Change Management Plan for Crystel

CrysTel is at the beginning stages of a major change initiative. They have conducted a climate survey and an employee satisfaction survey and have identified strengths and weaknesses among the departments within the company. The weakest departments have been found to be Marketing and Sales and Delivery. Strategies have been implemented to assist with increasing productivity and decreasing resistance to the change that is about to take place companywide. The department that showed the lowest increase in productivity and motivation, as well as the smallest decrease in absenteeism and employee turnover after the implementation of the previously mentioned strategies was the Marketing department. However throughout the simulation it was never exactly identified how the changes were going to be presented to the departments, nor were any specific goals stated other than to increase productivity. According to an editorial posted in the Feliciter, “No matter whether change is something thrust upon you or something you thrust upon others, everyone should take into consideration beforehand the effects on other individuals and plan the changes accordingly.” (Cook, 2006, p. 232)

Because humans possess emotions and feelings their behavior while in the midst of change can never be predetermined. According to a recent article in the Travel Trade Gazette, “Whenever there is a change to an organization, be it external or internal, much time is spent on the structural, leadership and financial aspects. And yet the most important element in any change is staff support.” (Lacey, 2007, p. 28) Furthermore, in the article it categorizes employees that are participating in organizational change as winners and losers. The losers being individuals that are reassigned within the organization, have been required to take on additional duties due to the change, now report to a new leader, and they are mourning the loss of their support team that once existed with their former co-workers. These individuals are feeling betrayed, cynical, unmotivated and on the verge of mutiny. As a result, the organization is getting nothing out of them at a time they need them the most. Had the organization supported these individuals this lack of motivation and productivity could have been avoided and it would most likely not have cost the company a dime.

The second category, the winners, are feeling relieved that they are survivors within their previous positions and they have not had to undergo much change, however they are constantly looking over their shoulder wondering when it will be their turn to go. While the productivity of the winners is at an all time high so they are not transferred to a different department or work team they are making up for the loss of productivity of the losers but the question is do they outweigh each other? Companywide winners and losers may be leaving the organization because they cannot cope with their feelings, therefore costing the company time and money to train new employees.

As soon as the change is announced and initiated trust must be rebuilt in order for the company to survive the change. External resources are best at times of change because they are not viewed as biased or unsympathetic. Coaching and team planning days outside of the work environment can be very constructive to aide in recouping lost trust.

Other human behaviors towards change maybe that it is unwelcome and this can be avoided by increasing employee buy-in. By persuading employees that change is an opportunity and not a requirement can be very productive. For example, if an employee knows what the opportunity could bring results such as; increased profits, increased pay, more manpower to get the job done, increased customer satisfaction and more funds for employee benefits; then their likeliness to support the change will be higher. However, if these opportunities and the reasons for the change are not communicated and modeled from the top down then the winner versus loser effect will we visible even in a mostly stable organization such as CrysTel.

For CrysTel the most appropriate change model that can be implemented would be one that consists of repeated evaluation of success towards goals, identification of weaknesses that may surface with continuous change, further application of strategies and opportunities that will allow them to reach goals in today’s ever changing telecommunications industry and periodic goal realignment along with benchmarking to allow for the best growth both financially and in popularity among consumers.

The final change model for CrysTel will also need to consider how human variables will affect the levels of resistance to change. According to a recent article from the Journal of Change Management the most prevalent human factor in resistance to change is, “…employee uncertainty and the importance of effective communication practices”