Change is a crucial component of an individual’s or a company’s success. This is due to the fact that the institution must always be ready to embrace the shift in the environment that surrounds it. Change helps the institution to be able to adapt to the shift in how the company or the institution’s customer preferences. With all this is mind, it is clear that Sea Treasures have to be able to embrace the various changes that come its way. The company will always tend to adapt various models in order to make the change happen. Each of these changes will always have varying effects on the company’s activities. However, the truth of the matter’s that the effects of these changes will always be felt after different durations. This essay will address the various change models that will either have short-term effect or long term effects on the stores.
Lewin’s Change Management Model
This change model was developed by Kurt Lewin, and it was meant to ensure that the company embraces the change in its functionality and hence help the business to improve in its sales and further stop the losses which reciprocates in the company continuing to exist rather than it having to be closed within the stipulated 1 year. This change model will be best for the achievement of the short term goals of the company. This is due to the fact that the model is meant to ensure that the company or the organization understands and embraces the change that has been tabled before them. In order to adequately understand this model, we will have to effectively understand his ice analogy and the various steps.
Unfreeze
This stage in the change process allows the company that wants to bring the changes to its functioning to first have in place measures which will ensure that all the stakeholders in the process understand the changes that are supposed to be brought to the company. For example, in our case, the change that is supposed to be embraced is the use of technology in the way the company markets its products.
In order to effectively and adequately make the change process, then it is vital that the company must have in place a clearly stipulated comparison of how we used to carry out our activities and come up with the new ways of performing the duties. For example, in this case, we would have to consider the difference of us using the website and using the marketing personnel to physically market out products. In addition to this, we would have to consider how best we will have to compare how effective the adverts we used to air for the few seconds on the television against the use of the company’s website.
This is stage will only be met if all the stakeholders are trained on the effect that the stipulated change will have on the business. This chance of training them will enable all of them to understand the main reasons for the change that is being brought to the company and hence help the company to ensure that the change is positively accepted by the stakeholders of the company. This is due to the fact that the personnel will in most instances be reluctant to accept the changes due to negative myths and misconceptions pertaining to the change that has been brought towards them. This will then help change the perception of all the personnel pertaining to the change plan.
Freeze Stage
This stage in the model process is meant to give the company the chance to mold its organization in a manner that will help it realize its intended structure. This will involve various things such as the change of the company’s policies and the composition of the company. In our case, this stage will ensure that we review the functions of the various personnel and the policies that we used to use in running the activities of the company. These include reducing the number of sales personnel due to the fact that the use of the website will require fewer sales personnel to be able to reach the market as we desire. However, it will require that we increase the number of the IT personnel in the company, due to the fact that they will have to help manage, run and supervise the functioning of the website.
This will further have an effect on the composition of the executive body of the company. This is due to the fact that we will be forced to have a slot for the head of the IT department who will have to work in conjunction with the head of the sales department in order to be able to meet the desired sales levels.
Refreeze stage
This refreeze stage will be the last stage in the change model that will be brought with the aim of ensuring that the earlier stipulated methods of change are adhered to. At this stage, the desired policies and the composition and function of the personnel, management and executive are adhered to. This stage is possible due to the fact that the individuals will be more receptive to the change that has been brought about and this will enable the company to function well and hence enable the change plans to be effected.
In conclusion, this Lewin’s Change Management Model will be really of help to the company in achieving its set desired changes. This is due to the fact that it is meant to enable the company to help all the stakeholders to understand the various changes that it plans to bring perform.
McKinsey 7-S Model
This model was created by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman, which was meant to address the coordination roles of the various individuals and departments within the company. This model will be most effective to be able to address the company’s long-term policy goals. In our case if we are able to use this model, we will be able to adequately meet our desired levels of improvement.
The model is comprised of various areas or elements which the change will need to affect; these are the strategy, the structure, style, skill, shared values, staff and the systems. With these changes being brought to the company, then the company will be able to achieve its stipulated long-term effects. This is due to the fact that with the cooperation of the various departments, then the company will be unable to effectively have in place policies which will help it continuously adapt to the changing times and hence be able to meet its long-term goals.
Under this model, the areas or cooperation are vital and hence the individuals in the company must ensure they adhere to it. The fact that the areas are all interdependent on each other, will mean that the individuals will always have the ability to share ideas for a longer duration rather than sticking to the already set criteria of functioning which may at times be considered to be obsolete and in turn lead to the losses. It is believed that a change in one sector will ultimately lead to the change to the other elements, due to its interconnection.
These areas are divided into the Hard Ss and the soft Ss which our company will have an easier time defining and addressing and they are the strategy, system and structure of the company. However, the other soft Ss will be said to be rather difficult to define and address due to the fact that it is influenced by various factors that surround the company. Such factors include the culture of the company to how the management strategies that have been used by the managerial team. These elements are the shared values, the skills among the personnel and the staff of the company and further the style the company carries out its activities.
For example, in our case, in order to be able to sell the live sea creatures, we will be forced to change various factors and how we will be functioning. For example, the staff of the company must change due to the fact that we will be required to include trained personnel who will be able to handle these live creatures. This may be achieved by either hiring new personnel or rather effectively training the personnel we already have in our team. This means new skills have to be developed by the personnel and the company will in turn have to change how it performs its duties.
This model will have various effects on all the stakeholders from the personnel, to the managerial committee and further to the executives of the company. This is due to the fact that it requires all of them to achieve their goals and duties for it to adequately be able to achieve its set purpose. For example, the managerial committee will have to be in constant communication with the executive in order to be able to effectively carry out its activities.
This will only be possible when the management has in place a clear and definite flow of information throughout the company. This will be through the constant meetings and seminars where the individuals will be able to give their take in the occurrences in their departments. This exchange of information will enable the company to adequately be able to realize the gaps in their company and hence they will be able to effectively handle and tackle it at its early stages.
Conclusion
In conclusion, for the company to ultimately be able to achieve its set short-term goal, it may use the Lewin’s Change model, which will help the company establish its base pertaining to how the change will be accepted by the various personnel and do away with the negative reception of the change plans, in this case the use of the website to market the produce. In order to achieve the long-term plans, the company may use the McKinsey 7-S Model which will help the company to have a chance of changing how it works in order to be able to achieve its goal of starting to trade in live animals.
References
The 8 stages of Change. (2007). CPE. vt journal, 2-7.
Evison, A. (2014, February 19). Implementing Change Powerfully and Successfully. Retrieved July 04, 2016, from Mindtools: <http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newPPM_94.htm>.
Jurevicius, O. (2013, December 20). McKinsey 7s Model. Retrieved July 04, 2016, from Strategic management Insight: <http://www.strategicmanagementinsight.com/tools/mckinsey‐7s‐model‐framework.html>
Kumar, S. (2014, March 25). Changing Employees' Attitudes. Retrieved July 04, 2016, from Attitudes is Key to effective organizations: <http://www.citehr.com/2336‐employees‐attitudes‐key‐effective‐organization.html>.
