Introduction
The business world is constantly changing given rapidly accelerating globalization, communications and innovation. This is the reality in the banking industry. Technological innovation is rapidly advancing and organizations must shift priorities to integrate various products and operational efficiencies that support growth and expansion. It is critical for operations managers to possess the leadership skills necessary to successfully overcome the challenges associated with change.
In the article, “Change Leadership,” author John Kotter addresses the need for leaders who are humble and vigilant. This will contribute to an environment that supports the need for people to change their behavior. Porter suggests that this change is the biggest barrier to change. The way to overcome this challenge is to motivate people to do by appealing to their emotions. Effective change leaders will do this by appealing to the emotional and intellectual level of those they need to motivate. This will increase the likelihood of the adoption of the change by helping to centralize the organization’s vision. This leaders are not self-centered. They use inspirational stories and set the example to create a positive atmosphere to promote optimism across the organization. These ideas relate to the transformational qualities that I seek to objectively integrate into my own leader skill set.
This chapter will focus on literature that uses this model for managing change. It will support my leadership development by improving the skill set necessary for achieving my aspirations in the banking industry. More specifically, I will be more prepared to understand how to successfully overcome the natural process of change that will continue to occur in the operations management area of the industry.
The business world is constantly changing given rapidly accelerating globalization, communications and innovation. This is the reality in the banking industry. Technological innovation is rapidly advancing and organizations must shift priorities to integrate various products and operational efficiencies that support growth and expansion. It is critical for operations managers to possess the leadership skills necessary to successfully overcome the challenges associated with change.
In the article, “Change Leadership,” author John Kotter addresses the need for leaders who are humble and vigilant. This will contribute to an environment that supports the need for people to change their behavior. Porter suggests that this change is the biggest barrier to change. The way to overcome this challenge is to motivate people to do by appealing to their emotions. Effective change leaders will do this by appealing to the emotional and intellectual level of those they need to motivate. This will increase the likelihood of the adoption of the change by helping to centralize the organization’s vision. This leaders are not self-centered. They use inspirational stories and set the example to create a positive atmosphere to promote optimism across the organization. These ideas relate to the transformational qualities that I seek to objectively integrate into my own leader skill set.
This chapter will focus on literature that uses this model for managing change. It will support my leadership development by improving the skill set necessary for achieving my aspirations in the banking industry. More specifically, I will be more prepared to understand how to successfully overcome the natural process of change that will continue to occur in the operations management area of the industry.
Content
“Strategic Change Leadership”
An evolving business landscape and new approaches in management style has contributed to the creation of two roles in change management: instrumental and charismatic. These involve integrating operational proficiency with an emphasis on interpersonal skills. Charismatic leadership takes a personalized approach that is necessary for energizing and empowering individuals. Instrumental elements of leadership focus on organizational design, reward, and control. Key characteristics of these dimensions include challenging the status quo; inspiring a shared vision; creating sponsors at all levels of the organization; enabling others to act; use of rewards/recognition to gain attention; ‘modeling the way’; and communicating the message.
The article uses a cross-case analysis on three companies (Pilkington, Ericsson, and Ford Plastics) to illustrate the importance of leadership in integrating and sustaining change. Conclusively it was found that senior management had to be personally engaged to signal a high level of commitment. A clear and overarching vision is necessary to promote the agenda in organizations that are abandoning traditional top-down formats. A change management initiative must be integrated at all levels of the organization to encourage the acceptance of the agenda across all levels of the organization. Additionally, processes should be introduced to “reinforce and institutionalize the change.” (p.557). All three organizations implemented organizational restructuring, different roles and responsibilities of individuals, and a system of rewards. The article states “that successfully implementing and sustaining the momentum for organization-wide change demands a long-term, strategic approach, incorporating both “hard” (strategy, structure, systems and technology) and “soft” (vision, values, behaviors and attitudes) issues.” (p.557). Thus, combining charisma and instructional elements can lay the successful foundation for change.
