Methods that can be used to manage resistance to change
For managers who want to make a step to the unknown, they have to make sure that they have everything stated out clearly. Change is inevitable and the managers should not try to run away from it. Instead of running away from the change, the managers should make sure that they have all the reasons why they are taking the direction in which they are going. They should realize the fact that change is all about managing the risks. The managers should use numbers to clearly state the reason they are changing. The numbers will precisely show what to expect when they are moving to the new direction they are headed. Stating the change in terms of numbers will help to give the advantages of the new change that is expected.
Another change management strategy is to make sure that the message of change management honors the people who have been instrumental to the organization in the past. Human beings are wired to act like their ancestors so that we trust those whom we know. The mentors who have been there in the past should be acknowledged. The people do not need to be in the organization. They could have resigned from the organization yet their actions are still memorable.
The other factor that should be considered when introducing the change is to have a pilot model that should be followed. Although many people have visions and these visions are normally in dreams. People like working on change in which they can see. Although there are people who have perfect dreams in forms of dreams, it will reduce resistance to change if these dreams are seen and can be conceptualized by everyone. Many people believe something after they see it. This will eradicate the thoughts of impossibilities in the change process.
The introduction of the pilot model as a way of managing resistance dot change should only be embraced as the last resort owing to the complexion in trying to adapt. The introduction of the pilot model may also warrant the incurrence of extra expenses by the business organization (Williams 104).
Porter’s five forces
Every industry has its own structures of economy. These structures don’t come as an accident. They have adverse effects on the management of the company as it gives the manager a new way of thinking and a new way of effectively managing the system to come out unscathed in the long run. The five forces that Porter talks about are found in all industries. They are bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of new entrants, rivalry among competitors and threat of substitutes. The profits made by the company are determined by the combination of all these forces.
Bargaining power of suppliers
Business will require inputs in order to operate effectively. The inputs that any business requires include labor, raw materials, and services. These inputs have a cost which can affect the profit that a company can have. The suppliers have a say in this because if they have a strong power of bargaining, then it will mean that there is less profit to be made out of this. This will determine the power the suppliers have over the industry or company. If the power of bargaining of the supplier is weak, then the company will have a stronger and better opportunity to cut favorable deals that will suit them and thus will be more profitable to the business. There are factors that will determine this force which include the uniqueness of the input that is in question. If the product in question is unique, then it will mean you have a better bargaining power over the supplier. If the supplier does not depend on the input as their main business, then it will mean that the company will stand a chance to lose in the bargaining of the product.
Bargaining power of buyers
This is the power that your buyers and consumers have over you. If they have more say on the profit nature of the business and that they are capable of convincing you to the downside of the bargain, then there is less that one can make out of this arrangement. It has been found out that if the buyers buy a large amount of goods from you, then you are bound to make realistic profits. If you have a few large buyers, then they have the power to manipulate the buying nature and thus have the ability to affect the way you sell to them. Buyers also have the ability to affect the way suppliers do business with you. They can affect rivalry between your suppliers. In so doing, your inputs will be affected so much. If there are many buyers who don’t buy much from you, then you have much control over them and will stand a chance to manipulate and have a great say in the business. There are factors which affect the bargaining nature of the buyers which include the size of the buyers and the size of the suppliers (Williams 132).
Threat of new entrants
There are cases where the product that you are supplying motivates others to start producing the same. They may have seen your success and feel that they can also try the same business. In doing so they are threatening to share the market with you. The new entrants will make sure that they share the market with you. The existence of the new entrants results in lowered prices. It will mean that the management will have to restrategize so that they have optimal profits from the new ratio of market share. There are obstacles which can deter the new entrants from entering the market. These include the legal requirements that are needed to make the new products into the market. These rules could help the companies which already exist to stay in business for long. The reaction of the other companies in business could also affect the way the new entrants will enter into the market. The businesses which are already established will have an upper hand in determining and easing the entrance of the new entrants. The established businesses can decide to reduce prices so that the new entrants have nothing much to get out of their new ventures. There are barriers which are unique and include the fact that the established businesses could be having well established brand names and their products are well differentiated. This will mean that it will be hard work to try to strategize to have a bite of the share.
