Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-1
Chapter 14
Making Change
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
In today’s workplace, organizational change is not just a senior-level job but an increasingly
necessary skill for people at all levels. Managers are frequently confronted with challenges
that require them to be change agents or internal consultants. This chapter is designed to
help students learn the conditions required for effective change, and then to understand how
to overcome resistance and to implement and support change initiatives.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
KNOWING OBJECTIVES
1. Compare different models of change.
2. Explain the steps involved in the contracting process.
3. Describe methods for collecting data in a change initiative.
4. Describe the purpose of the most common change interventions.
5. Recognize the signs of resistance to change.
DOING OBJECTIVES
1. Apply a model of change to conduct a planned organizational change.
2. Structure an organizational problem into an achievable change initiative.
3. Collect and feedback data needed to increase change readiness.
4. Provide feedback to a group about a change initiative.
5. Build trust in an employee who is cynical of a given change initiative.
6. Evaluate the results of a change initiative.
STUDENT QUESTIONS
There is one question that students can be relied on to ask whenever the topic of change comes
up. It is:
1. “Is change always good?”
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-2
© 2013 by McGraw-Hill Education. This is proprietary material solely for authorized instructor use. Not authorized for sale or distribution in any
manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
catches people off guard. As the text points out, there are advantages and disadvantages to being
an innovator at the cutting edge. The trick is to be thoughtful about where and when change
should occur, and to know enough about the environment so that change doesn’t catch you by
surprise.
CHAPTER OUTLINE
I. Introduction
A. Goal of Chapter
1. Develop the skills of an effective change agent
a. Regardless of scope of change
b. Regardless of level in organization
B. Change happens in all levels of the organization
C. Successful change agents need multiple skills
1. Define and frame problems
2. Communicate persuasively
3. Motivate and lead others
4. Manage conflict
5. Build teams
D. Key element in change is people, and people resist change.
II. The Challenge of Change
A. Change is necessary for any organization to adapt and thrive
B. Focus of chapter is planned change, rather than reactive change
C. Most lower-level managers cannot force change (and forced change rarely lasts),
therefore you need to influence people in a way that will get them to commit to change
D. Planned change efforts are often successful (51-80% according to studies)
E. Myths of Making Change
1. Crisis is a guarantee of change
a. Just because there is a crisis, doesn’t mean change will occur
2. Change is best motivated by fear
a. Fear can cause people to go into denial
b. Compelling, positive visions are more likely to cause change
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-3
3. Compelling facts are the key to change
a. Thinking is guided by emotions as much as facts
4. Old dogs can’t learn new tricks
III. General Models of the Change Process
A. Lewin’s Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze Model
1. One of the first, and most enduring, conceptions of change
2. Three stage process of change
i. Positive benefits of change occur in this stage
3. Forcefield analysis
a. Current state is function of driving forces and restraining forces
b. Effective change should focus more on removing restraining forces than
increasing driving forces
B. Punctuated Equilibrium
1. Suggests that there are significant periods of relative stability in an environment
punctuated by rapid jolts of change
C. Bridge’s Model of Transitions
1. Based on transition – the internal processes that people must go through in order to
come to terms with a new situation
2. Three stages of transition
a. Endings – Dealing with Loss, Anxiety, Blame, Shock, Fear
b. Neutral Zone – Transitional Period, Anxiety, Confusion, Uncertainty
c. Beginnings – Setting New Goals, Integration, Reinventing Yourself
3. Acceleration of transitions is critical for change to occur
D. Kotter’s Eight Stages of Change
1. Create a sense of urgency
b. Use dramatic presentations
2. Form a guiding coalition
a. Need a group of influential, effective champions
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-4
3. Create a vision
a. Construct a relevant vision that will help people visualize possible futures
4. Communicate the vision for buy-in
a. Sending clear, credible messages about the direction and progress of change
5. Empower action
a. Actively encourage input
b. Remove barriers for those you want to take part
6. Create Quick Wins
a. Nourishes faith in the change effort
b. Reward the hard workers
7. Build on Change (Don’t let up)
a. Follow up and continue to highlight small wins
8. Institutionalize the Change
a. Aim to make your workplace “change–ready”
E. McKinsey 7S Framework
1. Identifies seven key factors (starting with “S”0 that need to be aligned if an
organization is going to be successful
2. The seven factors
a. Shared values (the glue that holds the 7s’s together)
