Management of Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Management of Change - Essay Example A company's market potential is necessary for its successful and efficient performance, the basic elements of the company's market potential being its resources, strategic planning system, leadership, and marketing. Strategic planning is closely interrelated with change management. E.g., K. Warren states that "[t]oday's performance [of a company] depends on today's strategic resources". (1999, p. 3) According to Kleiner, the process of strategic planning consists of the following stages: "establishing the ground for the company's activity by means of determining its mission; determining company's main goals; analysing the company's environment by indicating all factors influencing company's activity; determining company's market potential, and its strengths and weaknesses; developing several alternatives as far as strategic development is concerned; analysing these strategic alternatives from the standpoint of the company's goals, vision, mission, as well as conditions in the environment and on the market; forecasting the efficiency of each of these strategic alternatives; and, finally, forming the ultimate strategy of the company, i.e. choosing the strategy that looms the most favourable for increasing the company's competitive advantage. (Kleiner, 1998, pp. 46 - 50) In the quickly changing environment, the modern organizations have to change continuously. Very often, managers utilize reactive approach to changes, which often results in decrease in their companies' competitive advantage, and sometimes even in ruin of organizations. Proactive approach to introducing changes is considered to be much more beneficial, however it demands profound knowledge of the basic features of change process, sources of opposition to these changes, and methods of overcoming opposition. The world-known companies have considerable experience as far as managing changes is concerned. One of the most efficient approaches in this sphere is organizational development that presupposes introducing step-by-step deliberate changes into corporate culture with the goal of adapting the company to the outer environment. Organizational development influences, above all, social subsystem of organization, and is therefore inseparably connected with HR management. However, technological progress should not be neglected either, especially in the IT sphere, and every company undergoing changes should develop the methods of restructuring technical subsystem. A problem that managers often face when introducing changes into companies is the problem of natural resistance on the part of personnel, as well as the company as a system. It is important to combine organizational development with reengineering of business processes for achieving a better result and decreasing the level of resistance. The essence of proactive approach to change management is that all changes are introduced with considering all possible obstacles that