Today’s business environment produces change in the workplace more suddenly and frequently than ever before. Mergers, acquisitions, new technology, restructuring and downsizing are all factors that contribute to a growing climate of uncertainty. Jobs, health, even marriages can be placed at risk, jeopardizing productivity and profitability.
People have deep attachments to their organization, work group, and way of working. The ability to adapt to changing work conditions is key for individual and organizational survival. Change will be ever present and learning to manage and lead change includes not only understanding human factors but also skill to manage and lead change effectively.
Significant organizational change occurs, for example, when an organization changes its overall strategy for success, adds or removes a major section or practice, and/or wants to change the very nature by which it operates. It also occurs when an organization evolves through various life cycles, just like people must successfully evolve through life cycles. For organizations to develop, they often must undergo significant change at various points in their development. That's why the topic of organizational change and development has become widespread in communications about business, organizations, leadership and management.
Leaders and managers continually make efforts to accomplish successful and significant change -- it's inherent in their jobs. Some are very good at this effort (probably more than we realize), while others continually struggle and fail. That's often the difference between people who thrive in their roles and those that get shuttled around from job to job, ultimately settling into a role where they're frustrated and ineffective. There are many schools with educational programs about organizations, business, leadership and management. Unfortunately, there still are not enough schools with programs about how to analyze organizations, identify critically important priorities to address (such as systemic problems or exciting visions for change) and then undertake successful and significant change to address those priorities. This Library topic aims to improve that situation.
The Reaction to Change
During the change process, there are common predictable stressors, but how we react to those stressors will differ for each person since we are all unique individuals. The anxiety and confusion that result from not knowing what lies ahead can create stress. People will utilize basic defences when there is a high degree of uncertainty. In this sate of ambiguity, people can easily resort to distrust, withdrawal and self-protection. People are told that the old ways are no longer working and often this message becomes personalized that they are not valued.
For the employee, the emotional reactions while going through an organizational change can be similar to the stages of grief associated with personal loss. The employee may initially feel shock or denial when the organizational change is announced. Reactions such as “they can’t do this,” this can’t be happening” are common. At this stage, most employees will want to know exactly how this change will affect them, their benefits, their work hours, their family and will not “hear” much other information. At the next stage the employee may feel anger, resentment or sadness in response to the changes. “This isn’t fair,” “why are they doing this to me?” are normal reactions and productivity on the job is usually lower as employees discuss and process the changes among themselves. Tearfulness is common.
The employee experiencing organizational change at a personal level often feels threatened and is fearful. Managers recognizing this can better intervene with employees by acknowledging feelings, letting the employee vent and ask questions, and by being supportive that change is difficult. The Manager who moves straight into why the change is best for everyone and how business is going to be conducted disregards the human nature element - the emotions that are normal and natural for anyone feeling threatened by change to feel. At every step in the process of implementing an organizational change, a good Manager will ask him/herself “How might I react to this information or these changes if I were in the employee’s shoes?” and try to tailor responses accordingly.
As the organization implements the changes though, the reality of the change becomes present and employees may either resist the changes or start to adjust to the changes depending on the person. The employee who continues to resist, remains angry and is labeled as “difficult” is feeling more threatened and may need some one-to-one time with the Manager to discuss the changes or at some point, may need clarification from the Manager about performance expectations in light of the changes.
Effects Seen at the Workplace
Absenteeism: As individuals see jobs eliminated and friends leaving, they may work longer hours. They feel more concern about their own security and future and put less effort into maintaining balance in their lives. Complaints of burnout increase. Health may deteriorate, and stress related symptoms increase. More workdays are missed for illness.
Reduction In Productivity: Less works gets done even by employees who come to work. In an atmosphere of ambiguity and uncertainty, individuals may withdraw support from one another and become self-protective. Superiors may provide less information and that which is provided may be more inconsistent. Working relationships can deteriorate as competition increases and turf battles are intensified in order to justify and protect departments and jobs.
Loss of Valued Employees: Confident, skilled, and experienced employees in the midst of ambiguity and uncertainty may be looking for or are invited to consider other career opportunities.
Another stress may result from the feeling of being insufficiently skilled as changes are implemented and new ways of conducting business begin. New practices and skills must be intentionally learned and practiced. Consider what you have to offer and what you need to learn.
