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Summary People & Organization IB year 2
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HHS IB year 2 People & Organization summary 2020.
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IOP3705 Assignment 4 (ANSWERS) Semester 2 2023 - DISTINCTION GUARANTEED
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Chapter 1. The barriers to changeThe nature of change creates conflict, both internal and external. Change impacts how people feel about themselves and the
world around them. Change is personal, even in an external environment. The personal nature of change means that the idea
of change evokes reactions that expose fear, trust and control issues, apathy, insecurity, motivation, learned helplessness, and
the level of change fatigue. However, the openness and willingness to embrace change also depends on a variety of external
factors such as complexity; clarity of the vision and direction; management of expectations; as well as the capability and
capacity for the specific changes.
The resistance to change increases when both the internal and external barriers are not addressed. These barriers then
decrease the likelihood that change can occur successfully. Therefore, any organizational change initiative must address these
factors in its strategy and plan by leveraging specific tools and techniques.
The Pareto Principle states that roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. So, 80% of the people are actually
going to accept change. 20% will be resistant. This means that 80% of the resistance is coming from 20% of the people as the
Pareto Principle suggests. What is interesting is that of this 20%, 80% is actually only asking for more information. This
suggests that communication is very important in change management.
Internal barriers
1. Fear
This is the fear of the unknown. It is a natural response to any type of change. The best way to combat fear is to
give people time to overcome the initial shock – show people what life will be like with the changes in place and
give them time to get comfortable with them. People may still adopt changes if they feel fear, but the chance of the
change then sustaining is small. Fear blocks our cognitive ability to hear, see, learn, and retain valuable
information.
2. Trust
Trust is the ability to believe in the new products/processes, but also in those who are implementing the changes.
Based on the reasonable belief in any combination of those factors, people will generally at least try to step out
onto the ledge. However, if there is no trust, it’s not going to happen.
3. Control
This is the level of control that an individual has over what they do on a daily basis. It is referred to as the
fundamental need for autonomy. People are more willing to adopt changes if they feel as though they have some
sense of control over what is being changes, as well as how and when it is changing. The level of control felt may
have little impact in the ultimate adoption of changes. However, they may be more likely to leave or introduce their
own work-arounds. These work-arounds are their way of saying i’m not doing what you told me to. Another
problem with a lack of a sense of personal control is that people will actively work to sabotage the project by
gossiping, skipping important meetings etc.
4. Apathy
Apathy is a lack of concern and complete indifference to organizational changes being introduced. It is significant
in that it is a direct indication of the level of buy-in and trust that people have for the company and its leadership.
Change apathy means that people will neither work to support change, nor will they work against it. Apathy on its
own is a sense of indifference in that people just don’t care enough to try, and that signifies that they are less likely
to embrace change or collaborate on problem solving when issues arise during the change process. They are more
likely to quit or go back to the old way of doing things or simply ignore the directives to change. According to
SDT, the fundamental need that these people have is relatedness – in that they need to feel as though they are
connected to and are an important part of the team and changes around them. Apathy means that changes won’t be
sustained.
5. Insecurity
Insecurity is the feeling of being anxious, uncertain, or timid. Insecurity is closely related to fear. However, it only
arises when the person or people impacted by the changes have self-doubt about their own individual or collective
capabilities and capacities to adopt the changes.
Insecurity impacts change given that it limits peoples’ ability to personally connect with the changes being made
and often leaves them feeling left out. As a result, they become disengaged from the team and do not contribute or
collaborate. The underlying need is that these people have is to feel competent. Insecure people will adopt proposed
changes, but they will do it at their own pace unless their confidence and capacity is improved. Feeling insecure
makes people give up or prevents them from hearing, seeing, and learning because their perception is colored by a
negative view of themselves.
, 6. Motivation
Motivation is the internal drive or impulse to perform a given task or set of tasks. Motivation is the rationale that
drives the choices that people make of their own volition, without any interference or influence from external
sources.
Motivation has a direct impact on people’s willingness to adopt changes and the lengths of time it will take to
implement them. It also has direct impact on the ability of the company to sustain those changes once they have
been implemented or deployed.
7. Learned helplessness
Learned helplessness is similar to apathy in that it is an attitude of indifference. It is a learned attitude that is the
direct result of being dejected time and again. This can impact people’s ability to change because when they do not
feel as though they can change or that change is too daunting, they are less likely to participate in the initiative.
According to SDT, the fundamental need is relatedness – meaning that they need to feel as though they are an
important part of change. Again, learned helplessness will not prevent people from adopting change, but they will
likely not be sustained.
8. Change fatigue
Change fatigue is the mental and emotional exhaustion that comes from too many changes being implemented over
an extended period of time. People need time to rest and develop new norms under the changes before moving on.
Change fatigue impacts the ability to change since it can actually make people apathetic, feel a loss of control, feel
insecure, and lose trust in management. This can be overcome by addressing not only these individual issues, but
also by staging change in phases; focusing communications on the long-term, big vision and celebrating successes.
One big thing that can be done to decrease change fatigue is to turn change efforts into a grassroots movement. In
doing so, stakeholders themselves increase their own motivation to change and work to find ways to maintain
momentum throughout the effort.
External barriers
1. Change complexity
This refers to the number of factors and dimensions that are going to be changed, as well as the types of those
dimensions. The complexity impacts the ability to change.
2. Lack of clear vision
A clear vision statement defines the outcomes of the project or the changes in terms that give the stakeholders a
goal to be achieved. Without a clear vision/goal, change becomes a chaotic churn for all of those involved. If it is
left open to suggestion and interpretation by those trying to implement the change, any change of buy-in dwindles
or goes right out the window.
