Term Paper on "Human Resource Management Comparing"

Term Paper 6 pages (2475 words) Sources: 3

[EXCERPT] . . . .

This lead to a position where management and employees were estranged; in that type of situation there is likely to be a lack of empathy and a potential for disagreement to escalate, which will increase costs and hinder the change process (Cameron and Green, 2012). This escalation is seen when the management place the competing bottled water in the Perrier canteen, the management may have thought this would demonstrate the need to compete, but instead in increased the feelings of hostility.

Of the two firms, Ajax Minerals dealt with the resistance in a more effective way. Ajax took a proactive approach considering the perspective of the employees and why there may be resistance. It was effective as they prevented the emergence of active resistance and any feeling of hostility by giving the employees the knowledge and allowing them to feel that they are a part of the change, as they were not presented with a fete accompli. The management gave the employees at Ajax a reason to trust them and to support the change; this did not occur at Perrier.

4. Consider a situation as a consultant with Ajax Management. Propose two (2) adjustments that should be made to improve its change strategy and provide a justification as to why those adjustments would improve the effectiveness of the strategy.

While the situation was Ajax appears to be positive, with the employees won over of the need for change and providing cooperation, there are still improvements which may be made, adopting a pluralistic approach (Pardo-del-Val et al., 2012). While the existing strategy with the open sessions and allowed for he employees to be educated, there is also the potential to undertake a more participative approach. In any organization the employees may also be a viable source of information and knowledge; they may have ideas on potential sources of efficiency, gaining knowledge from experience (Pardo-del-Val et al., 2012). Instead of simply winning over the employees, they may be seen as a resource and able to make a positive contribution, with the employer asking them for any suggestion which may be added to the knowledge and ideas that are being assessed (Pardo-del-Val et al., 2012).

A second strategy which may be used is that of consultation with employee representative to assess potential changes that are being considered and to design the change process. This will increase the role of the employees and their ability to influence change, but it does not transfer power to them, it allows the firm to have a greater level of information to be used in the decision making process for both determining and then implementing the change (Pardo-del-Val et al., 2012).

5. Consider a situation as a consultant with Perrier. Propose at least two (2) adjustments that should be made to improve its change strategy and provide a justification as to why those adjustments would increase the effectiveness of the strategy.

Perrier may have improved the situation by taking a broader view and considering the potential concerns of the employees. The firm was facing difficulties, but it is unlikely that the employees understood the full extent of those problems. If Perrier had undertaken a strategy similar to Ajax, and talked to those employees, undertaking bilateral communication so that the employees were able to understand the danger the firm faced, and have the opportunity to ask question and be reassured that the information given is honest. This may have created a situation where the employees understood why there needed to be a change.

The second suggestion for improving the change also refers to the way the employees should have been prepared. If the management had a vision for the change, and had shared that vision, there may have been some reassurance and an increased level of certainty regarding the potential outcome of the change. For example, if there were proposal to make 15% of employees redundant, there are likely to have been fears that more cuts would follow with a higher cost to employees. The failure to talk to the employees may also have exacerbated the problem, as without commutation or understanding what changes were to occur in the future, the employees would not have any reason to trust that the changes would be successful.

Lewin's first stage of change management is referred to as unfreezing; this is the stage where employees are prepared for the change by ensuring that they understand the need for that change. In Kotter's 8 stage change model, the first five stages; from creating a sense of urgency through to removing obstacles all refer to the preparation for the change (Kotter, 2011). Perrier needed to prepare the employees for the change, to reduce the potential for change.

With the presence of resistance and a high level of hostility the management will now need to regain trust in order to implement changes. This will require direct communication with the employees. As there is a union present, this will include communication of the situation and influences with the union representatives. The adoptions of increased communication in a reconciliatory manner, which is supported by an open door policy and a more pluralistic attitude by the management, may be needed to change the attitudes of the employees.

References

Cameron, Esther; Green, Mike, (2012), Making Sense of Change Management: A Complete Guide to the Models Tools and Techniques of Organizational Change, Kogan Page

Kotter, JP, (2011), "Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail," in HBR's 10 Must Reads on Change Management, Harvard Business Press

Palmer, I; Dunford, R; Akin, G, (2009), Managing organizational change: A multiple perspectives approach (2nd ed.), New York, McGraw-Hill

Pardo-del-Val, Manuela; Martinez-Fuentes, Clara; Roig-Dobon, Salvador, (2012), Participative management and its influence on organizational change, Management Decision, 50(10), 1843-1860

Pauchant, Thierry C; Mitroff, Ian I, (1988), Crisis Prone vs. Crisis Avoiding… READ MORE

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