Assignment Sample on Element 011 Management Report
1. Introduction
The management report has the following aim to provide logical understanding and knowledge about the critical awareness of change and change processes. The intellectual, affective, practical and transferable skills incorporated within the change have been identified in this report. Furthermore, the study has analysed the roles of change agents, techniques and change management roles that influence the organizational environment. The study has critically reflected the recent change process that has happened as well the ongoing change process in Unilever.
2. Critical reflection on a change process
Unilever being global business enterprises are further looking for expanding its businesses and it was going through some same changes within the organisation. The businesses becoming bigger and bigger are causing problems for the management as it is becoming difficult to maintain such a large workforce and organization. Furthermore, the organizational changes were spontaneous that were unable to be controlled by the higher authority of the company. Unilever was facing the problems of aligning the new employees within its workforce and implementation challenges that restricted the opportunities of the company. As per the view of Asbjørnsen (2020), the business enterprises are required to exploit persuasive working principles of the company to attain a further level of behavioural changes. However, change processes in Unilever are covert as well overt activities and experiences that the management engage while they attempt to understand and modify problem behaviours.
Roles of Change Agent
Change agents are effective in showing great versatility within a broad skill set that has active roles in organizational changes. The first change agents emphasized on the profitability and operational behaviour of the company causing serious challenges. Understanding the dynamics of the organization is mostly required to bring changes. Investigating the problems demand solutions that Unilever was looking for to adapt the technological compatibility within the market. According to the study of Zilcha-Mano, S. and Ramseyer (2020), encouragement and facilitation are two major agents for changes that obtain a heavy role in changes of an organisation.
Unilever was taking suggestions from shareholders and expanding hands with new entities to promote its business effectively that further facilitated through designing systems and forming proper business structure. Furthermore, by relying on the expertise of the change agents the organization resolves conflicts and demonstrates proper business frameworks (Kennett-Hensel and Payne, 2018). Unilever is managing the entire change process through employing conscientious and determined people and providing necessary resources.
Change Management Roles
Change management plays a significant role in organizational changes within the business environment of Unilever. The manufacturing company has completed an overall assessment on its business framework to capture favourable insights. A structured methodology and change management activities is attained by the organization to bring certain changes. The development, design, delivery and management of communications are conducted to allow the changes to be involved within the business framework. As per the view of Albers et al. (2020), change impacts are estimated by the company to have an insight about the impact of the upcoming changes.
Unilever has further intended to apply a risk mitigation policy to resist the downfall of the company in case anything happens. Identifying the anticipated resistance along with managing those obstacles is considered to be a role for the change management. Communications plan, coaching plan, training plan, resistance management plan and sponsor roadmap is required to effectively manage change management roles.
3. Recommendations on lessons learned from the Change Process
The change process of Unilever is deeply analysed and critically examined to provide future recommendations for enabling smooth change in the future is given below,
- Change process is crucial and methodical stages are required to follow for sustainable changes within the business organization. Each stage of the change model depicts some serious issues that are required to be taken care of unless the growth of the change can be hampered. According to the study of (), the stages of change theory provided some systematic procedure that has immense importance on the change of the business enterprises. Unilever will maintain the stages of change models to adopt the changes and promote a sustainable development within the business organizations.
- The business organizations must continue the investigation in a regular manner to look for the necessary changes. As per the view of Stefanidis et al. (2017), to promote changes within its business framework a business first requires identifying the appropriate changes. Unilever will continue to look for technological innovation and issues generating in the market. The market requirements are another aspect that the manufacturing company will emphasize in the future.
- Employing proper methodology tools and techniques are required for essential changes in business framework. According to the study of Langarizadeh et al. (2017), appropriate project management methodology is necessary for intending to change the business environment within an organization. Agile method of project management brings changes to provide values to the stakeholders in the highest manner. Furthermore, it is a more flexible methodology that leadership teams bring to organizational change. Prince2 project management methodology assists the change within a closed environment for the business enterprises.