There is no right or wrong way to react to change. But, there are things you can do to help yourself adjust to change and get involved in positive ways.
Dealing with Organizational Change
Individuals can reduce the impact of change and resulting stress by focusing on the value to be gained. The following are some ways to help approach change with a positive attitude:
• Keep an open mind. Do not assume that the results of change will be negative. Change may be the best thing that ever happened to you.
• Stay flexible. Be ready to let go of the old and try the new. Talking with colleagues can help allay stress and foster a supportive environment.
• Be supportive of colleagues. It is important that people recognize each other’s contributions on a regular basis and show appreciation for one another.
• Take an active role in the change process. Learn new skills, offer suggestions, set goals for yourself.
• Give change a chance to work. Be patient; change takes time.
• Ignore rumors. Instead, focus on gathering as many facts as you can about change. Talk with your supervisor when you have questions.
• Pay attention to yourself. It is important to learn to manage stress. People who feel good mentally and physically are better able to handle change. Eat a nutritious diet, get enough sleep, exercise, limit alcohol use and utilize relaxation/stress management techniques (e.g., deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation), so your body and mind are able to deal with change.
Automation
Automation is the use of control systems (such as numerical control, programmable logic control, and other industrial control systems), in concert with other applications of information technology (such as computer-aided technologies [CAD, CAM, CAx]), to control industrial machinery and processes, reducing the need for human intervention.In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization. Whereas mechanization provided human operators with machinery to assist them with the muscular requirements of work, automation greatly reduces the need for human sensory and mental requirements as well. Processes and systems can also be automated.
Automation plays an increasingly important role in the global economy and in daily experience. Engineers strive to combine automated devices with mathematical and organizational tools to create complex systems for a rapidly expanding range of applications and human activities.
Many roles for humans in industrial processes presently lie beyond the scope of automation. Human-level pattern recognition, language recognition, and language production ability are well beyond the capabilities of modern mechanical and computer systems. Tasks requiring subjective assessment or synthesis of complex sensory data, such as scents and sounds, as well as high-level tasks such as strategic planning, currently require human expertise. In many cases, the use of humans is more cost-effective than mechanical approaches even where automation of industrial tasks is possible.
Specialised hardened computers, referred to as programmable logic controllers (PLCs), are frequently used to synchronize the flow of inputs from (physical) sensors and events with the flow of outputs to actuators and events. This leads to precisely controlled actions that permit a tight control of almost any industrial process.
Human-machine interfaces (HMI) or computer human interfaces (CHI), formerly known as man-machine interfaces, are usually employed to communicate with PLCs and other computers, such as entering and monitoring temperatures or pressures for further automated control or emergency response. Service personnel who monitor and control these interfaces are often referred to as stationary engineers.
Impact
Automation has had a notable impact in a wide range of highly visible industries beyond manufacturing. Once-ubiquitous telephone operators have been replaced largely by automated telephone switchboards and answering machines. Medical processes such as primary screening in electrocardiography or radiography and laboratory analysis of human genes, sera, cells, and tissues are carried out at much greater speed and accuracy by automated systems. Automated teller machines have reduced the need for bank visits to obtain cash and carry out transactions. In general, automation has been responsible for the shift in the world economy from agrarian to industrial in the 19th century and from industrial to services in the 20th century.
At first glance, automation might appear to devalue labor through its replacement with less-expensive machines; however, the overall effect of this on the workforce as a whole remains unclear. Today automation of the workforce is quite advanced, and continues to advance increasingly more rapidly throughout the world and is encroaching on ever more skilled jobs, yet during the same period the general well-being and quality of life of most people in the world (where political factors have not muddied the picture) have improved dramatically. What role automation has played in these changes has not been well studied.
Rationalization of Procedures
It is the streamlining of existing operating procedures, eliminating obvious bottlenecks so that automation makes operating procedures more efficient and the second stage of organizational change where the organization uses information technology to streamline a standard operating procedure. A database that holds information of available rooms is an example of this stage.
Business Reengineering
Business reengineering reorganizes work flows, combining steps to cut waste and eliminating repetitive, paper-intensive tasks (sometimes the new design eliminates jobs as well). It is much more ambitious than rationalization of procedures, requiring a new vision of how the process is to be organized.