b. Skills
g. Staff
3. Lesson is that change cannot be done in an isolated manner – changing one thing
means changing other parts of the system
IV. A Practical Model of Planned Change
A. All planned change efforts go through five basic steps
1. Problem structuring
5. Evaluating and sustaining the change
B. Real change usually involves considerable overlap and skipping among the phases – it is
not a linear process
C. Structuring the problem
1. Involves addressing two fundamental questions.
a. Who is(are) the customer(s) of the change?
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-5
b. What is the scope of change (how broad, how much?)
2. Using appreciative inquiry to structure a problem = = asking a series of probing
questions that strengthen a system’s positive potential
D. Contracting with those involved in the change
1. Any change done to people is less likely to be as effective as a change which involves
people from the beginning
2. Contracting involves getting people together for a gap analysis – where are we now
and where do we want to be?
3. The more information is made transparent, the better the chances for success
4. Change agent roles
c. Process consultant
E. Externalize the Threat/Enemy
1. If current staff or managers believe that change is being proposed because they are
incompetent or negligent, they will be defensive and resist change
2. To reduce resistance, it is best to externalize the need for change – that is to change in
response to an external threat
F. Define Goals in Terms of Results Instead of Activities
1. Making measurable results the primary, immediate goal of the change project is an
important element of successful change
a. Goals lead to more direct and urgent strategy development
b. Goals lend themselves to more objective and meaningful evaluation and
measurement
c. Goals promote accountability and produce a healthy culture of ownership among
those involved
2. Develop goals around multiple factors – a single goal may be inefficient to assess the
impact of an initiative
V. Data Collection and Feedback
A. Different Methods of Collection
1. Preferable to use more than one method of data collection to obtain multiple data
points or perspectives
a. Interviews allow gathering a wide range of information, while at the same time
building a relationship with the interviewees
b. Drawback to interviewing is the time it takes to schedule and conduct them, as
well as the possibility of bias and selective information
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-6
c. Other methods of data collection that should be used with interviews include
questionnaires, observations, focus groups, and simple personal observation
B. Understand Before You Judge
1. Find out who benefits from the current situation
make people feel uncomfortable
C. Provide Feedback
1. Feedback heightens awareness and builds urgency for change
2. Peter Block’s Flawless Consulting approach to presenting data
a. Keep feedback to 10 or fewer issues
b. Leave areas for questions
c. 60-minute time frame works
D. Diagnose Change Readiness
1. Change cannot work unless the targets of change are ready to accept, implement, and
sustain it
2. Change does not occur without a “felt need” or desire to make the change
3. Forcefield analyses can be used to identify the forces that lead to complacency, and
determine whether or not people are ready for change
E. Look for Small Wins to Generate Momentum
1. “Big solutions” often take so long that people lose track of what the solution is
2. If change is implemented in smaller, more definable units, people have the chance to
see the effects, know why something happened, and then turn their attention to
making future changes.
VI. Implementing Interventions
A. Types of Interventions – Most change requires multiple types of interventions, including
those listed below.
1. Strategic – includes organizational structure, reporting relationships, target markets
performance evaluation, training and rewards
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-7
3. Structural – include changes in work area configurations, workflow design, dividing
labor, etc
4. Technology – deals with tools, equipment and machinery, and computing systems
B. Framing, Reframing, and Selecting Interventions
1. Four Frames Model
a. Structural frame (factory) relates to how to organize and structure groups and
teams to get results.
