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The Concept of Change and the Change Strategies
Unplanned Change vis-a-vis Planned Change
Expound upon the concept of change, delineating distinctions between change that is unanticipated, crisis-oriented and reactive and change that is planned, intentional and proactive. Planned changes are those that are made intentionally in organizations or groups. Planned changes are purposeful and serve specific and discussed needs within an organization or group.
Generally, planned changes are geared towards the alteration of the status quo in an organization or group among others. On the other hand, unanticipated change is one that occurs due to uncertainties that are encountered in operation. These are caused by the external forces of operation or external business environment factors.
Businesses, organizations or groups have no influence on external business environment factors, and it might force them to introduce new things or ideas, which may lead to unanticipated change (Thames & Webster, 2009). Change can also be intentional based on the needs of an organization.
As a director of a child care center, intentional change may arise in case there is a need to enhance the quality of services provided due to demand by the administration to attract more clients. This may lead to increasing the number of staff and or introducing new services in the center, which is intentional (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Prerequisite Change Agentry Skills and Competencies
Indicate the skills, competencies, and attitudes that human services practitioners and researchers must cultivate to effectively respond to and address both planned and unplanned change. There are specific skills, attitudes, and competencies that human services must possess to respond to planned changes in an organization. Human services must be focused and disciplined.
It is easy to work with focused and disciplined human services in the implementation of planned changes. Disciplined human services respond to plans as expected without delay. Specialization is also an important attribute that human services required to respond effectively to planned changes (Thames & Webster, 2009).
On the other hand, there are certain skills, attitudes, and competencies that human services must portray to respond to unplanned changes adequately. Unplanned changes arise due to changes in the external factors, which an organization has no direct influence over. Human services must be flexible, adventurous, specialized and creative to respond to unplanned changes.
Flexible human services will adjust to any changes in the organization and continue with normal operations. Furthermore, adventurous human services will work towards solving circumstances that contribute to unplanned changes and address them accordingly. Specialized human services can effectively address unplanned changes such as diet change in the child care center among others (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Concept of Change and Systems Thinking
Further discuss change processes by incorporating systems concepts such as open systems, morphogenesis, requisite variety, et cetera. Change is a process, which must be effectively coordinated to ensure that its goals and objectives are achieved. There are several stages or phases of the change process that an agent of change must undergo before approval of dismissal by relevant parties or authorities in an organization.
The phases of change are freezing, unfreezing and moving (Thames & Webster, 2009). Unfreezing is the first phase of change whereby individuals or employees are assisting to slowly abandon the previous ways of operation. This phase is crucial because it involves informing individuals of the weaknesses of the old system or ways, which should be convincing.
This phase requires support, and individuals who might be affected by the change must be involved to avoid resistance to the change in future before full realization. This phase can be referred to as an open system because all affected parties are involved (Thames & Webster, 2009).
The second phase of change is moving. This stage involves working with individuals on the proposed change. There are several aspects involved in this process, which include, working with individuals towards the planning and implementation of the proposed change. It also involves educating individuals on the concepts of the new change. This phase may be referred to as requisite variety or capacity building (Thames & Webster, 2009).
The last phase in the change process is refreezing. This involves establishing an equilibrium that is temporary. The new or proposed change is evaluated and tested at this stage. In case the change is advantageous and efficient to the operation of the organization as proposed it is adopted as proposed, but in case there are certain hitches, they are adjusted before fully adopting the new system (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Planned Change Strategic Planning Parallels and Overlaps
Indicate to what extent there are parallels between aspects of planned change and aspects of strategic planning. Strategic planning is the careful planning for uncertainties in the future. Generally, strategic planning is geared towards addressing factors that can affect the operation of an organization negatively. Strategic planning is an aspect of strategic management.
Planned change is also geared towards addressing the future needs of an organization and enhancing efficiency in operation. A planned change and strategic planning are aspects of strategic management, which are aimed at enhancing efficiency in operation (Thames & Webster, 2009).
There are certain parallels between planned change and strategic planning. Generally, both are aspects of management. They are mainly carried out by the top management of an organization. Secondly, Strategic planning and planned change are geared towards enhancing efficiency, which may also lead to gaining competitive advantage in the business environment.
Furthermore, planned change is part of strategic planning. Strategic planning involves planning for the future. Similarly, planned changes are geared towards addressing future operations (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Characteristics and Phenomenon of Resistance
Delineate the various characteristics of resistance as posited by Zaltman and Duncan. There are different resistances that can be encountered in the event of introducing change in an organization. The resistances have different characteristics based on nature and the factors that influence the respective resistance. Zaltman and Duncan discuss four resistances that may be faced and their characteristics.
