BRIGHT MEDICAL AND BUSINESS COLLEGE

Department of management

Leadership and Change Management

Module

Course Code: MGMT 2083

October, 2021
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TABLE OF CONTENT

TABLE OF CONTENT ................................................................................................................... I

CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................. 1
1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 1
1.1. LEADERSHIP DEFINITION ................................................................................................. 1
1.2. LEADERSHIP VS MANAGEMENT ....................................................................................... 2
1.3. WHAT MAKES EFFECTIVE LEADER .................................................................................. 5
1.4. IMPORTANCE OF LEADERSHIP FOR GOOD GOVERNANCE AND DEVELOPMENT ................. 7
CHAPTER TWO .......................................................................................................................... 10
LEADERSHIP THEORIES AND STYLES ................................................................................ 10
2.1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 10
2.2. LEADERSHIP THEORIES .................................................................................................. 10
2.2.1. Great Man Theory ..................................................................................................... 11
2.2.2. Trait Theory .............................................................................................................. 12
2.2.3. Behavioral Theories .................................................................................................. 14
2.2.4. Contingency Leadership Theory ............................................................................... 16
2.2.5. Transactional Leadership Theory ............................................................................. 18
2.2.6. Transformational Leadership Theory ....................................................................... 20
2.2.7. Servant Leadership.................................................................................................... 22
2.3. LEADERSHIP STYLES ...................................................................................................... 24
2.3.1. Positive versus Negative Motivation ........................................................................ 24
2.3.2. Decision-Making Styles ............................................................................................ 25
2.3.3. Task Orientation versus People Orientation ............................................................. 29
2.4. LEADERSHIP SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES ...................................................................... 30
2.4.1. Leadership Skills....................................................................................................... 30
2.5. GOOD VS BAD LEADERS ................................................................................................. 41
CHAPTER THREE ...................................................................................................................... 46
OVERVIEW OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT............................................................................ 46
3.1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 46
3.2. MEANING AND IMPLICATIONS ........................................................................................ 47
3.3. FORCES FOR ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE ....................................................................... 48
3.4. PROCESS OF ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE ....................................................................... 50
3.5. RESISTANCE TO CHANGE ............................................................................................... 52
Common obstacles to change................................................................................................ 53
3.6. MANAGING RESISTANCE TO CHANGE ............................................................................ 54
3.7. PLANNED CHANGE ......................................................................................................... 56
3.8. STRATEGIES FOR PLANNED ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE ................................................ 57
CHAPTER FOUR ......................................................................................................................... 62
4.1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 62
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4.2. TYPES OF CHANGE.......................................................................................................... 62

4.3. PLANNED VS. UNPLANNED CHANGE .............................................................................. 63
4.4. REVOLUTIONARY CHANGE VERSUS EVOLUTIONARY CHANGE....................................... 64
4.5. BUSINESS PROCESS REENGINEERING (BPR) .................................................................. 67
4.6. BPR PROCESS ................................................................................................................ 73
4.7. BPR TECHNIQUES AND TOOLS ....................................................................................... 75
4.8. IMPLEMENTATION OF BPR ............................................................................................. 81
4.9. OTHER KINDS OF CHANGE.............................................................................................. 82
CHAPTER FIVE .......................................................................................................................... 93
CONFLICTS AND CONFLICT MANAGEMENT ..................................................................... 93
5.1. MEANING AND NATURE OF CONFLICT ........................................................................... 94
5.2. TYPES OF CONFLICT ....................................................................................................... 95
5.3. SOURCES OF CONFLICT ................................................................................................ 100
5.4. CONFLICT OUTCOMES .................................................................................................. 103
5.5. CONFLICT MANAGEMENT ............................................................................................ 103
5.6. ANALYSIS OF THE CONFLICT SITUATION ..................................................................... 113
5.7. CONFLICT STIMULATION .............................................................................................. 116
5.8. CONFLICT RESOLUTION ............................................................................................... 117
5.9. INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS MANAGEMENT ............................................................... 120
REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................... 128

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CHAPTER ONE

1. INTRODUCTION

The topic of leadership has been of interest for many hundreds of years, from the early Greek
philosophers such as Plato and Socrates to the plethora of management and leadership gurus,
whose books fill airport bookshops. Seldom, however, has the need for effective leadership been
voiced more strongly than now. It is argued that in this changing, global environment, leadership
holds the answer not only to the success of individuals and organizations, but also to sectors,
regions and nations.

Change management is a structured approach to transitioning individuals, teams, and

organizations from a current state to a desired future state, to fulfill or implement a vision and
strategy. It is an organizational process aimed at empowering employees to accept and embrace
changes in their current environment. There are several different streams of thought that have
shaped the practice of change management. It is the formal process for organizational change,
including a systematic approach and application of knowledge. Change management means
defining and adopting corporate strategies, structures, procedures, and technologies to deal with
change stemming from internal and external conditions.

1.1. Leadership Definition

In a recent review of leadership theory, Northouse identified four common themes in the way
leadership now tends to be conceived: (1) leadership is a process; (2) leadership involves
influence; (3) leadership occurs in a group context; and (4) leadership involves goal attainment.

He thus defines leadership as ―a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals

to achieve a common goal.‖

This is a good definition, but it still locates the individual as the source of leadership. A more
collective concept of leadership arises out of a review by Yukl:

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―Most definitions of leadership reflect the assumption that it involves a social influence process
whereby intentional influence is exerted by one person [or group] over other people [or groups]
to structure the activities and relationships in a group or organization.‖

Even this definition, however, obscures as much as it reveals. Just what exactly is the nature of
this ‗social influence‘; how can it ‗structure‘ activities and relationships; and when applied in a
group setting who is the ‗leader?‘

In short, leadership is a complex phenomenon that touches on many other important

organizational, social and personal processes. It depends on a process of influence, whereby
people are inspired to work towards group goals, not through coercion, but through personal
motivation. Which definition you accept should be a matter of choice, informed by your own
predispositions, organizational situation and beliefs, but with an awareness of the underlying
assumptions and implications of your particular approach.

1.2. Leadership Vs Management

It has become fashionable over recent years to distinguish leadership from management.

Zalenznik began the trend of contrasting leadership and management by presenting an image of
the leader as an artist, who uses creativity and intuition to navigate his/her way through chaos,
whilst the manager is seen as a problem solver dependent on rationality and control. Since then
the leadership literature has been littered with bold statements contrasting the two. Bennis and
Nanus, for example, suggest that managers ―do things right‖ whilst leaders do ―the right thing‖
and Bryman argues that the leader is the catalyst focused on strategy whilst the manager is the
operator/technician concerned with the ―here-and-now of operational goal attainment‖.

Central to most of these distinctions is an orientation towards change. This concept is well
represented in the work of John Kotter who concluded that ―management is about coping with
complexity‖ whilst ―leadership, by contrast, is about coping with change.‖ He proposed that
good management brings about a degree of order and consistency to organizational processes
and goals, whilst leadership is required for dynamic change (for a summary of his ideas).

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The distinction of leadership from management as represented by Kotter and his contemporaries
clearly encourages a shift in emphasis from the relatively inflexible, bureaucratic processes
typified as ‗management‘ to the more dynamic and strategic processes classed as ‗leadership‘,
yet even he concludes that both are equally necessary for the effective running of an
organization. Despite the popular appeal of a distinction between leadership and management,
however, there is some doubt as to whether they are really quite as separate as this in practice.

Firstly there is increasing resistance to the way in which such analyses tend to denigrate
management as something rather boring and uninspiring. Joseph Rost , for example, highlights
the need for consistency and predictability in many aspects of management and leadership
behavior and concludes that ―down with management and up with leadership is a bad idea‖.
Maintaining a sense of continuity during times of change is key to successful leadership.

Thus the leader must ensure that systems and structures remain in place that offer workers a
sense of security and balance, without which it would be hard to maintain levels of motivation,
commitment, trust and psychological wellbeing.
Secondly, much research evidence implies that, far from being separate, the practices described
as ‗management‘ and ‗leadership‘ are integral parts of the same job. From detailed observations
of what managers do, Mintzberg identified 10 key roles, of which one was ‗leadership.‘ He
concluded that far from being separate and distinct from management, leadership is just one
dimension of a multifaceted management role. Much of the difficulty and confusion that arises
from contrasting leadership and management is the manner in which they are often mapped to
different individuals. Thus, we talk of ‗managers‘ and ‗leaders‘ as if they were different (and to a
large extent incompatible) people – we consider leaders as dynamic, charismatic individuals with
the ability to inspire others, whilst managers are seen as bureaucrats who just focus on the task in
hand. Such a view, however, does not coincide well with the lived experience of being a
manager.

People are generally recruited into ‗management‘, rather than ‗leadership‘, positions and are
expected to complete a multitude of tasks ranging from day-today planning and implementation,
to longer-term strategic thinking. None of these are done in isolation and throughout, it is
essential to work alongside other people – to motivate and inspire them, but also to know when
to relinquish the lead and take a back seat.

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In conclusion, whilst the distinction between management and leadership may have been useful
in drawing attention to the strategic and motivational qualities required during periods of change,
the bipolar representation of managers and leaders as completely different people can be
misleading and potentially harmful in practice. Indeed, if it is believed that leaders and managers
are different people, one might well conclude that (a) it is necessary to change the management
team regularly as circumstances change, and (b) it is not possible for managers to become leaders
(and vice versa). Such a view is severely limiting and greatly underestimates the abilities of
people in management and leadership roles.

This is not to say, however, that all people will be equally adept at all aspects of leadership and
management, nor that there is one profile that is appropriate in all situations (these are issues that
will be discussed in the next section on Theories of Leadership) but that to achieve maximum
effect we should seek to recruit and develop ‗leader-managers‘ capable of adopting the role in its
most holistic form. It is for this reason that we will use the words ‗management‘ and ‗leadership‘
and ‗manager‘ and ‗leader‘ largely interchangeably throughout the rest of this section.

 Activity 1: Argue whether leadership is necessarily better than management or a replacement

for it: or rather, leadership and management are two distinctive and/or complementary
activities.

―Leadership is different from management, but not for the reason most people think. Leadership
isn't mystical and mysterious. It has nothing to do with having charisma or other exotic
personality traits. It's not the province of a chosen few. Nor is leadership necessarily better than
management or a replacement for it: rather, leadership and management are two distinctive and
complementary activities. Both are necessary for success in an increasingly complex and volatile
business environment.‖

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Table 1.1 Leadership and management functions

Leadership functions Management functions
Creating Establishing Plans and budgets: Decide action plans and
an agenda direction: timetables, allocate resources
Vision of the future, develop strategies for
change to achieve goals
Developing Aligning Organizing and staffing: Decide structure
people people: Communicate vision and and allocate staff, develop policies,
strategy, influence creation of procedures and monitoring
teams which accept validity of goals
Execution Motivating and Controlling, problem
inspiring: Energize people to solving: Monitor results against plan
overcome obstacles, satisfy human needs and take corrective action
Outcomes Produces positive and sometimes order, consistency and
Dramatic change predictability

1.3. What Makes Effective Leader

As with most popular sayings, there is some truth in the axiom, ―Great leaders are born, not
made.‖ To some extent, the capacity for great leadership is innate. However, learning how to be
a more effective leader is within everyone‘s grasp – whether you lead multiple teams, an entire
company or just one staff member.

 Activity 2: In your opinion, what makes people to be an effective leader?

Here are a few of the qualities and traits of great leaders that you can learn and practice:

 Self-assessment: Effective leaders periodically take stock of their personal strengths and
shortcomings. They ask: ―What do I like to do? What am I really good at?‖ ―What are my
areas of weakness, and what do I dislike doing?‖ Knowing your areas of weakness does
not make you weak; on the contrary, it allows you to delegate to others who have those
abilities, in order to achieve the common goal. Rather than clinging to the false belief that
they can do it all, great leaders hire people who complement, rather than supplement,

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their skills. Working on your areas of weaknesses will improve your leadership ability –
and recognizing them makes you more human.

 Sharp perception: Do you know how people really perceive you? Effective leaders do.
They have an easy level of honest communication with their teams and their peers, and a
thorough understanding of how they are perceived. Testing others‘ perception of you can
be as simple as observing their behavior. Are your co-workers and team members relaxed
around you? Does all conversation stop when you enter the room?

If you really want to know what people think, just ask them. You may receive feedback
that you‘re not listening or showing appreciation as well as you could be. If you‘ve
established an environment of honest and open communication, you should be able to ask
about your good qualities and the areas you need to improve on. Your staff will
appreciate your effort.

 Responsive to the group’s needs: Being perceptive can also help a leader be more
effective in knowing the needs of the team. Some teams value trust over creativity; others
prefer a clear communicator to a great organizer. Building a strong team is easier when
you know the values and goals of each individual, as well as what they need from you as
their leader.

 Knowing the organization: Effective leaders know the organization‘s overall purpose
and goals, and the agreed-upon strategies to achieve these goals; they also know how
their team fits into the big picture, and the part they play in helping the organization grow
and thrive. Full knowledge of your organization – inside and out – is vital to becoming an
effective leader.

Becoming an effective leader is not a one-time thing. It takes time to learn and practice
leadership skills until they become a part of you. Enrolling in negotiation courses, online
business courses and leadership certification courses demonstrates a commitment to upgrading
your skills and improving your leadership abilities.

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When you practice these leadership skills, you can become more effective at any stage of your
career, regardless of the size of your organization. There are opportunities to learn leadership
skills all around you; take advantage of them to improve your career and leadership prospects.

1.4. Importance of Leadership for Good Governance and Development

Governance was created out from the word govern, which means; to rule a country, to control or
direct the public affair of a city, control, influence something or somebody and to determine
something. Governance is the activity or manner of governing. On the other hand, leadership
was also created out from the word leader, which means, someone who shows people or
something, the way to follow, especially by going in the front, to hold and guiding someone or a
group of people to a particular direction.

Having taking cognizance of the both words, it is obvious that they are pointing at the same
thing, and that is direction and leading. This means that, in leadership and governance, the
followers look up to the leader, hold him high esteem, trust him because he is the eyes with
which they see. Now, a good leader or governor will not disappoint his followers, he must have
the interest of his people at heart, he must be passionate, feel the pains of the poor, hear the cry
of the helpless and come for help, create job opportunities for jobless people. A good leader must
be able to render selfless service and desist from selfishness, he must make provision for training
and empowering his people and encourage self employment, he must be serious with issues that
concerns the youths as they are the future leaders and should not look down on the adults.

At all costs, good governance and leadership promotes education, agriculture, ensure stability of
power, construct good roads for safe and easy transportation and make the cost of transportation
affordable especially for people in rural areas, provide good water, good security system, and
make the cost of living affordable for the masses. Ensure peace, unity and maintain transparency.

Summary
\

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It is argued that in this changing, global environment, leadership holds the answer not only to the
success of individuals and organizations, but also to sectors, regions and nations. Northouse
(2004) identified four common themes in the way leadership now tends to be conceived: (1)
leadership is a process; (2) leadership involves influence; (3) leadership occurs in a group
context; and (4) leadership involves goal attainment

Mintzberg concluded that far from being separate and distinct from management, leadership is
just one dimension of a multifaceted management role.

There are a few of the qualities and traits of great leaders that you can learn and practice: Self-
assessment, Sharp perception, Responsive to the group‘s needs and knowing the organization
while Business courses that offer leadership certification often include: Communication,
Motivating teams ,Team building, Risk taking and Vision and goal setting.

At all costs, good governance and leadership promotes education, agriculture, ensure stability of
power, construct good roads for safe and easy transportation and make the cost of transportation
affordable especially for people in rural areas, provide good water, good security system, and
make the cost of living affordable for the masses

Self- Assessment Questions

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I. Say true for correct statements otherwise say false

1. Leader should positively or negatively influence their followers
2. Change management is a structured approach helps to transform organizations from a
current state to a desired future state.
3. Leaders can be managers and vice versa
4. Leaders should have an easy level of honest communication with their teams and their
peers

II. Choose the best answer

1. Which one of the following will be the self assessment question?

A. What do I like to do?
B. What am I really good at?‖ ―
C. What are my areas of weakness, and what do I dislike doing
D. All of the above
2. All of the following are qualities and traits of great leaders except:
A. Sharp perception B. Self assessment
C. Responsive to the group‘s needs D. Lazes fair E. None
3. Which of the following is a function of leadership?
A. Aligning B. Giving direction

C. Controlling D. Motivating

III. Discuss the following questions accordingly

1. Define leadership in different contexts

2. identified four common themes in the way leadership is conceived
3. Distinguish the difference between leadership and management
4. Discuss few of the qualities and traits a great leaders should possess
5. Discuss the importance of leadership for good governance and development

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CHAPTER TWO

LEADERSHIP THEORIES AND STYLES

2.1. Introduction
To understand leadership as it is viewed and practiced today, it is important to recognize that the
concept of leadership has changed over time. As a student of management and as a responsible
leader in life and work, you must understand and be able to discuss these theories. This unit
discusses different leadership theories, leadership styles, competencies of leadership, and good
vs. bad leader.

2.2. Leadership Theories

Activity 3: Why are some leaders successful, while others fail?

Dear student, the truth is that there is no "magic combination" of characteristics that makes a
leader successful, and different characteristics matter in different circumstances. This doesn't
mean, however, that you can't learn to be an effective leader. You just need to understand the
various approaches to leadership, so that you can use the right approach for your own situation.

One way of doing this is to learn about the core leadership theories that provide the backbone of
our current understanding of leadership.

A number of different leadership theories have been introduced to explain exactly how and why
certain people become great leaders. People have long been interested in leadership throughout
human history, but it has only been relatively recently that a number of formal leadership
theories have emerged. Interest in leadership increased during the early part of the twentieth
century.

Ideas of many leadership theories are still applicable to leadership studies today. Early leadership
theories focused on what qualities distinguished between leaders and followers, while subsequent
theories looked at other variables such as situational factors and skill levels. The most

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widespread ones‘ are Great Man leadership theory, trait leadership theory, behavioral leadership
theory, contingency leadership theory, transactional leadership theory, and transformational
leadership theory. Each of which is briefly described below.

2.2.1. Great Man Theory

The 'great man' theory was originally proposed by Thomas Carlyle. This is the granddaddy of
leadership concepts. The earliest studies of leadership adopted the belief that leaders (who were
always thought of as male) were born with certain heroic leadership traits and natural abilities of
power and influence.

Dear students, have you ever heard someone described as "born to lead?" According to this point
of view, great leaders are simply born with the necessary internal characteristics such as
charisma, confidence, intelligence, and social skills that make them natural-born leaders.

Early research on leadership was based on the study of people who were already great leaders.
These people were often from the aristocracy, as few from lower classes had the opportunity to
lead. This contributed to the notion that leadership had something to do with breeding. The term
"Great Man" was used because, at the time, leadership was thought of primarily as a male
quality, especially in terms of military leadership.

Gender issues were not on the table when the 'Great Man' theory was proposed. Most leaders
were male and the thought of a Great Woman was generally in areas other than leadership. Most
researchers were also male. In organizations, social movements, religions, governments, and the
military, leadership was conceptualized as a single ―Great Man‖ who put everything together and
influenced others to follow along based on the strength of inherited traits, qualities, and abilities

Assumptions:

Great man theories assume that the capacity for leadership is inherent – that great leaders are
born not made.

Great leaders will arise when there is a great need.

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2.2.2. Trait Theory

This theory was also one of the earliest theories on leadership. Leadership research in the 1920s
and 1930s focused on isolating leader traits—that is, characteristics- that would differentiate
leaders from nonleaders.

Similar in some ways to Great Man theories, trait theories assume that people inherit certain
qualities and traits that make them better suited to leadership. Trait theories often identify
particular personality or behavioral characteristics shared by leaders.

Trait theories argue that effective leaders share a number of common personality characteristics,
or "traits."

Trait theory states that specific characteristics or traits are essential for good leadership and that
they are situation-independent.

Trait theory helps us identify traits and qualities (for example, integrity, empathy, assertiveness,
good decision-making skills, and likability) that are helpful when leading others.

Assumption: There are specific traits associated with leadership effectiveness.

If particular traits are key features of leadership, then how do we explain people who possess
those qualities but are not leaders? This question is one of the difficulties in using trait theories to
explain leadership. There are plenty of people who possess the personality traits associated with
leadership, yet many of these people never seek out positions of leadership. Although research
failed to produce a list of traits that would always guarantee leadership success, the interest in
leadership characteristics has continued to the present day.

 Activity 4: What traits do you think critical to leaders effectiveness or success?

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Dear students, according to trait theory, certain qualities such as intelligence, sense of
responsibility, creativity, emotional stability, fluency of speech, and other values puts anyone in
the shoes of a good leader.

