Organizational Change and

Development
The Nature of Change: Change is any alteration
occurring in the work environment that affects the
ways in which employees must act.
• These changes may be planned or unplanned,
catastrophic or evolutionary, positive or negative,
strong or weak, slow or rapid and stimulated either
internally or externally.
• Regardless of their source, nature, origin, pace, or
strength, change can have profound effects on
their recipients.
Proactive and Reactive Roles of Managers:
• The manager’s role is to be proactive – anticipating
events, initiating change, and taking control of the
organization’s destiny.
• Part of the manager’s role is to restore and
maintain the group equilibrium and personal
adjustments that change upsets. In this role the
manager is more reactive – responding to events,
adapting to change, and tempering the
consequences of change.
The Hawthorne Effect. This is named after the
factory where the research took place.
• This means that the mere observation of a
group, or more precisely, the perception of
being observed and one’s interpretation of its
significance – tends to change the group.
• When people are observed, or believe that
someone cares about them, they act
differently.
Homeostasis. In trying to maintain equilibrium, a
group is often inclined to return to its perceived
best way of life whenever any change occurs.
• Each pressure, therefore, elicits a
counterpressure within the group.
• The net result is a self-correcting mechanism
by which energies are called up to restore
balance whenever change threatens.
• People act to establish a steady state of need
fulfillment and to protect themselves from
disturbance of that balance.
• People want to maintain their previous sense
of competence.
Costs and Benefits
• All changes are likely to have some costs.
• For example, a new work procedure may
require the inconvenience of learning new
skills.
• A new equipment or relocation of old
equipment may add costs that are not merely
economic; they also are psychological and
social.
• Because of the costs associated with change,
proposals for change are not always desirable.
• Each change requires a detailed cost-benefit
analysis.
• The organizational goal is always benefits
greater than costs.
Resistance to Change. This consists of any
employee behaviors designed to discredit, delay,
or prevent the implementation of a work
change.
Possible Causes of Resistance:
• Employees resist change because it threatens
their needs for security, social interaction,
status, competence, or self-esteem.
• Organizational cultures that overvalue
criticism of new ideas
• Employees who mouth support in public but
undercut changes behind the scenes
• Indecisive managers who suffer from “analysis
paralysis”
• An emphasis on flashy proposals (“death by
PowerPoint”)instead of follow through
• A “bunker mentality”where employees have
learned that organizational crises don’t often
prove to be as significant as they are claimed
to be, and hence they can be ignored (a state
of mind especially among members of a group
that is characterized by chauvinistic
defensiveness and self-righteous intolerance
of criticism)
Parallel Stages of Reactions to Terminal Illness and
Organizational Change
Terminal Illness Major Change
1. Denial 1. Refusal to believe it is real
2. Anger 2. Resentment at change initiator
3. Depression 3. Emotional/physical withdrawal
4. Search for 4. Exploration of benefits
alternatives
5. Acceptance 5. Embracing of the Change
of prognosis
Types of Resistance to Change among Employees:
A. Logical, Rational Objections
• Time required to adjust
• Extra effort to relearn
• Possibility of less desirable conditions, such as
skill downgrading
• Economic costs of change
• Questioned technical feasibility of change
B. Psychological, Emotional Attitudes
• Fear of the unknown
• Low tolerance of change
• Dislike of management of other change agent
• Lack of trust in others
• Need of security, desire for status quo
C. Sociological Factors; Group Interests
• Political coalitions
• Opposing group values
• Parochial, narrow outlook
• Vested interests
• Desire to retain existing friendships
Possible Benefits of Resistance:
• Resistance may encourage management to
reexamine its change proposals, thus making
sure they are appropriate.
• Resistance can also help identify specific
problem areas where a change is likely to
cause difficulties, so that management can
take corrective action before serious
problems develop.
• Management may be encouraged to do a better
job of communicating the change, an approach
that in the long run should lead to better
acceptance.
• Resistance also gives management information
about the intensity of employee emotions on an
issue, provides emotional release for pent-up
employee feelings, and may encourage employee
to think and talk more about a change that they
understand it better.
Three Stages In Change:
Unfreezing. This means that old ideas and
practices need to be cast aside so that new ones
can be learned.
