Change Management

We notice changes in our everyday lives. Change is a process of transition from one state to another future desired state. Management of this change process in any organization is called change management. Change may also be referred to change of jobs, places, products, companies, etc.

Managers are responsible to make the employees understand about change otherwise the change may be a failure if not clearly stated. Change may also result from the dissatisfaction of present situation. Each and every organization can create a change management process based on the companies’ size and resources. The department head for the change management process must have good communication skills. The management can also be given change management training. One cannot over communicate when you want an organization to change. The individual requesting for change should deliver the message properly. The person receiving the change should interpret and understand the message correctly. In this scenario a written communication plan would help. Some employees who may not like to adapt to changes may oppose to this change. It is the manager’s convincing skills which play an important role to make the employee adjust with the changes made. If the employee is not convinced in a proper manner then he or she may quit resulting in the loss of a valuable resource to the organization.

Change may have three relative aspects – adapting to change, controlling change, and effecting change. The first is to adapt to change. For this process, first a plan should be put forth regarding the change to take place. All the employees in the department must be informed about this change and should be adapted to it. The next step is to control change. After the change has been implemented, the employees will get used to it and work effectively. This can be done through training. The last step is effective change. If the change implemented is adapted by all and the work is said to go on successfully, then the change may be said to effective without failure or problems.

Review Questions:

• What is change management?
• Suggestions few ways to effectively manage change in an organization.