Stogdill (1974) and McCall and Lombardo (1983) also identified traits related to effective
leaders as mentioned below.

Stogdill (1974) identified traits that are critical to leaders. These are

Traits
 Adaptable to situations
 Alert to social environment
 Ambitious and achievement-orientated
 Assertive
 Cooperative
 Decisive
 Dependable
 Dominant (desire to influence others)
 Energetic (high activity level)
 Persistent
 Self-confident
 Tolerant of stress
 Willing to assume responsibility

McCall and Lombardo (1983) researched both success and failure identified four primary traits
by which leaders could succeed or 'derail':

1. Emotional stability and composure: Calm, confident and predictable, particularly when
under stress.
2. Admitting error: Owning up to mistakes, rather than putting energy into covering up.
3. Good interpersonal skills: Able to communicate and persuade others without resort to
negative or coercive tactics.
4. Intellectual breadth: Able to understand a wide range of areas, rather than having a
narrow (and narrow-minded) area of expertise.

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However, none of these traits, nor any specific combination of them, will guarantee success as a
leader.

2.2.3. Behavioral Theories

Researchers eventually recognized that traits alone were not sufficient for identifying effective
leaders since explanations based solely on traits ignored the interactions of leaders and their
group members as well as situational factors.

The failure to identify a universal set of leadership traits led researchers in the early 1950s to
begin looking at what a leader does, rather than who he or she is. Behavioral theories focus on
how leaders behave. For instance, do leaders dictate what needs to be done and expect
cooperation? Or do they involve their teams in decision-making to encourage acceptance and
support?

Behavioral theories of leadership are based upon the belief that great leaders are made, not born.
Consider it the flip-side of the Great Man theories. They are those theories that propose specific
behaviors differentiate leaders from non-leaders. They focus on the actions of leaders not on
mental qualities or internal states. According to these theories, people can learn to become
leaders through teaching and observation.

Diverse research programs on leadership behavior have sought to discover the behaviors that
leaders engage in rather than what traits a leader possesses. Behaviors can be learned more
readily than traits, enabling leadership to be accessible to all.

Assumption

Leaders can be made, rather than are born.

Successful leadership is based in definable, learnable behavior.

Clearly, how leaders behave affects their performance. Researchers have realized, though, that
many of these leadership behaviors are appropriate at different times. The best leaders are those
who can use many different behavioral styles, and choose the right style for each situation.

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In the 1940 and 1950, scholars from Ohio State University launched an intensive research
investigation to answer the question: What behaviors make leaders effective? This study distilled
two clusters of leadership behaviors: people oriented and task-oriented leadership behaviors.

i. People-oriented leadership behavior included showing mutual trust and respect for
subordinates and demonstrating a genuine concern for their needs. Leaders with a strong
people-oriented style listen to employees suggestions, do personal favor for their employees,
support their interests when required, and treat employees as equals. People-oriented
leadership is associated with higher job satisfaction among subordinates, as well as lower
absenteeism, grievances, and turnover.

ii. Task-oriented leadership. The other cluster represented a task-oriented leadership style and
included behaviors that define and structure work roles. Task-oriented behavior, involves
planning, organizing, and coordinating the work of subordinates. Task-oriented leaders assign
employees to specific tasks, clarify their work duties and procedures, ensure that they follow
rules, and push them to reach their performance capacity. Task oriented leadership is
associated with lower job satisfaction, as well as higher absenteeism and turnover.

Managerial Grid (or Leadership Grid)

One concept based largely on the behavioral approach to leadership effectiveness was the
Managerial (or Leadership) Grid. Leaders may be concerned for their people and they also must
also have some concern for the work to be done. The question is, how much attention to they pay
to one or the other? This is a model defined by Blake and Mouton in the early 1960s. The
Managerial Grid was the original name. It later changed to the Leadership Grid.

Country Club
High Team management
management
Concern for People
Middle of the
Medium road
management

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Impoverished
Low Authority-compliance
management

Low Medium High

Concern for Production (Task)

Figure 2.1 Model of Managerial Grid

The grid combines "concern for production" with "concern for people" and presents five
alternative behavioral styles of leadership.

i. Impoverished management: Minimum effort to get the work done. A basically lazy
approach that avoids as much work as possible.
ii. Authority-compliance: Strong focus on task, but with little concern for people. Focus on
efficiency, including the elimination of people wherever possible.
iii. Country Club management: Care and concern for the people, with a comfortable and
friendly environment and collegial style. But a low focus on task may give questionable
results.
iv. Middle of the road management: A weak balance of focus on both people and the work.
Doing enough to get things done, but not pushing the boundaries of what may be
possible.
v. Team management: Firing on all cylinders: people are committed to task and leader is
committed to people (as well as task).
2.2.4. Contingency Leadership Theory

The failure to find universal leader traits or behaviors that would always determine effective
leadership led researchers in a new direction. Although leader behavior was still examined, the
central focus of the new research was the situation in which leadership occurred.

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Researchers next began to consider the contextual and situational variables that influence what
leadership behaviors will be effective. Contingency theories emphasize that leadership cannot be
understood in a vacuum separate from various elements of the group or organizational situation.

Thus, the effectiveness of leader behavior is contingent upon organizational situations.

Contingency means ―it depends.‖ Contingency means that one thing depends on other things.

Assumption: The leader's ability to lead is contingent upon various situational factors.

Contingency theories of leadership focus on particular variables related to the environment that
might determine which particular style of leadership is best suited for the situation.

Contingency theories differ from the earlier trait and behavioral theories in asserting that no
single way of leading works in all situations. Contingency theories contend that there is no one
best way of leading and that a leadership style that is effective in some situations may not be
successful in others. Leaders who are very effective at one place and time may become
unsuccessful either when transplanted to another situation or when the factors around them
change. This helps to explain how some leaders who seem for a while to have the 'Midas touch'
suddenly appear to go off the boil and make very unsuccessful decisions.

Initiative, for example, may contribute to the success of a leader in one situation, but it may be
irrelevant to a leader in another situation. Thus, possessing certain personal characteristics is no
guarantee of success.

For a leader to be effective there must be an appropriate fit between the leader‘s behavior
and style and the conditions in the situation.

Leaders must be both insightful and flexible. They must be able to adopt their behaviors and
styles to the immediate situation. Considerable effort is needed to learn when and how to alter
one‘s leadership style to fit or match the situation.

The idea behind contingency theories is that leaders can analyze their situation and tailor their
behavior to improve leadership effectiveness.

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Activity 5: Let you identify situational variables that affect leaders‘ effectiveness.

According to this theory, no leadership style is best in all situations. Success depends upon a
number of variables, including the leadership style, qualities of the followers and aspects of the
situation.

Yukl (1989) also identifies six variables as follow:

1. Subordinate effort: the motivation and actual effort expended.

2. Subordinate ability and role clarity: followers knowing what to do and how to do it.

3. Organization of the work: the structure of the work and utilization of resources.

4. Cooperation and cohesiveness: of the group in working together.

5. Resources and support: the availability of tools, materials, people, etc.

6. External coordination: the need to collaborate with other groups

2.2.5. Transactional Leadership Theory

This approach assumes that people do things for reward and for no other reason. Therefore, it
focuses on designing tasks and reward structures.

Transactional leadership is based on contingency, in that reward or punishment is contingent

upon performance. It focuses on the role of supervision, organization and group performance.
This theory bases leadership on a system of rewards and punishments. It is often used in
business; when employees are successful, they are rewarded; when they fail, they are
reprimanded or punished.

Transactional leadership is 'managing'– helping organizations achieve their current objectives

more efficiently, such as linking job performance to valued rewards and ensuring that employees

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have resources needed to get the job done. Transactional leadership is inspiring commitment to
achieve objectives in exchange for something of value.

Assumptions

People are motivated by reward and punishment.

The prime purpose of a subordinate is to do what their manager tells them to do.

Most classical leadership theories are concerned with transactional leaders, who use legitimate,
coercive, or reward powers to elicit obedience. Transactional leaders do not generate passion and
excitement, and they do not empower or inspire individuals to transcend their own self-interest
for the good of the organization.

When the Transactional Leader allocates work to a subordinate, they are considered to be fully
responsible for it, whether or not they have the resources or capability to carry it out. When
things go wrong, then the subordinate is considered to be personally at fault, and is punished for
their failure (just as they are rewarded for succeeding).

Despite much research that highlights its limitations, transactional leadership is still a popular
approach with many managers. Indeed, in the leadership vs. Management spectrum, it is very
much towards the management end of the scale.

While this may not be the most appealing leadership strategy in terms of building relationships
and developing a highly motivating work environment, it often works, and leaders in most
organizations use it on a daily basis to get things done.

Characteristics of Transactional Leaders

- Offer reward to followers in exchange for complying with the leader‘s wishes and
directives.

- Closely monitor followers to ensure that performance problems are detected and if
necessary penalize followers for these problems.

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- Establish a relationship with followers that is utilitarian and calculative, whereby each
party seeks its own benefit rather than trying to reach an ideal.

2.2.6. Transformational Leadership Theory

Beginning in the 1970s, a number of leadership theories emerged that focused on the importance
of a leader‘s charisma to leadership effectiveness.

Transformational leadership theory focuses on attempting to explain how leaders can accomplish
extraordinary things against the odds, such as turning around a failing company, founding a
successful company, or achieving great military success against incredible odds. The theories
also emphasize the importance of leaders inspiring subordinates‘ admiration, dedication, and
unquestioned loyalty through articulating a clear and compelling vision.

It focuses upon the connections formed between leaders and followers. Transformational leaders
motivate and inspire people by helping group members see the importance and higher good of
the task. These leaders are focused on the performance of group members, but also want each
person to fulfill his or her potential. Leaders with this style often have high ethical and moral
standards.

Transformational leaders show integrity, and they know how to develop a robust and inspiring
vision of the future. They motivate people to achieve this vision, they manage its delivery, and
they build ever stronger and more successful teams.

Assumptions

People will follow a person who inspires them.

A person with vision and passion can achieve great things.

The way to get things done is by injecting enthusiasm and energy.

Transactional leadership focuses on role and task requirements and utilizes rewards contingent
on performance. By contrast, transformational leadership focuses on developing mutual trust,

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fostering the leadership abilities of others, and setting goals that go beyond the short-term needs
of the work group.

Bass‘s transformational leadership theory identifies four aspects of effective leadership, which
include charisma, inspiration, intellectual stimulation, and consideration. A leader who exhibits
these qualities will inspire subordinates to be high achievers and put the long-term interest of the
organization ahead of their own short-term interest, according to the theory.

Transformational leaders are those leaders who translate a vision into reality and motivate
people to rise above their personal interests for the good of the group. Followers come to define
their needs and expectations more broadly, in terms of the group rather than self-interests. In
addition to articulating a vision and communicating that vision to subordinates, transformational
leaders build trust by being dependable, consistent, and persevering.

Transformational leaders are agents of change who energize and direct employees to a new set
of corporate values and behaviors.

Too many leaders involve themselves to the maximum in daily managerial activities
(transactional leader job) and lose touch with the transformational aspect of effective leadership.
Without transformational leaders, organizations stagnate and do not fit with their environments.

Characteristics of transformational leaders are

- Inspire other people to follow a vision articulated by the leader.

- Make followers feel good and proud about identifying with leader.

- Make followers trust the leader, sacrificing themselves if necessary to accomplish the
leader‘s agenda.
- Make followers question status quo, buying into the leader‘s solutions to problems
associated with current state of affairs.
- Make followers feel that their individual needs and abilities are understood by the leader
and that the leader empowers them and energizes them to get better.

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Organizations need both transactional and transformational leaders. Transactional leadership

improves organizational efficiency. Transformational leadership steers organization onto a
better course of action.

2.2.7. Servant Leadership

Servant leadership is a philosophy and set of practices that enriches the lives of individuals,
builds better organizations and ultimately creates a more just and caring world. Servant
leadership has not been subjected to extensive empirical testing but has generated considerable
interest among both leadership scholars and practitioners.

While servant leadership is a timeless concept, the modern servant leadership movement was
launched by Robert K. Greenleaf in 1970 with the publication of his classic essay, The Servant
as Leader. "The servant-leader is servant first... It begins with the natural feeling that one wants
to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. That person is sharply
different from one who is leader first, perhaps because of the need to assuage an unusual power
drive or to acquire material possessions. The leader-first and the servant-first are two extreme types.

Activity 6: What does servant leader mean to you?

This approach to leadership reflects a philosophy that leaders should be servants first. It suggests
that leaders must place the needs of subordinates, customers, and the community ahead of their
own interests in order to be effective. Put the needs of others first and helps people develop and
perform as highly as possible. It is about identifying and meeting the needs of colleagues,
customers, and communities.

A servant-leader focuses primarily on the growth and well-being of people and the
communities to which they belong.

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While traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at
the ―top of the pyramid,‖ servant leadership is different. The servant-leader shares power, puts
the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.

Characteristics of servant leaders

If there is a single characteristic of the servant-leader that stands out in Greenleaf's essay, it is the
desire to serve. A walk through The Servant as Leader provides a fairly long list of additional
characteristics that Greenleaf considered important. They include

 listening and understanding

 acceptance and empathy
 foresight
 awareness and perception
 persuasion
 conceptualization
 self-healing
 rebuilding community
Scholars are also identifying characteristics of servant leadership in order to develop and test
theories about the impact of servant leadership. For example, Robert C. Liden and his colleagues
identified nine dimensions of servant leadership that they used in their research:
 emotional healing
 creating value for the community
 conceptual skills
 empowering
 helping subordinates grow and succeed
 putting subordinates first
 behaving ethically
 relationships, and
 servanthood

Finally, you can become a more effective leader by learning about different leadership theories.

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2.3. Leadership Styles

Introduction

From the discussion of leadership, we turn now to the dynamic interaction between a leader and
other people. The perceived approaches and behaviors a manager uses to influence others
constitute the manager’s leadership style. Several different approaches to describing leadership
styles have developed over the years. Most of these involve how much authority and control the
leader turns over to the group.

Leadership style can be defined broadly as the manner and approach of providing direction,
implementing plans, and motivating people.

It is the typical pattern of behavior that a leader uses to influence his or her employees to achieve
organizational goals.

Managers‘ leadership styles result from their philosophies about motivation, their choices of
decision-making styles, and their areas of emphasis in the work environment—whether they
focus on tasks or people.

2.3.1. Positive versus Negative Motivation

Leaders influence others to achieve goals through their approach to motivation. Depending on
the style of the manager, the motivation can take the form of rewards or penalties.

Positive leadership style differs from negative leadership style as follow:

Positive leadership style encourages development of employees and result in higher levels of
job satisfaction. Leaders with positive styles use positive motivators. They motivate by using
praise, recognition, or monetary rewards or by increasing security or granting additional
responsibilities.

A negative leadership style incorporates coercion known as sanctions—fines, suspensions,

termination, and the like. The manager who says, ―Do it my way or else‖ employs negative
motivation. Implied in the statement is the manager‘s willingness to exercise disciplinary
powers; the subordinate‘s failure to comply would be an act of insubordination.

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The result of negative leadership may be an environment of fear, where managers are viewed
with distrust and seen as dictators rather than leaders or team players.

2.3.2. Decision-Making Styles

Another element in a manager‘s leadership style is the degree to which he or she shares
decision-making authority with subordinates. Managers‘ styles range from not sharing at all to
completely delegating decision-making authority.

In the 1930s, Kurt Lewin and his colleagues conducted studies at university of Iowa that
concentrated on the manner or style of the leader. Their studies identified three basic leadership
styles: Autocratic style, Democratic style, and Laissez–faire style. His results indicated that the
democratic style is superior to the other two styles. Attributes of each style are outlined below

i. Autocratic Style

Autocratic style is a leadership approach in which a manager does not share decision-making
authority with subordinates. The autocratic style described a leader who dictated work methods,
made unilateral decisions, and limited employee participation. Autocratic leaders make decisions
without consulting their teams.

The manager makes the decision and then announces it. Autocratic managers may ask for
subordinates‘ ideas and feedback about the decision, but the input does not usually change the
decision unless it indicates that something vital has been overlooked. The hallmark of this style
is that the manager, who retains all the authority, executes the entire process. Consequently, the
autocratic style is sometimes called the “I” approach.

This leader type is very personal in his praise and criticisms of each member, but does not
actively participate with the group, unless demonstrating to the group. The leader makes the
decisions, tells employees what to do, and closely supervises employee.

To use the autocratic style effectively, managers must know what needs to be done, and they
must possess expert power.

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Activity7: When do you think autocratic leadership style is appropriate?

In short, this style of leadership is considered appropriate when decisions need to be made
quickly, when there's no need for input, and when team agreement isn't necessary for a
successful outcome. In detail, the autocratic leadership style is appropriate

 When a manager is training a subordinate, for instance, the content, objectives, pacing,
and execution of decisions properly remain in the hands of the trainer. (The manager

should elicit feedback from the trainee, however.)

 During a crisis—a hazardous materials spill or bomb threat, say—leaders are expected to
take charge, issue orders, and make decisions.

 When a subordinate directly challenges a manager‘s authority, an autocratic response

may be needed to preclude acts of insubordination.

 When a situation calls for expedited action or decision making.

 When group members who are not self-motivated, who prefer structure, and appreciate
significant direction and monitoring.

 When subordinates do not want to share authority or become involved in any way beyond
the performance of their routine duties. Managers should respect these preferences but
also make incentives and growth opportunities available.
 In circumstances in which employees have not been empowered to make decisions.
ii. Democratic Style (Participative Style)

Participative style is a leadership approach in which a manager shares decision making authority
with subordinates. Managers who use the participative style share decision making authority

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with subordinates. Democratic leaders allow the team to provide input before making a decision,
although the degree of input can vary from leader to leader.

The degree of sharing can range from the leader‘s presenting a tentative decision that is subject
to change, to letting the group or subordinate participate in making the decision. It is sometimes
called the “we” approach.

The democratic leader encourages employee participation in decisions; works with employees
to determine what to do, and does not closely supervise employees.

This leader welcomes team input and facilitates group discussion and decision making.
Encourages members to work freely with each other and leaves division of tasks to the group.

Participative management involves others and lets them bring their unique viewpoints, talents,
and experiences to bear on an issue. This style is strongly emphasized today because of the
trends toward downsizing, employee empowerment, and worker teams.

This style is important when team agreement matters, but it can be difficult to manage when
there are lots of different perspectives and ideas.

The subordinates must be willing to participate and be trained to do so. People need training in
rational decision making. They must also possess the related skills and knowledge needed to
cope with the problems they are expected to solve. It takes time to give people the confidence
and competence needed to make decisions. Managers must have the time, means, and patience to
prepare subordinates to participate. When employees participate, they devise solutions they feel
they own. This sense of ownership increases their commitment to making the solutions work.

Democratic style is appropriate (works best)

- When issues that affect more than just the manager or decision maker. People affected by
decisions support them more enthusiastically when they participate in the decision
making than when decisions are imposed on them.
- When others in a manager‘s unit know more than the manager does about an issue,
common sense urges their inclusion in decisions concerning it.

iii. Laissez-faire (Free-Rein Style)

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Free-Rein style is a leadership approach in which a manager shares decision making authority
with subordinates, empowering them to function without direct involvement from managers to
whom they report.

The free rein style empowers individuals or groups to function on their own, without direct
involvement from the managers to whom they report. Often called the “they” approach or
spectator style. This style relies heavily on delegation of authority.

Laissez-faire leaders don't interfere; they allow people within the team to make many of the
decisions. They allow the group complete freedom for decision-making, without participating
themselves.

This leader type provides materials and offers to assist only by request. The laissez-faire leader
does not participate in work discussions or group tasks. This leader does not offer commentary
on members‘ performance unless asked directly, and does not participate or intervene in
activities.

The managers also hold participants accountable for their actions by reviewing and evaluating
performance. The laissez-faire style is interpreted by the members as a sign of confidence and
trust in their abilities and further empowers them to be successful and motivated.

In short, this style works well when the team is highly capable, is motivated, and doesn't need
close supervision. However, this behavior can arise because the leader is lazy or distracted; and
this is where this style of leadership can fail.

In detail, this style is appropriate (works best)

- When the parties have expert power, when participants have and know how to use the
tools and techniques needed for their tasks.
- With managers and experienced professionals in engineering, design, research, and sales.
Such people generally resist other kinds of supervision.
- when group members are highly skilled and motivated, with a proven track record of
excellence. This hands-off approach can allow these capable members to be productive
and effective.

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Each leadership style can be appropriate depending on the environment within which it is
implemented, the members of the group (employees), and the goals or tasks that are being
undertaken by the group. Leaders may adjust their style of leadership to fit certain tasks, groups,
or settings.

