerful guiding principles for all employees. They will also use the unique values, symbols, and procedures that form an integral part of the companys culture. Such a strategy will minimize conflicts and make it possible for the change leader to prepare all stakeholders and workers (Muraliraj et al., 2018). When the transformation is founded on the companys mission and culture, chances are high that more people will support it.

Change Implementation Model

The selected theory for implementing change is Kurt Lewins model. This framework presents these three unique stages: refreeze, change, and freeze (Palmer et al., 2009). Using this tool, the potential causes of change could include the desire to introduce superior cultural practices and procedures in the targeted organization. Such a move can also be aimed at improving performance and ensuring that the targeted customers receive exemplary services.

The best plan of action to implement the intended change will be founded on Lewins model. The first stage of the theory will direct the companys leaders to prepare all stakeholders for the proposed transformation. Educational programs and sessions can sensitive different employees about the importance of the targeted change. They will also be encouraged to support the process and present their complaints (Muraliraj et al., 2018). The second phase is to introduce new procedures that can drive organizational performance. The final phase is usually aimed at making the implemented change part of the organization. This plan of action will eventually deliver positive results.

Resistance to Change

Leaders and managers should accept the fact that many employees and corporations tend to resist change. This means that they should recognize any form of objection and overcome emerging barriers using evidence-based strategies. They can do so by monitoring the responsiveness of supervisors, teams, and individual employees during the first stage of the change process. Some of the key observations might include increased levels of absenteeism, reduced cooperation, and poor results (Batras et al., 2016). They can overcome such barriers to change using evidence-based strategies.

The most appropriate framework for managing resistance should be informed by the concept of leadership. An effective managerial style is essential since it will begin by guiding supervisors to accept the existence of resistance. The leader will then use his or her competencies to empower and mentor all employees. The next stage of the strategy is to address outlined grievances (Palmer et al., 2009). Leaders can appoint group coordinators to minimize the negative impacts of change. Training sessions are also needed to educate more people about the importance of the intended transformation.

Vision for Change

A powerful vision should support every change if it is to deliver positive results. There are specific key elements of any vision for change. For instance, it should capture attention of all participants and partners. The vision should identify the major reasons for the change and how it will transform all peoples experiences. This document should also outline the benefits that the company might record after implementing the targeted change successfully (Palmer et al., 2009). Such attributes will minimize chances of resistance or conflict.

A powerful communication strategy is necessary to ensure that all stakeholders understand the above elements contained in the vision. The change leaders should have a detailed plan that indicates how ideas, concepts, and information will be shared throughout the process. The manager can appoint communication managers to deliver timely updates about the vision (Palmer et al., 2009). Some of the avenues that can support this process include the companys website, social media, office memos, and notice boards. Stakeholders should be aware of the best channels to present their ideas and insights. The plan should also describe how the change initiative will be implemented and when final results are anticipated.

Sustainable Change

Many organizational leaders introduce superior and sustainable changes that can make their companies appropriate case studies. This goal is achievable when a given firm considers an evidence-based model to deliver positive results. The most appropriate plan should be simple, realistic, and appropriate for both large and small business organizations (Palmer et al., 2009). The ultimate objective should be to introduce superior processes and practices that can eventually drive organizational performance.

The proposed plan begins by informing all stakeholders and employees about the importance of the intended change. This echoes the ideas associated with Lewins model. The approach will encourage all players to support the process, solve emerging problems, and share ideas. Leaders will use this stage to develop a vision for change and communicate it to all individuals. The second stage is introducing the intended practices, cultures, initiatives, or procedures (Palmer et al., 2009).

This phase is necessary since those involved will present superior actions that can maximize performance. The third stage is making the introduced practices and procedures part of the company. Individuals and stakeholders will find meaning in the new culture. Finally, change leaders will engage in constant monitoring to identify any potential resistance and support the intended goals. Such a model will eventually make the targeted company sustainable and successful.

Conclusion

The above sections have presented various attributes that companies implementing change should take seriously. Some of them include the application of powerful models, vision for change, and effective communication. Leaders should also identify sources of resistance and address them using evidence-based approaches. A proper analysis of the above attributes can empower managers to achieve sustainable changes for their respective companies.

References

Batras, D., Duff, C., & Smith, B. J. (2016). Organizational change theory: Implications for health promotion practice. Health Promotion International, 31(1), 231-241. Web.

Muraliraj, J., Zailani, S., Kuppusamy, S., & Santha, C. (2018). Annotated methodological review of Lean Six Sigma. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, 9(1), 2-49. Web.

Palmer, I., Dunford, R., & Buchanan, D. A. (2009). Managing organizational change: A multiple perspectives approach (3rd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill Higher Educations.

Concrete Experience and Reflective Observation

I have been working for more than thirteen years as a successful leader managing people and organizing their functioning in the most effective ways. At the moment, I am a section leader for the Mixing Department at the Bridgestone Aiken plant. There are 191 employees who belong to the team. There are also five supervisors responsible for personnel, operations, and customers satisfaction. In such a way, it becomes critical to enhancing quality standards through multiple improvements affecting working standards, control plans, and approaches to management. Moreover, there is a high need for effective problem-solving activities focused on the improvement of production, workers motivation levels, and project results.

In such a way, the promotion of organizational change becomes one of the critical elements of my working activities as it is one of the guarantees of continuous improvement. Any organization that stops in its development faces a high risk of stagnation and decline. For this reason, I am focused on the constant monitoring of the current situation with the primary goal to determine the most problematic areas that demand change and should be altered with the primary aim to increase the preserve the high effectiveness level and ensure that the emerging problems are solved fast, and no serious complications emerge. That is why I have certain experiences that can be used to cogitate about the importance and main aspects of organizational change.

As I have already stated, my first important task as the leader regarding organizational change is the determination of the areas that need change. In the majority of cases, these domains differ from other ones because of the decreased effectiveness of other problems that emerge due to the utilization of outdated or ineffective approaches. The existence of such problematic issues might undermine the work of the whole organization and precondition the collapse of various departments. For this reason, observing many situations that demand the introduction of appropriate interventions, I can say that in-time organizational change becomes one of the most important ways to solve some difficult problems.

At the same time, my second task is to monitor the way the collective functions in terms of new conditions introduced by the strategic change. The fact is that in many situations, people are not ready for alterations, especially if they are radical ones, and affect all spheres of their functioning. The resistance to change becomes one of the most important factors that should be taken into account while managing people and offering new frameworks for their work. The change process might have multiple adverse effects on individuals, including a high level of stress, dissatisfaction, and decreased motivation. For this reason, to achieve positive results, it is critical to ensure that all factors are considered, and only positive effects will emerge.

Theories and Principles/Abstract Conceptualization

It is extremely important to ensure that all employees of the organization have an improved understanding of the nature of change and the main goals that should be achieved due to the planned intervention. Only under these conditions is it possible to achieve positive results. At the same time, it is critical to assess the effects of organizational change on people working in the organization to avoid resistance and ensure that only positive impacts are accumulated.

Theory 1

Evolutionary change theory can be considered an appropriate theory that can help to achieve positive outcomes. It states that gradual and focused improvements of particular areas are fundamental for all organizations as they should evolve and for their employees as they should acquire new opportunities for their development (Burke, 2017). Adhering to this very paradigm, it is possible to avoid critical deteriorations in the moods of workers and achieve the emergence of positive effects that will help to succeed and generate a competitive advantage needed to overcome rivalry and hold leading positions.

Theory 2

Another theory that can be applied here is Maslows Hierarchy of needs stating that only satisfaction of high-level demands might stimulate workers to move further and engage in the change process (Maslow, 2013). From the real experience, it becomes apparent that an organization becomes positive only when employees are provided with better opportunities for improvement, personal and professional development. Only under these conditions, the change will promote higher performance levels.

Theory 3

Finally, the theory of regulated change can also be applied to the case because of its positive impact on employees moods. It emphasizes the necessity of the consideration of organizational contexts as the primary determinants of change (Burke, 2017). Correctly realizing them, workers will be able to engage in the process of reconstruction.

Summary

Accepting the fact that organizational change should promote positive effects on workers, consideration of the theories mentioned above is critical for the achievement of positive results and transformation of firms with the primary aim to generate competitive advantages and continue the evolution.

Testing and Application/Active Experimentation

Speaking about all the theories mentioned above, it is critical to state that their effectiveness can be proven by my own personal experiences. The first one becomes topical while speaking about the necessity to support continuous change and motivate workers to engage in all transformation process to have positive effects and contribute to the development of a firm. The second theory should also be considered the fundamental one to explain all employees actions and their motivation. Finally, the third paradigm becomes critical for the evaluation of positive impacts on workers and fostering of motivational change to achieve the desired outcomes.

References

Burke, W. (2017). Organizational change: Theory and practice. Boca Raton, FL: SAGE Publications.

Maslow, A. (2013). A theory of human motivation. New York, NY: Martino Fine Books.

Beth Israel

The story of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center serves as an example of an influence that a committed leader can have on an organization. The corporate turnaround was successful because the leader, Levy, set realistic, although tough, goals. Levy also focused on transparency  this approach allowed him to connect to both employees and customers (Palmer, Dunford, & Akin, 2016). Next, the CEO outlined his value of quality performance and motivated the staff by appealing to their competitive spirit and desire for self-improvement.

However, he also was not afraid to take urgent action since he fired some workers in order to decrease spendings and avoid a financial crisis. Finally, Levy paid significant attention to establishing relationships with all departments and staff members, creating new communicational channels, and improving employee-manager interaction.

Levys role in this turnaround was substantial  his influential approach and positive view of people allowed him to raise morale and use communication as a way of enhancing workers experience. According to Yousef (2017), workers who have a strong sense of commitment to their organization are more likely to have a positive outlook on changes if the latter is targeted at resolving problems. A change leader, in such cases, has a vital part in inspiring and organizing employees.

Levys unwavering belief in transparency, for example, can teach one that workers and clients value openness. The lessons from this experience can be used in various settings. When designing a plan for change, one should consider the internal problems such as the lack of training or communicational issues, instead of trying to employ punitive measures. The idea that commitment helps introduce change can be applied to the majority of business settings as well.