BPR combines a strategy of promoting business innovation with a strategy of making major improvements to business processes so that a company can become a much stronger and more successful competitor in the marketplace. Re-engineering is the basis for many recent developments in management. The cross-functional team, for example, has become popular because of the desire to re-engineer separate functional tasks into complete cross-functional processes. Also, many recent management information systems developments aim to integrate a wide number of business functions. Enterprise resource planning, supply chain management, knowledge management systems, groupware and collaborative systems, Human Resource Management Systems and customer relationship management systems all owe a debt to re-engineering theory. Business process reengineering (BPR) began as a private sector technique 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.
Paradigm Shift
It is a dramatic change in methodology or practice. It often refers to a major change in thinking and planning, which ultimately changes the way projects are implemented. For example, accessing applications and data from the Web instead of from local servers is a paradigm shift. Seeparadigm and buzzword.
A scientific revolution occurs, according to Kuhn, when scientists encounter anomalies which cannot be explained by the universally accepted paradigm within which scientific progress has thereto been made. The paradigm, in Kuhn's view, is not simply the current theory, but the entire worldview in which it exists, and all of the implications which come with it. There are anomalies for all paradigms, Kuhn maintained, that are brushed away as acceptable levels of error, or simply ignored and not dealt with (a principle argument Kuhn uses to reject Karl Popper's model of falsifiability as the key force involved in scientific change). Rather, according to Kuhn, anomalies have various levels of significance to the practitioners of science at the time. To put it in the context of early 20th century physics, some scientists found the problems with calculating Mercury's perihelion more troubling than the Michelson-Morley experiment results -- and some, the other way around. Kuhn's model of scientific change differs here, and in many places, from that of the logical positivists in that it puts an enhanced emphasis on the individual humans involved as scientists, rather than abstracting science into a purely logical or philosophical venture.
Change is the Present and Future
People tend to blame the organization or top management for the changes occurring within the organization. Top management’s actions are usually reactions to some outside force, such as stiffer competition, shifts in the marketplace or new technology. It is important to realize that change is a key to surviving and growing in today’s global economy.
Change is inevitable and we will be surfing on this wave of transition. Without change we would run the risk of becoming stale and unresponsive. The challenge we face is to learn to move through this wave of transition as easily and creatively as possible.
References:
http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/internet/feap/newsletters/managing-org.-change.pdf
http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Paradigm_shift
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automation
http://managementhelp.org/org_chng/org_chng.htm
People have deep attachments to their organization, work group, and way of working. The ability to adapt to changing work conditions is key for individual and organizational survival. Change will be ever present and learning to manage and lead change includes not only understanding human factors but also skill to manage and lead change effectively.
Significant organizational change occurs, for example, when an organization changes its overall strategy for success, adds or removes a major section or practice, and/or wants to change the very nature by which it operates. It also occurs when an organization evolves through various life cycles, just like people must successfully evolve through life cycles. For organizations to develop, they often must undergo significant change at various points in their development. That's why the topic of organizational change and development has become widespread in communications about business, organizations, leadership and management.
Leaders and managers continually make efforts to accomplish successful and significant change -- it's inherent in their jobs. Some are very good at this effort (probably more than we realize), while others continually struggle and fail. That's often the difference between people who thrive in their roles and those that get shuttled around from job to job, ultimately settling into a role where they're frustrated and ineffective. There are many schools with educational programs about organizations, business, leadership and management. Unfortunately, there still are not enough schools with programs about how to analyze organizations, identify critically important priorities to address (such as systemic problems or exciting visions for change) and then undertake successful and significant change to address those priorities. This Library topic aims to improve that situation.
The Reaction to Change
During the change process, there are common predictable stressors, but how we react to those stressors will differ for each person since we are all unique individuals. The anxiety and confusion that result from not knowing what lies ahead can create stress. People will utilize basic defences when there is a high degree of uncertainty. In this sate of ambiguity, people can easily resort to distrust, withdrawal and self-protection. People are told that the old ways are no longer working and often this message becomes personalized that they are not valued.
For the employee, the emotional reactions while going through an organizational change can be similar to the stages of grief associated with personal loss. The employee may initially feel shock or denial when the organizational change is announced. Reactions such as “they can’t do this,” this can’t be happening” are common. At this stage, most employees will want to know exactly how this change will affect them, their benefits, their work hours, their family and will not “hear” much other information. At the next stage the employee may feel anger, resentment or sadness in response to the changes. “This isn’t fair,” “why are they doing this to me?” are normal reactions and productivity on the job is usually lower as employees discuss and process the changes among themselves. Tearfulness is common.