2. “Reframing” explores organizational issues through multiple frames to uncover new
opportunities in ambiguous situations
a. Seeing the world through only one frame can lead to organizational failure
3. Selecting an Intervention
a. There is no one best type of intervention or change approach
b. The situation determines the best intervention
c. Frameworks help to generate and explore your range of intervention options
C. Communicating what you are doing
1. Communicate, communicate, communicate!!
2. Communicate the whys and whats of the change clearly and often
3. Ues multimedia and targeted communications
VII. Overcoming Resistance to Change
A. Accelerating change, reducing opposition
1. Urgency – But Not Fear
a. Unless fear is converted to positive urgency, it can lead to resistance
B. Factors
1. Urgency of need for change
2. Degree of opposition
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-8
C. Strategies for overcoming resistance
1. Education and commitment
2. Participation and involvement
3. Facilitation and support
4. Negotiation and agreement
5. Manipulation and co-optation
6. Explicit and implicit coercion
D. Managing Organizational Cynicism
1. Research on organizational cynicism shows that:
a. Cynicism may be entirely rational
leadership
d. Cynics are often more deeply concerned about the organization, and if turned
around, can make the best change agents.
VIII. Evaluating and Sustaining Change Efforts
A. Evaluation is necessary to verify success, identify needs for new or continuing activities,
and improve the change process itself to help make future interventions more successful
B. Change often has broader than anticipated impacts, so it is important to measure the
“ripple effect” of change
C. Change cannot be installed and engineered, so it always takes longer and is more difficult
than people usually imagine
D. Balanced scorecard approach
1. Lead measures
a. Proven predictors of performance
2. Lag measures
a. Outcomes like sales volume, income, market share
IX. Concluding Note
A. Stay Focused on the Basics
1. Change only when it is important: Do not change for change’s sake
2. Know your customer: If you don’t have one, find one
3. Seek participation and involvement in both planning and execution
4. Define your change goals in terms of results
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14-9
5. Listen to learn about rationales for resistance, rather than get defensive over them
6. Make sure people know the whys of change
7. Plan for, seek, and celebrate small wins in the process of change
B. No matter where you are in the organization, just do it
CASES
Making Change When it Doesn’t Seem Possible
1. Service at the Indiana BMV could be poor because the “customers” had little choice
2. Change is very difficult. There are forces of resistance that act against driving forces
for change. And in the case of the Indiana BMV who had no real competition, the
potential for more work and demands being placed on them.
3. Answers will vary. Lewin’s Force Field Analysis would suggest that it would be more
important to overcome resistance rather than to increase the driving forces for change.
In fact, the driving forces should be fairly clear because the Indiana BMV had been
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14–10
Case Concluded
1. There are several key lessons drawn from the BMV case: 1) you need to create a sense of
urgency for the change; 2) you cannot manage what you do not measure; 3) the vast
majority of people in an organization want to be engaged and take priced in their work;
and 4) allow people to be involved in the change effort.
2. In the context of the BMV, the “schools” would be equivalent to training and educational
sources that would help people learn the knowledge and skills required for the change.
3. The commissioner did not need to do much to show the employees that the BMV was
doing poorly, because they were already ranked the worst in the nation. What the
4. It is important not to relax and let changed behaviors regress. Continue to monitor key
indicators of success and assess whether additional changes should be made.
5. A common trap is that organizations slide back into the old way of doing things, so a
Boldly Go Where no Stadium Has Gone Before
1. Every organization needs to be concerned with change. The top performing organization
2. Answers will vary. It is possible that some purists will see the changes as unnecessary
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14–11
3. Fans could be resistant to the changes if it results in a loss of identity or has unintended
communicated so that people can understand the advantages to the change.
“MANAGE WHAT” SCENARIOS
14.1 Converting an Organizational Problem in an Achievable Change Initiative
Debrief is located at the end of the chapter.
14.2 Creating Urgency for a Change
Debrief is located at the end of the chapter.