Personal Relevance: Change in the banking industry, including the operations area, is constant. This is especially true with the rapidly evolving nature technological innovation. Advances in technology have exponentially increased the competitive landscape. Senior leadership are constantly evaluating the need to make changes in the organization to remain competitive. These changes include process improvement and technology integration. Both have produced substantial change across the operations of the organization. The article highlights the importance for me to understand and work with my management to understand the strategy of implementation for these organizational changes.
Understanding and integrating the content proposed in the article will allow me to be a positive catalyst (rather than a barrier) to change. This is an important skill that I must realize and maintain in my pursuit of my aspirations. As an operations manager, I will be expected to help usher the changes in my organization. I must do so my leveraging my charismatic leadership traits and taking a long-term approach to integrating the vision of upper management. I currently have less control over the instrumental or “hard” issues but can work with my managers to become aware of those decisions so I am better equipped to champion the long-term, strategic approach that management has chosen.
The article uses a cross-case analysis on three companies (Pilkington, Ericsson, and Ford Plastics) to illustrate the importance of leadership in integrating and sustaining change. Conclusively it was found that senior management had to be personally engaged to signal a high level of commitment. A clear and overarching vision is necessary to promote the agenda in organizations that are abandoning traditional top-down formats. A change management initiative must be integrated at all levels of the organization to encourage the acceptance of the agenda across all levels of the organization. Additionally, processes should be introduced to “reinforce and institutionalize the change.” (p.557). All three organizations implemented organizational restructuring, different roles and responsibilities of individuals, and a system of rewards. The article states “that successfully implementing and sustaining the momentum for organization-wide change demands a long-term, strategic approach, incorporating both “hard” (strategy, structure, systems and technology) and “soft” (vision, values, behaviors and attitudes) issues.” (p.557). Thus, combining charisma and instructional elements can lay the successful foundation for change.
Personal Relevance: Change in the banking industry, including the operations area, is constant. This is especially true with the rapidly evolving nature technological innovation. Advances in technology have exponentially increased the competitive landscape. Senior leadership are constantly evaluating the need to make changes in the organization to remain competitive. These changes include process improvement and technology integration. Both have produced substantial change across the operations of the organization. The article highlights the importance for me to understand and work with my management to understand the strategy of implementation for these organizational changes.
Understanding and integrating the content proposed in the article will allow me to be a positive catalyst (rather than a barrier) to change. This is an important skill that I must realize and maintain in my pursuit of my aspirations. As an operations manager, I will be expected to help usher the changes in my organization. I must do so my leveraging my charismatic leadership traits and taking a long-term approach to integrating the vision of upper management. I currently have less control over the instrumental or “hard” issues but can work with my managers to become aware of those decisions so I am better equipped to champion the long-term, strategic approach that management has chosen.
“Why do Employees Resist Change?”
There are three dimensions of an employment relationship: formal, psychological, and social. The formal includes job descriptions and performance agreements. The psychological dimension incorporates implicit elements, such as trust, dependence, and respect that have an effect on employees’ behaviors. The social dimension involves the employees’ perception of organizational culture. A successful change management initiative will involve careful consideration and implementation of each element to ensure buy-in from the organizations employees.
Change management initiatives are largely seen as ineffective given a gap that exists in the perception of change between top-level managers and their subordinates. These managers must evaluate the perception of change from their employees’ shoes. Moreover, they must evaluate the ‘personal compacts’ (reciprocal obligations/mutual commitments) that exist between the aforementioned dimensions in the employment relationship. Many managers stop with an understanding of the formal dimension. However, the psychological dimension is important for understanding the manager-employee relationship. Sensitivity to this relationship will promote the integration of change by encouraging loyalty and commitment.
Equally important is the social dimension where by employees evaluate whether or not management practices what it preaches. “They translate those perceptions about values into beliefs about how the company really works–about the unspoken rules that apply to career development, promotions, decision making, conflict resolution, resource allocation, risk sharing, and layoffs.” (p.88). Employee commitment and credibility of management will be supported by the proper alignment between actions and statements.
The article highlights three steps taken at Philips Electronics to revise these critical personal compacts: leaders draw attention for a need to change and establish context; initiation of a process that employees can change to create buy-in; lock in commitment with revisited formal and informal rules. The successful re-engineering of this process at Philips resulted in increased morale and feelings of empowerment.
