Management of

Change

Dr Mohan Gopinath
Pointers to Change

The external environment (which is

dynamic) – leads to opportunities and
threats.
Organizations have perforce to change
to maintain a good fit with the external
environment
Uncertainty theory applies to
organizations in times of rapid and
discontinuous change
What is this theory?
Opportunities and Threats

 Opportunities and threats are not static

concepts
 If an opportunity is not exploited it
becomes a threat
 To exploit opportunities, the individual
has to INCREASE internal competence
on an ongoing basis
Reactive and Anticipatory Change

Change is inevitable

You meet change either as a REACTION

or
In ANTICIPATION
Reactive Change

Reactive changes:

1 Have fewer options

2 Is adaptive
3 Have limited time (esp response/ lead
time)
Anticipatory Change

Anticipatory changes:

1 Are proactive
2 Give you lead time (reduce surprise)
3 Allow you to plan and change strategies
– i.e. you are prepared
Incremental and Strategic Change

Changes can be incremental and strategic

Anticipatory – incremental change is tuning

and strategic change is re orientation

Reactive – incremental change is

adaptation and strategic change is
recreation
Dimension of Change

We can look at this in terms of direction

and speed
A change in direction is a change
A change in speed can also lead to change

Change in direction involves changes in

strategies and approach
You may require either or both
Strategies for Meeting Change

 COERCION

 INDIVIDUAL PERSUASION

 EDUCATION/ REORIENTATION
Change

 Be a change agent

 People with vision are change agents

 You have to shed fear and set high

standards
The Questions

 The questions are:

WHEN TO CHANGE?
WHAT TO CHANGE?
Change

 There are challenges created by

heightened competition
 The best time to change is when things
are going well
 You then have time to plan – time to
experiment
 Change in the context of crisis is difficult/
frustrating
Problems in Managing Change

 Targets of control – where you are in

control
 Targets of influence – where you know
who has control
 Targets of coping – where neither is it
under your control, nor do you know
anyone who has control
Problems

What do you do then – i.e. in the last

instance?

You live with it by trying to reduce the

adverse impact
Change and Productivity

 In companies, productivity depends on

the individual. This should be in addition
to the efficiency of the teams in the
company. Change can affect both and
lead to a decrease or increase in
productivity
Change and Competence Building

Individual competence building is

possible through:

 Change in mindset
 Change in strategies
 Better use of technology
 Better interpersonal relationships plus
morale
Change

In the end, it is to be kept in mind that:

Technologies may change the outward

appearance of playing fields

But keep in mind that – THE GAME

REMAINS THE SAME
Change

 Change starts with the generation of

discontent or dissatisfaction with the
existing state of affairs
 That is the motivating factor for change
 The essential tool for change is
knowledge
 That too, up to date knowledge
 So – be a Knowledge Worker
Change

 Change is an unchanging reality of the

business environment
 The change process begins in the mind
– when change is required, change your
mindset – then results also change
 Matsushita – change your perspective
and you achieve different results
Change

 Fundamental changes require

fundamental changes in thinking and
action
 So understand the dynamics and limits
of management of change
Change

 Start with changing what we can

 Influence others to change what they
can
 Learn to live with what we cannot
change or influence
Change

 Be a clock builder – an architect – not a

time teller
 Embrace the genius of the ‘AND”
 Preserve the core – stimulate progress
 Seek consistent alignment
So????

Life will never be easy, sure, or perfect. It

is best understood backwards, but we
have to live it forward with contradictions
There is a paradox at the heart of things.
The challenge of the future is to find a
pathway through the paradoxes
(Charles Handy – The Empty Raincoat -
1994)
Thank You