14.3 Dealing with Change Resistors
Debrief is located at the end of the chapter.
14.4 Evaluating a Change Initiative
Evaluating a change initiative is an important step that can provide critical
information to future change initiatives for the company and the other districts. It is
valuable not only to identify aspects that went well but also those that went poorly.
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14–12
MANAGEMENT LIVE
14.1 Schools, Media, and Police: Powerful Levers of Change
Instructions:
Students will identify a change made in an organization with which they are familiar. For
14.2 Leaders for the Long Haul
Class Discussion Questions
1. What do you think about the idea of every employee being a leader? What does it really
mean?
2. Do you think that the change initiative at Roadway Express would work in other
companies as well? Why or why not?
3. How does the presence of a union add to the dynamics of the change initiative at
Roadway Express?
4. What would you recommend the company do as next steps following the 3-day
conference?
14.3 Robert Shaffer’s Five Fatal Flaws of Consulting
Class Discussion Questions:
1. Why is it important to define a project in terms of the “change results to be achieved”
rather than the “work to be done”? Does this advice contradict or support what you
learned about “SMART goals” in previous lessons in the textbook? Explain your answer.
2. How can a consultant assess “readiness to implement”?
3. Why are incremental small wins so valuable?
4. Imagine that you were involved in the change initiatives at the Indiana BMV as discussed
in the case that opened and concluded the chapter. What would be some examples of
“small wins” you could assess and celebrate?
5. How could we foster a partnership between the client and consultant and avoid the
problem of a sharp divide between the two?
14.4 The Law of the Few: Finding Your Communication Champions
Instructions:
Students will evaluate their social networks and identify which people are connectors, mavens,
and salespeople. It might be helpful for students to begin with their online networks such as
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14–13
Facebook or LinkedIn. Students should create a chart detailing the number of contacts they have
under each category.
TOOL KIT
14.1 Conducting a Force Field Analysis
Instructions for the first part of this exercise appear in Tool Kit 10.1 at the end of Chapter 10 in
the text. Students are asked to specify a problem statement (Current State) and an ideal state
(Desired Condition) for a change problem. There are two possibilities for cases to use in this
exercise. One is to ask students to think about a large change that they would like to see on
One answer is shown below.
Driving Forces
Resisting Forces
Opportunity to improve sales/profit
Costs of new marketing materials and
development costs of new marketing
approach
Increased prestige for company
History (what’s worked in the past should
work now, cyclical nature of product
sales)
Opportunity to improve relations with
doctors
Training costs
Gaining a competitive advantage
Potential research and development costs
associated with new marketing approach
Involving the sales force in creating the
change may increase their job satisfaction
Self-interest (need for change may signal a
power shift in company)
14.2 Using the Bridges’ Model
Instructions:
Students can complete this exercise individually or in small groups of 2 or 3. The student(s)
should identify someone who is going through a significant organizationally-relevant change.
For example, the person might work at an organization that is experiencing layoffs or that has
recently merged with another organization.
Chapter 14 – Making Change
14–14
14.3 Communicating to Avoid Clutter
Instructions:
information from Tool Kit 14.3 and the rest of your textbook in your answer.
Scenario:
Naomi is the superintendent of schools at a mid-sized metropolitan community. The school has
consistently been rated in the bottom quartile of schools in the state. Naomi would like to
implement several sweeping changes within the school district that she believes will positively
impact student success. Naomi has already had extensive meetings with the school board, other
administrators, and a task force committee composed of teachers from the various schools. The
change would involve implementation of new technology, required training and development for
teachers, and teacher performance standards to be measured by student standardized test scores
and administrator ratings of teacher performance based on surprise classroom visitations. Naomi
would also like to include a pay-for-performance system that would reward top-performing
teachers with bonuses.
Questions:
1. Who should be involved in the communication?
2. What should be the medium for the communication? (e.g., newsletter, email, open forum)
3. What should the message be?
4. What other recommendations would you suggest to make the communication most
effective?