Because people and circumstances constantly change and because subordinates must be
prepared for change, the effective manager switches from one leadership style to another as
appropriate.

For example, Lee is new, so his manager needs to use an autocratic approach until he develops
the confidence and knowledge to perform independently or until he joins a team. Kim,
experienced in her job and better at it than anyone else, will probably do well under a
participative or free-rein approach.

2.3.3. Task Orientation versus People Orientation

Yet another element of leadership style is the manager‘s philosophy about the most effective way
to get work done. Leaders can adopt a focus on task (a work, or task, orientation) or a focus on
employees (a relationship, or people-centered, approach). Depending on the manager‘s
perspective and situation, these two approaches can be used separately or in combination.

A task focus emphasizes technology, methods, plans, programs, deadlines, goals, and getting the
work out. Typically, the manager who focuses on a task uses the autocratic style of leadership
and issues guidelines and instructions to subordinates.

A task focus works well in the short run, especially with tight schedules or under crisis
conditions. However, used over the long term, a task focus can create personnel problems. It
might cause the best performers, who desire flexibility and freedom to be creative, to leave the
group; and it might increase absenteeism and decrease job satisfaction.

The manager who focuses on employees emphasizes workers‘ needs. He or she treats employees
as valuable assets and respects their views. Building teamwork, positive relationships, and
mutual trust are important activities of the people-centered leader. By focusing on employees, a
manager can increase job satisfaction and decrease absenteeism.

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2.4. Leadership Skills and Competencies

2.4.1. Leadership Skills

There are leadership skills that are most important for success.

Here are the top 10 skills.

1. Inspires and motivates others

Great leaders create a vision, a picture of the future, of where they want to take their
organizations, and that motivates employees to want to achieve it. Everyone wants to work for a
company that makes a difference in the world. As a leader, you are best able to help the members
of your team connect what they do to the impact it has on customers and communities.

2. Displays high integrity and honesty

Great leaders are honest and transparent, and have high integrity-they do what they say they are
going to do, and they walk their talk.

3. Solves problems and analyzes issues

Ultimately, leaders are recruited, trained, and chosen to solve organizational problems, and to
take advantage of opportunities in the marketplace. This requires not only excellent analytical
abilities, but also above-average people skills.
4. Drives for results
Some people are happy to sit back and watch the world go by, while others aren't unless they are
making things happen in their organizations. Great leaders have a higher level of perseverance
and drive than most anyone else, and they can be counted on to get things done.

5. Communicates powerfully and prolifically

Great leaders communicate with their people often, and in a variety of different ways. Whether
it's by means of one-on-one conversations, team meetings, blog posts, email messages, phone or
Skype calls, or any other such medium, leaders don't talk about communicating--they just do it.

6. Builds relationships

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Business is built on a solid foundation of relationships and trust. Without these two things, you
can't have a business, or at least not a successful business. Take time every day to build
relationships with the members of your team, your customers and vendors, your boss and your
boss's boss, others in your industry, and your community. The stronger your relationships, the
better a leader you will be.

7. Displays technical or professional expertise

Most leaders start out in business with a specific skill, such as selling, or accounting, or
designing software. The best leaders build on their technical and professional skills over time,
becoming valuable experts in their field and skilled at leading their team.

8. Displays a strategic perspective

Great leaders have a long-term vision of the future, and they avoid getting bogged down in the
here and now. While they can be tactical when necessary, they maintain the strategic outlook
necessary to guide their businesses to the best future possible.

9. Develops others

Just as they work to continuously develop and build their own technical and professional
expertise, the best leaders set aside time (and money in their budgets) to develop their work
force. They look for the most promising employees, and provide them with the training they
need to become their company's next generation of great leaders.

10. Innovates

Innovation develops new insights into situations; questions conventional approaches; encourages
new ideas and innovations; designs and implements new or cutting edge programs/processes.

2.3.2 Leadership Competencies

A focus on leadership competencies and skill development promotes better leadership. However,
skills needed for a particular position may change depending on the specific leadership level in
the organization. By using a competency approach, organizations can determine what positions
at which levels require specific competencies.

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Activity 8: What does competency mean to you?

Competency is capability or ability that include both intent and action, and that can be directly
linked to how well a person performs on a task or in a job.

When selecting and developing leaders, HR professionals should consider the competencies that
the individual possesses and compare those to the ones that need further development for success
in a leadership role. By looking at his/her current competencies and comparing those to the skills
necessary to fill a leadership position, organizations can make better informed decisions in
hiring, developing and promoting leaders.

Technical, Cognitive, and Relational Competencies

Early research indicated that competencies fall into one of three categories: technical, cognitive,
or relational.

People who are adept at technical competencies are proficient in the use of tools and processes
related to a specialized field. Technical skills are especially critical in areas such as engineering,
finance, and information technology.

Cognitive competencies include things like the ability to see the ―big picture‖ in systems such as
groups and organizations. Seeing the big picture means that you can recognize that various bits
of information are not isolated; they actually form a pattern (this is called pattern recognition).
Another example of a cognitive competency is the ability to analyze complex situations and to
understand how all things and people relate to one another (this is called systems thinking).
These two cognitive competencies—pattern recognition and systems thinking—are crucial in
many jobs today.

Finally, relational competencies support the development of strong working relationships with

colleagues, direct reports, senior management, and customers. These competencies are often

called ―people skills,‖ and they include self-awareness, self-management, empathy, and

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inspirational leadership, among others. Relational competencies support us in building teams,

coaching, monitoring performance, and providing feedback.

Leadership Competency Model

This competency Model is divided into three main groups:

1. Core Competencies

2. Leadership Competencies

3. Professional Competencies

These three groups of competencies can be thought of as the Pyramid of Leadership,

which collectively form the basic requirements for becoming a leader. The Diagram
below shows the Pyramid of Leadership. Each level is explained in more detail below
the model.

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Figure 2.1 Leadership Competency Model

1. Core Competencies

These are the personal skills required at all levels of leadership. Essential competencies provide
the foundation that a person needs to become a leader. Without a strong foundation, the sides of
the pyramid will soon crumble and fall as the base gives away.

 Communicating
 Basic Communications
 Expresses oneself effectively both orally and in written form.
 Communicate plans and activities in a manner that supports strategies for employee
involvement.

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 Actively listens to others.

 Negotiating
o Skillfully settles differences by using a win-win approach in order to maintain
relationships.

 Teamwork
o Uses appropriate interpersonal style to steer team members towards the goal.
o Allocates decision making and other responsibilities to the appropriate individuals.
o Organizes resources to accomplish tasks with maximum efficiency.

 Creative Problem Solving

o Identifies and collects information relevant to the problem.
o Uses brainstorming techniques to create a variety of choices.
o Selects the best course of action by identifying all the alternatives and then makes a logical
assumption.

 Interpersonal Skills
 Treats others with respect, trust, and dignity.
 Works well with others by being considerate of the needs and feelings of each individual.
 Promotes a productive culture by valuing individuals and their contributions.
 Manage Client Relationships

o Works effectively with both internal and external customers.

o Gathers and analyzes customer feedback to assist in decision making.

 Self-Direction
o Establishes goals, deliverables, timelines, and budgets with little or no motivation from
superiors (self-motivation rather than passive acceptance).
o Assembles and leads teams to achieve established goals within deadlines.

 Flexibility
o Willingness to change to meet organizational needs.
o Adapts to stressful situations.

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 Build appropriate relationships

o Networks with peers and associates to build a support base.
o Builds constructive and supportive relationships.

 Professionalism
o Sets the example.
o Stays current in terms of professional development.
o Contributes to and promotes the development of the profession through active participation
in the community.

 Financial
o Does not waste resources.
o Looks for methods to improve processes that have a positive impact on the bottom line.

 Business Acumen
o Reacts positively to key developments in area of expertise that may affect our business.
o Leads process improvement programs in all major systems falling under area of control.
1. Leadership Competencies

These are the skills needed to drive the organization onto the cutting edge of new technologies.
Leadership Competencies form the basic structure that separates leaders from bosses. These
skills create the walls and interiors of the pyramid. Without them, a leader is just a hollow
windbag.

 Leadership Abilities
o Displays attributes that make people glad to follow.
o Provides a feeling of trust.

 Visioning Process
o Applies effort to increase productiveness in areas needing the most improvement.
o Creates and set goals (visions).

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o Gain commitment by influencing team to set objectives and buy in on the process.
o Reinforces change by embracing it (prevents relapse into prior state).

 Create and Lead Teams

o Develops high-performance teams by establishing a spirit of cooperation and cohesion for
achieving goals.
o Quickly takes teams out of the storming and norming phases and into the performing
phase.

 Assess Situations Quickly and Accurately

o Takes charge when the situation demands it.
o Makes the right things happen on time.

 Foster Conflict Resolutions (win-win)

o Effectively handles disagreements and conflicts.
o Settles disputes by focusing on solving the problems, without offending egos.
o Provides support and expertise to other leaders with respect to managing people.
o Evaluates the feasibility of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.

 Project Management
o Tracks critical steps in projects to ensure they are completed on time.
o Identifies and reacts to the outside forces that might influence or alter the organization's
goals.
o Establishes a course-of-action to accomplish a specific goal.
o Identifies, evaluates, and implements measurement systems for current and future projects.

 Implement Employee Involvement Strategies

o Develops ownership by bringing employees in on the decision making and planning
process.

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o Provides the means to enable employee success, while maintaining the well-being of the
organization.
o Develops processes to engage employees in achieving the objectives of the organization.
o Empower employees by giving them the authority to get things accomplished in the most
efficient and timely manner.

 Coach and Train Peers and Subordinates

o Recognizes that learning happens at every opportunity (treats mistakes as a learning event).
o Develops future leaders by being involved in the company mentoring program.
o Provides performance feedback, coaching, and career development to teams and
individuals to maximize their probability of success.
o Ensure leadership at every level by coaching employees to ensure the right things happen.
o Ensures performance feedback is an integral part of the day-to-day activities.
1. Professional Competencies

These are the skills and knowledge needed to direct the systems and processes that a leader
controls. Professional Competencies form the mortar that binds the pyramid together. Without
some knowledge of the technical skills that they direct, the pyramid soon begins to fall apart and
the organization begins to operate in damage control mode.

Each organization requires a different set of professional competencies for each leadership
position. Although leaders do not need to be the Subject Matter Experts (SME) for the tasks that
they direct, they must have a basic understanding of the systems and processes that they control.

Professional Competencies for Learning/Training Leaders include the following competencies

 Adult Learning

o Understand and appreciate the diverse experiences of learners.

o Facilitate self-directed and help with the informal learning of others.

 Instructional Design

 Use the Instructional Design (ISD) model:

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o Conduct needs assessment and analyze for performance needs.

o Design for maximum performance.
o Development material by fleshing out design.
o Deliver (implement) learning package.
o Evaluate using formative and summative methods throughout entire process.
 Rapid Design

o Uses prototypes for to quickly create and deliver learning packages.

 Consulting

o Determine stakeholder's needs.

o Negotiate a solution.
o Ensure solution fulfills a business and/or organization requirement.

 Instruction

o Plan and prepare for instruction

o Engage learners though out entire instruction.
o Demonstrate effective presentation and facilitation skills.
o Provide clarification and feedback.
o Provide retention and transfer of newly learned skills and knowledge.

Researchers at the Center for Creative Leadership have also identified some essential leadership
competencies that are consistent among organizations. They divide the overall structure into
competencies for leading the organization, leading the self and leading others in the organization.

Leading the organization:

 managing change
 solving problems and making decisions
 managing politics and influencing others
 taking risks and innovating
 setting vision and strategy

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 managing the work

 enhancing business skills and knowledge
 understanding and navigating the organization

Leading the self:

 demonstrating ethics and integrity

 displaying drive and purpose
 exhibiting leadership stature
 increasing your capacity to learn
 managing yourself
 increasing self-awareness
 developing adaptability

Leading others:

 communicating effectively
 developing others
 valuing diversity and difference
 building and maintaining relationships
 managing effective teams and work groups

Global Leadership Competencies

To address the unique challenges of global leaders, researchers have identified global leadership
competencies that can contribute to success.

Morgan McCall and George Hollenback studied successful global leaders and developed the
following list of common competencies specific to the global leader.

Global Executive Competencies

 Open-minded and flexible in thought and tactics

 Cultural interest and sensitivity

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 Able to deal with complexity

 Resilient, resourceful, optimistic and energetic
 Honesty and Integrity
 Stable personal life
 Value-added technical or business skills

2.5. Good vs Bad leaders

Are you a good leader? Are you leading in the right direction?

Most people are actually somewhere between being a good leader and a bad leader, with the
majority uncertain of the connection between their leadership and performance. These actions or
inactions are bad because they lead employees to believe that management disrespects them and
does not care a whit for them.

Good Leadership
In order to produce the absolute best products and services in the marketplace, all employees
must treat their work and their customers with great respect and care. Everyone knows this. It
follows then that good leadership requires treating employees with great respect and care — the
better the respect and caring, the better the outcome.

Treat employees as if they are very important and valuable and you will cause them to feel and
become this way. They will then treat their work, customers, peers and management this way.
They will follow your lead.

What then characterizes good (or great!) leadership?

 Listening to your employees including subordinate managers/bosses — addressing their

complaints, suggestions, concerns, and personal issues at work.
 Coaching people when necessary to raise them to a higher standard.
 Allowing everyone to put in their two cents.
 Trusting them to do the work.
 Not giving orders or setting visions, goals and objectives, but instead soliciting this from
them so that everyone is fully involved in how the company will be successful.

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 Providing direction when needed to ensure that everyone is on the same page (the one
they devised).
 A good leader communicates the vision that was set by all. If it is a vision of little
interest, then another one must be found.

Every person wants to be heard and respected. Everyone has something to contribute. Listening
and responding respectfully makes it worthwhile for employees to apply 100% of their
brainpower on their work thus unleashing their full potential of creativity, innovation and
productivity and making them highly motivated, committed and productive. All of this gives
them very high morale, enables them to take great pride in their work and then they will literally
love to come to work

Bad leadership is characterized by attempting to control employees through orders, policies,

rules, goals, targets, reports, visions, bureaucracy, and changes all designed to almost force
employees to work
Bad Leadership

What characterizes bad leadership?

 Dishing out orders, policies, rules, goals, targets, reports, visions and changes to force
employees to work the way management believes it should be done.
 Failing to listen
 Trying to motivate employees.
 Exhibiting the ―Do as I say, not as I do‖ mentality
 Providing inadequate support
 Withholding information
 Treating employees as if they don‘t want to do a better job, don‘t care about their work,
don‘t want to accept responsibility, or don‘t really want to work.
 Treating them as if they are lucky to have a job
 Being afraid to discipline and never disciplining anyone
 Us versus them mentality—―Why aren‘t they performing better?‖— ―What‘s wrong with
that person? Why don‘t they know their job? They should know their job.‖

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Bad leadership shuts off the natural creativity, innovation, and productivity of each employee
and slowly but surely demotivates and demoralizes them.

Most bad leadership is the result of a top-down, command and control style of management,
where the employee is rarely if ever listened to. This style is prevalent in the workplace and
ignores every employee‘s basic need to be heard and to be respected.

Summery

To understand leadership as it is viewed and practiced today, it is important to recognize that the concept
of leadership has changed over time. A number of different leadership theories have been introduced to
explain exactly how and why certain people become great leaders. The most widespread leadership
theories are Great Man leadership theory, trait leadership theory, behavioral leadership theory,
contingency leadership theory, transactional leadership theory, and transformational leadership theory.
Many of these ideas are still applicable to leadership studies today.

Early leadership theories focused on what qualities distinguished between leaders and followers, while
subsequent theories looked at other variables such as situational factors and skill levels.

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According to 'great man' theory, great leaders are simply born with the necessary internal characteristics
such as charisma, confidence, intelligence, and social skills that make them natural-born leaders. Trait
theory states that specific characteristics or traits are essential for good leadership and that they are
situation-independent. Behavioral theories of leadership are based upon the belief that great leaders are
made, not born. This leadership theory focuses on the actions of leaders not on mental qualities or
internal states.

Contingency theories differ from the earlier trait and behavioral theories in asserting that no single way of
leading works in all situations. Contingency theories contend that there is no one best way of leading and
that a leadership style that is effective in some situations may not be successful in others.

Transactional leadership is based on contingency, in that reward or punishment is contingent upon

performance. This theory bases leadership on a system of rewards and punishments. Transformational
leadership theory focuses on the connections formed between leaders and followers. Transformational
leaders motivate and inspire people by helping group members see the importance and higher good of the task.

Servant leadership suggests that leaders must place the needs of subordinates, customers, and the
community ahead of their own interests in order to be effective. Put the needs of others first and helps
people develop and perform as highly as possible. It is about identifying and meeting the needs of
colleagues, customers, and communities.

The perceived approaches and behaviors a manager uses to influence others constitute the manager’s
leadership style. Leadership style can be defined broadly as the manner and approach of providing
direction, implementing plans, and motivating people.

Managers‘ leadership styles result from their philosophies about motivation (positive versus negative
Motivation), their choices of decision-making styles (autocratic style, democratic style, and laissez–faire
style), and their areas of emphasis in the work environment (task orientation versus people orientation).

Leaders with positive styles use positive motivators. They motivate by using praise, recognition, or
monetary rewards or by increasing security or granting additional responsibilities. A negative leadership
style incorporates coercion known as sanctions—fines, suspensions, termination, and the like.

Another element in a manager‘s leadership style is the degree to which he or she shares decision-making
authority with subordinates. Autocratic style is a leadership approach in which a manager does not share
decision-making authority with subordinates. Participative style is a leadership approach in which a

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manager shares decision making authority with subordinates. Laissez–faire style is a leadership approach
in which a manager shares decision making authority with subordinates, empowering them to function
without direct involvement from managers to whom they report.

Leaders can adopt a focus on task (a work, or task, orientation) or a focus on employees. A task focus
emphasizes technology, methods, plans, programs, deadlines, goals, and getting the work out. The
manager who focuses on employees emphasizes workers‘ needs. He or she treats employees as valuable
assets and respects their views. Building teamwork, positive relationships, and mutual trust are important
activities of the people-centered leader.

Competencies fall into one of three categories: technical, cognitive, or relational. People who are adept at
technical competencies are proficient in the use of tools and processes related to a specialized field.
Cognitive competencies include things like the ability to see the ―big picture‖ in systems such as groups
and organizations. Relational competencies support the development of strong working relationships with
colleagues, direct reports, senior management, and customers.

This competency Model is divided into three main groups: Core Competencies, Leadership,
Competencies, and Professional Competencies.

Core competencies provide the foundation that a person needs to become a leader. Leadership
competencies are the skills needed to drive the organization onto the cutting edge of new
technologies. Professional competencies are the skills and knowledge needed to direct the
systems and processes that a leader controls.

Self- Assessment Questions

Part I: Say true if the statement is correct or say false if the statement is wrong

1. Behavioral leadership theory states that specific characteristics or traits are

essential for good leadership and that they are situation-independent.
2. Contingency theories differ from the earlier trait and behavioral theories in
asserting that no single way of leading works in all situations.

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3. Autocratic style is a leadership approach in which a manager does not share

decision-making authority with subordinates.

4. Negative leadership style encourages development of employees and result in

higher levels of job satisfaction.

5. Great leaders have a long-term vision of the future, and they avoid getting
bogged down in the here and now.

Part II: Fill in the Blank Questions

1. leadership theory suggests that leaders must place the needs of subordinates,
customers, and the community ahead of their own interests in order to be effective.

2. People who are adept at competencies are proficient in the use of

tools and processes related to a specialized field.

Part III: Discussion questions

1. Define leadership style.

2. Define competency.
3. Identify the characteristics of transactional leaders and transformational leaders.
4. What are competencies of global leader?
5. List the top ten skills of leadership.

CHAPTER THREE

OVERVIEW OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT

3.1. Introduction

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Dear students, this is the third unit of the course which comprises the major content such as
meaning and implications of change, forces for organizational change, process of organizational
change, resistance to change, managing resistance to change, planned change, strategies for
planned organizational change. In this regard, you are expected to study all topics involved in
this unit.

Change is foreseeable. Nothing is permanent except the change. It is the duty of the management
to manage change properly. Organizations must keep a close watch on the environment and
incorporate suitable changes if the situation so demands. Change is a continuous phenomenon.
Organizations must be proactive in affecting change. Even in most stable organizations change is
necessary just to keep the level of stability. The major environmental forces, which make the
change necessary, are technology, market forces and socio-economic factors. Resistance to
change is not desirable. It is counterproductive for growth and destructive in nature. Managers
must evolve policies to affect change. According to Barney and Griffin, ―the primary reason
cited for organizational problems is the failure by managers to properly anticipate or respond to
forces for change.‖

Activity 8: Dear students, could you define the word change?