The employee experiencing organizational change at a personal level often feels threatened and is fearful. Managers recognizing this can better intervene with employees by acknowledging feelings, letting the employee vent and ask questions, and by being supportive that change is difficult. The Manager who moves straight into why the change is best for everyone and how business is going to be conducted disregards the human nature element - the emotions that are normal and natural for anyone feeling threatened by change to feel. At every step in the process of implementing an organizational change, a good Manager will ask him/herself “How might I react to this information or these changes if I were in the employee’s shoes?” and try to tailor responses accordingly.
As the organization implements the changes though, the reality of the change becomes present and employees may either resist the changes or start to adjust to the changes depending on the person. The employee who continues to resist, remains angry and is labeled as “difficult” is feeling more threatened and may need some one-to-one time with the Manager to discuss the changes or at some point, may need clarification from the Manager about performance expectations in light of the changes.
Effects Seen at the Workplace
Absenteeism: As individuals see jobs eliminated and friends leaving, they may work longer hours. They feel more concern about their own security and future and put less effort into maintaining balance in their lives. Complaints of burnout increase. Health may deteriorate, and stress related symptoms increase. More workdays are missed for illness.
Reduction In Productivity: Less works gets done even by employees who come to work. In an atmosphere of ambiguity and uncertainty, individuals may withdraw support from one another and become self-protective. Superiors may provide less information and that which is provided may be more inconsistent. Working relationships can deteriorate as competition increases and turf battles are intensified in order to justify and protect departments and jobs.
Loss of Valued Employees: Confident, skilled, and experienced employees in the midst of ambiguity and uncertainty may be looking for or are invited to consider other career opportunities.
Another stress may result from the feeling of being insufficiently skilled as changes are implemented and new ways of conducting business begin. New practices and skills must be intentionally learned and practiced. Consider what you have to offer and what you need to learn.
There is no right or wrong way to react to change. But, there are things you can do to help yourself adjust to change and get involved in positive ways.
Dealing with Organizational Change
Individuals can reduce the impact of change and resulting stress by focusing on the value to be gained. The following are some ways to help approach change with a positive attitude:
• Keep an open mind. Do not assume that the results of change will be negative. Change may be the best thing that ever happened to you.
• Stay flexible. Be ready to let go of the old and try the new. Talking with colleagues can help allay stress and foster a supportive environment.
• Be supportive of colleagues. It is important that people recognize each other’s contributions on a regular basis and show appreciation for one another.
• Take an active role in the change process. Learn new skills, offer suggestions, set goals for yourself.
• Give change a chance to work. Be patient; change takes time.
• Ignore rumors. Instead, focus on gathering as many facts as you can about change. Talk with your supervisor when you have questions.
• Pay attention to yourself. It is important to learn to manage stress. People who feel good mentally and physically are better able to handle change. Eat a nutritious diet, get enough sleep, exercise, limit alcohol use and utilize relaxation/stress management techniques (e.g., deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation), so your body and mind are able to deal with change.
Automation
Automation is the use of control systems (such as numerical control, programmable logic control, and other industrial control systems), in concert with other applications of information technology (such as computer-aided technologies [CAD, CAM, CAx]), to control industrial machinery and processes, reducing the need for human intervention.In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization. Whereas mechanization provided human operators with machinery to assist them with the muscular requirements of work, automation greatly reduces the need for human sensory and mental requirements as well. Processes and systems can also be automated.
Automation plays an increasingly important role in the global economy and in daily experience. Engineers strive to combine automated devices with mathematical and organizational tools to create complex systems for a rapidly expanding range of applications and human activities.
Many roles for humans in industrial processes presently lie beyond the scope of automation. Human-level pattern recognition, language recognition, and language production ability are well beyond the capabilities of modern mechanical and computer systems. Tasks requiring subjective assessment or synthesis of complex sensory data, such as scents and sounds, as well as high-level tasks such as strategic planning, currently require human expertise. In many cases, the use of humans is more cost-effective than mechanical approaches even where automation of industrial tasks is possible.
Specialised hardened computers, referred to as programmable logic controllers (PLCs), are frequently used to synchronize the flow of inputs from (physical) sensors and events with the flow of outputs to actuators and events. This leads to precisely controlled actions that permit a tight control of almost any industrial process.
