CHANGE MANAGEMENT 1

Change Management and Management Styles

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Change Management and Management Styles

Leaders in organization have an important role to play in managing change and also in

shaping the management style. Management of change is important in organizations in different

sectors. Management styles keep changing because of issues such as economic changes. In

business, the changing needs of the market place shape organizational change, for instance,

factors such as competition. Managing organizational change requires effective planning.

Effective planning of organizational change is important in dealing with potential challenges

such as resistance of change.

Organizational change is important in making businesses to keep up with the changes in

the sectors they operate in. Organizational change is a part of organizations evolving. Leaders

can initiate change in an organization as part of making improvements or addressing an existing

challenge. There are different change management models that play a crucial role in guiding

change management in organization. The severity of change in different cases differs. It is

possible for an organization to initiate change that leads to a complete overhaul.

Literature Review

There are different kinds of studies that examine the issue of change management in

business organizations. According to Katzenbach (1995) change leaders have an essential role

in connecting three important forces of organizational change which are the top leadership

aspirations, the workforce energy and finally market place reality. These forces are relevant

regardless of the sector a given organization is in. To leadership aspirations shape the vision of
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an organization, the workforce influence how the vision is achieved while the market place

reality involves issues such as competitor and customer characteristics.

There are different changes that have taken place over the years in business organizations

in different fields. In business organizations and organizations such as those in the field of

health care, a major factor that has contributed to change and led to the need for effective change

management is technological advancement. The availability of new technologies makes it

necessary for organizations to keep up with changes within the sectors they operate in. Failure to

adapt to technological changes has negatively affected many large business organizations across

the world.

Changes in management styles are also part of businesses and other related organizations

evolving and growing. Examining the change in organizations leads to understanding that

organizations are dynamic. Creation of learning organizations is important in effectively

managing change in organizations (Stouten, Rousseau and De Cremer, 2018). In order to

understand management styles, it is important to understand what leadership and management

entail. Leadership involves influencing and motivating others. Management on the other hand

involves planning, staffing, organizing and controlling.

Management styles in an organization therefore shape how activities are controlled. In

my field, technological advancements have led to a wide range of changes including changes in

management due to the effect of technology on issues such as organizational communication.

Effective change management involves setting a clear vision and working towards achievement

of the vision. There are different kinds of changes that take place in organizations, for example,

operational changes, cultural changes, changes in strategy and even political and social changes.
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Operation changes lead to improvements of systems in the organization. Strategic changes take

place due to issues such as increased competition that lead to a need to develop new strategies.

Changes in management styles play a crucial role in shaping cultural changes in

organizations (Stouten, Rousseau and De Cremer, 2018). Different managers have different

management styles when managing organizations and when specifically managing change. The

management style of a leader in an organization during change management affects issues such

as communication of the change and involvement of members of the members of the

organization. There are change management styles that are more participatory than others.

The way leaders manage change has an influence on how the change is implemented, for

instance, influencing the level of resistance or acceptance of change. In change management,

effective communication is essential in explaining the desired vision and why it is beneficial.

There are different change management theories used in organizational leadership. In addition,

there are also change management models that are used different in organizations. Different

management styles have advantages and disadvantages during change management (Van der

Voet, 2016).

The use of a transformational approach leads to a high level of involvement of those

affected by the change. This is different from situations where there is an authoritarian style of

management. Managing organizational change requires effective analysis of characteristics of

members of the organization, for example, the workforce. Effective management of change is

well planned (Van der Voet, 2016). This means that change management involves setting of

goals, discussion with the individuals the change touches on, then implementing and evaluating

the change.
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There are different opportunities and challenges that come up in management of

organizational change. A change that has affected the discipline I am in and organizations in

other sectors is that a lot of organizational operations have become technological. This is a

factor that has affected the competitive ability of organizations. Important considerations in

management of change include analysis of both short term and long term costs and benefits

(Bligh, Kohles & Yan, 2018).