________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

3.2. Meaning and Implications

Change refers to any alteration which occurs in over all work environment of an organization. It
may relate to change in technology, organizational structure, working processes, work
environment, organizational policy and even the roles people play. Introduction of change in one
part of an organization forces change in other part.

If the change is beneficial, people accept it willingly. If it is not desirable, there is great
resistance. If it is of no consequence to the people, they may adopt an attitude of
indifference. If they consider the change detrimental to their growth and prosperity, they
may resist through counter pressure.

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This reaction is based not necessarily on the reality or facts but on their perception. The change
therefore, should be sufficiently strong enough to overcome the counter pressure.

Due to advancement of technology and social environment change has become a necessity. If the
change takes place, a balance or equilibrium is achieved by the organization. Thus, people learn
to expect various environment relationships within the organization. They learn adaptation. The
essence is that when people feel that there is need to change, and when they change, they
actually are adjusting to changed situation thus equilibrium is achieved with the changed
environment. This process carries on and is never ending because change takes place
continuously.

3.3. Forces for Organizational Change

An organization is an open system which has to interact with environment and is solely
dependent on it. Any change in environment makes it necessary for the organization to
incorporate change in the internal systems, sub-systems and processes. This change has a chain
reaction on the other internal elements of organization. For example any change in consumer
preferences, may change product feature, cost, technology, marketing strategy and the like.
Organization must interact with external environment in order to survive.

Organization gets input (human resource, material, finance, information etc.) from
environment, transform it and export output (product and services) to environment.

Organizations take what environment gives and in the process passes on what the environment
wants. Thus, organizations are responding to the social requirements. If the response is positive,
then the change takes place and growth is achieved. If on the contrary response is negative it will
adversely affect the growth. So there are various factors that must be considered to implement
change.

(a) External Forces of Change

Technology is a major external force which calls for change. In the recent times information
technology has made a remarkable impact on the ability of managers to use information to arrive
at a decision. Storage, retrieval of information and its utilization is important part of technology.

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Where human being cannot operate, robot has been replaced to work for and on behalf of human
beings.
Financial decisions, operations, product features, new product development, market potential and
marketing strategies are changing at a fast speed and organizations must carry out appropriate
change in time otherwise one will be left behind in the race. Because of liberalization market has
become one entity. Organizations have to be highly sensitive to the changes in the external
environment.

External environment is task related and general in nature. Task related environment has a direct
influence on the health of the organization. It consists of customers, competitions, suppliers,
labour and stakeholders. All these factors induce change in the organization. General
environment consists of political, legal, economic, socio-cultural and technological forces.
Change in government policies or fiscal policies have a direct impact on the organization.
Changes in needs, expectation and desires of society for housing have changed a financial
sectors outlook and loans are easily available to all sections of society.

(b) Internal Forces of Change

Once the organizations adapt to the external change, the mangers have to take appropriate steps
as far as internal systems are concerned. Change of process, modification to human behaviour,
training and development of work force based on new technology and adopting new polices,
which are beneficial to the organization. Due to current social changes where women are taking
jobs in greater numbers, child care, more and frequent rest periods, flexitime may be necessary.
Workers are more educated and are aware of their duties and rights. This may necessitate change
in corporate policies towards wage and salary implementation, promotion policy and
management‘s obligation towards them.

Changes in internal environment may be brought about by customers, shareholders, board of

directors and employees. These however, have to be in line with the external factors and not
arbiters. Change which is deliberately designed and implemented is a ‗planned change‘. This is
carried out to counter threats and encase opportunities. ―Reactive changes‖ are unknown and
cause as a response to sudden surprises like change in price of a particular product etc. It is therefore
necessary that the management must be ‗proactive‘ in incorporating change with fewer surprises.

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3.4. Process of Organizational Change

Dear students, how managers deal with the major factors that need to be considered when an
organization change is being made will largely determine how successful that change will be.

The following factors should be considered whenever change is being contemplated.

 The change agent

 Determining what should be changed
 The kind of change to make
 Individuals affected by the change.
 Evaluation of the change.

 The change Agent

A change agent is an individual inside or outside the organization who tries to modify an existing
organizational situation. Special skills are necessary for success as a change agent. Among them
are the ability to determine how a change should be made, the skill to solve change- related
problems and facility in using behavioural science tools to influence people appropriately during
the change process.

Individuals Affected by
change Agent change

Evaluation of
Success of change
change

determination of what
should be changed

Type of change to be made

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Figure 3.1 Change process

 Determining what should be changed

Another major factor managers need to consider is exactly what should be changed within the
organization. In general, managers should make only those changes that will increase
organizational effectiveness.

It has been generally accepted for many years that organizational effectiveness depends primarily
on activities centering around three classes of factors.

- People
- Structure
- Technology

People factors are attitudes, leader ship skills, communication skills, and all other characteristics
of the human within the organization.

Structural factors are organizational controls, such as policies and procedures.

Technological factors are any type‘s equipment or processes that assist organizational members
in the performance of their jobs.

For an organization to maximize its effectiveness, appropriate people must be matched with
appropriate technology and appropriate structure. Therefore, this shows organizational
effectiveness is determined by the relationship of these three factors.

 The kind of change to make

This is the third major factor that managers need to consider when they set out to change an
organization. Most changes can be categorized as one of three kinds:

- Technological
- Structural
- people

Technological changes – emphasizes modifying the level of technology in the management

system. This kind of change so often involves outside experts and highly technical language.

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Structural change – emphasizes increasing organizational effectiveness by changing controls that

influence organizational members during the performance of their jobs.

People change – is a type of organizational change that emphasizes modifying certain aspects of
organization members to increase organizational effectiveness.

 Individuals Affected by the change

A fourth major factor to be considered by managers when changing an organization is the people
who will be affected by the change.

A good of assessment of what to change and how to make the change will be wasted if
organization members do not support the change. To increase the chances support, managers
should be aware of employee of the following factors.

- The usual employee resistance to change

- How this resistance can be reduced
- The three conditions that usually accompany behavioral change.

 Evaluation of change

As with all other managerial actions, managers should spend more time evaluating the changes
they make. The purpose of this evaluation is not only to gain insights into how the change itself
might be modified to further increase its organizational effectiveness but also to determine
whether the steps taken to make the change should be modified to increase organizational
effectiveness the next time they are used.

3.5. Resistance to Change

Resistance is a strange, loaded word with negative and emotional baggage. But resistance is,
believe it or not, a completely natural human experience. Resistance is how we protect ourselves
from being bad. When presented with significant change, most people think of the reasons why
this new idea won‘t work.

It‘s pretty natural to want to stay in and defend the status quo, even when the current way of
doing things isn‘t working very well.

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As change agents, leaders need to understand and deal early with resistance, be it direct or
indirect. It doesn‘t go away until you deal with it honestly. This tool will help you do that.
Resistance can often be positive, in the sense that:

 You know your request has been heard and people are perhaps striving to understand how
to make it work without upsetting their environment too much; or
 It may represent a legitimate commitment to another alternative or to a different way of
thinking.
However, indirect resistance is often hidden, and can look like a sincere response. Only when
resistance is direct, sincere, and in the open does it become possible to discuss and deal with real
concerns.

Leaders need to know how to surface indirect resistance and turn it into direct resistance. Begin

by not assuming or mind reading. You could be wrong! What looks like resistance could be a

genuine request or comment.

Common obstacles to change

A 2006 study by Harvard Business Review found that 66% of change initiatives fail to achieve

their desired business outcomes. Why is change so difficult? The five most common obstacles to

change are depicted in the graph below.

27
%

17
%

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15 29
Employee resistance % %

Communication break
12
Down
%
Shortage of time
Devoted to training

Staff turnover during

Transition

Cost exceeded budget

Figure 3.2 Obstacles Experienced during Major Organizational Changes

Activity 9: Management of resistance is important for the success of planned change in the
organization. Therefore, describe some mechanisms used to manage resistance in the
organization?
________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

3.6. Managing Resistance to Change

Change ultimately affects people in the organization. It is always better to explain to them why
change is necessary, what benefits are likely to accrue as a result of change and how these
benefits are to be shared by employees and the organization. Free flow of information and two-
way communication is necessary. If proper communication is not maintained negative attitudes
are likely to be formed while change is being implemented. There is a general impression that

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benefits from change accrue to the organization and management at the cost of workers. This is a
false impression and must be corrected by appropriate authority. It must be remembered that
without full cooperation of workers, no change can be planned, implemented and the benefits
enjoyed. No growth of the organization can take place unless workers bring it about.

Management must understand that workers are the key element of any organization and that
they must be involved from planning stage of change. This will result in increased
productivity of the organization.

Participation should not be simply a mechanical act of calling upon employees to ―Participate‖.
It should be clearly understood that there is no one simple panacea to be used in all situations.

Participation is not being universally followed. The different combinations of different methods,
techniques and procedures may have to be tried. There may be need for the counselling and
training of people. If the situation so warrants; the plan even may have to be dropped. Conscious
efforts must be made by the leader to remove the fears of employees.

Participation should be a part of total treatment of change. Such participation of workers would
ensure commitment to implementation of change. Individual involvement right from the
planning stage of the change is essential to ensure total commitment. It should ultimately appear
that the employees require the change and management is implementing it at their best. It has
been observed that management is regarded as the instigator of change and unions are considered
as forestaller of change.

It is, therefore, for management to take labour leaders in confidence so that they are able to
convince the members of the need and utility of change. It is important to make the workers feel
that they can discuss the modalities of change and understand the nature of fears they may have,
known for themselves that there is no danger or a trap in the change being planned and that the
change is for the benefit of workers and organization. Coch and French’s study showed that the
group which was not only informed of change and why it was to occur, but also participated in
helping to design and plan the new jobs as well as retaining programmes, demonstrated more
successful adaptation to change than the other two groups. These included:

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1. Group which had no orientation to change other than a short announcement by

management that the change would be made.
2. Group which was informed by management of the need for change and its implications
and the workers were asked to select representatives to help devise the necessary retaining
programmes. The results were much better in the second group involving all than the first
group in which only an announcement regarding change was made.

3.7. Planned Change

Managers and other change agents use various means for mobilizing power, exerting influence
over others, and getting people to support planned change efforts. As described in Figure 1, each
of these strategies builds from the various bases of social power. Note in particular that each
power source has somewhat different implications for the planned change process.

Force–Coercion

A force–coercion strategy uses legitimacy, rewards, or punishments as primary inducements to

change. That is, the change agent acts unilaterally to ―command‖ change through the formal
authority of his or her position, to induce change via an offer of special rewards, or to bring
about change via threats of punishment. People respond to this strategy mainly out of the fear of
being punished if they do not comply with a change directive or out of the desire to gain a
reward if they do. Compliance is usually temporary and continues only as long as the change
agent and his or her legitimate authority are visible, or as long as the opportunities for rewards
and punishments remain obvious.

Figure 3.3 Power bases, change strategies, and predicted change outcomes.

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Rational Persuasion

Change agents using a rational persuasion strategy attempt to bring about change through the
use of special knowledge, empirical support, or rational arguments. This strategy assumes that
rational people will be guided by reason and self-interest in deciding whether or not to support a
change. Expert power is mobilized to convince others that the change will leave them better off
than before. It is sometimes referred to as an empirical-rational strategy of planned change.
When successful, this strategy results in a longer lasting, more internalized change than does
force–coercion.

Shared Power

A shared-power strategy actively and sincerely involves the people who will be affected by a
change in planning and making key decisions relating to this change. Sometimes called a
normative-re-educative approach, this strategy tries to develop directions and support for change
through involvement and empowerment. It builds essential foundations, such as personal values,
group norms, and shared goals, so that support for a proposed change emerges naturally.
Managers using normative-re-educative approaches draw upon the power of personal reference
and also share power by allowing others to participate in planning and implementing the change.
Given this high level of involvement, the strategy is likely to result in a longer lasting and
internalized change.

3.8. Strategies for Planned Organizational Change

Dear students, what do we mean by organizational change? Organizational change is the

alteration or adjustment of a company‘s current business operation. Business owners and
managers may need to direct unplanned and planned change. Differentiating between these two
change processes can help owners and manager understand the internal and external force
affecting the company. Planned change typically has an expected result that improves some
portion of the business unplanned change may be chaotic and to an unknown result.

The following are some strategies for planned organizational change.

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i. Reviewing the action of business owners and managers is very significance. They
should have a clear understanding and knowledge of change. If the seam unsure of
the situation or unclear about its outcome, the changes were probably not expected.

ii. Assessing the reaction by the employees. Similar to owners and managers, employees
have an opinion on resting changes. Employees who cannot complete tasks as needed
or who have new difficulties in their job may face unplanned change.

iii. Looking at a competitor‘s action major planned change in a business may be the
result of economic shifts in the local market. Competitors who are not adjusting
operation may be a signal that unplanned change is occurring in the business.

iv. Monitoring the outcomes of the change, whether planned or unplanned. The outcome
of change should result improved and better productivity .while minor adjustments
may be necessary, these are normal. Unplanned changes may result in continual
change or alterations to the business and major issues.

Summary

Change is a planned or unplanned, a potent issue simultaneously unpredictable and turbulent

pressures that have become the norm. Change is not made without inconvenience, even from
worse to better. To succeed, the change must be accepted. Change strategists are clearly to
initiators of change and traditional have represented the top leaders of the firm. Change
implementers, agents champions etc. are responsible for micro dynamics of the change effort its
organizational structure and coordination of elements. Change recipients are those most strongly
affected by the change.

Therefore those who are managing change with some degree of success for themselves and for
others recognize that they must continually ask the questions:

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 What is to be changed?
 How is to be changed?
 Who is affected?
 What are the consequences so far?

And listen to the answers, and then transfer that learning to continually modify their efforts. The
forces for change come from external sources outside the organization and from internal source
of the organization. There are four key external forces for change: demographic characteristics,
technological advancements, market changes and social and political pressures. Internal forces
may come from low job satisfaction, low productivity and conflict both human resource
problems and management behavior decisions.

A change agent is an individual inside or outside the organization who tries to modify an existing
organization situation. Managers need to consider what should be changed within the
organization. Most changes can be categorized as one of the three kind: Technological,
Structural, and People.

Managers need to consider when changing an organization is the people who will be affected by
the change. Resistance to change is an emotional/ behavioural response to real or imagined
threats to an established work routine.

There are also four key elements that should be kept in mind.
i. An organization must be ready for change.
ii. Organizational change is less successful when top management fails to keep
employees informed about the process of change,

iii. Do not assume that people are consciously resisting change. Managers are
encouraged to use a system model of change to identify the obstacles that are
affecting the implementation process.

iv. Employees perception or interpretations of a change significantly.

There are three stages of change: unfreezing, changing and refreezing.

The following are some strategies for planned organizational change:

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1. Reviewing the actions of business owners

2. Assessing the reaction by employees
3. Looking at a competitions actions
4. Monitoring the outcome of the change

Self -Assessment Questions

Part I. Write True if the statements are correct and false if the statements are incorrect.

1. Change which is deliberately designed and implemented is a ‗planned change‘.

2. Resistance is how we protect ourselves from being bad.

3. One reason people resist change is that it substitutes ambiguity for uncertainty.

Part II. Give answer for the following questions

1. What factors should be considered whatever change is being contemplated?

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2. What are the special skills necessary for the success of the change agent?

3. List out some of the strategies for planned organizational change?

4. List out the ten of the leading reasons for resistance to change?

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CHAPTER FOUR
Learning Objectives

After studying this chapter, you should be able to:

- Discuss planned and unplanned change

- Explain revolutionary and evolutionary change

- Figure out the main BBR process, BBR technique and tools , and implementation

4.1. Introduction
Dear students, this is the fourth chapter of the course. Thus, you will study about types of
change, planned Vs. unplanned change, revolutionary Vs. evolutionary change, the meaning and
concept of Business process Reengineering (BPR) BPR process, BPR techniques and tools,
implementation of BPR and other kinds of changes. Alongside there are also unit summary and
self-test exercise included here. Therefore, you will be expected to carry out the given exercises
at the end of the progress.

4.2. Types of change

Dear students, the previous unit began with a broad definition of change a planned or unplanned
response to pressure and surveyed the pressure. Here we explore planned response. Linda
Ackerman provides a useful way of categorizing changes common in the organization, each of
which varies in scope and depth.

Understanding the nature of the change you wish to effect and the context in which you are
working are important in determining an appropriate strategy. Entering uncharted change
territory without some sort of route map puts you at an immediate disadvantage from the start.
One of the first stages in charting the territory is to understand a little more about the type of
change you wish to make (broadly where you want to get to and how you plan to travel).

There are a number of ways in which change can be categorized, most are related to the extent of
the change and whether it is seen as organic (often characterized as bottom-up) or driven (top-
down).

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Ackerman (1997) has distinguished between three types of change:

 Developmental – May be either planned or emergent; it is first order, or

incremental. It is change that enhances or corrects existing aspects of an
organization, often focusing on the improvement of a skill or process.

 Transitional – Seeks to achieve a known desired state that is different from the
existing one. It is episodic, planned and second order, or radical. Much of the
organizational change literature is based on this type.

 Transformational – Is radical or second order in nature. It requires a shift in

assumptions made by the organization and its members. Transformation can result

in an organization that differs significantly in terms of structure, processes,

culture and strategy. It may, therefore, result in the creation of an organization

that operates in developmental mode – one that continuously learns, adapts and

improves.

4.3. Planned vs. Unplanned Change

Dear students. Change in an organization can be planned or unplanned. Planned change is the
result of a specific change agent and unplanned change is random or spontaneous. Whether the
change is planned or unplanned leaders must manage change effectively, something it has been
estimated that 50 to 70 percent of all corporate change initiative in the 1990s failed to achieve
their objectives.

There are several common elements in managing change. Those elements include define the
vision for planned change react quickly for unplanned change com. Provoke the change and
involve employees.

In order to accept a change by employees, an organization must have a clear defined vision. The
vision must be one that is concrete and drives movement towards measurable goals and not one
that is a slogan or bumper sticker campaign of clichés such as customer – oriented or new and
improved. The leaders of the organization must show the employees how the change will benefit
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them and the business . It is also important to remember that any desired outcome must be
congruent with core values.

Unplanned change can be disruptive or beneficial. A good employee team will have a worse case
back up plan, which has been communicated to employees, so that the time the network is down
is minimal .the key to taming unplanned change is to react quickly and decisively. Leaders do
not have time to create a vision but they should be able to communicate the change and the
process to follow.

Inadequate communication is one of the main reasons change efforts fail. One way to motivate
employees to accept planned or unplanned changes is to allow them to have a stake in the
outcome .give them a chance to ask questions. Share concerns and offer ideas. People are less
likely to resist change if they feel that it is their idea or they have input .also leaders should
consider the vehicles used to communicate the change. There is no one perfect way to
communicate change. The commendation should be via a variety of ways such as e-mail internal
employee websites, and all hands meetings. In addition the reason for the change should be
included in the communication there for managers should share with employees the various
options considered.

 Activity 10: Think back over your own working life and/or that of other members of your
family or friends. What major changes have occurred in the organizations you or they have
worked for?

4.4. Revolutionary Change versus Evolutionary Change

Revolutionary change is immediate and dramatic whereas evolutionary change is gradual and
manmade. Change due to war, attack of another country and making the changes in the life of the
invaded regions where as the evolutionary changes is by nature in course of time.

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Revolution also in codes the change due to inventions like mobile phones, TVS, internets,
computers etc which were not created before.

Revolutionary change is characterized by suddenness and usually is induced by man himself

revolutionary change is not necessarily a step forward. Evolutionary change on the other hand is
having as it does elements of both phenotype and genotype changes are largely imperceptible it
is a natural process helping us to adapt to emerging conditions in order to maintain the steady
state.

Dear student, let‘s examine the advantages and disadvantages of revolutionary change vs.
evolutionary change.

4.3.1 Revolutionary change

Revolutionary change is the change-by-mandate. You will often see this type of change in
reaction to (1) a leadership change or (2) a crisis. As examples: a new CIO comes in and
reorganizes the department, or the IT department fails an audit.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Revolutionary Change

Advantages
 Low risk of the change failing to take effect.
 Change will occur quickly.
 Change will have any resources needed.

 Political cover. For example if another department doesn‘t like the change for some
reason, and they escalate to their management, whoever mandated the change feels
ownership over it and will be unlikely to back down. (Aside: this is not necessarily a
good thing if the change is at the expense of the larger organization.)

 Looks good on résumés and annual reports.