Personal Relevance: This article allows me to focus on the importance of re-engineering the personal compacts that are critical to success of the integration a change within an organization. These macro-level concepts are important for me to understand as I leverage my ability to motivate my employees to accept and integrate a change decision from upper management. I believe understanding the necessity for formal compacts is necessary but this will be mostly steered by upper management. I should understand the importance of implementing psychological and social compacts (especially from a middle management perspective) to motivate and encourage employee buy-in.
Focusing on ways to inspire my subordinates will have a positive effect on the implementation of change in my organization. Additionally, I should leverage my influence as a positive role model. This can be supported by continuing to show pride in my organization and for those that work there. Moreover, showing compassion and understanding for my coworkers (a natural gift that I will leverage) will allow me to close the ‘gap’ identified in the article. It will allow me to positively contribute to a change management plan that will promote loyalty and commitment. This is a vital skill for an operations manager in the banking industry given the aforementioned nature of change in the organization. This article will support my integration of transformational qualities so I can be supportive of and effectively implement the change initiatives in my organization.
Change management initiatives are largely seen as ineffective given a gap that exists in the perception of change between top-level managers and their subordinates. These managers must evaluate the perception of change from their employees’ shoes. Moreover, they must evaluate the ‘personal compacts’ (reciprocal obligations/mutual commitments) that exist between the aforementioned dimensions in the employment relationship. Many managers stop with an understanding of the formal dimension. However, the psychological dimension is important for understanding the manager-employee relationship. Sensitivity to this relationship will promote the integration of change by encouraging loyalty and commitment.
Equally important is the social dimension where by employees evaluate whether or not management practices what it preaches. “They translate those perceptions about values into beliefs about how the company really works–about the unspoken rules that apply to career development, promotions, decision making, conflict resolution, resource allocation, risk sharing, and layoffs.” (p.88). Employee commitment and credibility of management will be supported by the proper alignment between actions and statements.
The article highlights three steps taken at Philips Electronics to revise these critical personal compacts: leaders draw attention for a need to change and establish context; initiation of a process that employees can change to create buy-in; lock in commitment with revisited formal and informal rules. The successful re-engineering of this process at Philips resulted in increased morale and feelings of empowerment.
Personal Relevance: This article allows me to focus on the importance of re-engineering the personal compacts that are critical to success of the integration a change within an organization. These macro-level concepts are important for me to understand as I leverage my ability to motivate my employees to accept and integrate a change decision from upper management. I believe understanding the necessity for formal compacts is necessary but this will be mostly steered by upper management. I should understand the importance of implementing psychological and social compacts (especially from a middle management perspective) to motivate and encourage employee buy-in.
Focusing on ways to inspire my subordinates will have a positive effect on the implementation of change in my organization. Additionally, I should leverage my influence as a positive role model. This can be supported by continuing to show pride in my organization and for those that work there. Moreover, showing compassion and understanding for my coworkers (a natural gift that I will leverage) will allow me to close the ‘gap’ identified in the article. It will allow me to positively contribute to a change management plan that will promote loyalty and commitment. This is a vital skill for an operations manager in the banking industry given the aforementioned nature of change in the organization. This article will support my integration of transformational qualities so I can be supportive of and effectively implement the change initiatives in my organization.
“Change Management? – or Change Leadership?”
“The leadership of change…means ‘developing a vision of the future, crafting strategies to bring that vision into reality [and ensuring] that everybody in the organization is mobilizing their energies towards the same goals . . . the process we call ‘‘emotional alignment’’’.” (p.310)
The paper focuses on the need for effective leadership, rather than management, as a critical element in successful change programs. Successful management of the process (planning, monitoring, and control) is absolutely necessary; however, integrating aspects of the transformational leadership model - cognitive, emotional, spiritual and behavioral - will ensure success. The idea is to minimize a lack of communication and inconsistent messages that demotivate and lead to a lack of commitment.
