Change Verses Dismal Failure
- · In this discussion, we are going to locate and discuss a scholarly article that describes a successful change initiative within an organization
All organizations will experience changes at one time or another. However, the true success or the true failure of an actual change program implementation can be determined by the effectiveness of the program and can be identified through organizational improvements. For example, there are a number of different scholarly articles that describe successful change initiatives within specific organizations. One article that is titled “MacKenzie College. The organization was currently experiencing problems and issues understanding and repairing the deteriorating educational institution and a deteriorating organizational culture. In the text, the story identifies the organization’s main mission during massage therapy training courses.
For example, the organization’s mission as stated is to provide more of a learning environment that facilitates self-confidence, knowledge as well as professionalism during therapeutic massage operations and practices. Overall, the school’s main mission is to build relationships and to bond with its students, its teachers, its parents as well as the surrounding community. Therefore, changes had to be implemented to improve the school’s performance as well as motivate these members as well. It was stated by the teachers that the students were not prepared. Other teachers identified the fact that students were not motivated. Massage therapists can be identified as healthcare and healthcare practitioners that strive to provide the most comfortable and healthiest therapeutic environment.
For example, the change initiative that was attempted was to require all students to dress more appropriately during class and clinic assignments. Weick stated how individuals are part of their own environments. It has been said that human beings are actors. And in the process of acting, humans tend to become such constraints and the opportunities that they face from day to day. At first, the difficulty arose during the change attempt. The team had continued making unethical decisions based on the wardrobe they chose to wear, just as they had in the past. Even after repeated reminders of the school’s dress code, the students continued to wear dirty, unclean, jeans that were faded.
The story also identified how some students walked into the clinic with holes in the knees and in the rear of their jeans, as well as T-shirts that spelled out pirate slogans that were inappropriate. Baseball hats were being worn backwards. In the process of organizational change implementation procedures, resistance can arise. For example, change can present or generate negative images, cause students to feel alienated, put teachers in long-term phases of isolation as well as upset their surrounding communities. Stakeholders can be affected as well in these operations (Palmer, Dunford & Buchanan, 2017). In this story, strategies were utilized with a direct application. In this case, the organization applied strategic change procedures which helped the team to improve their conduct. The change was to be successfully placed upon the organization’s culture.
Communicating the actual need for change helped to motivate and prepare these members. Communicating this need is the first stage of strategic change operations. For example, communicating the need to stakeholders helped to provide them with an effective amount of time to understand the what why and the when of the change initiative. Communication also kept these channels open throughout the change process. The main focus was not only to change but to adapt to these changes as well.
- · Next, locate and discuss a scholarly article that describes a failed change initiative within an organization.
There are a number of reasons why change fails. Communication issues, a lack of preparedness, a lack of funding can promote a failed change, to name a few. In the year of 1993, fourteen firefighters were killed on duty. It was known as the South Canyon tragedy. The South Canyon fire started out as a small wildfire and then quickly escalated into a large firewall (Clancy, 2007). Another story involves the Cramer fire that killed two firefighters in Ohio in the year of 2003. For example, the first story demonstrates an organizational change initiative that failed. In this case, confusion was the blame for the failures. In the story, the type rating system was the blame for the firefighter interference, which prevented them from properly enacting the fire during its transition. It was also stated that at this time, the organization lacked organization.
For example, Weick perceived the four elements of change to be enactment, ecological change, selection, as well as retention. Ecological change helps to bring forth a more enact-able type of environment. This element helps to capture active roles of parties while they form their individual environments. Selection involves interpretation. Retention is identified as the style of preservance of sense-making and how it is implemented in the future. The fire station organization is aware that their managers and leaders play a very important role in organizational safety procedures and operations, however, it was perceived in this case that fatalities while on duty have involved firefighters of all positions, ranks, and levels meaning the highest ranking professional firefighters to the lowest ranking levels among the organization.
In other words, the leaders were not just the blame for these tragic events which has taken place in the past. Calling the fire transitional fire has seemed to help in providing a better understanding when these fatalities actually occurred. In this case, the organization was attacked in its structure, at the same time that the fire was transitioning. It was also stated that the fire had been physically neglected. Therefore, the element of sense-making will be used in the future for both the organization as well as on more physical levels as well. Compare and contrast the implementation theories used for the change events discussed in the two articles. Provide a summation of what could have been done to make the failed initiative a success.
Finally, communicating the need for change, and debating the change prior to actual implementations can help the team to better accept change as it occurs as well as implement what was learned within future operations will help organizations to smooth out their operations and to be successful. The first article showed how a lack of motivation can effect change initiatives as well as outcomes of change.
The second article identifies the importance of successful change procedures and effective communication. Communication is a very important element that must be utilized in the process of company operations. For example, during emergency events where time might be limited, it is very important to effectively understand all instructions given so that employees are able to respond within considerable time frames. At times, life can be on the line for many. Losing a fellow employee can be devastating when the team must go on.
Again, it is suggested that all organizations maintain close bonds with one another to prevent confusion. However, all steps in the change process must be effectively understood and completed in order to predict successful outcomes. South Canyon could develop higher quality technology to predict the weather. Both organizations need to improve all safety response initiatives when events like these occur. Both organizations could improve their qualities of training as well (Lamprinakis, 2015). All organizations will experience changes at one time or another.
References
Clancy K. Making Sense of the Fire Environment(s): Applying Mode Confusion to Understand Failed Organizational Change in Transition Fires. Conference Papers -- National Communication Association [serial online]. November 2007;:1. Available from: Communication & Mass Media Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed December 19, 2017. Lamprinakis L. Participative organizational change and adaptation: insights from a qualitative case study of successful change. Development & Learning In Organizations [serial online]. March 2015;29(2):10. Available from: Complementary Index, Ipswich, MA. Accessed December 18, 2017. Palmer, I., Dunford, R., & Buchanan, D. (2017). Managing organizational change: A multiple perspectives approach (3rd ed.).