 Feels planned. Mandates that come from the same person often fit together–for example a
change this year to create a new Service Desk, followed by a change next year to
implement a new Service Desk tool.

Disadvantages

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 Change may not become part of the culture before focus shifts. The change may roll back
a few months after leadership changes focus.

 Loss of political capital: because the change was less inclusive up front, political capital is lost.

 Job security for the leader: if the change does not provide the benefit expected, or
otherwise fails, the people who mandated the change may lose their job. (Aside: setting
this expectation is definitely a bad way to manage, as it creates huge incentives for
leaders to make the change look like it worked.)

 Opportunity cost: other improvements may be needed but everyone is tied up working on
the mandated improvement.

 Not necessarily a ―good fit‖ for the organization: the current situation was likely not
understood well, so the solution applied often leaves pain points or gaps.

 Often treats people like robots.

4.3.2 Evolutionary change

Evolutionary change is change by convincing people. One or more ―change agents‖ see an
opportunity for the organization to improve, and they pursue it by talking with other people and
building a proposal/prototype that is iteratively shopped around. (Again, if you‘re interested in
this type of change see also ―Riding the Maturity Model Wave,‖ which addresses how to conduct
evolutionary change.)

As examples: project management techniques that spread with use or changes to an incident
management process as teams figure out shortcuts. (Note: these changes are not necessarily
documented.)

Advantages and Disadvantages of Evolutionary Change

Advantages

 Highly likely that, if the change is implemented, it will become part of the culture. More
people have been involved in the design. More people identify with the change.

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 Likely that the change fits the organization, understanding the current situation.

 More brains around the problem, leading to more thoughtful solutions.

Disadvantages
 Very risky up front. High likelihood that people will not understand or will not buy in to
the change. Hard to build momentum.

 Haphazard. Changes may be introduced that do not move the organization towards where
it needs to go. This is compounded if there is not an organizational ―True North‖ or target
condition.

 Can be ―design-by-committee‖ where a sense of central direction is lost. Especially true

if there is not one clear owner/change agent.

 Hard to find people who are good at making evolutionary change. It is a skill. What‘s
more, these people rarely take credit for their work so you might not know who they are.

4.5. Business Process Reengineering (BPR)

Activity 11: Dear students, can you define a business process reengineering (BPR)?

Davenport and short (1990) define business process as ―a set of logically related tasks performed
to achieve a defined business outcome.‘‘ In their view, processes have two important
characteristics.

 they have customer that is , processes have defined out comes and there are recipients of
the out comes
 they cross organizational boundaries , that is they normally occur across or between
organizational subunits

Davenport and short (1990) have categorized business processes according to three dimensions

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 organizational entities or subunits involved in the process ( inter –organizational , inter

functional , and interpersonal processes )
 the type of objects manipulated (physical and informational processes )

BPR is a business management strategy. Originally pioneered in the early 1990s focusing on
the analysis and design of workflows and processes within an organization BPR aimed to help
organizations fundamentally rethink how they do their work in order to dramatically improve
customer service, cut operational costs ,and become world –class competitors in the mid -1990s
as many as 60% of the fortune 500 companies claimed to either have initiated reengineering
efforts or to have plans to do so BPR seeks to help companies radically restructure their
organizations by focusing on the ground up design of their business processes. A business
process is a set of logically related tasks performed to achieve a defined business outcome. Re-
engineering emphasized a holistic focus on business objectives and how processes related to
them encouraging full-scale recreation of processes rather than the optimization of sub processes.

BPR is also known as business process redesign, business transformation, or business process
change management.
BPR began as a private sector technique to help organizations fundamentally rethink how do
their works in order to dramatically improve customer service, cut operational costs and become
work –class competitors. a key stimulus for re-engineering has been the continuing development
and deployment of sophisticated information systems and networks. Leading organizations are
becoming bolder in using this technology to support innovative business processes, rather than
refining current ways of doing work.

BPR is basically rethinking and radically redesigning as organization‘s existing resources. BPR,
however, is more than just business improving: it is an approach for redesigning the way work is
done to better support the organization‘s mission and reduce costs? Reengineering starts with a
high-level assessment of the organization‘s mission strategic goals, and customer needs basic
questions are asked, such as ―does our mission need to be redefined? Are our strategic goals
aligned with our mission? Who are our customers? An organization may find that it is operation
on questionable assumptions, particularly in terms of the wants and needs of its customers. Only
after the organization rethinks what is should be doing, does it go on to decide how best to do it.

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Within the framework of this basic assessment of mission and goals, re-engineering focuses on
the organization‘s business processes-the steps and procedures that govern how resources are
used to create products and services that meet the needs of particular customers or markets.

Re-engineering identifies analyzes, and re-designs an organization‘s core business with the
aim of achieving dramatic improvements in critical performance measures, such as cost,
quality, service and speed.

Re –engineering recognizes that an organization business processes are usually fragmented in to

sub processes and tasks that are carried out by several specialized functional areas within the
organization often no one is responsible for the overall performance of the entire process.

Re-engineering focuses on re-designing the process as a whole in order to achieve the greatest
possible benefits to the organization and their customers. This drive for realizing dramatic
improvements by fundamentally re-thinking how the organization‘s work should be done
distinguish re-engineering from process improvements effort that focus on functional or
incremental improvement.

The most notable definitions of re-engineering are

 ``…the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve

dramatic improvements in critical contemporary modern measures of performance,
such as cost, quality service, and speed.‘‘
 ``Encompasses the envisioning of new work strategies, the actual process design
activity and the implementation of the change in all its complex technological human
and organizational dimensions.‘‘

BPR is different from other approaches to organization development (OD) especially the
continuous improvement or TQM movement by virtue of its aim foe fundamental and radical
change rather than improvement. In order to achieve the major improvements BPR is seeking for
the change of structural organizational variables and other ways of managing and performing
work is often considered as being insufficient. For being able to reach the achievable benefits
fully. The use of information technology (IT) is conceived as a major contributing factor while
IT traditional has been used for supporting the existing business function i.e. it was used for

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increasing organizational efficiency it now plays a role as enabler of new organizational forms
and patterns of collaboration within and between organization citations citation needed.

BPR derives its existence form different disciplines and major areas can identified as being
subjected to change in BPR- organization, technology, strategy, and people –where a process
view is used as common framework for considering these dimensions.

Business strategy is the primary driver of BPR initiatives and the other dimensions are governed
by strategy‘s encompassing role. The organization dimension reflects the structural elements of
the company, such as hierarchical levels, the composition of organizational units, and the
distribution of work between them citation needed. Technology is concerned with the use of
computer systems and other forms of communication technology in the business in BPR
information technology is generally couriered as playing a role as enabler of new forms of
organizing and collaborating rather that supporting existing business functions . The people
human resources dimension deals with pacts such as education, training, motivation and reward
system.

The concept of business processes –interrelated activities aiming at creating a value added output
to a customer –is the basic underlying idea of BPR these processes are characterized by number
of attributes: process ownership, customer focus, values adding and cross –functionally.

On the other hand hammer and campy (1993) define business processes as ―a collection of
activity that takes one or more or kinds of input and creates an output that is of value to the
customer ―example of processed in clued developing a new product ordering goods form a
supplier creating a marketing plan processing and paying an insurance claim etc.

Hammer (1990) also has defined business presses reengineering as ―the use of information
technology to radically redesign businesses processes in order to achieve dramatic improvements
in their performance there year later. Hammer and campy (1993) have promoted the definition of
BPR to the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve
dramatic improvements in critical. Contemporary measures of performance such as cost quality,
service and speed.

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When we examine the above definition provided, we extract four elements that need critical
attention these are fundamental, radical, dramatic, and process let us examine each one by one.

Fundamental. Understanding the fundamental operations of business is the first step prior to
reengineering businesses people must ask the moist basic questions about their organizations and
how they operate what do we do what we do and why do we do it the way wed asking these
basic questions lead people to understand the fundamental operation and to think why the old
rules and assumptions exist often these rules and assumptions are inappropriate and obsolete.

Radical. Radical redesign means disregarding all existing structures and procedures and
inventing completely new ways of accomplishing work reengineering is about business
reinvention begins with no assumptions and takes nothing for granted.

Dramatic. Reengineering is not about making marginal improvements or modification but about
achieving dramatic improvement in performance there are three kinds of companies that
undertake reengineering in general first are organizations that find themselves in deep trouble
they have no choice .second are organizations that foresee themselves in trouble because of
changing economic environment, there are organization that are in the peak con dictions. They
see reengineering as a chance to further their lead over competitors

Processes: the final key word ―process though the most important in the definition is the one that
gives most corporate managers the greatest difficulty. most business people are not process
oriented they are focused on tasks on jobs on people on structures but not on processes

Why is business process reengineering necessary?

Hammer M and J champ in their famous work reengineering of the corporation remarked that
economy‘s present problem is that is trying to enter the twenty –first century with enterprises
designed in the nineteenth century the two authors insisted on the necessity of a radical
redesigning of processes of organizing and of mentalities within enterprises .there are three
forces that radically change the economic environmental of organizations and which make it
impossible to apply the old principles of functioning (labor division, managerial hierarchy etc)
and these forces are customers , customer‘s competition and change.

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Many companies used reengineering as pretest to downsize their companies dramatically though
this was not the intent of reengineering proponents. Consequently, reengineering earned a
reputation for being synonymous with downsizing and layoffs.

In many circumstances reengineering has not always lived up to its expectations. some
prominent reasons include:
- Reengineering assumes that the factor that limits an organization‘s performance is the
ineffectiveness of its processes (with may or may not be true) and offered no mean of
validating that assumption.
- Reengineering assumes the need to start the process of performance improvement with a
clean slate i.e. totally disregard the status quo.

The role of information technology

Information technology (IT) has historically played an important role in the reengineering
concept .it is considered by some as a major enabler for new forms of working and collaborating
within an organization and across organizational borders citation needed.
Early BPR literature identified several so called disruptive technologies that were supposed to
challenge traditional wisdom about how work should be performed,

- Shared databases, making information available at many places

- Expert systems, allowing generalists to perform specialist tasks.
-Telecommunication networks, allowing organizations to be centralized and decentralized at the
same time.
-Decision- support tools, allowing decision making to be a part of every body‘s job
- Wireless data communication and portable computer, allowing field personnel to work office
independent.
-Interactive videodisk, to get in immediate contact with potential buyers.
-Automatic identification and tracking, allowing telling where they are, instead of requiring to be
found.
- High performance computer, allowing on-the fly planning and revising.
-In the mid-1990s, especially work flow management systems were considered as a significant
contributor to improved process efficiency. Also ERP (Enterprise Resource planning) venders,

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such as SAP, JDEdward, Oracle, people soft, positioned their solutions as vehicles for business
process redesign and improvement.

Although the label and steps differ slightly, the early methodologies that rooted in IT-centric
BPR solutions share many of the same basic principles and elements. The following outline is
one such modal, based on the PRLC (process reengineering life).

Approach developed by Guha. Simplified schematic outline of using a business process

approach, exemplified for pharmaceutical process.

1. Structural organization with functional units.

2. Introduction of new product development as crosses functional process.
3. Re- structuring and streamline activities, removal of non-value adding tasks.

Benefiting from lessons learned from the early adopters, some BPR practitioners advocated a
change in emphasis to a customer-centric, as opposed to an IT centric, methodology. One such
methodology, that also incorporated a risk and impact assessment to account for the impact that
BPR can have on jobs and operations, was described by Lon Roberts (1994). Roberts also
stressed the use of change management tools to proactively address resistance to change a factor
linked to demise of many reengineering initiatives that looked good for the drawing board. Some
items to use on a process analysis checklist are: Reduce handoffs, centralize data, reduce delays,
free resources faster, and combine similar activities. Also with in the management consulting
industry, a significant number of methodological approaches have been developed.

4.6. BPR Process

In the BPR field, reengineering should four on processes and not be limited to thinking about the

organizations. After all, the organizations only as effective as its processes. So, what is a

process? ―A business is a series of steps designed to produce a product or a service. It includes

all the activities that deliver particular results for a given customer (external or internal).‖

Talking about the importance of processes just as companies have organization charts, they
should also have what are called process maps to give a picture of how work flows through the
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company. Process mapping provides tools and a proven methodology for identifying your
current As-Is business processes and can be used to provide a To-Be roadmap for reengineering
your product and service business enterprise functions. It is the critical link that your
reengineering team can apply to better understand and significantly improve your business
processes and bottom-line performance.

Steps in process redesigning

Assuming that an organization has decided its processes are inefficient or in effective, and
therefore in need of redesign, how should it proceed? This is a straight forward activity, but
davenport and short (1990) prescribe a five-step approach to BPR:

Five steps in process redesign

Develop Business vision and process objectives

Identify processes to be redesigned

Understand and measure the existing processes

Design and build a prototype of the new process

Identify IT Levers

Fig 4.1. Business Process

1. Develop business Vision and process objectives: BPR is driven by a business vision
which implies specific business objectives such as cost reduction, time reduction, output
quality improvement, quality of work life (QWL) /Learning/ empowerment.

2. Identify processes to be redesigned: organizations should identify what is to be

redesigned and then prioritize them in order of redesign urgency.

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3. Understand and measure the existing processes: understanding and measuring the
existing processes before redesigning them is especially important, because problems
must be understood so that they are not repeated. On the other hand, accurate
measurement can serve as a baseline for future improvements.

4. Identify information technology (IT) levers: in the broadest sense, all of its capabilities
involve improving coordination and information access across organizational units,
thereby allowing for more effective management of task interdependence. An awareness
of IT capabilities can-and should-influence process design. Therefore, the role of IT in a
process should be considered in the early stages of its redesign.

5. Design and build a prototype of the now process: the actual design should not be
viewed as the end of the BPR process. Rather, it should be viewed as prototype, with

Successive result expected and managed. Key factors and tactics to consider in process design
and prototype generation include using IT as a design tool, understanding generic design criteria,
and creating organizational prototypes.

These prototypes of business process changes and organizational redesign initiatives, after
agreement by owners and stakeholders, would be implemented on a pilot basis, examined
regularly for problems and objective achievement, and modified as necessary. As the process
approached final acceptance, it would be phased into full implementation.

4.7. BPR Techniques and Tools

How to reengineer?

With an understanding of the basics of BPR, five methodologies are summarized and
consolidated methodology has been developed from the five methodologies to provide a
structured approach to facilitate understanding. But for the sake of briefness, we will deal with
the details of the following methodologies and techniques.

1. Prepare for reengineering. ―if you fail to plan to fail‖. Planning and preparation are vital
factors for any activity or event to be successfully and reengineering is no exception. Before

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attempting reengineering, the question ―is BPR necessary?‖ should be asked? There should be a
significant need for the process to be reengineered. The justification of this need marks the
beginning of the preparation activity.

This activity begins with the development of executive consensus on the importance of
reengineering and the link between break through business goal and reengineering projects. A
mandate for change is produced and a cross-functional team is established with a game plan for
the process of reengineering. While forming the cross functional team, steps should be taken to
ensure that the organization continues to function in the absence of several key players.

The impact of the environmental changes that serve as the impetus for the reengineering effort
must also be considered in establishing guidelines for the reengineering project. Another
important factor to be considered while establishing the strategic goals for the reengineering
effort is to make it your first priority to understand the expectations of your customers and where
your existing process falls short of meeting those requirements. Having identified the customer
driven objectives, the mission or vision statement is formulated.

The vision is what an organization believes it wants to achieve when it is done, and a well-
defined vision will sustain a company‘s resolve through the stress of the reengineering process. It
can act as the flag around which to rally the coops when the morale begins to sag and it provides
the yard stick for measuring the organization progress.

2. Map and analyze as-is process. Before the reengineering team can proceed to redesign the
process they should understand the existing process. The important aspect of BPR is that the
improvement should provide dramatic results.

Many people do not understand the value of an as-is analysis and rather prefer to spend a larger
chunk of their valuable time on designing the to-be model directly. What follows is an
illustration that justifies this fallacy.

The main objective of this phase is to identify disconnects (anything that prevents the process
from achieving desired results and in particular information transfer between organizations or
people) and value adding processes. This is initiated by first creation and documentation of
activity and process models making use of the various modeling methods available. Then, the

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amount of time that each activity takes and the cost that each activity requires in terms of
resources is calculated through simulation and activity based costing (ABC). All the groundwork
required having been completed the processes that need to be reengineered are identified.

3: Design To-Process. The objective of this phase is to produce one or more alternatives to the
current situation, which satisfy the strategic goals of the organization.

The first step in this phase is benchmarking. ‘‘Benchmarking is the comparing of both the
performance of the organization‘s processes and the way those processes is conducted with those
relevant peer organizations to obtain ideas for improvement. ‖The peer organizations need not be
competitors or even from the same sector innovative practices can be adopted from anywhere ,no
matter what their source.

Having identified the potential improvements to the existing processes, the development of the
TO –Be models is done using the various modeling methods available, bearing in mind the
principles of process design. Then, similar to the as-is model, we perform simulation and activity
based costing to analyze factors life the time and cost involved. it should be noted that this
activity is a process and cannot be done overnight. The several TO-Be models that are finally
arrived at are validated. By performing trade off analysis the best possible To-be scenarios are
selected for implementation.

4. Implement Reengineered process. The implementation stage is where reengineering efforts

meet the most resistance and hence it is before the most difficult one The question that confronts
us would be, if BPR promises such breaking taking results then why wasn‘t it adopted much
earlier? We could expect to face all kinds of opposition-from blatantly hostile antagonists to
passive adversaries: all of them determined to kill the effort.

When so much time and effort is spent on analyzing the current processes, redesigning them and
planning the migration, it would indeed be prudent to run a culture change program
simultaneously with all the planning and preparation. This would enable the organization to
undergo a much more facile transition. But whatever may be the juncture in time that the culture
change program may be initiated, it should be rooted in our minds that ‗winning the heart and
minds of everyone involved in the BPR effort is most vital for the success of the effort.

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Once this has been done, the next step is to develop a transition plan from the as-is to the
redesigned process. This plan must align the organizational structure, information systems, and
the business policies and procedures with the redesigned processes. ―Rapid implementation of
the information system that is required to support a reengineered business process is critical to
the success of the BPR project. The benefit here is that we can now define the causal and time
sequential relationships between the activities planned.‖ Using prototyping and demonstrated.
Training programs for the workers are initiated and the plan is executed in full scale.

5. Improve process continuously. A process cannot be reengineered overnight. A very vital part
in the success of very reengineering effort lies in improving the reengineered process
continuously. The first step in this activity is monitoring. Two things have to be monitored: the
progress of action and the results. The progress of action is measured by seeing how much more
informed the people feel, how much more commitment the management shows and how well the
change teams are accepted in the broader perspective of the organization. This can be achieved
by conducting attitude surveys and discrete ‗fireside chats‘ with those initially not directly
involved with the change. As for monitoring the results, the monitoring should include such
measures as employee attitudes, customer perceptions, and supplier responsiveness.

Communication is strengthened throughout the organization; ongoing measurement is initiated,

team reviewing of performance against clearly defined targets is done and a feedback loop is set
up where in the process is remapped, reanalyzed and redesigned. There by continuous
improvement of performance is ensured through a performance tracking system and application
of problem solving skills.

Is total quality management the same as business reengineering? The total quality management
process is not the same as the business process reengineering process. A lot of people who want
to think they are doing reengineering say it is the same think as total quality management. But
they are really doing incremental process improvement, not radical reengineering. Total quality
management is not set up to handle the really radical changes of reengineering.

However, bringing total quality management in to the organization and doing it successfully
requires radical change that business process reengineering is looking for, and therefore
successful implementation of total quality management is an ideal example of what it means to

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reengineer. Doing total quality management incorrectly can also be a perfect example of what
can go wrong if reengineering is done incorrectly. Total quality management is not a set of
processes.
Dear students, what are the five steps in process of redesigning? If you said that the five steps in
process redesigning are: develop business vision and process objectives, identify process to be
designed, understand and measure the existing process, identify information technology levers,
and design and build a prototype of new process is very good.

The Relationship between BPR and Information Technology (IT)

Information technology (IT) refers to ―the capabilities offered by computers, software

applications, and telecommunications‖ davenport and short, 1990. Hammer (1990) considers it
as the key enabler of BPR, which he considers as ―radical change. He prescribes the use of it to
challenge the assumptions inherent in the work processes that have existed since long before the
advent of modern computer and communications technology.