Sears

Eddie Lamperts leadership can be considered autocratic  he has used his position as an opportunity to enforce new rules, completely restructure the company, and propose new ways of dealing with customers (Amanchukwu, Stanley, & Ololube, 2015). If should be noted that some of his actions may be viewed as examples of transformational leadership as Lamper aimed to influence workers to see his long-term goals as a source of positive change.

Nevertheless, the inability to show flexibility in decision-making created a competitive and toxic environment for the management and employees. The leaders approach to restructuring was not based on the companys situation as much as on Lamperts personal preferences and aims. While it was clear that the businesses merger resulted in a financial problem, the scope of change that Lampert proposed was larger than some other chairmen might have introduced.

The information in the case shows that the restructuring process created many additional issues for the company. The profits continued to decrease; employees were unhappy since managers competed to make their division the most profitable. The leaders and chairpersons disagreed with Lamperts practices, but his ineffective meeting attendance and autocratic style of communication left other decision-makers powerless.

On the other hand, the leader has increased profits from the online store  this is a positive change that could be used by Sears in the future. Overall, the organizational change, however, significantly decreased commitment and brought unbalanced internal competition to staff. The main lesson that one can use is tied to the appropriateness of drastic change. The situation in Sears was not improving, but it was relatively stable and salvageable. Lampert, as a contrast, treated this case as an urgent one, being autocratic and dominating the opinions of subordinates with real experience.

J. C. Penney

Ron Johnson came into the company with a positive attitude and a goal to change the company quickly and radically. Such active involvement can be considered praiseworthy Johnson wanted to participate and help the business grow. Moreover, he acted as an inspirational leader with creative ways of rebranding and appealing to the employees. However, Johnson failed to connect with both employees and customers in a meaningful way, basing all decisions on his personal opinion.

The newly hired directors did not establish any rapport with workers, and the two groups of people developed negative views of each other. Previously targeted customer sectors were ignored as well since multiple popular brands were dropped running the renovation of stores. As one of the JCPs specialists pointed out, the factor of people was not accounted for by Johnson and his team (Palmer et al., 2016). As a result, the brands image was damaged by these changes.

Another problem lies in Johnsons ambitious but unfocused behavior. The lack of communication and his focus on innovation-led to Johnson viewing the state of the company from a detached perspective. As an outcome, he was not seen as a transformational leader but as a person who exercises authority to make decisions. The future of the company, therefore, became endangered since future directors were unlikely to follow in Johnsons steps.

In order to avoid such mistakes, one should be more attentive to the customer base. It is vital to assess the target audience and collect their feedback to reveal issues and strengths. Next, communication among employees and managers is also vital detached professionals cannot increase organizational commitment. Similarly, interactions of Johnson with other board members should have been less autocratic and more involved.

A Change Story

A change in my life occurred when I started a new job after being employed by another company for 12 years. While I felt that this decision was thought-out and reasonable, the timeframe of this change has turned this transition from a simple part of ones life into a real story. When I worked in U.S. Seal Mfg. as an Operations Management, I have completed many goals that were set for and by me. I have exercised creativity and innovativeness to move the company forward, increasing sales, creating an educational environment for workers, and reducing waste.

However, at my new job, I have encountered challenges that required more effort and attention than before. I have viewed this as a valuable opportunity to find new approaches, but the experience at my old job frustrated me when I was reviewing the state of the new business. Thus, I was hesitant to implement major changes after changing jobs apart from those that worked for my previous occupation.

Now, I can see that my initial frustration was caused by the fact that I relied on my previous working experience. Similarly to Johnson, I have tried to use the same strategy for both companies, ignoring the fact that my new workplace differed significantly from the previous one. I did not have the same amount of authority as Lampart, but the lack of initial trust towards other workers ideas could be found in both of his and my decisions. In contrast, Levys involvement in his subordinates jobs can be brought up  this leader, although being unacquainted with the new industry, adapted to the new environment. The lesson of flexibility is what I have learned as a result of this change  my professional decisions should be designed to complement and enhance the current organizational structure.

Changes

The most common issues in the situation of organizational change include resistance, urgency, assessment of the changes scope, and the level of involvement. While choosing to change something in their business, leaders, board members, and other major stakeholders have to understand their expectations and goals of all future actions. For example, the company should evaluate whether changes are urgent or they can take some time for implementation.

Next, the leaders should appraise whether the business needs radical change or some small improvements can fix the existing problems. The discussed cases show that a failure to make such an assessment can be devastating for a firm. In the story of Beth Israel, Levy has made a reasonable decision to let some people go, while giving others additional training resources. At the same time, he created both short- and long-term goals, using a step-by-step approach to solving the arising crises. Furthermore, he chose a single strategy of transparency and communication, increasing morale.

In contrast, both Lampart and Johnson failed to analyze the processes of their businesses thoroughly. While the first did not connect with employees, the second also did not acknowledge clients. In these cases and my experience, the lesson of decisions appropriateness is revealed  leaders need to evaluate their environment and acquaint themselves with its opportunities and unique features. The lesson of miscommunication is absent from my story  I have tried to establish a connection from the very start.

All future projects may benefit from the idea that employees commitment and customers interest are reliant on honest and transparent interaction. The three main conclusions are to invest time into understanding the current values and goals of the company, highlight openness in admitting weaknesses to inspire growth and structure all change activities in defined and understandable steps.

Summary

The stories of change show how problems can be dealt with by different people. The leaders in the presented cases all went in a similar direction, but some used their personal experience as the basis for making decisions more than others. Here, it is vital to note that organizational change is a creative process because it involves the issue of urgency and restricted resources, requiring unusual strategies.

At the same time, a leader should approach change rationally, keeping in mind that any significant decision has long-term effects on the business. While the change-related activities may be creative, their implementation should follow a specific order and be approved by the board.

The central tensions and paradoxes are strongly connected to actions consequences. For example, the leader should decide whether a small or significant change is necessary for a crisis. The speed of change is also a complex subject  small and slow changes are safe, but they may be ineffective for solving an urgent problem. On the other hand, a major transformation can lead to more problems if it does not have any logic behind it.

Another paradox lies in the leaders position in the process of change. In some cases, a strong leader is essential in implementing new processes. In others, a group of professionals or even all workers can be effective in improving their environment. The current understanding of the field shows that people know how to appraise the situation and adapt to fix mistakes. Nevertheless, as many different approaches to change exist, there is no singular way of solving all issues. Thus, personal opinions are still relevant, and individuals continue to find new ways of bringing change.

References

Amanchukwu, R. N., Stanley, G. J., & Ololube, N. P. (2015). A review of leadership theories, principles and styles and their relevance to educational management. Management, 5(1), 6-14.

Palmer, I., Dunford, R., & Akin, G. (2016). Managing organizational change (3rd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.

Yousef, D. A. (2017). Organizational commitment, job satisfaction and attitudes toward organizational change: A study in the local government. International Journal of Public Administration, 40(1), 77-88.

Introduction

• Globalization and the Internet have transformed data transmission processes.
• Such developments have attracted attention of hackers and phishers.
• These criminals attack existing systems, thereby resulting in both financial losses and fines.
• Target and Marriott experienced similar breaches and losses in the past.
• Most of their customers were affected significantly.
• This presentation explains how these companies handled their security breaches.

Security breaches result in direct losses due to financial theft and indirect ones due to fines. Target is a leading retailer in the United States while Marriott is one of the corporations operating in the hospitality industry. In 2014, Marriott recorded losses amounting to around 600 million USD due to cyber attacks while those of Target were around 162 million USD in 2013. The case of these corporations’ cases reveals that evidence-based internal security frameworks could have prevented such losses. Powerful changes focusing on superior debit and credit card readers (EMV chips) could have improved the level of security.

Change Analysis Summary

Navigator Role

• Target and Marriott embraced the Navigator role.
• Target focused on improved cyber-security options.
• Target wanted to secure the information contained in customers’ credit cards.
• Marriott also wanted to transform the situation after acquiring Starwood.
• This role is essential since it delivered positive results.
• These companies are currently improving their practices.

The Navigator role was effective for both Marriott and Target. Cybersecurity improvement measures supported Target’s objectives. The approaches resulted in more secure credit cards. Marriott also considered the most appropriate and sustainable strategies to transform the situation.

Caretaker Role

• The corporations’ caretakers pursued better public relations.
• Target encouraged customers to monitor their credit cards.
• Starwood owned the recorded security breach.
• Marriott implemented evidence-based approaches to rebuild customer confidence.
• These attributes supported the companies’ objectives.
• They also attracted and empowered more customers.

The initiatives the companies’ leaders undertook led to positive results. They managed to empower more customers after the two occurrences. All stakeholders were expected to be part of the process. New initiatives emerged to increase customer satisfaction.

Coach Role

• From the Coach perspective, Target’s leaders felt responsible.
• The CEO decided to step down.
• Target remained serious to correct the mistake.
• Marriott blamed a third party for the breach.
• The details of Marriott’s breach remained unknown.
• These issues affected every company’s performance.

Target’s CEO chose to quit his position. With this kind of breach, it was appropriate for the companies to consider new initiatives to address the identified problem. They also introduced superior measures. However, Marriott remained less transparent regarding the nature of the security breach.

Marriott and Target in Retrospect

• The Navigator image would have supported the companies’ goals.
• Corporations should also control their external factors.
• They implemented the best communication process to the public.
• This approach guided the companies’ leaders to communicate the breach effectively.
• Marriott ignored the model, thereby disorienting its performance.

Change leaders should dictate customers’ experiences and goals. This means that they acted in the capacity of the Nurturer image. For Target, the leaders pursued the Navigator role by controlling the potential outcome after the attack. Gregg Steinhafel’s decision to step down increased customers’ trust levels. This decision predicted a real change under a new CEO, thereby preventing a potential future occurrence.

Determining the Change

Marriott

• The 7-S framework model was considered for these companies.
• Structure: A horizontal structure is evident.
• Strategy: A defensive model is used to deal with emerging issues.
• Systems: A powerful portal, social media, and a live chat.
• Style: Transparency is taken seriously to communicate to stakeholders.
• Competent auditors support this organization’s goals.
• Staff: Marriot offers training sessions to all employees.
• Diversified and international programs are common.
• Skills: Marriott encourages employees to develop the best competencies.
• Superordinate goals: Outlined values focus on the changing needs of customers.
• These measures have continued to deliver positive results.