Requirements of the four elements of leadership:
The article calls for a new model that will explain vision, values, strategy, empowerment, and motivation. A meaningful, effective and inspiring vision will establish a desired future and will lay foundations and provide direction for change. This vision should be grounded in a strategy that forms a logical road map for the change. There must also be a commitment to implementing a program based on strong, shared values across the organization. Leaders of change should set the tone but modeling these values to create a common purpose and shared commitment. Empowerment involves integrating people into the change process to create commitment and buy-in. Finally, effective leadership will involve motivating and inspiring people to do what they want. This is founded in the perception of leadership that is competent and honest. It can be supported by positive and appealing language.
Personal Relevance: I previously identified transformational leadership as an approach that will be necessary for the achievement of my aspirations. This model is necessary to promote effective change management in an organization. This holistic approach is necessary for my personal development so that I will be more suitably equipped to handle change at various levels of my professional career. Overall, the concepts can be applied at each level. I should remain focused on my ability to motivate and work with management to learn techniques to inspire others to be positive role models for the integration of change. This will increase the likelihood of the success of the process by creating commitment and buy-in at all levels.
This article also highlight an important strength that I can leverage in change leadership: vision. I am a visionary. I need to focus on helping to develop and integrate a vision for my employees that will assist in the implementation of change. Clearly expressing a vision will help to promote a road map. Leveraging these strengths will allow me to effectively manage change in my organization thus supporting a progression towards the achievement my aspirations.
The paper focuses on the need for effective leadership, rather than management, as a critical element in successful change programs. Successful management of the process (planning, monitoring, and control) is absolutely necessary; however, integrating aspects of the transformational leadership model - cognitive, emotional, spiritual and behavioral - will ensure success. The idea is to minimize a lack of communication and inconsistent messages that demotivate and lead to a lack of commitment.
Requirements of the four elements of leadership:
- Intellectual/cognitive – “thinking”: intellectual need to understand information and problems. Use intuition and judgment to produce vision, mission, and shared values to win over employees.
- Spiritual dimension – “meaning”: Understanding sense of worth to promote vision and create meaning among employees.
- Emotional dimension – “feeling”: understanding yourself and others and using self-confidence and control to respond in appropriate ways.
- Behavioral dimension – “doing”: Using and responding to emotion. Includes various types of communication which is “the ‘life blood’ of the organization and the ‘oxygen’ of change within it.” (p.312).
The article calls for a new model that will explain vision, values, strategy, empowerment, and motivation. A meaningful, effective and inspiring vision will establish a desired future and will lay foundations and provide direction for change. This vision should be grounded in a strategy that forms a logical road map for the change. There must also be a commitment to implementing a program based on strong, shared values across the organization. Leaders of change should set the tone but modeling these values to create a common purpose and shared commitment. Empowerment involves integrating people into the change process to create commitment and buy-in. Finally, effective leadership will involve motivating and inspiring people to do what they want. This is founded in the perception of leadership that is competent and honest. It can be supported by positive and appealing language.
Personal Relevance: I previously identified transformational leadership as an approach that will be necessary for the achievement of my aspirations. This model is necessary to promote effective change management in an organization. This holistic approach is necessary for my personal development so that I will be more suitably equipped to handle change at various levels of my professional career. Overall, the concepts can be applied at each level. I should remain focused on my ability to motivate and work with management to learn techniques to inspire others to be positive role models for the integration of change. This will increase the likelihood of the success of the process by creating commitment and buy-in at all levels.
This article also highlight an important strength that I can leverage in change leadership: vision. I am a visionary. I need to focus on helping to develop and integrate a vision for my employees that will assist in the implementation of change. Clearly expressing a vision will help to promote a road map. Leveraging these strengths will allow me to effectively manage change in my organization thus supporting a progression towards the achievement my aspirations.
Exercises and Practice Routines
This activity is useful when encouraging the participants to consider their thoughts and feelings during the integration of a change. I found it to be particularly useful to help them identify the effects on others and encourage them to plan for both to provide for a more cohesive integration of the change. This is extremely important in banking given the environment of acquisitions and mergers that is currently wide-spread across the industry.