Heart Case

The Heart of Change

The Heart of Change

Introduction

First of all, in the scope of this paper it is essential to refer to the fact that the core motivating factor for the changes, done by people, is the fact that they are provided with a truth, which makes an impact on their feelings. This trend may be considered as especially significant one in terms of the large-scale organizational change, where the individual faces with the set of new changes, e-business, cultural transformation and globalization. It is possible to make a statement that in the age of turbulence, if such reality is handled by an individual in a proper manner, one wins.

In order to understand the core reason of success in one organisation and lack of success in another one, it is essential to refer to the flow of large-scale and effective change efforts. In accordance with the classification, offered by Kotter and Cohen's in The Heart of Change, there are eight steps, incorporated into the change. They are the following:

1. Creating the sense of urgency in order to motivate smart people to tell other participants of the process that here is a need to go and to change the things;

2. Pulling together a guiding team, which is powerful enough for guiding a big change.

3. Creating simple, clear and uplifting visions and the setting the strategies.

4. Introducing the vision through heartfelt and simple messages, which are addressed to the target audience through multiple channels in such manner that people start joining the process of making a change;

5. Empowering individuals by removing limitations to the vision;

6. In order provide a momentum- developing and launching into the practice the short-term wins;

7. Maintaining the momentum in such way that the wave after wave change becomes possible.

8. Making change stick by developing and practical implementation of the a new culture

Discussion

The next issue to be discussed in the scope of this paper is outlining the core principles and specifics of the eight steps of the change, offered the author.

Increased Urgency

While referring to the increased urgency, additional attention should be paid to the fact that in the successful change efforts, the first step is dedicated to ensuring the fact that the sure sufficient quantity of people acts with sufficient urgency, their behavior should generate the sense of "let's go." Authors have claimed that without urgency, the large large-scale change is not possible.

Authors have outlined the four sets of human behavior, which stop the change. They are the following: complacency, driven by arrogance or false pride (1); self-protection and immobilization, driven by anger (2); "you-can't-make-me-move" deviance, which is also motivated by anger (3); pessimistic attitude, which generates the constant hesitation (4).

The set of the above listed behaviors prevents people from taking action and that is why they hold back or even more complain in the case when the new action is initiated by other people. As a result of such actions, the stopping of the needed change effort takes its place.

It is possible to make a claim that the first step of the change, offered by the authors, is mainly dedicated to creation of the vision, it is especially urgent t in the case if an organization is in crisis situation.

Build the Guiding Team

The team, which has been created for the change plans realization, needs to have the sense of urgency. The core reason for that is that in the case when there is urgency, more people are willing to lead, even in the cases of few short-term rewards and personal risk. At the same time, authors put an emphasis on the fact that the urgency itself is not enough because there is a need for powerful guiding force to make the large-scale change happen. The job cannot be performed by the fragmented management team. The core challenge of the change manager in such case is putting together an effective guiding team.

There are two core characteristics of the powerful guiding group: it demonstrates teamwork and is made of the right people. The "right people" may be defined as the individuals, who have got the set of appropriate skills, organizational credibility, leadership capacity, and the connections for handling the organizational change.

The core requirements to the 'right people' for the change management team, as it is offered by the authors, are the following:

* Being aware and professional in terms of determining the currents state of affairs outside the enterprise, this skill is needed for creating vision;

* Ability to communicate within the organisation - as an effective component of the communicating vision;

In the process of lunching the change within particular organization, additional change groups emerge at the lower levels. These teams assist in terms of driving actions within their units. Commonly, the change groups of all levels form the guiding coalition

Get the Vision Right

In the case of successful large-scale change, the set of the questions, required for producing the clear sense of direction, are answered by the well-functioning guiding team. For instance, the questions, related to the reason of the change importance; into the best ways of making the vision a reality; defining the unacceptably dangerous change strategies etc.

Communicate for Buy-In

In the case of successful change efforts, the change strategies and visions cannot be limited to the executing team only. They should be spreads among the maximally possible quantity of people. The core purpose of such approach is the attracting the maximal quantity of people for making the vision a reality.

In the case if people communicate about the large-scale change, the lion share of people consider that there is no need for such a global change. In the case of successful change efforts, no arguments towards this reality are issued by the guiding team. The anxieties are addressed by such people, the faith in the vision is evoked and the anger is accepted.

In the case of proper executing, the Question-and-Answer