Marriott uses a horizontal leadership model characterized by a CEO, departments’ vice presidents (VPs), executive managers, and legal counsels. It employs a defensive model strategy for the external environment. Its powerful portal guides customers and franchisees to access fields. It also employs these social media platforms to achieve its goals: Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat. When it comes to style, Marriott uses transparency and communicates effectively to stakeholders. It has independent auditors and engages in social responsibility activities.

Marriott offers evidence-based training opportunities for its staff members. The current model focuses on coaching, business basics, and stress management. This corporation also promotes competences in the field of hospitality. A wide range of values are always taken seriously, including excellence, change, integrity, and service for all.

Target

• Structure: Target has a horizontal managerial structure.
• Strategy: Target’s strategy is that of preparedness and partnership.
• Systems: Target uses email alerts, webpage, and social medical.
• Style: Target uses its webpage too communicate to communities, customers, and employees.
• These initiatives continue to support the targeted goals.
• Staff: Target has an effective internship program aimed at fulfilling employees’ needs.
• Such an approach continues to drive organizational performance.
• Skills: Environmental responsibility is a critical strength of Target.
• Superordinate goals: Target’s values are aimed at improving internal and external connections.
• Emerging ideas are considered to meet customers’ needs .
• These attributes continue to make Target successful.

Target has a flexible managerial structure that empowers subordinates and employees to pursue their goals. It has also joined the Apparel Coalition to minimize its negative impacts on the environment. It is also the Energy Star Partner. When it comes to systems, Target has developed a multimedia platform that links emails, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. Corporate social responsibility and environmental conservation initiatives are taken seriously.

Target’s staffing policy focuses on these key areas: software engineering, supply chain, operations managements, marketing, finance leadership, accounting, inventory analysis, product design, and business intelligence. It also sponsors the educational goals of every leader. Due to its CSR strategy, Target is currently one of the EPA’s Energy Star partners. Using its business model, this company finds it easier to give back to the society.

Force Field Analysis

• Marriott’s force for change is uniformity.
• Restricting force is the company’s management
• Target’s driving force for change is its consumer base.
• Target’s restricting force was its staff members.
• The CEO decided to step up in an attempt to reach equilibrium.
• These measures add value to these corporations.

Using the concept of uniformity, Marriott managed to transform its entire security system to achieve equilibrium. Additionally, the company’s management amounted to its restricting force. For Target, the driving force for change was its consumer base since it offered adequate support. Restricting force was its staff members. At Target, new changes were implemented to deal with this kind of security threat. To reach equilibrium, the company’s CEO chose to step down. Such measures support the actions and initiatives these organizations undertake.

Marriott vs. Target: SWOT Analysis

• Strengths: Both companies have strong communication procedures.
• Weaknesses: Marriott’s response was defensive while Target approach catalyzed new challenges.
• Opportunities: Emerging data encryption technologies and consumer confidence.
• Threats: Future security breaches, competitors for Marriot, and increasing number of hackers.
• Value Judgment: Marriot managed to prevent future threats while Target implemented superior security measures.

Marriott has a clear communication process while Target’s upper management supports its model. The weakness for Marriott’s change process was the use of defense. The company also failed to take responsibility for the security break. Target acknowledged the breach but responded poorly in terms of communication, thereby being forced to issue secure credit cards. Both Target and Marriott focused on the best approaches to increase customer confidence and address their changing needs. They were also ready to comply with emerging norms in data encryption and customer privacy. Marriott is more vulnerable to security breaches due to its global presence. It has many competitors, such as Hilton. Increasing cases of hacking threaten Target’s business model and data. In terms of value judgment, Marriott has succeeded in preventing a potential future security breach. Target has also been transparent and has instituted appropriate preventative measures.

Areas of Resistance and Recommendations

• Potential Areas of Resistance:
  • The inability of Marriot’s top leadership amounted to resistance.
  • Target’s employees were not willing to be involved in this security issue.
• Recommendations:
  • Powerful change management models can make a difference for the two corporations.
  • They should also continue to embrace the Nurturer and Coach images.
  • Superior security or preventative measures are needed.

Marriott’s change process encountered resistance from its managers since they did not accept the situation. For Target, the members of the staff were not ready to support the suggested decision. This means there were against the move to issue new debit cards to different customers. From this analysis, it is agreeable that both companies can embrace superior change management models. This is true since they were unprepared for any kind of a security breach. The Nurturer and Coach images can be appropriate for promoting inclusivity and developing a positive organizational culture. Thirdly, the companies can introduce evidence-based network security measures. The corporations’ managers can group their staff members by introducing new departments to monitor suspicious activities or actions.

Communication Plan

• Marriot supported the security challenge using an effective communication plan.
• This was in accordance with its business model.
• An effective communication strategy is essential after a security breach.
• The involvement of clients and stakeholders can maximize performance.
• Similar approaches at Target delivered positive results.
• In conclusion, companies that adopt such measures will eventually emerge successful.

After recording the described security breach, Marriott implemented a powerful communication model to keep all stakeholders and customers informed. It followed the same culture that had been associated with the company after it was established several decades ago. It continues to update and share information regarding the introduction of superior systems, its collaboration with different firms, and the move to maximize the experiences of its customers. Additionally, the use of a powerful communication strategy continues to make it possible for Target to regain the confidence and trust of its customers. Marriott has also been detailing all operations aimed at meeting the needs of community members and individuals who are at risk of potential attacks. Consequently, the company’s number of customers has continued to increase significantly.

Introduction

The contemporary world is filled with technological advancement in communication and information. These advancements have brought about a shift in how business operations are conducted to capture and create values, the working nature, the interaction and communication capabilities (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016). Emerging technology in an organization usually leads to the disruption of the existing relationships and routines within the firm. This yields to applying an implementation strategy with little reliance on the technological features itself rather than creating a complex interactive platform between the utilized technology and the organization adopting it (Alexiou, 2016). The disruptive tendency of emerging technology is brought about by the ability of humans to explore their creative nature of being involved with innovation. Despite the existing disruptive technological know-how, there still exists a sustaining form of these innovations (Rahman, Hamid, & Chin, 2017). The emerging technology has brought about tremendous changes within the operation of an organization, a fact proving to be troublesome to the firm.

An organization ability to effectively survive and compete relies on the indulgence of activities skewed towards efficiency and exploratory behavior. The exploratory behavior seeks to incorporate, experiment, search and vary its new knowledge in uncertain business environments (Khanagha, Volberda, & Oshri, 2017). Emerging technology is essential for considering whether is viable and worth being included within the set-up of an organization. These specific technological structures need development to support the emerging technology necessary to shape collaborating factors lying within the same paradigm (Soderholm et al., 2018). Therefore, adopting an emerging technology seeks a lot of deliberation relevant for ensuring the organization remains competitive and survives the turbulent existing times it may face.

Goal

This research aims to utilize the digital workplace, a selection of Gartner’s Roadmap of emerging technologies, and, therefore, perform an analysis of sustainability using the three dimensions of the techno-sustainability model. These three dimensions of the model essential for analyzing Gartner’s Roadmap include; economic, social, and environmental. Similarly, the analysis would be accomplished using the market and technological uncertainty scorecard. Furthermore, a review of the integrated techno-sustainability assessment analysis modeling method would be necessary.

Scope

Organizations desire and wish to reduce their production costs in their innovation and growth within their production line. The increase in competition prompts organizations to adopt new technological advancement in their workplaces. These transformations are essential for an organization seeking to shift its old utilized methods inhibiting competitive environment to sophisticated technological advancements. The necessity to adopt new technology in the workplace is a strategic marketing move aiming to execute tasks necessary for assisting an organization in enjoying a fair allotment of market share.

The revolution in digitalizing the workplace has left many organizations confused on how to define this trend. Similarly, these organizations perceive wrongly digital workplace transformations as simply integrating digitalizing technologies (Attaran, Attaran, & Kirkland, 2020). The digital workplaces emanate from the desire and focus on reducing wastage of time among employees seeking to access correct information within an organization. The utilization of new technological advancement has significantly impacted the incorporation of technology in workplaces (Janssen & merk, n.d). Despite the desire to utilize emerging technology in an organization’s workplace, it tremendously impacts and changes the working environment landscape. The digital workplace is necessary since it avails room for effective and new working designs; exploits exhaustively technologies and styles considered consumer-oriented; and boosts the agility and engagement of an employee (Haddud & McAllen, 2018). The digital workplace provides ease and an excellent environment for effective functioning by employees.

Digital workplace entails the technological advancements utilized by individuals in performing and ensuring work being done and to be implemented is complete. Similarly, a digital workplace can be perceived as assembling all provided digital tools by an organization to permit its staff to smoothly undertake their respective tasks (Haddud & McAllen, 2018). Digital workplaces are essential for organizations since it has been achieved due to technological advancements. Despite being significant for most organizations, researches show they have received little attention (Williams & Schubert, 2018). The features distinguishing digital workplaces entail perceptions such as the working environment are digitalized; measure for performance is output and not presence; and working is not a destination (Haddud & McAllen, 2018). These distinguishing features are essential in assisting one to grasp a depth understanding of the digital workplace environment.

The incorporation of technological advancement within a working environment seeks to change the organization’s means of operation. This is because organizations seek to find better methods of working, which can only be realized through adopting innovative, beneficial technologies (Haddud & McAllen, 2018). This desire to achieve better results leads to gradually layering workplace technologies to more advanced applications such as digitalized integration, email, sensing devices, advanced technology, robots, and social platforms (Baptista et al., 2020). Technological advancement is achieved within the workplace environment since it has incorporated the use of enablers’ pillars, including cloud computing, big data and related analytics, social media and connectivity of mobile phones (Moreira, Ferreira, & Seruca, 2018). An organization will possess a competitive advantage provided it utilizes and incorporates technological advancements in its operations.

Indicator Selection (PESTEL Analysis)

The PESTEL analysis entails the rigorous evaluation of environmental factors that affect the managers’ decision-making process in an organization. This analysis explores factors underlying the digital workplace’s political, economic, social, technological, and legal environments.