Davenport and short (1990) argue that BPR requires taking a broader view of both it and
business activity, and of the relationships between them. IT and BPR have recursive relationship.
IT capabilities should support business processes, and business processes should be in terms of
the capabilities IT can provide. Davenport and short (1990) refer to this broadened, recursive
view of IT and BPR as ―the new industrial engineering.‖

Business processes represent a new approach to coordination across the firm; its promise-and its
ultimate impact-is to be the most powerful tool for reducing the costs of coordination. Finally,
davenport & short (1990) outline the following capabilities that reflect the roles that IT can play
in BPR: transactional, geographical, automatically, analytical, informational, sequential,
knowledge management, tracking, and disintermediation. Successes in reengineering would be
difficult to consummate without the enabling IT. Application of shared computing resources and
telecommunication technologies, systems are powerful enablers of process change. Attar an
(2003) categorizes IT roles in BPR in to three phases.

Phase 1: Before the process design (as an enabler)

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 Create infrastructures and manage information that support evolving organization,

 Foster process thinking in organizations,

 Identify and sect process for redesign,

 Participate predicting the nature of change and anticipate the information needs to
support that change,

 Educate IT staff in non-technical issues such as marketing, customer relationships, etc.

and

 Participate in designing measures of success /failures of reengineering.

Phase 2: during the process design (as a facilitator)

 Bring vast amounts of information in to the process,

 Bring complex analytical methods to bear on the process,

 Enhance employees‘ ability to make more informed decisions with less reliance on
formal vertical information flows,

 Identify enablers for process design,

 Capture the nature of proposed change and match IT strategy to that change,

 Capture and disseminate knowledge and expertise to improve the process,

communicate ongoing results of the BPR effort,

 Transform unstructured processes into reutilized transactions,

 Reduce replace labor in a process,

 Measure performance of current process,

 Define clear performance goals and objectives to drive the implementation.

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 Define the boundaries and scope on the process.

Phase 3: During the implementation (as a implementer)

 Create a digital feedback loop,

 Establish resource for critical evaluation of the reengineered process,

 Improve IT processes to meet increasing needs of those divisions that have gone
under reengineering processes,

 Institute a program of ―cleanup‖ and damage control in case of failure,

 Communicate ongoing results of the BPR effort,

 Help to build commitment to BPR, and

 Evaluate the potential investment and return of reengineering efforts.

As you can see from the above explanation, information technology plays an essential role in
redesigning the economic processes though it should not be made absolute. IT is part of every
BPR being a catalyst which allows the organization to reorganize its internal processes. The
introduction of IT to solve a basic problem does not necessarily presuppose a BPR. An
inadequate utilization of IT may block completely the process of reengineering by consolidating
and automating the old way of thinking and behavioral models.

Davenport and short (1990) say that in achieving BPR an important role is played by relation
between IT and economic processes. It means more than autoimmunization, it is a force capable
to change the way of achieving the economic processes fundamentally. The relationship between
IT and economic processes is recursive. IT facilities should be a support for economic processes
and economic processes should be stated in terms of facilities offered by IT. Davenport and short
call this recursive relationship ―the new industrial engineering‖. they identified the following
roles of IT within BPR: transactional, communication autoimmunization, analytical,
informational, knowledge management checking and intermediation.

4.8. Implementation of BPR

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Besides the common barriers to effective implementation BPR described by attar an (2003), as
time passes, some myths concerning the BPR concept also represent obstacles in front of BPR
project. The seven myths of BPR described by Grover and Malhotra (1997) are as follow:

1. ``Reengineering is a radical one-time approach‘‘ is changing as many firms are not willing to
invest the money and time to implement change from a ``clean state‘‘.
2. ``Reengineering involves breakthrough performance gains‘‘ is being challenged as bench
marking and measurement of these gains can prove elusive.
3. ``Reengineering enables changes primarily through IT‘‘ is being moderated by the numerous
organizational innovations involving people, jobs, skills and structures that facilitate
process- oriented behaviors.
4. ``Reengineering should focus on cross-functional core business processes‘‘ is fine, but many
piecemeal improvements with functions can also add upto significant change and have
proven very successful.
5. ``Reengineering enhance individual capacities through empowerment and team: is all well and
good but many process-change projects are being defended based on cost objectives
achieved through downsizing with few opportunities for retraining.
6. ``Reengineering must be conducted from the top down ‘‘ is being challenged since often
detailed understanding of process design resides with people who do the work.
7. ``Reengineering can use a standardized set of methods touted by armies of consultants‘‘ is
being questioned given that no standardized approach exists to date.

4.9. Other kinds of Change

4.8.1. Kaizen

Philosophy of on-going improvement: a Japanese business philosophy advocating the need for
continuous improvement in somebody's personal and professional life

Japanese for gradual and orderly continuous improvement over a long period of time with
minimum financial investment, and with participation by everyone in the organization.

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Improvement in all areas of business serves to enhance quality of the firm.

Three things required for successful kaizen program: operating practices, total involvement, and
training.

Operating practices expose opportunities for improvement. JIT reveals waste and inefficiency as
well as poor quality

Every employee strives for improvement. Top management views improvement as part of
strategy and supports it. Middle management can implement top management‘s improvement
goals by establishing, maintaining, and upgrading operating standards. Workers can engage
through suggestions, small group activity.

Middle management can help create conducive environment for improvement by improving
cooperation amongst departments, and by making employees conscious of their responsibilities
for improvement.

Supervisors can direct their attention more on improvement than supervision, which will
facilitate communication.

Kaizen: Implementation

The Deming cycle: Originally developed by Walter Shewart, but renamed in 1950s because
Deming promoted it extensively.

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Plan – Study the current system; identifying problems; testing theories of causes; and developing
solutions.
Do – Plan is implemented on a trial basis. Data collected and documented.
Study – Determine whether the trial plan is working correctly by evaluating the results.
Act – Improvements are standardized and final plan is implemented.

Variation of PDSA cycle: FADE – Focus, Analyze, Develop, Execute cycle!

Juran‘s breakthrough sequence:
1. Proof of the need

2. Project identification

3. Organization for breakthrough – two paths identified: symptom to cause (diagnostic) and
cause to remedy (remedial) paths.
4. Diagnostic journey
5. Remedial journey
6. Holding the gains.
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Seven QC Tools
1. Flow charts
2. Check sheets
3. Histograms
4. Pareto diagrams
5. Cause-and-effect diagrams
6. Scatter diagrams
7. Control charts
Flow charts
• Process map identifies the sequence of activities or the flow in a process.
• Objectively provides a picture of the steps needed to accomplish a task.
• Helps all employees understand how they fit into the process and who are their suppliers
and customers.
• Can also pinpoint places where quality-related measurements should be taken.
• Also called process mapping and analysis.
• Very successfully implemented in various organizations. e.g. Motorola reduced
manufacturing time for pagers using flow charts.
Check sheets
• Special types of data collection forms in which the results may be interpreted on the form
directly without additional processing.

• Data sheets use simple columnar or tabular forms to record data. However, to generate
useful information from raw data, further processing generally is necessary.

• Additionally, including information such as specification limits makes the number of

nonconforming items easily observable and provides an immediate indication of the
quality of the process.

Pareto diagrams
Based on the 85-15 Pareto distribution. Helpful in identifying the quality focus areas.
Popularized by Juran.

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It is a histogram of the data from the largest frequency to the smallest.

Cause-effect diagrams
• Also called fishbone diagrams (because of their shape) or Ishikawa diagrams.

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• Helps in identifying root causes of the quality failure. (Helps in the diagnostic journey.)

Scatter diagrams
• Graphical components of the regression analysis.

• Often used to point out relationship between variables. Statistical correlation analysis
used to interpret scatter diagrams.

Run charts and Control charts

Run chart: Measurement against progression of time.

Control chart: Add Upper Control Limit and Lower Control Limit to the run chart.

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TQM for the Workforce

Kaizen teams
Quality Circles
• Teams of workers and supervisors that meet regularly to address work-related problems
involving quality and productivity.

• Developed by Kaoru Ishikawa at University of Tokyo.

• Became immediately popular in Japan as well as USA.

• Typically small day-to-day problems are given to quality circles. Since workers are most
familiar with the routine tasks, they are asked to identify, analyze and solve quality
problems in the routine processes.

Kaizen blitz
An intense and rapid improvement process in which a team or a department throws all its
resources into an improvement project over a short period of time.
Short time ―burst‖ rather than long range simmer- hence the name.
Blitz teams usually comprise of employees from all areas involved in the process who
understand it and can implement the changes on the spot.
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A. Poka-Yoke (Mistake proofing)

• Approach for mistake-proofing processes using automatic devises or methods to avoid
simple human error.

• Developed and refined in the 1960s by the late Shigeo Shingo, a Japanese manufacturing
engineer who developed the Toyota production system.

• Focused on two aspects:

1. Prediction – Recognizing that a defect is about to occur and provide a warning.

2. Detection – Recognizing that a defect has occurred and stop the process.

4.8.2 Six Sigma

• Business improvement approach that seeks to find and eliminate causes of defects and
errors in processes by focusing on outputs that are critical to customers.

• The term Six Sigma is based on a statistical measure that equates 3.4 or fewer errors or
defects per million opportunities.

• Motorola pioneered the concept of Six Sigma.

• The late Bill Smith, a reliability engineer is credited with conceiving the idea of Six
Sigma.

• GE (specifically CEO Jack Welch) extensively promoted it.

Core philosophy based on key concepts:

• Think in terms of key business processes and customer requirements with focus on
strategic objectives.
• Focus on corporate sponsors responsible for championing projects.
• Emphasize quantifiable measures such as defects per million opportunities (dpmo).
• Ensure appropriate metrics is identified to maintain accountability.
• Provide extensive training.
• Create highly qualified process improvement experts -―belts‖.
• Set stretch objectives for improvement.

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Contrasts between traditional TQM and Six Sigma (SS) -

TQM is based largely on worker empowerment and teams; SS is owned by business leader
champions.
TQM is process based; SS projects are truly cross-functional.
TQM training is generally limited to simple improvements tools and concepts; SS is more
rigorous with advanced statistical methods.
TQM has little emphasis on financial accountability; SS requires verifiable return on investment
and focus on bottom line.

Summary

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Every change varies in scope and depth. All change is not the same. There are two types of
change: transitional change and transformational change. Transitional change is mainly known
for current way of doing things are replaced by something new. Whereas, the transitional change
is the most radical change which requires a leap of faith for the organization thus, determining
what kind of change an organization requires is clearly vital for the depth and complexity of
implementation grow significantly from development.

Change in an organization can be planned or unplanned. Planned change is the result of a

specific change agent and unplanned change is random or spontaneous. Whether the change is
planned or unplanned leaders must manage change effectively, something that was not dome in
the past. In order to accept a change by employees, an organization must have a clear define
vision. The vision also must be one that is concrete and drives movement towards measurable
goals.

Unplanned change can be disruptive or beneficial. Revolutionary change is immediate and

dramatic whereas evolutionary change is gradual and manmade.

To be a truly world-class organization, the organization needs to work as a team and all the
functional areas of the business need to be properly integrated, with each understanding the
importance of cross functional processes. As the basis of competition changes from cost and
quality to flexibility and responsiveness, the value of process management is now being
recognized. The role that process management can play in creating sustainable competitive
advantage was termed business process reengineering (BPR), and was first introduced by
hammer, davenport and short.

Business process reengineering is the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business
processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical measures of performance. In order to
bring about a complete organizational transformation, the jobs, organizational structures,
management systems, and values and beliefs need to align to the redesigned business processes.
Once processes are identified the next task is choosing which the processes to reengineer.

It is difficult to reengineer all the processes simultaneously. Therefore, the organization should
carefully select and decide on the processes that have the highest priority for action. In order to

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prioritize the candidates for reengineering, organizations can use the three selection criteria given
below.

The success of a modern organization depends on the ability of IT architecture of meeting the
ever changing informational requirement of economic processes. IT architecture is the necessary
platform for the functional and structural reorganization of an organization for the defining and
dynamic implementation of economic processes as sets of Interco related activities carried out to
reach a major organizational objective. The main objective of using here is to support radical
change, not to automate the old processes.

IT development and implementation presupposes a strategic outlook which is to be ensured by

the information systems known –how the IT support in BPR is weak. Information systems
experts are the ones who can achieve the holistic framework of technical components which
must be implemented gradually to offer support to new economic processes.

Self -Assessment Questions

Part I: Write True if the statements are correct and false if the statements are incorrect.

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1. Planned change is the result of a specific change agent and unplanned change is random or
spontaneous.
2. Organizational change can be any alterations in people, structure, or technology.
3. Business process reengineering is a business management strategy.

Part II: Multiple-Choice Questions

1. Which of the following is/are element(s) of BPR?

A. Rethinking the theory of business

B. Using information technology not to automatic out-dated process but to redesign new
ones
C. Encourages training and development by building creative work environment
D. Breaking away from conventional wisdom and the constraints of the organisational
boundaries
E. All

2. Which of the following is a false statement?

A. Six sigma is business management strategy originally developed by Motorola
B. The term "Six Sigma" comes from a field of statistics known as process capability studies.
C. Six sigma is process of comparing the organization practices and techniques with
those of other companies
D. Six sigma strives to attain a defect rate of no more than 3.4 per million

Part III. Give answer for the following questions.

1. Scrutinize the difference between planned changes and unplanned changes?

2. Clarify the difference between transitional change and transformational changes
3. Distinguish between the revolutionary change and evolutionary change?
4. What is the role of information technology in business process reengineering?

CHAPTER FIVE

CONFLICTS AND CONFLICT MANAGEMENT

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Learning Objectives:

After studying this unit, you should be able to:

 Explain the meaning and nature of conflict

 Identify the consequences of conflict

 Figure out main sources of conflict

 Understand how to analyze conflict situation and interpersonal relations

 Understand how to handle conflict

5.1. Meaning and Nature of Conflict

Definitions of conflict

Conflict, like change, will always occur given the dynamics of human interactions. It will occur
between family members, workers, colleagues, supervisors, boards of management in our work
or play environments, between organizations and within organizations. Why is this? Because we
all have different interests, goals, perceptions, viewpoints, values and experiences.

The paradox of conflict is that it is both the force that can tear relationships apart and the force
that binds them together, meaning that they can be either healthy (constructive) or unhealthy
(destructive). This dual nature of conflict makes it an important concept to study and understand.
It is normal for people to live and work well together to have conflicts from time to time.

We disagree with each other because we each see the world differently, and we have different
ideas about what we want and how to do things. Our individual and collective backgrounds and
experiences, e.g. in cultural, spiritual, political and economical aspects, are different.

Some Definitions of conflict

- Conflict: An issue between two or more parties who have (or think they have)
incompatible goals or ideas. Conflicts may involve deep-rooted moral or value
differences, high-stakes distributional questions, or can be about who dominates whom.

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- Dispute: Short-term disagreements that are visible on the surface and relatively easy to
resolve, because they involve interests that are negotiable. Disputes often exist within a
larger, longer and more deep-rooted conflict.

- Conflict Prevention: To prevent a conflict from escalating violently or to take action

before a violent outbreak of a conflict emerges

- Conflict Settlement: The imposition of a settlement by a third party, for example through
a Judge or an Arbitrator.

- Conflict Management: To regulate a conflict and to reduce its negative effects.

- Conflict Resolution: To address the underlying issues of a conflict and to focus on the
relationship and communication between the parties.

- Conflict Transformation: To overcome the root and structural causes of conflict and to
strengthen conflict solving capacities in individuals, communities and society

5.2. Types of Conflict

Though usually people think of it as a bad thing, conflict can be a positive occurrence within an
organization to bring about change. Two types of conflict are dysfunctional (negative conflict)
and functional conflict (positive conflict).

Activity 12: Do you think conflict is always negative? Explain.

When most people hear the word conflict, they think of the term in a negative manner.
Surprisingly, conflict can actually be a positive within an organization. Conflict can bring about
change, improve situations and offer new solutions. Two types of conflict that can occur within a
company are functional and dysfunctional. Functional conflict is healthy, constructive
disagreement between groups or individuals, while dysfunctional conflict is unhealthy
disagreement that occurs between groups or individuals.

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Functional Conflict

Susie Steel is a vice president in a real estate development firm called Hearts Development. She
has spent enormous amounts of energy cultivating a relationship with a local town regarding an
available plot of land. Susie would like to purchase the land to build townhomes for sale. She has
developed an excellent relationship with the town politicians and community members.

An issue has developed over the planned usage of the land, though. The town will sell the land to
Susie's company but feels that townhomes would be bad for the overall community. They're
concerned with the additional cost and burden of kids that the townhomes would bring into the
community. Susie understands the community's concern and wants a win-win situation to occur.
She feels that this issue will be a functional conflict due to the fact that the disagreement will
bring a positive end result to both parties. Positive results of functional conflict include:

 Awareness of both sides of issues

 Improvement of working conditions due to accomplishing solutions together
 Solving issues together to improve overall morale
 Making innovations and improvements within an organization

In Susie's case, constructive criticism and discussion resulted in a compromise and a solution
between the parties. Susie understood the town's concern but needed to find something to build
that would bring revenue for the company. Through their joint meetings, the end solution was for
Hearts Development to build a retirement community, which would only have citizens 55 and
over living in the town. This would eliminate the issue of having more young people come into
town and burden the school system.

Dysfunctional Conflict

Sometimes, conflict can be a very negative experience for companies. Susie's colleague, John
Dirt, is also a vice president of development at Hearts. He also has a major conflict regarding a
construction project. He is looking to build a nuclear power plant in an East Coast town. The
town is vehemently against having a power plant, and the discussions have been heated in
conflict. This is a win-lose situation, or a dysfunctional conflict. Most dysfunctional conflicts
are unhealthy and stem from emotional or behavioral origins.

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The town is very emotional over the fact that a possible nuclear power plant could be built in
their neighborhood. They are extremely concerned with the danger and health issues. John Dirt
has had to use threats, personal attacks and deception in order to get his power plant plans passed
by the town. Negative results of dysfunctional conflict include:

 Individuals use threats, verbal abuse and deception, which destroy relationships
 Both parties can end up losing in this type of conflict
 This type of conflict can lead to retaliation and further acts of negativity

Unfortunately, the situation ended very poorly for John Dirt and Hearts Development. The
company ignored the wishes of the residents and ended up building the nuclear power plant.
Protests from the community happened daily outside the plant. After two years of operation, a
leak occurred, causing damage to the environment and to the health of the citizens. In the end,
the plant was shut down, and the company took a huge loss. The community ended up suing
Hearts for damages, and many of the citizens had long-term illnesses develop from the leakage.
This could all have been avoided if the conflict could have been changed from dysfunctional to
functional conflict.
Nature of Conflict

1. The Ubiquity (omnipresence) of Conflict

Conflict is a disagreement between two or more parties who perceive that they have
incompatible concerns

 Intrapersonal Conflicts
 Interpersonal Conflicts
 Intra- group Conflicts
 Intergroup Conflicts
 Inter-organization Conflicts
 Intra-racial Conflicts
 Inter-racial Conflicts
 Inter-gender Conflicts
 Inter-class Conflicts
 Inter-regional Conflicts
 Inter-cultural Conflicts
 International Conflicts

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2. Two Views of Conflict

(i). Traditional View

Conflict is bad and should be avoided

(ii) Contemporary View:

Conflict is neither inherently bad nor good but is inevitable and structurally induced

3. Two Consequences of Intergroup Conflict

(i) Functional Conflict: Intergroup conflict that enhances organizational performance

- Increases problem awareness

- Increases self- and other awareness
- Increased exchange of information and knowledge
- Improved decision processes
- Increased innovativeness and creativity
- Enhanced motivation and morale
- Decreased tensions
- Enhanced psychological maturity

(ii) Dysfunctional Conflict: Intergroup conflict that leads to the decline of organizational
performance

General Organizational Consequences

 Increased stress and burnout
 Reduced organizational performance
 Reduced morale and job satisfaction
 Reduced loyalty to organization
 Waste of resources and time
Dysfunctional Changes between Groups
 Increased hostility and distrust
 Distorted perception
 Negative stereotyping
 Decreased communication

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Changes within Groups

 Increased group cohesiveness

 Increased loyalty to the group rather than to the organization
 Rise in autocratic leadership
 More task-oriented

4. Why Intergroup Conflict Occurs

i) Goal Incompatibility

 Mutually exclusive goals

 Limited resources
 Reward structures
 Different values

ii) Structural Interdependence

 Task interdependence
 Lack of substitution
 Power differentials

iii) Different Perceptions

 Different goals
 Different time horizon
 Different role expectations
 Different information environment
 Different knowledge base
 Difference in information processing
iv) Different organizing principles
 Autonomy vs. Interdependence
 Analyzing vs. Synthesizing
5. Cultural Dimensions of Group Conflict

(i) Location Dimension

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 National
 Professional
 Organizational
 Governance
(ii) Value Dimension

 Power distance
 Uncertainty avoidance
 Individualism
 Masculinity
 Long-term

6. Managing Intergroup Conflict through Conflict Resolution

(i) Five Strategies

 Dominating
 Avoiding
 Obliging
 Compromising
 Integrating
(ii) Two dimensions

 Distributive Dimension: win-lose

 Integrative Dimension: win-win

(iii) Differences in strategic choice:

 U.S: competitive conflict resolution

 Japan: cooperative conflict resolution

5.3. Sources of Conflict

The effective management of workplace conflict requires an understanding of the nature and
sources of conflict in the workplace. Conflict occurs when there is a perception of incompatible
interests between workplace participants. This should be distinguished from disputes. Disputes

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are merely a by-product of conflict. They are the outward articulation of conflict. Typical
disputes come in the form of formal court cases, grievances, arguments, threats and counter
threats etc. Conflict can exist without disputes, but disputes do not exist without conflict.
Conflict, however, might not be so easily noticed. Much conflict exists in every workplace
without turning into disputes.