Human-machine interfaces (HMI) or computer human interfaces (CHI), formerly known as man-machine interfaces, are usually employed to communicate with PLCs and other computers, such as entering and monitoring temperatures or pressures for further automated control or emergency response. Service personnel who monitor and control these interfaces are often referred to as stationary engineers.
Impact
Automation has had a notable impact in a wide range of highly visible industries beyond manufacturing. Once-ubiquitous telephone operators have been replaced largely by automated telephone switchboards and answering machines. Medical processes such as primary screening in electrocardiography or radiography and laboratory analysis of human genes, sera, cells, and tissues are carried out at much greater speed and accuracy by automated systems. Automated teller machines have reduced the need for bank visits to obtain cash and carry out transactions. In general, automation has been responsible for the shift in the world economy from agrarian to industrial in the 19th century and from industrial to services in the 20th century.
At first glance, automation might appear to devalue labor through its replacement with less-expensive machines; however, the overall effect of this on the workforce as a whole remains unclear. Today automation of the workforce is quite advanced, and continues to advance increasingly more rapidly throughout the world and is encroaching on ever more skilled jobs, yet during the same period the general well-being and quality of life of most people in the world (where political factors have not muddied the picture) have improved dramatically. What role automation has played in these changes has not been well studied.
Rationalization of Procedures
It is the streamlining of existing operating procedures, eliminating obvious bottlenecks so that automation makes operating procedures more efficient and the second stage of organizational change where the organization uses information technology to streamline a standard operating procedure. A database that holds information of available rooms is an example of this stage.
Business Reengineering
Business reengineering reorganizes work flows, combining steps to cut waste and eliminating repetitive, paper-intensive tasks (sometimes the new design eliminates jobs as well). It is much more ambitious than rationalization of procedures, requiring a new vision of how the process is to be organized.
BPR combines a strategy of promoting business innovation with a strategy of making major improvements to business processes so that a company can become a much stronger and more successful competitor in the marketplace. Re-engineering is the basis for many recent developments in management. The cross-functional team, for example, has become popular because of the desire to re-engineer separate functional tasks into complete cross-functional processes. Also, many recent management information systems developments aim to integrate a wide number of business functions. Enterprise resource planning, supply chain management, knowledge management systems, groupware and collaborative systems, Human Resource Management Systems and customer relationship management systems all owe a debt to re-engineering theory. Business process reengineering (BPR) began as a private sector technique 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.
Paradigm Shift
It is a dramatic change in methodology or practice. It often refers to a major change in thinking and planning, which ultimately changes the way projects are implemented. For example, accessing applications and data from the Web instead of from local servers is a paradigm shift. Seeparadigm and buzzword.
A scientific revolution occurs, according to Kuhn, when scientists encounter anomalies which cannot be explained by the universally accepted paradigm within which scientific progress has thereto been made. The paradigm, in Kuhn's view, is not simply the current theory, but the entire worldview in which it exists, and all of the implications which come with it. There are anomalies for all paradigms, Kuhn maintained, that are brushed away as acceptable levels of error, or simply ignored and not dealt with (a principle argument Kuhn uses to reject Karl Popper's model of falsifiability as the key force involved in scientific change). Rather, according to Kuhn, anomalies have various levels of significance to the practitioners of science at the time. To put it in the context of early 20th century physics, some scientists found the problems with calculating Mercury's perihelion more troubling than the Michelson-Morley experiment results -- and some, the other way around. Kuhn's model of scientific change differs here, and in many places, from that of the logical positivists in that it puts an enhanced emphasis on the individual humans involved as scientists, rather than abstracting science into a purely logical or philosophical venture.
Change is the Present and Future
People tend to blame the organization or top management for the changes occurring within the organization. Top management’s actions are usually reactions to some outside force, such as stiffer competition, shifts in the marketplace or new technology. It is important to realize that change is a key to surviving and growing in today’s global economy.
Change is inevitable and we will be surfing on this wave of transition. Without change we would run the risk of becoming stale and unresponsive. The challenge we face is to learn to move through this wave of transition as easily and creatively as possible.
References:
http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/internet/feap/newsletters/managing-org.-change.pdf
http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Paradigm_shift
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automation
http://managementhelp.org/org_chng/org_chng.htm
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