Political Factors

The political factors explore the policies outlined by a particular government under which the organization intended to adopt digital workplace operates. Political stability is an essential aspect of the operation of an organization within a particular country. Arising uncertainty, anxiety, and an unavailable conducive business environment become unsuitable to an organization’s operations. Political uncertainties scare away potential investors in a country (Soderholm et al., 2018). The initial phase of initializing a digital workplace is mindful of creating awareness within an organization about detecting any arising turbulence or anomalies related to the moderating factor of the environment. This ensures a timely response to any arising uncertainties likely to disrupt organizational operations (Alexiou, 2016). The political soberness of a country would form a conducive environment for the installation and working environment of emerging technology for the digital workplace.

Economic Factors

The economic factors relate to changing taxation policies, rates of interest, economic growth, rates of exchange, and inflation. The fluctuating economic period tremendously impacts the operations of workplace operations. A digitalized economy is essential in reducing costs while raising the deployment and widespread use among organizations globally. Similarly, employees’ compensations due to injuries received in workplaces or falling ill by work due to a performed task would be a matter of the past (Horton et al., 2018). Despite the invoked changes in the workplace technological advancements resulting in increased competitiveness, agility, and collaboration, the operations in an organization suffer technical glitches. For instance, the adoption of teleconferencing in workplaces as a platform for conducting meetings registered technical hardships resulting in the late commencement of meetings (Attaran, Attaran, & Kirkland, 2019). Reducing the costs of operations and boosting efficiency by global organizations have contributed significantly to the adoption of workplace technology.

Therefore, a digital workplace possesses various benefits only if its development, designing, building, implementation, and management are conducted effectively. This is achieved if the core reason behind establishing the digital workplace has been attained. The organization’s redesigning of its business using advanced digital know-how is essential (Moreira, Ferreira, & Seruca, 2018). The benefits drawn from a digital workplace include improving the employee’s productivity, increasing an organization’s performance, creating broader access to retaining scarce resources, maximizing customer contact, optimizing the costs, and leading to higher innovation levels (Haddud & McAllen, 2018). These benefits are the pillar behind the adoption of the digital workplace in global organizations across the globe.

Social Factors

The social factors entail the changing trends among the target market segment impacting demand for an organization’s products and their individual’s willingness to offer service in the firm. The emerging technologies in organizations are pivotal in witnessing innovations initiating change among various global firms. The desire for change is associated with intertwining within developing necessary capabilities to manage the emergent technological know-how into the workplace (Alexiou, 2016). Possessing the knowledge to understand sustainability in integrating a change in an organization relies on internal and external factors, which transparently sets the stage for practitioners’ managerial roles (Sroufe, 2017). Therefore, the advancement in technology triggered the witnessed change through altering non-relational tasks undertaken by employees of an organization (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016). Hence, change in the workplace becomes inevitable since organizations will seek to utilize the opportunity and incorporate the emerging technology to become relevant and gain a competitive advantage.

Technological Factors

New emerging technology leads to better and improved products by incorporating advanced technology. The desire by an organization to increase is to provide working practices seeking to meet the needs of employees and reduce the associated costs relating to the formation of a physical workplace. The digital workplace has seen the incorporation of internet advancement, mobile phones, and technologies in its operation, encompassing out of office services coupled with working remotely (Parry & Ballista, 2019). It is essential for organizations to engage users and understand their desires then articulate the importance of the digital workplace, which is essential to working productively (Attaran, Attaran, & Kirkland, 2019). Advancement in technology is necessary for ensuring the staff possesses relevant and appropriate skills critical for the operation of the digital workplace.

The governance of a digital workplace will require strategic planning by the human resource department. Despite their existing no clearly outlined guidelines for achieving effective governance, there are ways necessary to create a platform for the digital workplace. Since the digital frameworks dissect through different responsibilities and channels relevant for remitting functions among stakeholders, essential functional tools for setting rules and standards for outlining how the governing procedures would be accomplished (Haddud & McAllen, 2018). These structures are generated by the organization’s managers, who redesign and align policies regarding the work to be accomplished by advancing technology platforms (Baptista et al., 2020). Digital technological advancement affects both staff and administrative platforms since progressive integration requires designing and policies attracting civic demands requiring augmentation within public domains (Vallicelli, 2018). Digital workplace governance is essential to incorporating relevant emerging technology for ensuring efficiency and reducing the cost of operation incurred in the physical working environment.

Environmental Factors

Environmental factors tend to influence an organization’s ability to incorporate and use an emerging technological advancement. Any organization has the duty of responsibly taking care of the happenings around its grasp. The incorporation of new emerging technology needs to be aligned with being environmentally friendly. The emerging trends in technology necessary for the transformation of driving the global organizations such as sensors, machine learning, mobile computing, and advanced robotics have proven to be clean-energy technological advancements (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016). The proposed system for utilization and incorporation seeks environmentally friendly, pollution-free, and green (Masrur et al., 2020). Environmental degradation causes inequalities within an organization’s workplace accomplishment of tasks. Organizations seek to use and harness technological advancement considered to possess little gaps within their platforms of operations (United Nation, 2019). The goal of keeping the workplace environment free from any form of pollution seeks the incorporation and installation of a digitalized system relevant to assist the organization in reducing costs but increasing efficiency.

Legal Environment

Legal aspects are relevant for seeking redress legally in an organization’s business environment. The available and imposed legal mandates surrounding the workplace seek compliance with labor laws and international guidelines. The progressing period witnessed the tightening and strictly making the legal regulations stiffer. The planning and management of digital workplaces should comply with the relevant regulations and laws related to the storage and use of information and data. The digital workplace framework needs to adhere to the employment laws (Williams & Schubert, 2018). Globally, managers perceive laws and regulations as hurdles to their businesses since they tend to address the symptoms but overlook the real existing problems. This leaves the ability to adhere to laws more perplexing, but organizations do it as a formality to afford the matter from escalating (Sroufe, 2017). Similarly, respect for the rule of law is essential since it is tied to integrity which demands the ability to stick to made agreements and dutifully perform what is expected of you from the exact binding resolution (Janssen & merk, n.d). The legal framework is essential in eradicating elements of trade considered unhealthy within a market segment.

Technology Lifecycle Analysis (Sustainability of entire Lifecycle)

Sustainability entails the ability of an organization to overcome the many uprising business turbulence experienced in its cycle of economic periods while still showing signs of survival in the future. Sustainability is essential in nurturing economic development, stewardship environmentally, and the well-being of the society through pushing for technological advancement necessary to assure a continued improvement in the utilization of resources (Van Schoubroeck et al., 2021). This, in turn, has led to the integrated interaction encompassing natural and human systems. Therefore, sustainability can be economical, social, and environmental aspects. There arose an assessment technique developed aiming at measuring sustainability. The focus on sustainable development and an organization’s ability to move to sustain conditions relevant to meeting the desired goal requires a digital workplace (Sroufe, 2017). This paper will explore techniques such as techno-economic evaluating economic sustainability and life cycle assessment assessing social and environmental sustainability.

Environmental Aspects

The digital workplace seeks to adhere to the safety and health environmental features found within an organization. Ecological focus heavily relies on the organization’s functional units to utilize the digital workplace (Kiesnere & Baumgartner, 2019). An emerging technology contributes to the faster achievement of sustainable plans essential for replacing the existing workplace skills with an environmentally friendly production method. This technological know-how increases cooperation between stakeholders within varying set-ups. It, therefore, ensures the harnessing of sustainable advancements vital for the development and prevention of inequalities and degradation of the environment (United Nations, 2019). Organizations are opposed to the effects of the adopted digital workplace on its immediate surrounding environment since they ensure the instilled new technology is clean and friendly to its immediate areas.

Economic Aspect

The techno-economic evaluation provides an opportunity to identify the economic-related hurdles measured during low and high technology readiness levels. This would, in turn, provide an opportunity for feasibility evaluation processes. The need to realize a mental and economically healthy environment prompted the formulation of techniques for ensuring the quality of data is essential (Van Schoubroeck et al., 2021). A sustainable economic transition for a digital workplace requires an elaborative analysis of all the participants’ underlying networks in an inter-organizational setup. Similarly, the roles played by each inter-organizational structure are essential in providing support as a collective entity for building a digital workplace system which requires less focus (Soderholm et al., 2018). The considerations of all the employees within a corporate workplace would ensure the transition process would be smoothly achieved since the staff had already been informed of the intended change they purpose to undertake.

Social Aspect

The social evaluation dynamics consider the workers’ arising effects, the local community, and the digital workplace platform. This makes social dynamics rarely included in practicing within the platform for sustainability evaluations with emerging technology (Van Schoubroeck et al., 2021). The motive behind incorporating technology in workplaces is to improve communication and productivity. This eventually led to the use and incorporation of appropriate tools relevant for realizing a digital workplace (Attaran, Attaran, & Kirkland, 2020). The applied tools include video conferencing, robotics, and audio relevant for effective communications within the discussion forums between the employer and the employees (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016). The installation of relevant tools essential for ensuring instant conveyance of messages, virtual and web conferencing promote and encourage teamwork in work set-up, therefore, integrating and empowering collaboration within the social platform (Attaran, Attaran, & Kirkland, 2020). Communication is essential in a digital workplace platform since it creates a platform for interaction between the employers and employees, therefore, boosting productivity in an organization enjoying this emerging technology.

The social focus of an organization’s ability to incorporate and use a digital workplace is dependent on their involvement levels. The top management engagement in sustainable management relies on the strategic importance and their reputable ability to communicate on different platforms (Kiesnere & Baumgartner, 2019). The emerging digital workplace forums are essential in boosting the individuals and community’s collaboration and interaction in different utilized innovations (United Nation, 2019). Teamwork and faster interaction among different functional units facilitate and boost productivity within an organization employing a digital workplace.

Risk and Uncertainty Analysis (Tool Provided)

The adoption of new emerging technology requires an assessment to study whether there exists any risk caused by its incorporation. Risk identification and management require a specific ability to sense anomalies, threats, and change, resulting from an integrated approach for mitigation (Alexiou, 2016). It is recommended to comprehensively assess benefits and risks entangled within the interactive ability in technological parts to make an informed decision for an investment plan within an organization (Ivanova, Elsawah, & Fidock, 2020). Applying appropriate instruments relevant for creating a solution to a practical problem within the digital workplace ensures the policymakers are part of the team aiming to avail low risks associated with investment plans (Soderholm et al., 2018). The appropriate tool for strategically managing and controlling the digital system’s implementation and use is the seven-force model, a scorecard measurement system for making sound investment decisions. This model entails strategic alignments; competitive advantage of the product; market size; leverage; technical feasibility; potential rewarding; and risks (Cooper & Edgett, 2009). Scorecards are essential for facilitating the ability to ensure reviews are done to assist in making a life-changing decision to an organization’s operations.