The first step in uncovering workplace conflict is to consider the typical sources of conflict.
There are a variety of sources of workplace conflict including interpersonal, organizational,
change related, and external factors.

Interpersonal

Interpersonal conflict is the most apparent form of conflict for workplace participants. It is easy
enough to observe the results of office politics, gossip, and rumors. Also language and
personality styles often clash, creating a great deal of conflict in the workplace. In many
workplaces there are strong ethno-cultural and racial sources of conflict as well as gender
conflict. This may lead to charges of harassment and discrimination or at least the feeling that
such things exist.

People often bring their stresses from home into the office leading to further conflict. An
additional source of workplace conflict can be found in varying ideas about personal success.
The strong drive for work related achievement in some participants can clash with participants
who do not emphasize work-related success in their lives.

Organizational

There are a number of organizational sources of conflict. Those relating to hierarchy and the
inability to resolve conflicting interests are quite predominant in most workplaces.
Labour/management and supervisor/employee tensions are heightened by power differences.
Differences in supervisory styles between departments can be a cause of conflict. Also there can
be work style clashes, seniority/juniority and pay equity conflict. Conflict can arise over resource
allocation, the distribution of duties, workload and benefits, different levels of tolerance for risk

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taking, and varying views on accountability. In addition, conflict can arise where there are
perceived or actual differences in treatment between departments or groups of employees.

A thorough review of the workplace is suggested for such sources of conflict. Again surveys,
interviews and focus groups can help reveal these sources of conflict. Additionally,
organizational sources of conflict can be predicted based upon best practices from similar
organizations. All organizations experience such conflict. Much can be learned from the lessons
of similar organizations that have made a study of this source of conflict.

Trends/Change

The modern workplace has significant levels of stress and conflict related to change-management
and downsizing. Technological change can cause conflict, as can change work methodologies.
Many workplaces suffer from constant reorganization, leading to further stress and conflict. In
line with reorganization, many public and non-profit organizations suffer from downloading of
responsibilities from other organizations.

Workplace analysts should review the history of the particular organization, reaching back as far
as 10 years to determine the level of churn that has taken place. Generally speaking, the more
change and the more recent the change, the more likely there will be significant conflict.

External Factors

External factors can also lead to conflict in the workplace. Economic pressures are caused by
recession, changing markets, domestic and foreign competition, and the effects of Free Trade
between countries. Conflict arises with clients and suppliers effecting customer service and
delivery of goods. Also public and non-profit workplaces in particular can face political
pressures and demands from special interest groups. A change in government can have a
tremendous impact, especially on public and non-profit organizations. Funding levels for
workplaces dependent upon government funding can change dramatically. Public ideologies can
have an impact on the way employees are treated and viewed in such organizations.

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To look for external factors of conflict, have a review of the relationships between the subject
organization and other organizations. Companies or government departments that have constant
relationships with outside organizations will find this to be a major source of conflict for
workplace participants.

5.4. Conflict Outcomes

One of the most common outcomes of conflict is that it upsets parties in the short run. However,
conflict can have both positive and negative outcomes. On the positive side, conflict can result in
greater creativity or better decisions. For example, as a result of a disagreement over a policy, a
manager may learn from an employee that newer technologies help solve problems in an
unanticipated new way.

Positive outcomes include the following:

 Consideration of a broader range of ideas, resulting in a better, stronger idea

 Surfacing of assumptions that may be inaccurate
 Increased participation and creativity
 Clarification of individual views that build learning

On the other hand, conflict can be dysfunctional if it is excessive or involves personal attacks or
underhanded tactics.

Examples of negative outcomes include the following:

 Increased stress and anxiety among individuals, which decreases productivity and
satisfaction
 Feelings of being defeated and demeaned, which lowers individuals‘ morale and may
increase turnover
 A climate of mistrust, which hinders the teamwork and cooperation necessary to get work
done

5.5. Conflict Management

Different Behaviors in Conflict Handling/ styles of conflict handling

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1. Avoidance - Lose & Lose: ―Neither you nor I satisfy our needs.‖ Party A does not value
either his/her own or Party B‘s interests and needs very highly, and/or denies that there is
conflict.
2. Giving in / Accommodate - Lose & Win: ―I satisfy your needs at my expense.‖ Party A
does not value his/her own ideas and interests very highly, but places a high value on those of
Party B (or the common goal).
3. Competition - Win & Lose : ―I satisfy my needs at your expense.‖ Party A places a very
high value on his/her own opinions and desires, and very little on those of Party B
4. Compromise - ½ Win & ½ Win : ―I give up some of my needs to satisfy The basic premise
is that the parties you, and you give up some of your differences can not be reconciled and
needs to satisfy me.‖ must therefore be traded off
5. Co-operation - Win & Win: ―We discover new, creative (and some- Full value is placed on
both parties‘ interests, times even healing) ways to satisfy views and desires. Both parties
appreciate each both of our very important needs and strive for consensus, i.e. agreement on
the chosen course of action. In this way both parties feel satisfied, because their needs are
met and the relationship is strengthened.

High Competition Cooperation

Concern for Self Compromise

Low Avoidance Accommodation

Low High
Concern for Relationship

In other context, Conflict Management styles can be seen as:

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Individuals vary in the way that they handle conflicts. There are five common styles of handling
conflicts. These styles can be mapped onto a grid that shows the varying degree of cooperation
and assertiveness each style entails. Let us look at each in turn.

Avoidance

The avoiding style is uncooperative and unassertive. People exhibiting this style seek to avoid
conflict altogether by denying that it is there. They are prone to postponing any decisions in
which a conflict may arise. People using this style may say things such as, ―I don‘t really care if
we work this out,‖ or ―I don‘t think there‘s any problem. I feel fine about how things are.‖
Conflict avoidance may be habitual to some people because of personality traits such as the need
for affiliation. While conflict avoidance may not be a significant problem if the issue at hand is
trivial, it becomes a problem when individuals avoid confronting important issues because of a
dislike for conflict or a perceived inability to handle the other party‘s reactions.

Accommodation

The accommodating style is cooperative and unassertive. In this style, the person gives in to
what the other side wants, even if it means giving up one‘s personal goals. People who use this
style may fear speaking up for themselves or they may place a higher value on the relationship,
believing that disagreeing with an idea might be hurtful to the other person. They will say things
such as, ―Let‘s do it your way‖ or ―If it‘s important to you, I can go along with it.‖
Accommodation may be an effective strategy if the issue at hand is more important to others
compared to oneself. However, if a person perpetually uses this style, that individual may start to
see that personal interests and well-being are neglected.
Compromise

The compromising style is a middle-ground style, in which individuals have some desire to
express their own concerns and get their way but still respect the other person‘s goals. The
compromiser may say things such as, ―Perhaps I ought to reconsider my initial position‖ or
―Maybe we can both agree to give in a little.‖ In a compromise, each person sacrifices something
valuable to them. For example, in 2005 the luxurious Lanesborough Hotel in London advertised
incorrect nightly rates for £35, as opposed to £350. When the hotel received a large number of
online bookings at this rate, the initial reaction was to insist that customers cancel their

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reservations and book at the correct rate. The situation was about to lead to a public relations
crisis. As a result, they agreed to book the rooms at the advertised price for a maximum of three
nights, thereby limiting the damage to the hotel‘s bottom line as well as its reputation.
Competition

People exhibiting a competing style want to reach their goal or get their solution adopted
regardless of what others say or how they feel. They are more interested in getting the outcome
they want as opposed to keeping the other party happy, and they push for the deal they are
interested in making. Competition may lead to poor relationships with others if one is always
seeking to maximize their own outcomes at the expense of others‘ well-being. This approach
may be effective if one has strong moral objections to the alternatives or if the alternatives one is
opposing are unethical or harmful.
Collaboration

The collaborating style is high on both assertiveness and cooperation. This is a strategy to use for
achieving the best outcome from conflict—both sides argue for their position, supporting it with
facts and rationale while listening attentively to the other side. The objective is to find a win–win
solution to the problem in which both parties get what they want. They‘ll challenge points but
not each other.

They‘ll emphasize problem solving and integration of each other‘s goals. For example, an
employee who wants to complete an MBA program may have a conflict with management when
he wants to reduce his work hours. Instead of taking opposing positions in which the employee
defends his need to pursue his career goals while the manager emphasizes the company‘s need
for the employee, both parties may review alternatives to find an integrative solution. In the end,
the employee may decide to pursue the degree while taking online classes, and the company may
realize that paying for the employee‘s tuition is a worthwhile investment. This may be a win–win
solution to the problem in which no one gives up what is personally important, and every party
gains something from the exchange.
Which Style Is Best?

Like much of organizational behavior, there is no one ―right way‖ to deal with conflict. Much of
the time it will depend on the situation. However, the collaborative style has the potential to be
highly effective in many different situations.

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We do know that most individuals have a dominant style that they tend to use most frequently.
Think of your friend who is always looking for a fight or your coworker who always backs down
from a disagreement. Successful individuals are able to match their style to the situation. There
are times when avoiding a conflict can be a great choice. For example, if a driver cuts you off in
traffic, ignoring it and going on with your day is a good alternative to ―road rage.‖

However, if a colleague keeps claiming ownership of your ideas, it may be time for a
confrontation. Allowing such intellectual plagiarism to continue could easily be more destructive
to your career than confronting the individual. Research also shows that when it comes to dealing
with conflict, managers prefer forcing, while their subordinates are more likely to engage in
avoiding, accommodating, or compromising. It is also likely that individuals will respond
similarly to the person engaging in conflict. For example, if one person is forcing, others are
likely to respond with a forcing tactic as well.

There are also a number of different ways of managing organizational conflict, which are
highlighted in this section. Conflict management refers to resolving disagreements effectively.

Activity 13: How would you manage conflict?

Ways to Manage Conflict

1. Change the Structure

When structure is a cause of dysfunctional conflict, structural change can be the solution to
resolving the conflict. Consider this situation. Vanessa, the lead engineer in charge of new
product development, has submitted her components list to Tom, the procurement officer, for
purchasing. Tom, as usual, has rejected two of the key components, refusing the expenditure on
the purchase. Vanessa is furious, saying, ―Every time I give you a request to buy a new part, you
fight me on it. Why can‘t you ever trust my judgment and honor my request?‖

Tom counters, ―You‘re always choosing the newest, leading-edge parts—they‘re hard to find and
expensive to purchase. I‘m supposed to keep costs down, and your requests always break my
budget.‖

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―But when you don‘t order the parts we need for a new product, you delay the whole project,‖
Vanessa says.

Sharon, the business unit‘s vice president, hits upon a structural solution by stating, ―From now
on, both of you will be evaluated on the total cost and the overall performance of the product.
You need to work together to keep component costs low while minimizing quality issues later
on.‖ If the conflict is at an intergroup level, such as between two departments, a structural
solution could be to have those two departments report to the same executive, who could align
their previously incompatible goals.

1. Change the Composition of the Team

If the conflict is between team members, the easiest solution may be to change the composition
of the team, separating the personalities that were at odds. In instances in which conflict is
attributed to the widely different styles, values, and preferences of a small number of members,
replacing some of these members may resolve the problem. If that‘s not possible because
everyone‘s skills are needed on the team and substitutes aren‘t available, consider a physical
layout solution. Research has shown that when known antagonists are seated directly across from
each other, the amount of conflict increases. However, when they are seated side by side, the
conflict tends to decrease.
1. Create a Common Opposing Force
Group conflict within an organization can be mitigated by focusing attention on a common
enemy such as the competition. For example, two software groups may be vying against each
other for marketing dollars, each wanting to maximize advertising money devoted to their
product. But, by focusing attention on a competitor company, the groups may decide to work
together to enhance the marketing effectiveness for the company as a whole. The ―enemy‖ need
not be another company—it could be a concept, such as a recession, that unites previously
warring departments to save jobs during a downturn.
2. Consider Majority Rule

Sometimes a group conflict can be resolved through majority rule. That is, group members take a
vote, and the idea with the most votes is the one that gets implemented. The majority rule
approach can work if the participants feel that the procedure is fair. It is important to keep in
mind that this strategy will become ineffective if used repeatedly with the same members

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typically winning. Moreover, the approach should be used sparingly. It should follow a healthy
discussion of the issues and points of contention, not be a substitute for that discussion.

3. Problem Solving
Problem solving is a common approach to resolving conflict. In problem-solving mode, the
individuals or groups in conflict are asked to focus on the problem, not on each other, and to
uncover the root cause of the problem. This approach recognizes the rarity of one side being
completely right and the other being completely wrong.
Mediation
One way to mold conflict into a positive experience is to use mediation. Mediation is a way to
take control of conflict by using a facilitator or mediator to help the parties communicate their
issues. During mediation, the parties are still held responsible to present facts and come to a
resolution. The mediator helps facilitate the communication and adds clarification to both sides.
In the instance of the nuclear power plant, mediation could have helped both parties express their
sides. Perhaps the community would have convinced Hearts Development to spend additional
money on safety and improvements to avoid the catastrophe.

The difference between functional and dysfunctional conflict is that functional serves a purpose
in the organization such as the interest and dysfunctional serves no purpose but to threaten the
organization. The five antecedents of conflict are the ―overlapping or unclear job boundaries,
inadequate communication, unreasonable or unclear policies standards or rules, unreasonable
deadlines or extreme time pressure, and competition for limited resources‖.

Overlapping or unclear job boundaries are very common in the workplace.

Inadequate communication can be harmful to a company. Employees and management need to

communicate for the organization to be successful. For example, Employees have not to go to
management for information. Information should be sent out to all employees. This would have
been effective communication.

What If You Don’t Have Enough Conflict Over Ideas?

Part of effective conflict management is knowing when proper stimulation is necessary. Many
people think that conflict is inherently bad—that it undermines goals or shows that a group or
meeting is not running smoothly. In fact, if there is no conflict, it may mean that people are
silencing themselves and withholding their opinions. The reality is that within meaningful group

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discussions there are usually varying opinions about the best course of action. If people are
suppressing their opinions, the final result may not be the best solution.

During healthy debates, people point out difficulties or weaknesses in a proposed alternative and
can work together to solve them. The key to keeping the disagreement healthy is to keep the
discussion focused on the task, not the personalities. For example, a comment such as ―Jack‘s
ideas have never worked before. I doubt his current idea will be any better‖ is not constructive.
Instead, a comment such as ―This production step uses a degreaser that‘s considered a hazardous
material. Can we think of an alternative degreaser that‘s nontoxic?‖ is more productive. It
challenges the group to improve upon the existing idea.

There have been many styles of conflict management behavior that have been researched in the
past century. One of the earliest, Mary Parker Follett (1926/1940) found that conflict was
managed by individuals in three main ways: domination, compromise, and integration. She also
found other ways of handling conflict that were employed by organizations, such as avoidance
and suppression.

Early conflict management models

Blake and Mouton (1964) were among the first to present a conceptual scheme for classifying
the modes (styles) for handling interpersonal conflicts in five types: forcing, withdrawing,
smoothing, compromising, and problem solving.

In the 1970s and 1980s, researchers began using the intentions of the parties involved to classify
the styles of conflict management that they would include in their models. Both Thomas (1976)
and Pruitt (1983) put forth a model based on the concerns of the parties involved in the conflict.
The combination of the parties concern for their own interests (i.e. assertiveness) and their
concern for the interests of those across the table (i.e. cooperativeness) would yield a particular
conflict management style. Pruitt called these styles yielding (low assertiveness/high
cooperativeness), problem solving (high assertiveness/high cooperativeness), inaction (low
assertiveness/low cooperativeness), and contending (high assertiveness/low cooperativeness).
Pruitt argues that problem-solving is the preferred method when seeking mutually beneficial
options (win-win).

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Khun and Poole's model

Khun and Poole (2000) established a similar system of group conflict management. In their
system, they split Kozan's confrontational model into two sub models: distributive and
integrative.

 Distributive - Here conflict is approached as a distribution of a fixed amount of positive

outcomes or resources, where one side will end up winning and the other losing, even if
they do win some concessions.
 Integrative - Groups utilizing the integrative model see conflict as a chance to integrate
the needs and concerns of both groups and make the best outcome possible. This model
has a heavier emphasis on compromise than the distributive model. Khun and Poole
found that the integrative model resulted in consistently better task related outcomes than
those using the distributive model.

De Church and Marks's meta-taxonomy

De Church and Marks (2001) examined the literature available on conflict management at the
time and established what they claimed was a "meta-taxonomy" that encompasses all other
models. They argued that all other styles have inherent in them into two dimensions - activeness
("the extent to which conflict behaviors make a responsive and direct rather than inert and
indirect impression") and agreeableness ("the extent to which conflict behaviors make a pleasant
and relaxed rather than unpleasant and strain full impression"). High activeness is characterized
by openly discussing differences of opinion while fully going after their own interest. High
agreeableness is characterized by attempting to satisfy all parties involved

In the study they conducted to validate this division, activeness did not have a significant effect
on the effectiveness of conflict resolution, but the agreeableness of the conflict management
style, whatever it was, did in fact have a positive impact on how groups felt about the way the
conflict was managed, regardless of the outcome.

Rahim's meta-model

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Rahim (2002) noted that there is agreement among management scholars that there is no one best
approach to how to make decisions, lead or manage conflict. In a similar vein, rather than
creating a very specific model of conflict management, Rahim created a meta-model for conflict
styles based on two dimensions, concern for self and concern for others.

Within this framework are five management approaches: integrating, obliging, dominating,
avoiding, and compromising. Integration involves openness; exchanging information, looking for
alternatives, and examining differences so solve the problem in a manner that is acceptable to
both parties. Obliging is associated with attempting to minimize the differences and highlight the
commonalities to satisfy the concern of the other party. When using the dominating style one
party goes all out to win his or her objective and, as a result, often ignores the needs and
expectations of the other party. When avoiding a party fails to satisfy his or her own concern as
well as the concern of the other party. Lastly, compromising involves give-and-take whereby
both parties give up something to make a mutually acceptable decision.

International conflict management

Special consideration should be paid to conflict management between two parties from distinct
cultures. In addition to the everyday sources of conflict, "misunderstandings, and from this
counterproductive, pseudo conflicts, arise when members of one culture are unable to understand
culturally determined differences in communication practices, traditions, and thought
processing."

Indeed, this has already been observed in the business research literature. Renner (2007)
recounted several episodes where managers from developed countries moved to less developed
countries to resolve conflicts within the company and met with little success due to their failure
to adapt to the conflict management styles of the local culture.

As an example, in Kozan's study noted above, he noted that Asian cultures are far more likely to
use a harmony model of conflict management. If a party operating from a harmony model comes
in conflict with a party using a more confrontational model, misunderstandings above and
beyond those generated by the conflict itself will arise.

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International conflict management, and the cultural issues associated with it, is one of the
primary areas of research in the field at the time, as existing research is insufficient to deal with
the ever increasing contact occurring between international entities.

5.6. Analysis of the Conflict Situation

If the most important skill of a good Civil Affairs Officer were to be defined, it would most
likely be his/her ability to understand the context in which s/he is deployed and to analyze the
conflict dynamics that undermine the peace process. Conflict analysis is not the prerogative of a
few analysts in JMAC or political affairs, but is the responsibility of every Civil Affairs Officer,
whose analysis at the field level is often the basis for much of the overall conflict analysis carried
out at the mission headquarters.

If the basic facts and the interpretation of the local conflict dynamics are inaccurate, the
overarching strategy of the mission to fulfill its mandate is likely to be misdirected. It is clear
that understanding and analyzing the conflict is not a goal in itself, but instead a means to
defining a strategy that can address the dynamics of the conflict and help to set the peace and
stabilization process on solid ground. Civil affairs activities, like any activity, should be planned
in such a way that feasible objectives are set out in advance based on clear analysis.