Threats of substitutes
There are instances where a product from a company may be substituted by another product from a different company. If they produce goods that are not well differentiated, it will mean that the customers can easily switch to the new products. An example is that tea can be substituted for coffee and vice versa. If your customers switch to use substitute products, that will mean that the customer base is greatly reduced thus affecting the customer base. Substitutes can come in many forms. When writing out the business plan, it is good to write the other options that your customers can turn to for the same service that you are offering them.
Switching to a new product is possible if the customer has little loyalty to the company. Another issue that can lead to substitutes is if the product that the company is producing does not satisfy the need in question fully. This will force the customers to look for it elsewhere.
Rivalry among competitors
Rivalry among the competitors in the market usually accrues especially in the quest of the competitors to woo numerous customers (Williams 112). This is very essential since it leads to quality provision of goods and services. Lack of rivalry amongst the competitors would otherwise lead to the production of the low quality products and the market setting of unrealistic prices of products and services. The battle field of the rivalry amongst the competitors is mostly skewed to t the price competition amongst the competitors in their bid to be the market leaders in provision of quality products and services. In some other cases, the rivalry arises as a result of the diverse strategies and relationships embraced by the competitors as a result of different goals, mission and vision. The role of the rivalry amongst the competitors in the industry market strategy is aimed at stepping up the efforts of the industries to produce quality products and services which adequately meet the needs of the customers as well as the establishment of fair prices.
Among the five potter’s forces, the bargaining power of the buyers is the central force since it determines the trend of the organization. The core aim of every organization is to make realistic profits whilst minimizing the expenses and this is determined by the bargaining power of the buyers. The major decisive stakeholders in the battleground notwithstanding other forces such as the threat of the new entrants, rivalry among the competitors, threats of substitutes and the bargaining owner of suppliers is the existence and the commitment of the buyers to the business organization. It is therefore the responsibility of the business management to put proper mechanisms in place o attract and retain customers. The positive development and the sustenance of a business organization are determined by the buyers.
Norms
These are a set of guidelines which depict the mannerisms and behaviors in which the employees and the entire member of the organization are expected to uphold at all times for the common good of the organization. The stipulated norms of an organization is normally governed and accompanied by a set of punishments to be accorded to the irresponsible individuals upon the violation.. Moral behavior is necessary for the growth and development of a business. Many scandals are common nowadays in business premises, inflated packages for the senior officials in management is very common. The organization’s norms are build based on ethics of the individuals involved in the running of the organization. The following personal ethics should be by the individuals running the organization at all times.
Fairness
Exploitation of the junior workers whilst offering a poor package is very rampant amongst many business institutions. This is a vice which should be handled carefully in the business institutions to ensure the sustenance of the businesses and to avoid losses. The moral obligations include the behaviors of the persons in the management hierarchy and the individual junior employees. The manager therefore should be fair and considerate especially in treating the employees. The pay package should be commensurate according to the employee’s performance (Williams 151).
Transparency
In most business institutions bribery is common whereby the senior management officials who are responsible for the recruitment of the support staff and the management of the company engage in corruption. This therefore means that the persons involved in the management of the organization should be transparent. In some other situations the top officials of the business institution are involved in scandals whereby they inflate the company for own selfish gains. The same officials sometimes go to an extent of underpaying their junior employees; such managers are corrupt and are not trustworthy.
Integrity
Managers should be persons of high integrity. The growth of the business depends on the decisions, behavior and the integrity of the individuals running it. The failure of any business therefore warrants the blame of the individuals running it. All the transactions of the business involve all the employees with the manager being the overall supervisor. Therefore in an event where the company runs at a loss and faces closure, the individuals running it should be held accountable. The virtue of integrity enhances good customer relations, thus enabling the company realize more profits.