Strategic alignment

Organizations have decided to apply sustainable strategies necessary to incorporate a new emerging technological advancement. The need to shift from undertaking tasks physically in an organization seems to be a thing of the past since there is an increased reliance on the technologies to get functions to be accomplished holistically (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016). Sustainability among key players within a digital workplace performs varying roles for initiating an operational strategy for adopting the befitting technology to their organizations (Sroufe, 2017). Strategies are essential in identifying the capacity requirements based on guidance serving to establish gaps, opportunities, develop, test, note likely risks, and design potential responses (Ivanova, Elsawah, & Fidock, 2020). Strategic alignment is essential for the digital workplace since it physically and mentally prepares an organization for the potential advantages and disadvantages of utilizing emerging technological know-how.

Product Competitive Advantage

Every organization fight to survive and compete appropriately through the engagement of activities skewed towards efficiency and exploration of new emerging technologies. The uncertainty of digital workplace environments has led to the transformations witnessed in technological advancements seeking to possess a competitive advantage over others (Khanagha, Volberda, & Oshri, 2017). The need to be sustainable and competitive by organizations has prompted them to adopt and develop their digital potentials targeted specific emerging technologies, which will allow the concentration of resources on a limited scale of options (Soderholm et al., 2018). Competitive businesses have drastically shifted and changed the landscape of working environments by incorporating technology, which is essential in ensuring cooperation and collaboration among employees (Attaran, Attaran, & Kirkland, 2019). Adopting new technological advancement by an organization is essential to reducing the possibilities of being locked out of the market segment by other worthy competitors.

Market Attractiveness

Digital workplaces avail workers with the relevant technologies to boost their abilities and empower them. The platform creates an environment for flexibility, inclusion, and support workers in the apposition to design and deliver innovative experiences. This is because of the extensive use of information technology in the digital workplace platform (Haddud & McAllen, 2018). The digital workplace possesses transformative work features such as the algorithm to provide an allowance to change swiftly and effectively (Baptista et al., 2020). These features which are available on the digital workplace platform make the entity attractive for incorporation into a system of an organization.

Leverage

The decline in physical workplace settings results in innovative technology practices seeking to consolidate and reduce competing agreements. The emerging new technology is significantly spearheaded by the commercial sectors upgrading rates. The incorporation of restrictive agreements between organizations yields to the pressure of applying leverage to use off-the-shelf advancements such as robotics essential to provide a competitive advantage. This design is necessary since it explores opportunities for improving economic standards and reducing operations costs (Ivanova, Elsawah, & Fidock, 2020). The competence is associated with the rate at which the structures of a digital workplace undertake different tasks successfully and resiliently to secure necessary resources required by an organization (Soderholm et al., 2018). This will achieve if the transformative technology has been utilised to invoke the required changes necessary for giving an organization a competitive advantage in the market (Khanagha, Volberda, & Oshri, 2017). Leverages are essential to providing an organization with insights on technology, competence and marketing aspects necessary for acquiring a competitive advantage.

Technical Feasibility

Sustainability is a fundamental goal aligning its corporate values and creation to customizing the desire to meet the organization’s needs. An iterative integrating process avails an opportunity for communicating and training (Sroufe, 2017). Designing integrative and iterative teamwork entails performing analysis on theories and researches on critical areas such as teamwork, selection, training, performance and motivation (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016). Therefore, organizations must ensure their employees have access to digital entities, which is an added advantage to accessing proper training. The training should be accompanied by the necessary training policies, which will safeguard and provide the guidelines on the type of information possessed by an employee (Attaran, Attaran, & Kirkland, 2019). Feasibility is essential before any technology has been adopted into an organization.

Potential for Reward

The transformation of the digital workplace properly is essential for business sustainability and success. The digital workplace impacts the physical working environment, workers, and technology. Therefore, a change incorporated in one area is essential in another section change (Attaran, Attaran, & Kirkland, 2019). Digital workplaces forms intrapreneurs essential for considering successful management of the transformative section (Baptista et al., 2020). The created platform within a digital workplace allows compelling, connective and faster communication among an organization’s stakeholders as they deliberate the best cause of action for the firm (Haddud & McAllen, 2018). These gains to an organization enable a firm to possess a competitive advantage over other likely competitors within the market segment.

Risk

The desire to distribute work functions is a threat to a digital workplace. Functions allocations between robots and humans have proven problematic and require appropriate attention because of automation. Issues arising from automation include decreased awareness situations, distrusting the process, complacency, vigilance decrements, misuse, disuse and abuse of human performance levels (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016). A problem would arise when investing in technology requires decision-making to support developmental capabilities seeking to focus on particular advancements that vary with specific options (Ivanova, Elsawah, & Fidock, 2020). The risks are a threat to the operation of the digital workplace. They may result in an organization suffering extensive losses if the issue has not been resolved within the appropriate timeframe.

Likely Future Outcomes

Innovation is the critical aspect pushing for the newly emerging technological designs in the workplace. The shift and trend brought about technological advancement would incorporate new advancements such as bitcoin, cloud computing, and 3D printing. These technologies are disruptive and are likely to alter and change how humans perform their tasks on the workplace platform. The human labor will be required to learn and be able to operate within the digital workplace (Rahman, Hamid, & Chin, 2017). The future will likely witness a shift in the operations of organizations as they seek to maximize their market and competitive advantage in the long run.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the world’s evolving ability to use advanced technology in the digital workplace has seen a shift from the physical performance of tasks to digitalized systems. Every organization seeks to be relevant, survive and effectively compete to possess a competitive advantage. The PESTEL analysis performed clearly outlined how the digital workplace can be realized. It has explored the political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal aspects of the concept. The risks and uncertainty analysis has utilized the seven-force model to explore digital workplace abilities to penetrate and be relevant in the market gap. The future of the workplace seems to be designed in a different dimension in future since the ever-incorporated technology because of innovation still witnesses the emergence of new advancements such as the bitcoin. Emerging technologies are essential for the changing dynamics and set-up of the workplace. Managers and business planners in an organization are required to perform a thorough assessment of advancement to understand the threats, weaknesses, strengths and opportunities it may possess in the functioning of the business.

References

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Mezzo advocacy is a type of policy advocacy that enables advocates to address seven key problems necessary to change organizations and communities. Mezzo advocacy in a constructive agency is affected by members working as a group to achieve positive organizational goals. A passive agency enhances supportive relationships for its members which allow them to develop each other. Mezzo advocacy in an aggressive organization is affected by individuals focusing on personal needs. Mezzo advocates face different challenges when advancing their policies based on the nature of their organizations.

The constructive nature of an agency impacts the work of mezzo advocacy within an organizational culture in that all members work together with an aim to achieve positive goals. Working as a group enables members to address complex tasks while also realizing their individual potential. Constructive nature of an organization affects mezzo advocacy by members having supportive relationships that enable them to develop each other. Passive nature of an agency influences mezzo advocacy by allowing members to interact without threatening other people’s security (Jansson, 2019). Members also focus on avoiding interpersonal conflict by following rules and procedures without questioning. The aggressive nature of an agency impacts the work of mezzo advocacy within an organizational culture by allowing individuals to focus on personal needs rather than the group’s.

A skill that would be useful in moving decision makers towards acceptance of a mezzo advocacy program in a constructive agency being able to appeal to higher-level goals. In this case one might be required to motivate decision makers in an organization to adopt proposed changes. A skill that would be useful in a passive or defensive organization is being able to showcase how proposed changes do not threaten the security of higher-level organizational members. Advocates in an aggressive organization need to have a skill that enables them to appeal to decision makers’ interests for power and perfectionism.

In conclusion, mezzo advocates face different issues when advancing their policies based on the nature of their organizations. Mezzo advocacy in a constructive agency is promoted by members working together to achieve positive goals. A passive organization also promotes mezzo advocacy by allowing members to support each other. Advocates in an aggressive agency compete to achieve control over other organizational members. Advocates in such an agency would have to appeal to desires for power and perfectionism to enhance acceptance of mezzo problems.

Reference

Jansson, B. S. (2019). Social welfare policy and advocacy: Advancing social justice through eight policy sectors. SAGE Publications.

Needs Assessment & Problem Statement

The Norfolk Department of Human Services is known as one of the efficient organizations due to the comprehensiveness of all 5 P’s: programs, projects, policies, personnel, and practice (Iveroth & Hallencreutz, 2016). Nevertheless, regardless of their effectiveness, it would be beneficial to implement changes in policies. Although the developed policies are currently operational and productive, the organization still faces challenges due to the excessive reliance on governmental financial support.

In other words, regardless of the ability to allocate funds and resources granted by the government relevantly, it is advisable to review policies and develop ways to adjust them for the organization to become more financially independent. In addition to being dependent upon governmental support, there is another interrelated challenge – potential donors perceive the organization as that financed by the government. For this reason, they are unwilling to allocate additional resources. Therefore, in some cases, programs other than those related to addressing disasters in the community remain underfinanced. That is why the main direction of developing change is one focusing on tying bonds with private donors that would be interested in financing the organization.

Analysis of the Problem

Based on what was mentioned above, the wrong and biased perception of the Norfolk Department of Human Services is the nature of the problem. The challenge was identified by reviewing financial reports of the organization and finding out that the main donor is the government, and the resources are commonly scarce to meet the needs of all departments and finance all initiatives. The issue is important because community members in need cannot be helped without the adequate support of the agency, and this support is impossible without relevant and effective financing policies.

Therefore, the main factors that contribute to the existence of the problem are insufficiently developed financial policies and the lack of effective communication and ties with the local donors other than the government. As for now, it is complicated to state whether there were any efforts for addressing the challenge because the agency management itself believes that the policies are effective. From this perspective, no significant attempts to initiate change were noted.

