Theoretical Foundation Change free essay sample

It is natural for an organization to experience resistance, eagerness, and frustration during a change initiative and therefore knowing when and how to manage change is imperative to ensure success. The following discussion will identify factors that will help guide an organization in determining the need and readiness for change. Organizational change is definitely a task that must be embraced when the time is right and change leaders must be responsible for knowing when to implement the initiative. Researchers examined the complexity of organizational change readiness by using an assessment that considered factors such as organizational climate, resources, and motivation (Lehan, Greener, amp; Simpson, 2002). It was believed by the researchers that positive climate can be linked to the success of an organization. A characteristic such as employee collaboration and empowerment have proven to be indicative of a healthy workplace and is an important part of organizational change (Hellriegel, Slocum, amp; Woodman, 1998). We will write a custom essay sample on Theoretical Foundation Change or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Kotter’s Model for organizational change emphasizes the need to have a team that will serve as change agents and that the team is formed to collaborate and help with building the vision that will guide the change initiative (Appelbaum, Habashy, Malo, amp; Shafiq, 2012). Lehan et al (2002) posited that resources that supported employees worth and value made a difference in an organization’s readiness to change. Having ample training and materials needed to be successful must be evident before making an attempt at organizational change. In addition to having a happy workplace and a positive environment, a level of motivation is needed to encourage change. External forces, such as competition, and internal forces, such as profit and loss statements, are often a source of motivation for organizational change (Kelman, 2006). Change leaders must present the issues that pronounce the need to make organizational changes to employees and stakeholders in a manner that signifies the good that could possibly result. The concern must be for the organization but not without considering its members. The members must feel obligated or committed to the organization in order to promote a successful change initiative (Weiner, 2009). When organizational members are connected to the proposed changes the better the likelihood of member commitment to the change initiative. The phenomena of organizational change have been studied in detail but yet there are still some organizations that are unsuccessful. It is critical for organizational culture to represent the essence of the desired outcome. Organizational members must have an essential role in the change initiative from the onset. More importantly, change leaders must carefully assess the conditions of the organization to determine if change is appropriate. Implementing change requires leaders to survey the overall health of the organization before any actions are enforced in order to promote a healthy change initiative. References Appelbaum,S. , Habashy,S. , Malo, J. , Shafiq, H. (2012) Back to the future: revisiting Kotters 1996 change model, Journal of Management Development, Vol. 1. Iss: 8, pp. 764 – 782 Gilley, A. , Gilley, J. , amp; McMillan, H. (2009). Organizational change: Motivation, communication, and leadership effectiveness. Volume 21, Number 4 / 2009 DOI: 10. 1002/piq Hellriegel, D. , Slocum, J. , amp; Woodman, R. (1998). Organizational behavior. Cengage South-Western ISBN-13: 9780324323634 Kelman, S. (2006). Downsizing, competition, and organizational change in government: Is necessity the mother o f invention? Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, v25 n4 p875-895 Aut 2006 Lehan, W. , Greener, J. , Simpson, D. (2002). Assessing organizational readiness for change. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment 22 (2002) 197– 209 Reardon, K. , Reardon, K. , amp; Rowe, A. J. (1998). Leadership styles for the five stages of radical change. Acquisition Review Quarterly, 6(2), 129-146. Weiner, B. (2009). A theory of organizational readiness for change. Implementation Science 2009, 4:67 doi:10. 1186/1748-5908-4-67