Cohesiveness
This is the mutual relationship amongst the individuals in an organization. This encompasses the interrelationship among the employees and the management authority. A viable organization should have a proper mechanism in place to foster the employee-employee relationship, the employer-employee relationship and the customer relationship. Cohesiveness gives a measure of commitment of the employees and the members of various groups within the company to their groups and to the entire organization in general. The spirit of mutual responsibility and togetherness in solving a particular task dictates how much cohesiveness exists within the organization. The ability of the company to retain her employees indicates the pedigree of the cohesiveness within the company. This can further be evidenced through the attendance of various meetings scheduled upon the request by the management. A team that is intact and cohesive is united in pursuance of the company’s goals other than the self ones. A cohesive team has her members working together whilst sharing ideas over several issues ranging from the company oriented to the company level issues (Williams 203).
Importance of the team size consideration
The team size consideration is very necessary in an organization. And this is done with regard to many parameters. For instance, the young growing organization with little resources should only have a sleek size of skilled personnel to run and develop the organization. On the other hand, a big organization facing closure due to underperformance as a result of understaffing warrants the massive recruitment of the highly skilled personnel to revamp the organization with new and advanced skills. The team size is determined by several parameters which are put into consideration. This includes; the nature of work to be done and the workforce required tackling the task at hand effectively. The time frame allocated for the accomplishment of some task also determines the size of the team required. This is mainly because the tasks that are urgently required warrant the involvement of a number of personnel in who can easily combine efforts and solve the tasks within the stipulated time effectively. On the other hand, the matters of decision making and getting the solutions of design problems requires minimal number of persons who can make quick and concrete decisions. It is therefore important for a company to consider the size of the team required to perform various tasks in various disciplines to avoid wastage of resources.
Coping with the team conflict
The manager of an organization is endowed with the responsibility of identifying and resolving conflicts amongst the employees. The employees can also be encouraged to provide feedback to the management of the company through any means that is easily accessible to them. The use of communication is the most effective form of achieving changes in any organization. Engaging active dialogue with the employees enables the manager to understand the employees needs well hence act appropriately to alleviate the conflicts.
Effects of the team conflict on the team performance
Team conflicts affect the team work spirit since it leads to development and the spread of animosity amongst the employees of the organization. This leads to low productivity of the organization. The team conflict affects the sharing of the workloads amongst the employees. This makes the company redundant in that the adverse effects as a result of the team conflicts may lead to the loss of skilled personnel. Team conflicts may make the company lose credibility since specialization and division of labor by the company may not be adhered to.
Advantages of using teams
Embracing teamwork in the accomplishment of a particular task is very crucial for the organization since the respective members of the team injects various skills and knowledge into the achievement of the task. This therefore leads to the quality output in matters of productivity. By embracing team work, the different academic backgrounds and the personal experiences of the employees will be integrated and engineered to come up with the solution of the design problem at hand. The unity amongst the members participating in team work leads to quick and effective accomplishment of the tasks (Williams 138).
Disadvantages of team work
The use of teamwork in the accomplishment of a particular task may sometimes be rendered ineffective. This is because various individuals within the team may wish to apply different approaches in the accomplishment of the task. The divergent views on the approach used by different members of the team may lead to the occurrence of the conflict of interest. This causes misunderstanding amongst the members thus hindering the attainment of the task in question.
I once participated in a team setting whereby we were given the responsibility of designing a market strategy of some software producing company. The team constituted of highly skilled personnel who drew confidence across the board members that they were indeed expected to come up with a viable strategy. However, the team’s performance ended in disarray since the divergent views of the different members within the team in the approach of the matter was very unbecoming and intolerable to some members of the team. Decision making was a problem and we hardly reached consensus. All these misunderstandings within the team led to the redundancy of the team hence led to the team being disbanded. The setting up of the team proved to be expensive to the company, since most expenses were incurred by the organization through the expenditure accorded the members in form of sitting allowances.
Factors that companies can manage to make teams more effective
In order to improve the effectiveness of various teams within the company, the human resource division of various companies must put various mechanisms in place to ensure that, proper execution of responsibilities by various teams within the organization is strictly observed. The employers and the human resource division must therefore take into consideration the various factors that affect the employee performance and welfare. The bottom line of these is aimed at improving the team work performance and foster the relationship between the employees and the management authority of the company. The following factors must therefore be taken into consideration to ensure the effectiveness of the team.