Analysis of the Population Affected

The population affected can be viewed from two perspectives – internal and external. The internal population stands for those people employed by the selected organization. In this case, it involves employees of the financial department because they will be engaged in developing new policies and proposals for sending to donors. Also, they will cooperate with employees occupied in other departments to obtain an understanding of the ways to develop the new policies effectively and design them properly, so potential donors are willing to allocate necessary resources. On the other hand, the change in financial policies will have a direct impact on the population of the community – external perspective.

The rationale for making this statement is the fact that the organization is involved in addressing the needs faced by the community. In this way, any changes in its policies are inseparable from development on a larger scale. Based on the identified population, it is evident that the main domain of the problem’s influence is the inability to cope with vital community problems due to being underfinanced.

Analysis of the Arena

All departments of the organization will be the arena of change even though the main target is the financial department. The reason for determining the whole institution as the arena is the fact that change will be implemented on a broader scale to be effective and benefit the community. In this way, all people employed by the agency will be perceived as the drivers of the proposed change.

That being said, department employees will be involved in developing strategies for implementing the proposed improvements, while management (internal stakeholders) and external stakeholders, such as the local government and influential individuals, will be cooperated with to draw the community’s attention to the problem and the criticality of coping with it. As for the consumers – those enjoying the help provided by the Department, – they can be used as those who can create the needed mood in the community and foster the involvement of external stakeholders. This objective can be achieved by launching a campaign in social networks that will point to the existence of the challenge, and motivating ordinary people to share the showed story and statistics can be one of the ways to use the consumers and the community as a whole.

Cooperation between internal and external stakeholders is commonly described in modern literature as one of the most effective ways to address different problems faced by organizations (Mortell & Hansen-Turton, 2012). In this case, however, it is essential to guarantee that stakeholders are aware of their role and power. In other words, an organization or agency should pay special attention to enhancing communication between the representatives of stakeholders belonging to different groups, and it is possible by issuing reports on the needs and progress to address them (Mortell & Hansen-Turton, 2012).

Another popular strategy is seeking the support of nongovernmental organizations by applying to grants. However, in most cases, it requires the introduction of the new program and developing a detailed and attention-grabbing grant proposal proving that the new initiative would benefit the community (Montoya, 2013). Also, the support of voluntary organizations is as well perceived as an efficient tool for increasing the inflow of necessary funds. Still, this one requires quality leadership and morale to be operational (Burke & Cooper, 2012). Finally, in most instances, reviewing expenses to decrease them is used as a strategy for addressing underfunding. However, it is assumed that it is more beneficial to find new donors and attract more resources instead of reallocating the existing funds.

Hypothesis

Proposing the change, it is assumed that in case of reviewing financial policies and introducing relevant alterations, the organization will obtain adequate support of donors other than the government. If this initiative is successful, it will become easier to address all (or, at least, the majority) of vital community needs and benefit the local population in need. For instance, it will be easier to support the local community in paying off tax burned that is not addressed currently or help people in need other than children needing food, shelter, and education or having no constant and adequate access to professional health care. As for now, the main attention is paid to children in need, while other groups of the population are mostly ignored because the agency is underfinanced. In this way, obtaining the support of the donor will be beneficial for initiating positive changes in the community as a whole. It is the central hypothesis of the change proposal.

Change Proposal

Planned Change

As mentioned earlier in the paper, a desirable change will be identified based on the 5P’s approach. As determined, one of the 5P’s that will be addressed in the change proposal is policies. The challenge is that policies developed for attracting funds are ineffective, as around 70% of all financial resources are obtained from the government, while the remaining 30% are collected with the help of other funders. However, in most cases, the remaining need is not satisfied.

Therefore, the desired change is the development of effective strategies for communicating with donors other than the government. The goal is to alter cooperation policies and transfer some of them into the virtual environment to increase the awareness about underfunding and draw attention to the gaps in financing that are necessary to fill as well as decrease the level of financial dependence upon the government. The main objective is to launch a community-wide initiative that will attract donors, such as individual funders and non-governmental, non-profit, and voluntary organizations.

To achieve the desired change, the stakeholder theory of change management is selected as a theoretical framework. According to this approach, cooperation with stakeholders is the key to making the change successful. Still, the stakeholders should be cooperated with based on their potential contribution to the fulfillment of objectives and implementation of change (Hayes, 2014). Based on what was mentioned above about different theoretical frameworks and objectives and desired outcomes of the change, campaign and collaborative strategies are selected for implementing the change and making the new approach to fund attracting policies effectively.

Budget and Staffing

No change is possible without developing the budget and determining people that would be responsible for designing new policies and involved in making them operations. To begin with, it is critical to mention that the ground of the change is a community-wide campaign for attracting more funds. In this way, the additional effort of the external people will be necessary. Also, internal employees will be involved. However, their involvement does not require the allocation of extra funds. That being said, all of the internal changes will correspond with job duties predetermined by the beginning of the change project.

To be concise, the responsibility of the financial department will be to calculate the volume of resources necessary for implementing the programs that are currently underfunded. Also, the employees of this department are required to provide some statistics (for instance, of underfunding of particular programs) to demonstrate the real need to the community and potential funders. As for the employees of other departments, their role is to support the financial department and contribute to the development of the needed statistics because not all details may be identified by the financial department.

For example, the statistics of those requiring help and those members of the community supported by the agency. The motivation is to show that there are real people in the community that does need assistance, but cannot obtain it because of the funding challenges.

As for the outside employees, some people should be hired to design posters and direct videos that will be shared online. In this case, it is essential to note that there is no need to allocate vast volumes of resources in finding popular advertising agencies to become involved in completing this part of the task. Instead, creative youth or freelance directors are assumed to cope with the task perfectly, and their services will be cheaper. At the same time, it is essential to motivate ordinary people, as well as agency employees, to become engaged in initiating change. The belief is that showing them in the videos will make the need for change more visible and persuade funders and influential individuals that the necessity to implement the planned change is critical.

As for the budget, as mentioned above, additional resources are needed only for covering expenses connected to the involvement of external employees and agencies. It means that the effort to avoid unnecessary expenditure will be maximized, as it is essential to find people who would be eager to participate in directing the video for free. See Table 1 for details regarding the budget and staffing.

Table 1: Budget and staffing necessary for implementing the change.

Therefore, the cost of this change is insignificant. It can be covered with salaries and reviewing the current expenditures of the agency. In this way, there is no critical need for searching for cooperation with national or community funders because this change project can be financed internally. Still, if needed, the collaboration with local volunteer organization may be a benefit. However, it requires the development of a concise and detailed change project description and plan.

Planned Implementation of Organizational Change

To implement the change, it is essential to initiate a community-wide campaign that will potentially lead to improved communication with donors and an increased volume of funds allocated by funders other than the government. As mentioned above, the foundation of this campaign is social networks, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and YouTube due to their popularity among the majority of community members.

To introduce the change, it is paramount to cope with several interrelated steps. The first one is the preparation of all statistics that are necessary for including in the planned videos and posters. Another step is to direct the video and create the needed posters. The following step is to post this information in the selected social networks and pay attention to communication with the community, such as answering to the comments and updating people on the developments and progress if any.

When implementing the change, it is critical to be aware of drivers and barriers that are the inseparable element of any change. To determine them, a force field analysis may be a helpful tool. This model is beneficial for understanding what forces might be connected to initiating the change and what might be restraining it, thus achieving the equilibrium and finding the right balance between them. See Table 2 for force field analysis.

Table 2: Force field analysis.

Finally, it is paramount to note that I will be one of the change actors. Working at the Norfolk Department of Human Services, I can and will be involved in preparing statistics necessary for initiating the campaign as well as seek ways to be shown in the video. Also, I will make an effort to motivate employees of all departments to be involved in fostering the change and meeting the deadlines determined for it. Speaking of the deadlines, even though they are nominal, it is still critical to meet them. They can be found in the timeline – Table 3 below.

Table 3: Timeline of the change.

Evaluation

Speaking of evaluation, it will be purely financial and conducted on a timely basis. Because the main objective of the campaign is to attract more resources, the stress will be laid on the volume of attracted funds. However, this one is inseparable from estimating the number of organizations and agencies communicated with, as well as the quality of this communication. The quality of communication can be measured as the number of contacts that entailed the allocation of resources regardless of the size of such allocations.

All in all, to evaluate the effectiveness of the developed plan, the goal approach will be deployed. In particular, the ability to achieve any goal stated – both general of the change project and particularly identified in the timeline – will be used as a standardized measure of evaluation (Smith, King, Sidhu, & Skelsey, 2014). The motivation for choosing this approach is its overall efficiency in estimating the effectiveness of the change management project as well as its easiness in the application.

Core Value of Community

Community is one of Saint Leo University’s main values. It stands for helping to serve the community and contributing to the development of its members through creating the environment of responsiveness, mutual respect, and interdependence (“Mission and values,” n.d.). From this perspective, the proposed change may become the foundation for creating a favorable environment in the local community – one that will help address all needs properly and support those in need concerning their dignity.

References

Burke, R. J., & Cooper, C. L. (Eds.). (2012). Human resource management in the nonprofit sector: Passion, purpose and professionalism. Northampton, MA: Edgar Elgar.

Hayes, J. (2014). The theory and practice of change management (4th ed.). New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

Iveroth, E., & Hallencreutz, J. (2016). Effective organizational change: Leading through sense-making. New York, NY: Routledge.

Mission and values. (n.d.). Web.

Montoya, C. (2013). From global to grassroots: The European Union, transnational advocacy, and combating violence against women. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Mortell, M., & Hansen-Turton, T. (Eds.). (2012). Making strategy count in the health and human services sector: Lessons learned from 20 organizations and chief strategy officers. New York, NY: Springer.

Smith, R., King, D., Sidhu, R., & Skelsey, D. (Eds.). (2014). The effective change manager’s handbook: Essential guidance to the change management body of knowledge. Philadelphia, PA: Kogan Page.

Introduction

Organizational change takes place when a firm makes some shift from its present state to some preferred future state. Successful organizational change usually requires planning as well as the implementation of the transformation in a manner that is likely to evoke minimum employee resistance in addition to bestowing minimum cost constraint on the firm. Businesses today require that firms undergo continuous change in order to stay afloat in the business waters.

Such factors as rapid technological advancements or market globalization impose the urge for the firms to undergo change in a continual fashion so as to survive (Kuriger, 2004). Organizational change usually erupts from the difficulties faced by the company or the firm.