Different people have different experience with change. The specific kind of change

needed is a crucial determinant of the choice of management style to implement the change.

Technology has led to differences in organizations currently in contrast to how they were in the

past. The incorporation of different forms of information technology in organization has led to

the need to members of organizations to be technology savvy. This therefore means, that

organizations now require a different skillset compared to the past while hiring staff.

Managers have an important role to play in making members of organizations to embrace

change. There are different strategies that managers can us to initiate and implement change.

Some styles are more consultative than others. In organizations such as military organizations

and other organizations with paramilitary structures, there is a more authoritative approach in

initiation and implementation of organizational change. There is a difference between change

that is forced and change that involves consultation to persuade the involved parties (Stouten,

Rousseau and De Cremer, 2018).

There are management styles where the management lead by example, for instance, in

using new technology. Resistance to change is a challenge that is faced in management of

organizational change. In order to address resistance to change it is important to effectively

communicate why a given change is necessary and the benefits the change will bring about. In
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addition, effective management of change requires showing that a proposed change is attainable.

Change keeps taking place in organizations in different industries.

Change management refers to the process of managing transitions in organizations, for

instance, managing changes in operations. There are different change management models that

act as pre-planned frameworks for the management of change. According to Stouten, Rousseau

and De Creamer (2018) there are some widely used change management models that guide the

process of managing change in organizations. A challenge however is that reliance on the

models could lead to a focus on the models at the expense of scientific evidence and therefore

leads to challenges in change management. A very common example of organizational change

is adapting to technological changes or making strategical changes to deal with competition. An

example of a change management model is Kurt Lewin's Change Management Model. This

model shows that the main stages of change management are unfreezing, changing and

refreezing (Hussain et al. 2018).

In the unfreezing stage, there is preparation for the planned change. This is then

followed by the actual implementation of the change and finally the refreezing stage involves

gaining a sense of stability and adapting to the implemented change. Another common model of

change management in organizations is Kotter’s 8 step change model. This is a step by step

model that leads to effective planning of change. A challenge of using such an approach in

management of change however is that it can be time consuming since no step can be skipped.

The steps ion the Kotter 8 step change model are increasing of urgency, creation of a

team, creating a vision for change, communicating the created vision, dealing with barriers,

focusing on short term goals, build the change and finally incorporate the change as part of the

culture of the organization (Jones et al. 2019). There are other different models and theories of
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change management that are utilized in different contexts. Over the past decade or so,

globalization has greatly affected organizations in different sectors. Management styles have

evolved over the years and this also includes changes in the management of change. Business

administration has significantly evolved over the last decade. This includes changes in human

resource management practices.

The presence of different generations of workers is a factor that has contributed to change

in organizations. Organizations have become more flexible and social in terms of feedback.

There are technological advancements that have led to the development of virtual work

environments and that is a rapidly growing trend in different sectors. Larson and DeChurch

(2020) emphasize that digital technologies are transforming teamwork and in turn affecting

organizational management in general. Digital technologies have led to remote teams and that

has leadership implications ( Larson & DeChurch , 2020).

In the recent years, there has been an increased push to have remote workforces. This is

an issue that has led to an increase in flexibility and also made it possible to have teams that are

spread out. Currently there are members of different generations in the workforce. This includes

the baby boomers, generation X, the millennials and generation Z. This therefore means that

organizations have faced pressure to change in order to accommodate the needs of different

generations in the workplace.

There are different kinds of change in organizations. There is a difference between

planned and unplanned change. The intentionality of a change in an organization is a factor that

affects how the change is managed. Intentional or planned change is purposeful implemented.

Planned change involves clear objectives and a step by step process to achieve the objectives.

Unplanned change on the other hand is unintentional. Unplanned change can have positive or
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negative effects depending on how it is managed. Examples of unplanned changes include

spontaneous and unexpected situations in the marketplace.