Remuneration
Remuneration plays a key role in the motivation of the team players to work towards the achievement of the preset goals of the company. The modern employees live modern lifestyles that warrant a healthy financial background. The remuneration of the employees therefore should be commensurate. The low packages slacken the growth and progress of the employees and this therefore contributes to the employees’ dissatisfaction. A good remuneration package motivates and inspires the employees thus improving the production level.
Job specification and Leadership
Lack of job specification also contributes greatly to employee’s dissatisfaction and ineffective execution of duties. The employers should clearly outline the job function, roles and responsibilities to their employees. When employees fail to meet the employer’s expectations, they feel uninspired and therefore fail to deliver to their best hence feel unsatisfied. The effective team performance will be rendered inappropriate if the employees lack sense of direction in their handing of duties due to lack of job specification (Williams 214).
For the effective performance of a business, the leadership has to be intact. Many employees in most business institutions are not satisfied with their jobs simply because of their bosses who do not treat them well. The employer therefore should ensure that the heads of departments, supervisors and all the personnel in the management hierarchy are people of high integrity. Some heads of departments and the supervisors ask their junior staff members for sex or bribery in order to gain promotion. This is a thorny issue which has put very many business institutions at the helm of collapsing. This scares away the employees and makes them feel unsatisfied with their jobs.
Working environment, tools, and equipments
To enhance productivity the employer should provide the employees with the necessary equipments, resources and tools. Failure to provide this therefore hinders the efficiency of the employees thus making them dissatisfied with their work.
An organized, healthy and safe environment is necessary for the employees to comfortably discharge their duties. However most business institutions do not provide this hence makes the employees feel unsatisfied with their job. Some other vices such as gossiping, favoritism, and backbiting are common in the modern employment sectors. This does not go well with the employees and thus make them feel unsatisfied with their jobs. A healthy workplace therefore improves the employee’s performance and job satisfaction.
Reward and building trust
When the employees work hard and earn the company realistic profits, they deserve to be rewarded accordingly. This motivates the employees and makes them work harder thus enabling the employer realize more profits. The employees deserve to be rewarded through promotions; this makes them feel recognized, acknowledged and appreciated. The morale of the employees therefore is boosted. The rewarding of the hardworking employees instills and cultivates the culture of hard work within the company. This creates healthy competition amongst the workers in their quest to achieve recognition and promotion within the company.
If the employees are not entrusted in discharging their duties they will feel unsatisfied with their jobs and thus will not effectively discharge their duties. The employers therefore should entrust their employees with their responsibilities hence accord them little or no supervision at all as long as they are doing realistic and commendable job. Employees should be vested with more powers so that they are part of decision makers in the system. The employees therefore should not be checked too often. This will boost their confidence levels and makes them satisfied with their jobs.
The vision of most of the employees in most business institutions is to advance their careers other than just enjoy their pay packages. It is therefore a necessary and sufficient condition for the employer to ensure that the working environment of the employees is conducive enough for the employees to effectively execute their duties.
Employee welfare
Upon the completion of one year in an organization, the employees are eligible to apply for an unpaid leave depending on their regularity (Williams 234). All employees have a right to fair treatment including the accordance of sustainable and commensurate remuneration. A policy catering for the welfare of employees therefore has been enacted in many business organizations to ensure that the working environment of the employees is conducive enough. This policy allows the workers to form a union whereby they can channel all their grievances. In developing human resources, teamwork should be encouraged embraced by the company. The development of human resource needs to put in place strategies that will enable the entire company employees to work as a team.
Human resource development should have a long term plan in working as a team, since it will make it easy to manage its resources since every employee will work towards the desired goal. Team work should be treated with a lot of importance since success in every organization is based on the arrangement of employees in a form of teamwork which comprises the right members. Team work will ensure that every member has been placed in an appropriate position so as to meet the demands and obligations of the firm. Without all the employees working together as a team, some of the goals of the organization which are gained through teamwork cannot be met.
Works cited
Williams, Chuck. Human resources and personal management. CA: Cengage Learning. Pp. 100-234. 2008.