However, some firms change under the impulsion of its visionary leaders who begin by recognizing and then exploiting the emerging potentials in the firm. Organizational change that is not properly organized is usually fought by the employees, leading to its failure. Organizational change occurs for instance when a firm changes its general success strategy, adds or does away with a main practice or plans to do a variation in its nature of operation.

Philosophical approaches

There are two main various towards organizational change. The two main ones that are by their nature opposing, to one another are: the mechanistic and the humanistic approach.

Mechanistic philosophy

This conservative organizational change framework depicts the firm as a set of evidently defined parts (departments) which are stitched together by the official rules and the subsisting relationships.

In this approach, the executives or the management tend to oversee the co-ordination as well as originating and controlling of organizational change plans. Therefore a mechanistic approach towards institutional change is an approach in which the managers plan the needed change then they put it into effect without the involvement of the employees.

Constraints as well as problems that impede the achievement of the perceived goals are envisaged as technical difficulties of which technical solutions are sought. There is heavy reliance on the hierarchical structure of the organization to effect organizational change. In the much idealized form of this approach, the commands are issued from the top toward the employees who are down in the organizational hierarchy.

Organizations that use this type of approach are usually less adaptive to changes in their environment and least responsive to innovations. They also show hierarchical differentiation accompanied with many levels in their command chain, power concentration by the top executives and also the decision-making mandate finds solace only in the hands of the central management crew.

The proponents of this conventional principle argue that it has economic advantages while implementing organizational change during periods of relative stability (Smith, Graetz, 2011).

When firms decide to apply this philosophy, there calls for horizontal and vertical pecking order arrangements as well as differentiation so as to process the organizational change workflow. Differentiation reduces the incidences of contact and movement of the flow of information. As the hierarchy divides the flow of work, communication becomes hard (Richardson, 2005).

The formalization in the control systems when using this philosophy has negative effects on achievement of effective organizational change. This philosophy has a limitation in the theory of organizational change as it creativity stifling in addition to evoking a dissident sub-culture which weakens the ability of the firm to attain such change (Handy, 1985).

The humanistic philosophy

While the mechanistic approach towards organizational change assumes a top-down version, the humanistic approach takes an up-stream model. This philosophy inculcates the views and opinions of the workers in the process of organizational change, therefore there is usually a low employee resistance and efficiency when drafting and effecting organizational change.

This philosophy view organizations as having behaviors as well as personalities. This philosophy is based on a normative posture that people in their own capacity are ends and those interferences to revolutionize the organizations and the people, are not free of value (Leavitt, Pondy & Boje, 1989).

The mechanistic school of thought have criticized this approach citing that it is too squashy and too workers-oriented, but on the other hand, the humanistic consultants stress on impartiality to the participants of the organizational change (Argris, 1986). There is no reliance on the hierarchical structure of the firm when instituting the organizational change; it is easier to obtain relationships of trust as well as honesty.

When these are achieved, communication on the other hand is refurbished. Once good communication has been attained, issues of rumors, paranoia, phobia as well as misperception fade away. The culmination of these events leads to more honesty and trust. The outcome of this virtuous circle is a high synergy firm that is least resistant to organizational change.

Conclusion

Leaders as well as managers are on constant pressure to continually make efforts so as to achieve successful along with significant organizational change because this role is inherent in the management theory.

This therefore calls for a well structuring of the correct and appropriate method or philosophy to use as a channel to affect these organizational changes. The mechanistic approaches to organizational change is deemed suitable for the recurrent management changes which includes adjustments in terms of goals, structure, personnel, and strategy as well as control systems.

While organizations that apply mechanistic approach to organizational change are more responsive to administrative innovations with respect to management accounting as well as internal auditing, the humanistic approach is more adaptive towards NPD-new product developments in addition to changes in the management of sales. Generally, most firms today apply the humanistic philosophy in instituting organizational change as it counters the resistance by employees and instills motivation on the workforce.

Works Cited

Argris, Chris. Strategy, change and defensive routines. London: Pitman, 1986.

Handy, Charles. Understanding organizations (3rd Ed). London: Penguin, 1985.

Kuriger, Craig. Organizational Change: case studies in the real world. Florida: Universal, 2004.

Leavitt, Harold, Pondy, Louis & Boje, David. Readings in Managerial Psychology. Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1989.

Richardson, Kurt. Managing Organizational Complexity: theory and practice. Michigan: IAP, 2005.

Smith Aaron, & Graetz, Fiona. Philosophies of Organizational Change. Massachusetts: Edward Elgar publishing, 2011.

The selected tenet of the nursing organizational change theory is unfreezing from Lewin’s theory of change. There are three stages of change according to the model, which includes unfreezing, change, and refreezing (Petiprin, 2020). The tenet of unfreezing is critical because it “is the process which involves finding a method of making it possible for people to let go of an old pattern that was somehow counterproductive” (Petiprin, 2020, para. 5). In other words, it holds meaning for me as a nurse since “it is necessary to overcome the strains of individual resistance and group conformity” (Petiprin, 2020, para. 5). I believe that growth or continuous improvement is congruent or harmonious with the tenet. In my day-to-day practice, I constantly seek more knowledge, find ways to develop better skills, and ask for help from experienced professionals.

There were times when I was challenged to be able to practice in a manner where professional growth and improvement are vital. For example, I worked in an environment where cooperation was non-existent and experienced nurses were not willing to assist me, which severely stagnated my progression. Under such a condition, I lost motivation to be a nurse, but I was able to quickly re-center myself by improving individually through my own mistakes. In order to develop my philosophical, theoretical, and/or operational/practice knowledge around the tenet selected, I will focus on three approaches. These include the need to “increase the driving forces that direct behavior away … decrease the restraining forces that negatively affect the movement from the existing equilibrium … finding a combination of the first two methods” (Petiprin, 2020, para. 5). In other words, I can become more proactive about my improvement rather than being dependent on others, and I plan to learn more about overcoming the growth-preventing barriers.

Reference

Petiprin, A. (2020). Lewin’s change theory. Nursing Theory. Web.

Introduction and Overview of the Organization

The Jazan School is one of the most cherished establishments in southwest Saudi Arabia. The institution has a population of approximately 600 students whose learning needs are diverse. This institution has employed numerous teachers to facilitate the process of instruction to deliver the most precise information that students need to accomplish their educational goals. The Jazan School offers adequate support to competent professionals by equipping them with the necessary tools and materials to aid the pedagogical process. This project examines the use of various technological teaching and learning resources that aim to promote the overall educational process in the institution. Failure to offer proper guidance to students can render technological tools extraneous. Thus, these tools should be integrated into the learning process rather than replacing the role of instructors (Rice & Gregor, 2016).

The promotion of e-learning is paramount to the accomplishment of educational goals since it complements the existing student-teacher ratio and learning materials (Bristol & Zerwekh, 2011). Furthermore, the use of technological aids in the instructional process improves communication skills among students due to the availability of adequate educational content. Thus, it can be deduced that e-learning is an educational framework that promotes the quality of education by integrating diverse instructional aids into the existing system of learning in a particular learning center such as the Jazan School. Moeller and Reitzes (2011) attest that over 43% of learners are inadequately prepared to use technological resources. This fact underpins the purpose of this project to investigate ways in which these multipurpose tools can be integrated well into school curriculums to improve the instruction process.

Change Scenario

Presently, the Jazan School has not deployed any technological tools in the teaching and learning process. Consequently, there is a need to embrace educational change in a bid to promote e-learning in this institution. This kind of shift requires administrative support to install the appropriate infrastructure required for the implementation of e-learning platforms. In this perspective, the ability of students, teachers, and other school stakeholders to embrace change becomes paramount (Bolman & Deal, 2013). The upgrading of the learning process is a comprehensive endeavor that involves altering the educational viewpoints of a number of participants in an institution. Therefore, technological mechanisms should be adopted in a way that they are well understood by not only students and teachers but also other stakeholders such as parents, board members, and the subordinate staff (Fullan, 2015). In this case, the Jazan School will embark on a detailed upgrading plan since it has not been using technological resources in its delivery of instruction.

Incorporating e-learning into a school’s curriculum is important for students, tutors, and administrators. While learners gain from improved access to diverse educational contents, teachers deliver instructions easily by guiding scholars to find the appropriate information about a particular subject. Administrators are enabled to address issues regarding the deficiency of staff and learning materials (Isaias, Spector, Ifenthaler, & Sampson, 2015). Technological aids promote the delivery of tutorials to many students at the same time. Thus, the use of tech-savvy tools in pedagogical endeavors will be regarded as a positive change toward the accomplishment of educational needs in the Jazan School. Instructors will be at the advantage of delivering content to this institution’s large population of students within a short time (Olaniran, 2010; Moyle & Wijngaards, 2012). Students will be the greatest beneficiaries of the project since they will stand a better chance of improving their communication skills, knowledge, and teamwork expertise.

The Organizational Improvement Change Project (Obstacles, Impediments, and Supports for Change)

In today’s technologically dynamic world, organizational change is inevitable. The need for fulfilling particular goals calls for the execution of new ways of doing things. The school setup is not an exception. Institutions of learning require technology to promote the achievement of knowledge. However, despite numerous benefits that accompany change processes, the affected parties, including staff and school leaders, often resist new approaches to the accomplishment of typical activities. This challenge is common within organizations that require alternative methods to attain preordained goals and objectives. Change compels people to adapt to novel trends while disregarding ordinary practices. Dealing with resistance to technological advancements in schools requires the administration to understand various issues, including stakeholders’ motives and attitudes toward the undertaking. Group resistance, distrust, uncertainty, the fear of losing jobs, and the lack of awareness of possible limitations are regarded as the main causes of a hindrance to even the most beneficial change processes. As such, the execution of e-learning in this school is most likely to encounter opposition from participants due to the above-mentioned aspects. As a result, the institution will have to examine possible factors that may lead to change refusal with a view to coming up with feasible solutions beforehand.

At the outset, teachers are likely to reject the implantation of technology in the Jazan School because of uncertainty issues. If proper awareness is not created among instructors, they can easily develop tension due to the fear of being laid off (Martinez & Stager, 2013). Teachers have to be trained to use technological aids for delivering instructions to learners. In this perspective, unqualified teachers may find it difficult to put up with new ways of training using computer assistance (Pershing, Stolovitch, & Keeps, 2006). This uncertainty is a hindrance to the execution of e-learning in this institution.