Changing. This is the step in which new ideas
and practices are learned. This process involves
helping an employee think, reason and perform
in new ways.
Refreezing. This means that what has been
learned is integrated into actual practice. In
addition to being intellectually accepted,the
new practices become emotionally embraced
and incorporated into the employees’ routine
behavior.
Building Support for Change. The forces of
support need to be built before, during and after
a change.
• Use of Group Forces
• Providing a Rationale for Change
• Participation
• Shared Rewards
• Employee Security
• Communication and Education
• Stimulating Employee Readiness
• Working with the Total System
It is important for managers to take a broader,
systems oriented perspective on change to
identify the complex relationships involved.
Organizational development can be a useful
method for achieving this objective.
Organizational Development
• It is the systematic application of behavioral
science knowledge of various levels (group,
intergroup and total organization) to bring
about planned change.
• Its objectives include a higher quality of work
life, productivity, adaptability and
effectiveness.
• It seeks to use behavioral knowledge to change
beliefs, attitudes, values, strategies, structures, and
practices that the organization can better adapt to
competitive actions, technological advances, and
the fast pace of other changes in the environment.
• The general objective of OD is to change all parts of
the organization in order to make it more humanly
responsive, more effective and more capable of
organizational learning and self-renewal.
Foundations of OD
• Systems Orientation. Organizations need all their parts
working together in order to solve the problems and
capitalize on the opportunities that are brought about
by change.
• Understanding Causality. One contribution of the
systems orientation is to help managers view their
organizational processes in terms of a model with three
types of variables – causal, intervening and end-result
variables. Causal variables are the ones that
management can change most directly.
• These include organizational structure, controls,
policies, training, a broad range of leadership
behaviors and OD efforts. The intervening
variables are those which are immediately
affected by the causal variables – employee
attitudes, perceptions, motivation, and skilled
behaviors, as well as teamwork and even
intergroup relationships. The end result variables
are the objectives sought by management.
Assumptions Underlying OD. These must be
shared with managers and employees so that
those groups will clearly understand the basis
for the OD program.
• Individual
- People want to grow and mature.
- Employees have much to offer (e.g. energy
creativity)
 - Most employees desire the opportunity to
contribute (they desire, seek and appreciate
empowerment).
• Groups
- Groups and teams are critical to the success
of the organization.
- Groups have powerful influences on the
behavior of individuals.
 - The complex roles to be played in groups
require skill development.
• Organization
- Excessive controls, policies and rules are
detrimental.
- Conflict can be functional if properly
channeled.
- Individual and organizational goals can be
compatible.
Characteristics of OD
• Humanistic Values. These are positive beliefs
about the potential and desire for growth among
employees.
• Use of a Change Agent. The change agent usually
acts as a catalyst , sparking change within the
system.
• Problem Solving. OD trains participants to identify
and solve problems that are important to them.
• Interventions at Many Levels. Interventions
are structured activities designed to help
individuals or groups improve their work
effectiveness (e.g. career planning, team
building, etc.)
• Contingency Orientation. OD is usually
described as contingency oriented. Most OD
people are flexible and pragmatic, selecting
and adapting actions to fit assessed needs.
The OD Process:
• Diagnosis
• Data Collection
• Data Feedback
• Action Planning
• OD Intervention
• Evaluation and follow-up
Benefits of OD:
• Change throughout the organization
• Greater motivation
• Increased productivity
• Better quality of work
• Higher job satisfaction
• Improved teamwork
• Better resolution of conflict
• Commitment to objectives
• Increased willingness to change
• Reduced absences
• Lower turnover
• Creation of learning individuals and groups
Limitations:
• Major time requirements
• Substantial expense
• Delayed payoff period
• Possible failure
• Possible invasion of privacy
• Possible psychological harm
• Potential conformity
• Emphasis on group processes rather than
performance
• Possible conceptual ambiguity
• Difficulty in evaluation
• Cultural incompatibility
Food for Thought:
Think of an organizational change that you have
experienced. Was there resistance to the
change? Discuss what could have been done to
prevent or diminish resistance.
References:
Kelly, Joe. Organizational Behavior.
Newstrom, J.W. Organizational Behavior: Human
Behavior at Work.
Robbins, Stephen P. Organizational Behavior:
Concepts, Controversies and Applications.