Unplanned changes in organizations in most cases are not foreseen. There are triggers

that contribute to change, for example, remedial change in organizations is focused in addressing

existing problems (Bligh, Kohles & Yan, 2018). This is different from change that is just

focused on making improvements. The core functions of a manager include planning, staffing,

organizing, controlling and budgeting among other related functions. The management style of

choice in a given context affects the process of change management. Hussain et al. (2018) show

that the effectiveness with which organization can change differs, for instance, how easy it is to

change the structure of an organization.

The collaboration spectrum is applicable in explaining styles of change management. The

spectrum shows that there are different styles of managing change which are collaborative style,

consultative style, directive style and coercive style.

The collaborative style is on one extreme side of the spectrum while the coercive style is

on the other end. A collaborative style of managing change involves greatly involving those

affected by the change. In the recent decade there has been an increase in collaborative

management of change. A consultative style of managing change is a compromise to the

collaborative approach. Consultation is different from collaboration because it involves listening

to the views of those affected by the change but not necessarily taking them into consideration.

A directive approach of managing change greatly involves one-way communication. In this

approach, there is high likelihood of resistance.

A coercive approach leaves those affected by a change with no option but to accept the

change. Heyden t al. (2017) emphasize that the approach used in communication during change
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management directly influence resistance or acceptance of change. Employee support is

essential in effectively implementing change. Situational factors greatly influence the success or

failure of management styles while managing change in organizations.

Findings/Results

There was a lot that was learned from this research on change management and

management styles. I learned a lot about the influence on management styles on the process of

managing organizational change. Another important lesson I learned is that organizations are

evolving because of factors such as technological advancements and changes in the society. This

has made it necessary for organizations to change in order to keep up with the trends, for

instance, the growth of technology that facilitates working of virtual teams. My thinking on this

topic has been enhanced since there was insight about different approaches of managing change

in organizations. There is a lot more to learn about the topic by examining examples of

organizational change and management styles.

Recommendation for Future Research

There is a need to further study or examine the effectiveness of different specific change

models, for example, Kotter’s 8 step model of change management in different contexts.

Another important area that needs further examination is the management of unplanned change.

In-depth comparison of the management of planned and unplanned changed will be essential in

effectively understanding the concept of change management in organizations.

Conclusion
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This paper examines the change management and management styles. There is

examination of literature explaining the change management process and showing that

organizations have significantly changed in the recent years leading to changes in how change in

managed. The review of literature shows that management styles directly affect management of

change, for example, resistance or acceptance of change by those affected.

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References

Bligh, M. C., Kohles, J. C., & Yan, Q. (2018). Leading and learning to change: the role of

leadership style and mindset in error learning and organizational change. Journal of

Change Management, 18(2), 116-141.

Heyden, M. L., Fourné, S. P., Koene, B. A., Werkman, R., & Ansari, S. (2017). Rethinking ‘top‐

down’and ‘bottom‐up’roles of top and middle managers in organizational change:

Implications for employee support. Journal of Management Studies, 54(7), 961-985.

Hussain, S. T., Lei, S., Akram, T., Haider, M. J., Hussain, S. H., & Ali, M. (2018). Kurt Lewin's

change model: A critical review of the role of leadership and employee involvement in

organizational change. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 3(3), 123-127.

Jones, J., Firth, J., Hannibal, C., & Ogunseyin, M. (2019). Factors contributing to organizational

change success or failure: a qualitative meta-analysis of 200 reflective case studies. In

Evidence-Based Initiatives for Organizational Change and Development (pp. 155-178).

IGI Global.

Larson, L., & DeChurch, L. (2020). Leading teams in the digital age: Four perspectives on

technology and what they mean for leading teams. The Leadership Quarterly, 101377.

Stouten, J., Rousseau, D. M., & De Cremer, D. (2018). Successful organizational change:

Integrating the management practice and scholarly literatures. Academy of Management

Annals, 12(2), 752-788.

van der Voet, J. (2016). Change leadership and public sector organizational change: Examining

the interactions of transformational leadership style and red tape. The American Review

of Public Administration, 46(6), 660-682.