Group resistance also becomes a major impediment in scenarios where the process of change is unwanted by a large number of participants. Organizations tend to set some performance trends and behaviors, which are transferred to new members over time. This arrangement creates an organizational culture that is adopted by every member of an institution. The implementation of new tactics in such environments is often met with amplified resistance due to the existence of a more unified group. Students can also become adamant about adapting to new learning environments, possibly because of peer influence (Lytras, 2008). Groups tend to weigh the consequences of change based on the existing organizational structure. Thus, depending on the perceived effect of introducing e-learning to a school’s curriculum, they can accept or reject the change proposal.

Furthermore, distrust among members of an academic center can result in the rejection of new programs (Murphy, 2002). Personal interests or bias in the implementation of e-learning can bring about a lack of confidence. This situation increases the chances of resistance (Jackson, 2006). To avoid this scenario, the administration should create awareness regarding e-learning among stakeholders with a view to making them understand the importance of embracing technological assistance in learning.

Nonetheless, this institution’s leaders should play a significant role in ensuring that the change process is acceptable by creating an environment whereby the chances of resistance are negligible resistance. It can achieve this goal by educating stakeholders on the importance of the project, including how it will improve the overall performance of the school and that of individual students (Johnson, 2000). To reduce resistance further, there is the need for maintaining proper communication among the affected members (Horton, 2011). Inclusivity is also central to the change process. The school community should be engaged in the execution process to bring about a feeling of belongingness.

Analysis of the Four Frames Model in the Change Management – Change Topic Analysis

According to Bolman and Deal (2013), organizations can be understood using human resources, political, structural, and symbolic frameworks. These models are based on different interpretations of institutions using individual or group perceptions of behaviors that are more effective in the accomplishment of goals. Consequently, it is important to examine the pros and cons of each framework when using this model. This approach will avoid possible drawbacks that can result from choosing inappropriate outlines for the execution of change. The application of the Four Frames Model will play a pivotal role in the accomplishment of a change in the Jazan School.

Overview of the Four Frames Model

The structural frame helps in understanding the organizational framework that is to be subjected to the change process. It entails an analysis of policies, norms, the environment, and the technology present in an institution. The architecture of the Jazan School depicts the association between its goals and the proposed alteration. A critical examination of the structural objectives reveals that the school needs to implement robust instructional methods (Bolman & Deal, 2013). The institution under investigation has established state-of-the-art buildings, which provide a suitable infrastructure for installing e-learning devices. Its contemporary framework will play a pivotal role in the commencement of the e-learning program. This setup shows its readiness for change.

On the other hand, the human resource frame addresses various skills, needs, and relationships that support the impending e-learning process. It focuses on sensitizing different stakeholders regarding the planned change. For instance, it addresses the need for creating awareness of the new technology among students, teachers, and other members of the school community. In this context, teachers are expected to demonstrate the importance of using the Internet to seek information and/or submit assignments online. The overall support and involvement of the Jazan School’s administration in the change process will determine its success. Teachers’ satisfaction and appreciation of this institution is a clear indication that it exhibits a good culture that can easily embrace new technologies. In addition, there is a powerful relationship between this school and its stakeholders. This underpinning depicts a willing community that is ready to welcome any aid that is aimed at improving the learning conditions. Staff members also exhibit professionalism as a clear signal that they possess significant talents and skills to promote change through sensitization and proper management.

The symbolic frame is concerned with central concepts such as vision, mission, culture, norms, and organizational values. The vision of the Jazan School, which is in line with its mission, focuses on providing a comprehensive education plan that will result in the achievement of its informative goals (Rosenberg, 2001). This institution’s mission draws attention to the use of e-learning tools with a view to promoting the instructional process. Its culture encourages esteemed leadership, which has created an environment of mutual understanding among various departmental heads. As a result, there is little or no likelihood of resistance from the school’s community. However, it is crucial to embrace both participative and transformational leadership while ensuring a controlled sense of authority to allow every member of this institution to take part in the planning, execution, and monitoring of the anticipated change (Bolman & Deal, 2013). Collective formulation of decisions by individuals in this learning facility should be encouraged to avoid situations where some members feel as if they have been left out. This approach will significantly reduce the likelihood of resisting the change.

Lastly, the political framework helps in the analysis of power, conflicts, operational policies, and competitive forces. The organization of power in the Jazan School follows a top-bottom approach. Due to the sound leadership tactics embraced by various heads, cases of conflict within this educational center are negligible. Indeed, it is evident that respect is upheld by almost all workers in this school. Every staff member seems to understand the need for cooperation to create a favorable environment for learners. This situation has promoted the achievement of educational goals at both student and organizational levels (Scott, 2014; Clark & Mayer, 2011). Since most decisions are made fairly after consultations with key members of the institution, the likelihood of refuting change is not feasible.

The analysis of the Jazan School using the Four Frames Model clearly shows that the institution has an environment that is friendly for the execution of the e-learning plan. The acceptance of change is achievable since participants in this transformational process are willing to embrace new learning technologies that can help to promote the realization of students’ needs and educational goals in the fast-paced twenty-first century (Bolman & Deal, 2013). Although abandoning the authoritative leadership style adopted in this learning center can create problems in the issuance of instructions by the school head, it is important to realize that participative and transformational approaches are best suited for the implementation of change in any institution.

Reflection

The implementation of successful change requires intelligent leadership tactics that promote navigation through even the most intricate organizational situations. My utmost lifelong goal is to become a powerful agent of change in whatever institution that will offer me a leadership position. However, attaining such potential calls for exhaustive research to establish key aspects that characterize the most influential management approaches adopted by successful leaders. One of my most important qualities is the ability to understand different personalities in a workforce cohort. Human nature depends on individual strengths, particularly where new strategies are being implemented. Primarily, the role of an agent of change is to influence other people to pursue the new initiative by inspiring confidence and motivating them to achieve goals. Based on these traits, I can play a great role in implementing change.

Emotional intelligence is a skill that I have learned to demonstrate over time. Most leaders do not understand and/or master this concept. It is an aspect of leadership that is hinged on numerous non-intellectual elements that affect people’s behavior. Demonstrating this skill as a change agent is critical for successful transformation. Although it is a relatively new idea in leadership, the ability to detect, assess, and manage individual emotions and/or those of others creates a better understanding of intricate relationships in the workplace. This standing improves collegiality among employees.

However, I need to improve on communication skills. A self-assessment shows that the way I interact with other people lacks inclusivity. Failure to seek the opinion of other people can result in the rejection of change. Therefore, as a change agent, there is a need to take time to listen to the views of others since they can contribute positively to the new initiative. Improved communication will also help in the identification, assessment, and collaborative formulation of practical solutions. Good judgment can be rendered extraneous when clarity is undermined.

The development of oneself into a better leader is a continual process that calls for dynamic practices. Great leaders try to make those who work under them better. Specifically, I plan to improve my connections and communication in a bid to create a sense of trust and understanding among members of my organization. The development of personal connections with individual team members brings about shared trust, which is necessary for the establishment of a powerful culture of responsibility and remarkable performance. Recognizing the value of self-awareness, personal development, and individual acceptance is also paramount to the realization of change.

In summary, my change initiative will involve both transformative and participatory leadership skills. The execution of change should be a shared process rather than an individualized plan. Colleagues at my workplace should be positively influenced to embrace tactics and new technologies that bring about the greatest benefit to the organization. Thus, an agent of change should focus on those traits that promote employees’ ambitions and passions. Choosing the best direction to guide the organization toward the accomplishment of both short-term and long-term goals is an essential component of leadership (Watkins & Leigh, 2009). My plan is to strive to develop a strong and compelling vision that can be collectively achieved. Nonetheless, the professional development of my transformative and participatory leadership styles will allow maximum effectiveness in the execution of change. The approach chosen has a direct effect on the expected results. Hence, redefining what is best for any organization is important.

References

Bolman, L., & Deal, T. E. (2013). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership (5th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Bristol, T. J., & Zerwekh, J. A. G. (2011). Essentials of e-learning for nurse educators. Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis Company.

Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2011). E-learning and the science of instruction: Proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer.

Fullan, M. (2015). The new meaning of educational change (5th ed.). New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Horton, W. (2011). E-Learning by design. Somerset, UK: Wiley.

Isaias, P., Spector, J. M., Ifenthaler, D., & Sampson, D. G. (2015). E-learning systems, environments, and approaches: Theory and implementation. Cham, Switzerland: Springer.

Jackson, J. C. (2006). Organization development: The human and social dynamics of organizational change. Lanham, MD: University Press of America.

Johnson, J. E. (2000). Assessing workers’ true and perceived sense of urgency during strategic change: A descriptive and correlational examination. Prescott, AZ: North Central University.

Lytras, M. D. (2008). Knowledge management strategies: A handbook of applied technologies. Hershey, PA: IGI Publishers.

Martinez, S. L., & Stager, G. (2013). Invent to learn: Making, tinkering, and engineering in the classroom. Torrance, CA: Constructing Modern Knowledge Press.

Moeller, B., & Reitzes, T. (2011). Integrating technology with student-centered learning: A report to the Nellie Mae Foundation. Waltham, MA: Education Development Center.

Moyle, K., & Wijngaards, G. (2012). Student reactions to learning with technologies: Perceptions and outcomes. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference.

Murphy, T. (2002). Achieving business value from technology: A practical guide for today’s executive. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

Olaniran, B. A. (2010). Cases on successful e-learning practices in the developed and developing world: Methods for the global information economy. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference.

Pershing, J. A., Stolovitch, H. D., & Keeps, E. J. (2006). Handbook of human performance technology: Principles, practices, and potential. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Rice, S., & Gregor, M. N. (2016). E-learning and the academic library: Essays on innovative initiatives. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company.

Rosenberg, M. J. (2001). E-learning: Strategies for delivering knowledge in the digital age. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Scott, D. (2014). Contemporary leadership in sport organizations. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Watkins, R., & Leigh, D. (2009). Handbook of improving performance in the workplace, volume 2, the handbook of selecting and implementing performance interventions. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.