The resistance discussed by Zaltman and Duncan is cultural, psychological, organizational, and social resistance. Cultural resistance in an organization may arise in case a proposed change affects the norms, traditions and social arrangements among others in an organization or group.
Secondly, social resistance is characterized by protection of group identification, which may lead to resistance in case individuals view the change agent as an outsider. Furthermore, organizational resistance is characterized by protection of the dynamics of an organization. Finally, psychological resistance is characterized by retention, and in most cases selective perception (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Change Strategies and the Continuum of Resistance
Define and elaborate upon the four change strategies set forth by Zaltman and Duncan, and match and relate each strategy to the appropriate level or type of resistance, using the continuum of resistance as outlined in class lecture notes. Implementation of change in an organization is not easy because its prone to resistance.
Individuals may oppose the change in an organization in case it affects their operation directly or indirectly, and they are not well versed with the effects of the new change. Although the change may be resisted in an organization, the level of resistance differs depending on the effects of the respective change on individuals within an organization.
However, there are strategies that can be used to address the respective resistance to ensure that change is implemented effectively. There are different strategies that are applied in a change to ensure a smooth transition in case of resistance. The individual strategies apply to different resistances. The strategies that are commonly used are facilitative, power, re-educative and persuasive strategies.
On the other hand, the most common resistances encountered are very low, very high, moderately high and moderate low resistances (Thames & Webster, 2009). Facilitative strategy: This is one of the change strategies that can be used in organizations for successful implementation. The facilitative strategy is applied in situations when resistance is very low.
This strategy involves lubrication and implementation of a proposed change, which is a requirement in the case of very low resistance to change (Thames & Webster, 2009). Re-educative strategy: This strategy is applicable in case there is moderate resistance experienced. The strategy can be implemented effectively in case individuals need change but require elevation to fully accept the proposed change.
Re-education strategy involves the provision of education and re-education on proposed changes for universal or majority acceptance in an organization (Thames & Webster, 2009). Persuasive strategy: This is a strategy that can be used to successfully aid the implementation of change in an organization in case a moderately high resistance is faced.
This strategy involves the use of bias messages to implement change. This strategy is aimed at using any means, biased information inclusive, to convince individuals to accept change in an organization (Thames & Webster, 2009). Coercion or Power strategy: This is a strategy that can be successfully applied to enable change implementation in case very high resistance is experienced (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Force Field Analysis
Define and discuss force-field analysis as a concept and as a tool for analyzing and promoting change within human services organizations and communities. Relate force-field analysis of the phase of change, which are unfreezing, moving and refreezing. Force Field analysis can be used to influence situations.
Force Field analysis is a concept and can be used as a change tool in implementing and promoting change. This concept can be useful in promoting and analyzing change through the analysis of resistance that may be encountered before introducing change. It can also be used in the determination of the most appropriate strategy to use (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Graphic Depiction of Force
Based upon the project that you planned and implemented in Competency unit four, prepare a force-field analysis chart graphically illustrating the salient driving and restraining forces.
Retrieved from Chapter Four
The graph indicates that the restraining and driving forces are at equilibrium, which reflects efficiency (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Innovation and Diffusion
Define and expound upon the concept of innovation and diffusion as espoused by Everett M. Rodgers and his associates. Everett and his associates have adequately discussed innovation and diffusion. According to their work, innovation is a new idea that is intended to be applied in an organization to aid the introduction of change.
Innovation is only new to individuals within an organization that has not used or applied the perceived idea in the past. On the other hand, diffusion is the process that is taken by an organization to spread the new proposed change in an organization. It is the process of even spreading of innovation within a system (Thames & Webster, 2009).
An innovation must undergo five stages in the adoption of effective use and application in an organization. Awareness of the innovation must be created between individuals or components within a system. Secondly, an innovation must undergo the interest stage. In the interest stage, individuals must be educated on the solutions to gain interest in the innovation for better application.
Furthermore, it must undergo an evaluation stage where it is determined whether the innovation is worth trying or not. Trial stage: This is the stage where the innovation is tried, tested and implemented for use. Finally, adoption; this is the stage where a decision on the use of the innovation is made by the top organ of an organization (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Innovation and Diffusion Planned Change
Compare and contrast the concept of innovation and diffusion with the concept of planned change, drawing upon relevant systems theories. The concept of innovation and diffusion involves the introduction of new ideas and effectively introducing them into a system. Innovation must be tested before adoption. Similarly, planned change involves discussion of a change and forecasting on its effectiveness on a system. However, innovation and diffusion might not be accepted, while planned change must be implemented (Thames & Webster, 2009).
Reference
Thames, R. C., & Webster, D. W. (2009). Chasing Change: Building Organizational Capacity in a Turbulent Environment. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
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