- A vision must be created for changes and that need to be communicated within the organization as well with the organization’s stakeholders. As per the view of Braithwaite et al. (2018), once the organization crosses the unfreeze stage it must implement change which consists of fear and uncertainty to ensure smooth changes. Finally refreezing the thoughts and perception the manufacturing company can ensure the organization goes through the embarked path in the future. The manufacturing company must be capable of reinventing itself ahead of the industry trends as well as shifts in consumer preferences.
- Unilever must remain prepared to bring the structural changes within the company as well partnered with the companies that will provide it with greater technological support. However, the resistance to change as well the uncertainty must be accounted for by the upcoming changes within the manufacturing company according to the change model of Lewin (Braithwaite et al. 2018).
- Proper risk management will be assessed for the upcoming changes within the business environment of Unilever to identify necessary future requirements. A support structure will be provided based on the estimated risks along with providing effective training to the employees to handle the change.
4. Critical review of relevant theories & paradigms
Lewin’s Change Theory
Change Theory of Lewin is ideal for business environments as it helps us think about the major issues keeping aside the secondary problems that seem to be a bigger problem. Organizational change model of Unilever shows the company is unable to adapt to the online retail market which has emerged to be the most futuristic prospect in the upcoming time period. According to the study of Mehra et al. (2018), commitment of the organizations in bringing changes within a company is crucial for adapting to a changed business environment.
The Lewin’s Change Theory is accumulation of three stages which are unfreezing, change and freeze. As per the view of Zabaniotou (2020), the strategy of Lewin’s model was to simplify the change management strategy in order to promote changes as a system tends to be rigid and prefers to be within comfort zones. The unfreeze stage states about the unfreezing current process and perceptions while preparing for upcoming changes. Unilever is going through transition phases and to make changes more palatable it is hiring seasoned employees.
Kotter Change Model
Eight step change process was introduced by Kotter that provides significant clues over a system wide changes to an organization. The stages of the Kotter Change Model can be listed as creating urgency, forming a powerful coalition, creating a vision for change, communicating the vision, removing obstacles, short-term wins, building on a change and anchoring the changes in corporate culture (Silove et al. 2017).
Kotter suggests that change is required to be wished by the whole organization or it will create resistance. According to the study of Lacerenza et al. (2017), removing obstacles can empower the employees of the company and make way for the changes competitively smoother. On the other hand, Unilever is eliminating the restrictions to reach its objectives for short-term gain and trying to establish change within the organization.
5. Conclusion
Based on the above report it can be found, the organizational changes were uninhibited and were unable to be controlled by the higher authority of the company. It can be found that Unilever was facing the problems of aligning the new employees within its workforce and implementation challenges that restricted the opportunities of Unilever. Based on the above report it is recommended that structural changes within the company must be consulted with the partnered companies to obtain greater technological support. The market requirements through emphasizing on future trends are another aspect that the manufacturing company will emphasize in the future. Lewin’s Change Theory and Kotter Change Model are discussed in this report to provide an impactful insight on the changes of Unilever.
Reference
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Kennett-Hensel, P.A. and Payne, D.M., 2018. Guiding principles for ethical change management. Journal of Business and Management, 24(2), pp.19-45. http://jbm.johogo.com/pdf/volume/2402/JBM-2402-02-full.pdf
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Stefanidis, D., Anton, N.E., Howley, L.D., Bean, E., Yurco, A., Pimentel, M.E. and Davis, C.K., 2017. Effectiveness of a comprehensive mental skills curriculum in enhancing surgical performance: results of a randomized controlled trial. The American Journal of Surgery, 213(2), pp.318-324. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5303657/pdf/nihms-832967.pdf
Zabaniotou, A., 2020. New forms of social learning in mediterranean higher engineering education: Change lab for gender equality transformation, methodology, design principles. Sustainability, 12(16), p.6618. https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/16/6618/pdf
Zilcha-Mano, S. and Ramseyer, F.T., 2020. Innovative approaches to exploring processes of change in counseling psychology: Insights and principles for future research. Journal of counseling psychology, 67(4), p.409. https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/2020-46941-001.pdf
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