Civil affairs will clearly not be the only actor within the mission conducting conflict analysis,
and it will not be the main one at the national level. However, analysis from the local level will
feed into a complex stream of analysis by different internal and external actors within a post-
conflict mission environment, sometimes carried out collaboratively and sometimes in parallel
with each other.

Civil Affairs Officers need to be aware of these analyses, especially the higher order analysis (for
example, in an Integrated Strategic Framework) underpinning the mission mandate
implementation strategy. If available and of good quality, higher order analysis can be a good
starting point for civil affairs; however, general assumptions need to be tested in the field at the
local level – and then fed back up. It makes sense for the civil affairs component, and also the
units and field teams within the component, to carry out and maintain their own conflict analysis
for the following reasons:

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 To ensure a sufficient level of detail (for example about dynamics at the local level and
between the local and national levels);
 To feed into and help refine the higher order analysis;
 To provide a reference framework to guide ongoing civil affairs reporting and analysis; a
 To provide the foundation for the development of strategic plans, as well as for updating
them based on new information or an evolving understanding of the situation.

There are many different ways to conduct and write down an analysis. In any case, making the
analysis explicit – rather than just assuming that everyone shares the same understanding – is
extremely important in ensuring that everyone involved in implementing the plan understands it
in the same way. The actual ―process‖ of jointly conducting a conflict analysis and planning
exercise, for example at the component annual retreat, can also be an excellent way of ensuring
that everyone is on the same page. A shared analysis of the conflict overall is a good reference
point for individual Civil Affairs Officers or teams to carry out a more in-depth analysis of a
particular issue, and to analyze the meaning or relevance of specific events or incidents as they
occur.

Lessons learned on conflict analysis

There are many different ways to approach conflict analysis. The section on analysis in this
Handbook draws heavily on the lessons learned through the Reflecting on Peace Practice Project
(RPP), which is an experience-based learning process involving agencies with programs that
attempt to prevent or mitigate violent conflict. This section reproduces material from the RPP
manual, with their permission, but adapted for civil affairs purposes.

The RPP process revealed that there was no consistent practice or accepted methodology for
conducting conflict analysis. Certain trends were noted, however:

Practitioners often do only partial analysis.

They focus on how their particular approach or area of interest might fit or be useful in the
context, which can lead them to miss important aspects of the conflict or to develop misguided or
irrelevant programs.

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Many people carry out context analysis, believing it to be conflict analysis. A context analysis
seeks a broad understanding of the entire political, economic and social (historical,
environmental etc.) scene. A conflict analysis is more narrowly focused on the specific elements
of that broader picture that may trigger or propel conflict.

Analysis is not updated. Analyses are often performed only at the beginning of the program and
there is a lack of ongoing analysis, other than the natural process of noting events and changes.
Programming is not linked to analysis.

In a seeming contradiction, RPP found clear link between a program‘s effectiveness and
whether or how it had performed conflict analysis. One explanation is that even when
practitioners do analysis, they often fail to link their program strategy to it. It is also important to
note that even good analysis may not guarantee effectiveness given that there are many factors
that cannot be controlled.

Many people work on the basis of an implicit analysis, often based on their deep experience of a
situation. Some programs – often effective ones – are grounded in an informal analysis that
draws on the long experience of local people, or long- time observers of a conflict. Analysis may
be constantly updated, as individuals move about and talk with many different people. The
downside of this approach can be a lack of shared understanding among teams or within an
organization.

Therefore, efforts to make the implicit more explicit and to share observations are usually
valuable.

Elements of good conflict analysis

While the research did not find agreement regarding any particular methodology or framework
for analysis, it did identify several shortcomings of existing methods and was able to identify
elements of analysis that, if not addressed, lessen the effectiveness of programming.
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This included:

 Too comprehensive:

Many of the frameworks for analysis aim to be comprehensive, but do not help to identify which
factors are the most important. As a result, they do not help practitioners to identify priorities and
focus on factors that are important to the conflict dynamic. The lists of factors can be
overwhelming!

 Lists without dynamics:

Conflict analysis tools tend to present a static snapshot, often in the form of a list of factors,
without much sense of how the factors work together. The dynamics of conflict are missing.

 No linkage to strategy.

Analysis processes and results remain disconnected from program strategies. Even good analysis
processes do not enable people to identify what to do about the situation.

 Biased and narrow.

Analyses tend to be performed by single agencies, in order to justify the agencies‘ favorite
approach or methodology (dialogues, trauma healing etc.) or sector (for example, women,
youth), without much sense of whether these approaches are the most effective or the best use of
scarce funding resources for peace building

5.7. Conflict Stimulation

How Can You Stimulate Conflict?

 Encourage people to raise issues and disagree with you or the status quo without fear of
reprisal. An issue festering beneath the surface, when brought out into the open, may turn
out to be a minor issue that can be easily addressed and resolved.
 Assign a devil‘s advocate to stimulate alternative viewpoints. If a business unit is getting
stagnant, bring in new people to ―shake things up.‖

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 Create a competition among teams, offering a bonus to the team that comes up with the
best solution to a problem. For example, have two product development teams compete
on designing a new product. Or, reward the team that has the fewest customer complaints
or achieves the highest customer satisfaction rating.
 Build some ambiguity into the process. When individuals are free to come up with their
own ideas about how to complete a task, the outcome may be surprising, and it allows for
more healthy disagreements along the way.

5.8. Conflict Resolution

Conflict arises from differences. It occurs whenever people disagree over their values,
motivations, perceptions, ideas, or desires. Sometimes these differences look trivial, but when a
conflict triggers strong feelings, a deep personal and relational need is at the core of the
problem—a need to feel safe and secure, a need to feel respected and valued, or a need for
greater closeness and intimacy.

Recognizing and resolving conflicting needs

If you are out of touch with your feelings or so stressed that you can only pay attention to a
limited number of emotions, you won‘t be able to understand your own needs. If you don‘t
understand your deep seated needs, you will have a hard time communicating with others and
staying in touch with what is really troubling you. For example, couples often argue about petty
differences—the way she hangs the towels, the way he parts his hair—rather than what is really
bothering them.
In personal relationships, a lack of understanding about differing needs can result in distance,
arguments, and breakups.

In workplace conflicts, differing needs are often at the heart of bitter disputes. When you can
recognize the legitimacy of conflicting needs and become willing to examine them in an
environment of compassionate understanding, it opens pathways to creative problem solving,
team building, and improved relationships. When you resolve conflict and disagreement quickly
and painlessly, mutual trust will flourish.

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Successful conflict resolution depends on your ability to:

 Manage stress while remaining alert and calm. By staying calm, you can accurately read
and interpret verbal and nonverbal communication.
 Control your emotions and behavior. When you‘re in control of your emotions, you can
communicate your needs without threatening, frightening, or punishing others
 Pay attention to the feelings being expressed as well as the spoken words of others.
 Be aware of and respectful of differences. By avoiding disrespectful words and actions,
you can resolve the problem faster.

Healthy and unhealthy ways of managing and resolving conflict

Conflict triggers strong emotions and can lead to hurt feelings, disappointment, and discomfort.
When handled in an unhealthy manner, it can cause irreparable rifts, resentments, and breakups.
But when conflict is resolved in a healthy way, it increases our understanding of one another,
builds trust, and strengthens our relationship bonds.

Unhealthy responses to conflict are characterized by:

 An inability to recognize and respond to matters of great importance to the other person
 Explosive, angry, hurtful, and resentful reactions
 The withdrawal of love, resulting in rejection, isolation, shaming, and fear of
abandonment
 The expectation of bad outcomes
 The fear and avoidance of conflict

Healthy responses to conflict are characterized by:

 The capacity to recognize and respond to important matters

 A readiness to forgive and forget
 The ability to seek compromise and avoid punishing
 A belief that resolution can support the interests and needs of both parties

Four key conflict resolution skills

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The ability to successfully manage and resolve conflict depends on four key skills. Together,
these four skills form a fifth skill that is greater than the sum of its parts: the ability to take
conflict in stride and resolve differences in ways that build trust and confidence.

Conflict resolution skill 1: Quickly relieve stress

The capacity to remain relaxed and focused in tense situations is a vital aspect of conflict
resolution. If you don‘t know how to stay centered and in control of yourself, you may become
emotionally overwhelmed in challenging situations. The best way to rapidly and reliably relieve
stress is through the senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. But each person responds
differently to sensory input, so you need to find things that are soothing to you.

Conflict resolution skill 2: Recognize and manage your emotions.

Emotional awareness is the key to understanding yourself and others. If you don‘t know how you
feel or why you feel that way, you won‘t be able to communicate effectively or smooth over
disagreements. Although knowing your own feelings may seem simple, many people ignore or
try to sedate strong emotions like anger, sadness, and fear. But your ability to handle conflict
depends on being connected to these feelings. If you‘re afraid of strong emotions or if you insist
on finding solutions that are strictly rational, your ability to face and resolve differences will be
impaired.

Conflict resolution skill 3: Improve your nonverbal communication skills

The most important information exchanged during conflicts and arguments is often
communicated nonverbally. Nonverbal communication includes eye contact, facial expression,
tone of voice, posture, touch, and gestures. When you‘re in the middle of a conflict, paying close
attention to the other person‘s nonverbal signals may help you figure out what the other person is
really saying, respond in a way that builds trust, and get to the root of the problem.

Simply nonverbal signals such as a calm tone of voice, a reassuring touch, or a concerned facial
expression can go a long way toward defusing a heated exchange.

Conflict resolution skill 4: Use humor and play to deal with challenges

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You can avoid many confrontations and resolve arguments and disagreements by communicating
in a playful or humorous way. Humor can help you say things that might otherwise be difficult to
express without creating a flap. However, it‘s important that you laugh with the other person, not
at them. When humor and play are used to reduce tension and anger, reframe problems, and put
the situation into perspective, the conflict can actually become an opportunity for greater
connection and intimacy.

Tips for managing and resolving conflict

Managing and resolving conflict requires emotional maturity, self-control, and empathy. It can
be tricky, frustrating, and even frightening. You can ensure that the process is as positive as
possible by sticking to the following conflict resolution guidelines:

 Make the relationship your priority. Maintaining and strengthening the relationship,
rather than ―winning‖ the argument, should always be your first priority. Be respectful of
the other person and his or her viewpoint.
 Focus on the present. If you‘re holding on to old hurts and resentments, your ability to
see the reality of the current situation will be impaired. Rather than looking to the past
and assigning blame, focus on what you can do in the here and now to solve the problem.
 Pick your battles. Conflicts can be draining, so it‘s important to consider whether the
issue is really worthy of your time and energy. Maybe you don't want to surrender a
parking space if you‘ve been circling for 15 minutes. But if there are dozens of spots,
arguing over a single space isn‘t worth it.
 Be willing to forgive. Resolving conflict is impossible if you‘re unwilling or unable to
forgive. Resolution lies in releasing the urge to punish, which can never compensate for
our losses and only adds to our injury by further depleting and draining our lives.
 Know when to let something go. If you can‘t come to an agreement, agree to disagree. It
takes two people to keep an argument going. If a conflict is going nowhere, you can
choose to disengage and move on.

5.9. Interpersonal Relations Management

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Interpersonal relationship refers to a strong association between individuals sharing common

interests and goals. A strong bond between two or more people refers to interpersonal
relationship.

Attraction between individuals brings them close to each other and eventually results in a strong
interpersonal relationship. A sense of trust, loyalty and commitment is essential in a relationship.
Interpersonal relationships require the most effort to nurture and maintain. These are also the
relationships that give you the most joy and satisfaction.

Interpersonal relationships are formed in the context of social, cultural and other influences. The
context can vary from family or kinship relations, friendship, marriage, relations with associates,
work, clubs, neighborhoods, and places of worship. They may be regulated by law, custom, or
mutual agreement, and are the basis of social groups and society as a whole.

An interpersonal relationship can develop between any of the following:

 Individuals working together in the same organization.

 People working in the same team.
 Relationship between a man and a woman (Love, Marriage).
 Relationship with immediate family members and relatives.
 Relationship of a child with his parents.
 Relationship between friends.

 Activity 14: Why do we establish relationships?

Dear student, from the moment of birth, human beings depend on others to satisfy their basic
needs. Through this, children come to associate close personal contact with the satisfaction of
basic needs. Later in life, we continue to seek personal contact for the same reason, even though
we know we are capable of fling our own needs without relying on others for survival. Also,

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being around others becomes a habit and the basic physical needs of infancy expand to include
emotional and social needs as well. These can include the needs for praise, respect, affection,
love, achievement, and so on. It is these needs which are acquired through social learning that
motivate us as humans to seek relationships with people who can satisfy our needs throughout
our lives.

Benefits of satisfying relations

Good relationships require management, effort, and attention, but the investment pays off in
many ways. Special bonds with other people are important for both mental and physical health.
Research supports the idea that if we have strong, caring relationships with others, we are more
likely to be healthy and live longer. Satisfying relationships with family and friends promote
career success and we feel more protected as well as happy. Poor relations, on the other hand,
may promote depression, drug abuse, weight problems, and other mental health problems.
Must have in an Interpersonal Relationship

 Individuals in an interpersonal relationship must share common goals and objectives.

They should have more or less similar interests and think on the same lines. It is always
better if individuals come from similar backgrounds.
 Individuals in an interpersonal relationship must respect each other‘s views and opinions.
A sense of trust is important.
 Individuals must be attached to each other for a healthy interpersonal relationship.
 Transparency plays a pivotal role in interpersonal relationship. It is important for an
individual to be honest and transparent.

Stages in Interpersonal Relationships

Interpersonal relationships are dynamic systems that change continuously during their existence.
Like living organisms, relationships have a beginning, a lifespan, and an end. They grow and
improve gradually, as people get to know each other and become closer emotionally, or they
gradually deteriorate as people drift apart, move on with their lives, and form new relationships
with others.
According to famous psychologist George Levinger, every relationship goes through following
five stages.

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1. First Stage – Acquaintance

Acquaintance refers to knowing each other. To start relationship individuals need to

know each other well.

Two individuals might meet at some place and instantly hit it off. People feel attracted to
each other and decide to enter into a relationship.

Common friends, social gatherings, same organizations also help people meet, break the
ice, get acquainted with each other and start a relationship.

2. Second Stage – The Build up Stage

This is the stage when the relationship actually grows. Individuals are no longer strangers
and start trusting each other.

Individuals must be compatible with each other for the relationship to continue for a
longer period of time. Individuals with similar interests and backgrounds tend to gel with
each other more as compared to individuals from diverse backgrounds and different
objectives.

The build up stage in a relationship is often characterized by two individuals coming

close, being passionate and feeling for each other.

3. Third Stage – Continuation Stage

This is the stage when relationship blossoms into lasting commitments. It is when people
after knowing each other well decide to be in each other‘s company and tie the knot.

Trust and transparency is essential for the charm to stay in relationship forever.

4. Fourth Stage – Deterioration

Not all relationships pass through this stage. Lack of compatibility, trust, love and care
often lead to misunderstandings and serious troubles in relationship.

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Individuals sometimes find it extremely difficult to adjust with each other and eventually
decide to bring their relationship to an end.

Compromise is an integral part of every relationship. Individuals failing to compromise

with each other find it difficult to take the relationship to the next level.

5. Fifth Stage – The Termination Stage

The fifth and the last stage is the end of a relationship.

Factors Affecting Interpersonal Relationship

2. Compatibility

Two individuals in a relationship must be compatible with each other. There should be no
scope of conflicts and misunderstandings in a relationship. Individuals from similar
backgrounds and similar goals in life do extremely well in relationships. People with
different aims, attitudes, thought processes find it difficult to adjust and hence fail to carry
the relationship to the next level.

1. Communication

Communication plays a pivotal role in all types of relationships whether it is personal or

professional. Feelings must be expressed and reciprocated in relationships. Individuals need
to communicate with each other effectively for better understanding. Do not stay mum as it
leads to problems and misunderstandings. Two people in love must interact with each other
on a regular basis through various modes of communication such as telephone, emails, letters
(though exchanging letter is now considered an outdated form of communication). Staying in
touch is essential for the love to grow especially in long distance relationships where
individuals can‘t meet quite often.

In professional relationships as well, colleagues must communicate well for a better bonding.
Sit with your co workers and discuss issues face to face to reach to a mutually acceptable
solution.

The recipient must understand what the sender intends to communicate and vice a versa.
Clarity of thoughts is essential in relationships.

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2. Honesty

Be honest in relationships. Do not lie or hide things from your partner. Remember every
problem has a solution. Think before you speak. Transparency is important in relationships.
3. Stay calm

Do not overreact on petty things in relationships. Stay calm. Be a little more adjusting. Be the
first one to say ―Sorry‖. It will solve half of your problems.
4. Forgiving
An individual needs to be a little more forgiving in relationships. Do not drag issues
unnecessarily. Fighting over small issues is foolish and makes the situation all the more worse.

5. Smile

As they say ―Smile is a curve that makes everything staright.‖ Flash your smile more often. It
works. Take care of your facial expressions while interacting with the other person.
6. Time
Time plays an important role in relationships. Individuals in love must spend adequate time
to know each other better. Frustrations arise when people do not have time to meet or interact
with each other. Even in organization, individuals must spend quality time with their co
workers to strengthen the bond amongst themselves. Married couples must take time out for
each other for the charm to stay in relationship forever.

Make the other person feel important. Appreciate your partner whenever he/she does
something for you. Praise him/her in front of others.

Every relationship needs time and an individual‘s effort to grow. Sit with your partner and try
to sort out the differences amicably. Don‘t be too rigid.

Summary

Conflict is an issue between two or more parties who have (or think they have) incompatible
goals or ideas and it is a short-term disagreement. Conflict occurs when there is a perception of
incompatible interests between workplace participants. There are a variety of sources of
workplace conflict including interpersonal, organizational, change related, and external factors.

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There are two types of conflict that can occur within a company are functional and dysfunctional.
Functional conflict is healthy, constructive disagreement between groups or individuals, while
dysfunctional conflict is unhealthy disagreement that occurs between groups or individuals.

Conflict can have both positive and negative outcomes. On the positive side, conflict can result
in greater creativity or better decisions. On the other hand, conflict can be dysfunctional if it is
excessive or involves personal attacks or underhanded tactics.

There have been many styles of conflict management behavior that have been researched in the
past century: The combination of the parties concern for their own interests (i.e. assertiveness)
and their concern for the interests of those across the table (i.e. cooperativeness) would yield a
particular conflict management style.

It is clear that understanding and analyzing the conflict is not a goal in itself, but instead a means
to defining a strategy that can address the dynamics of the conflict and help to set the peace and
stabilization process on solid ground. A context analysis seeks a broad understanding of the
entire political, economic and social (historical, environmental etc.) scene.

Successful conflict resolution depends on your ability to:

 Manage stress while remaining alert and calm.

 Control your emotions and behavior.
 Pay attention to the feelings being expressed.
 Be aware of and respectful of differences.

The ability to successfully manage and resolve conflict depends on four key skills.

 Conflict resolution skill 1: Quickly relieve stress

 Conflict resolution skill 2: Recognize and manage your emotions.
 Conflict resolution skill 3: Improve your nonverbal communication skills
 Conflict resolution skill 4: Use humor and play to deal with challenges

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Self -Assessment Questions

Say true for correct statements otherwise say false

1. Conflict should be avoided

2. Functional conflict helps an organization to be successful
3. Accommodating style of conflict handling is a win- win strategy
4. Communication can best solve interpersonal conflict

Matching

―A‖ ―B‖

1. Empathy A. Showing a respectful attitude

2. Stroking B. probing questions about what the other person is thinking
3. Exploration C. put yourself into the shoes of the other person
4. Avoidance D. causes of conflict
5. Compromising F. loss- loss strategy
6. Perception G. win- win strategy
H. Win- loss strategy

Choose the best answer

1. The ability to successfully manage and resolve conflict depends on the following key skills
except:

A. Use humor and play to deal with challenges

B. Quickly relieve stress
C. Recognize and manage your emotions.
D. Improve your nonverbal communication skills
E. None

2. Which one of the following is true?

A. Interpersonal conflict is an inevitable part of relationships

B. there is no absolute right or wrong way to handle a conflict
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C. Perception plays an important role in conflict

D. Culture influences how we engage in conflict
E. All
F. None

Discuss the following questions

1. Define conflict
2. List and discuss the basic sources of conflict
3. What are the probable outcomes of conflict
4. What are the five styles of conflict handling? Discuss it.
5. Discuss how conflict may be analyzed
6. Discuss How conflict may be stimulated
7. List and discuss the four skills of Conflict Resolution

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NJ: Prentice Hall.

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