3. Lack of clear direction
Direction is set and maintained by the leadership and management team of the organization. It is this direction that
keeps every one of the stakeholders moving at the same pace, towards the same goal.
Lack of direction stunts the organizations ability to change because stakeholders are in chaos and moving at
different rates, in different directions. It is imperative that leaderships establishes and maintains a clear vision and
direction, regularly communicates them outward toward the stakeholders, and also holds routine check-ins to
obtain the perspectives of the impacted stakeholders.
4. Mismanaged expectations
Expectations are the beliefs that are held by each stakeholder and leader about how the changes will progress, be
deployed and be adopted. Often these are implicit assumptions rather than explicit agreements. However, they
require management from setting to changing expectations.
The ability to change is impacted when expectations are implicit and unmanaged by the leadership and the project
teams. It is the job of both leadership and the project team to discuss and set explicit expectations. Ultimately, all of
the stakeholder expectations must align with what is going to be achieved by the change initiative. The most
important technique here is the development of communication structure. It is this infrastructure and planning
framework that will guide the management of expectations throughout the process of change.
5. Lack of capability and capacity
Capability is the skill and know-how that is required by an individual or an organization to accomplish a specific
task or activity in the achievement of a goal. Capacity is the breadth or amount of that same skill and know-how.
Capability and capacity means that people and organizations need to know how to change, and they also must have
enough of the skill to work through with change. Both play a pivotal role in change because they have a direct
impact on an individual’s ability to adopt the new policies, procedures, tools and organizational structures that are
implemented with the changes.
, Chapter 2. The reasons for change
There are many reasons that organizations undergo change. These root causes can be categorized in a few main reasons.
1. Burning platform
The burning platform is a euphemism for the state of emergency within the organization. This emergency can be
anything from sharp drops of revenue, market share, or profitability, the threat of legal action, and/or poor business
planning. These emergencies are what create the situations in which organizations must change in order to remain
viable. Effectively, a burning platform is a situation that threatens the health and life of the organization.
A burning platform can crate panic among executives. This can lead to bad management decisions which brings
chaos in the organization. The people in the organization often reject the decisions and ignore directives made
during these times of panic because the loss of trust in the executive. The biggest factor in this loss of trust is the
sharp decline in communication and engagement. In times of panic, executives increasingly shrink the
communication circle and make decisions without the people who are directly impacted by them. Once trust is
gone, it creates a sense of apathy among the people in the organization. Without trust in the leadership, people
within the organization have little to no interest in implementing changes required to salvage it.
Burning platform is not necessarily the end of an organization, it is a critical emergency situation. When leadership
pulls together and increases engagement throughout the situation, the organization cannot only be salvaged, but it
could actually come back bigger and stronger. It is leadership and engagement that are critical game changers when
it comes to facing a burning platform. People usually want (and ask for) a sense of some control (not total). They
want to feel as though they are important and matter, and that comes out of the need for relatedness and
competence.
2. Continuous improvement
Continuous improvement is the never-ending and ongoing mission of organizations to improve some aspect of
itself. In order to improve, the organization creates a strategy and then undertakes project initiatives to execute the
strategy. This means that they desire change and actively pursue it.
One of the drawbacks of continuous improvement can be change fatigue; but it not necessarily is. By leveraging
specific tools and techniques, continuous improvement can be embraced and celebrated by the organization.
People want to support what they helped build. That means that there is an emotional connection to the things that
we build. Sometimes, emotional connection can make people resistant to change because they want to hold on to
the success they have had. That speaks for the need for feeling competent. However, this can be overcome by
showing people how to be successful in the new model.
By changing to adapt to the ever-changing barrage of consumer needs, a company can stay relevant. When an
organization practices continuous improvement, it is adapting to that shift in consumer need and mind-set. By
keeping up with the changes, they are addressing autonomy head-on. That’s because autonomy is the ability to
choose for one’s own self.
By incorporating consumer feedback into the products and services through continuous improvement efforts, the
company is also aligning itself with the consumers that it serves and this in turn, addresses the consumer’s need for
being related and connected.
Managing the change component of continuous improvement is critical in order to control change fatigue. The best
way to manage it is to create a strong vision and leverage communication to help people keep their eye on the
prize.
3. Facilitate growth
Many organizations transform their business operations to facilitate growth. In preparation for and during the
process of growth, many things will change; technology, employee count, branding etc. Consequently, managing
change when considering the growth of an organization is important.
Changing the size of an organization usually involves various projects that are designed to implement incremental
increases. Transforming the size of an organization impacts the ability of its employees to change because it can
increase the employees’ internal barriers.
4. Scaling back operations
Many organizations do this when there is a need to reduce overall size, locations, employees, or the scope of
products and services offered. Typically, this is due to financial constraints, but it could also be to rebrand,
reposition, or reorganize operations. Scaling back makes everyone nervous and afraid (for their job mainly). When
people are afraid, it makes change difficult.
5. Mergers and acquisitions
M&A are when two or more organizations either merge into one larger business entity, or one organization is
acquired by the other. Either way, there are a lot of critical and time-sensitive decisions to be made that will impact
how well the people within both organizations accept change.
Communication is most important. Too soon, people start getting anxious to get it over with. Too late, people start
feeling like something covert is going on.
The biggest concern that people have when it comes to M&A is job loss. Once that sets in, people go into full panic
mode and start abandoning the organization.
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