Question 1
Scope of Change
The aspects related to the work done are dealt by the scope of the change. It involves the individual doing the work and the method of performing that work. The aspects of decision making regarding the project operations also fall under the scope of the project. The scope of the project involves either radical changes or the incremental. The radical changes are fundamental whereas the incremental are local to the scenario. The change was incremental in the case of the Wichita as the specific needs of the project were addressed at the local level.
Pacing
The pacing of the change is either punctuated or the continuous. In punctuated pacing, there are clearly marked starting and the ending points of the change. However, in continuous pacing the change process is ongoing. The desire of the management was to have a punctuated change, but the change process took longer than the planned. Therefore, the pacing of the change was continuous. The continuous change process undertakes experiments and the improvements based on the experimentation. The problem chat as discussed in the case study clearly hints at the experimentation aspect. Initially, people showed resistance to the problem chat and only a few showed up. However, with time it was adopted and presented fix to many problems. Similarly, the problem of team building was not addressed by the problem chats, and the management experimented with the softball games for this purpose. This experiment was successful and became a success
Source
The source of change is bifurcated into top-down or bottom-up. The top-down involves change initiation from the management level, and it travels down the hierarchy. However, in bottom-up the change is initiated from the bottom level and travels up the hierarchy. In the given scenario, the change was bottom-up. The employees discussed the change areas and the problematic areas were accepted by the top management. The change was no doubt monitored by the top management, but the problematic areas were discussed in problem chats and SPITS teams.
Process
The change process is either planned or the emergent. The change process at Witchita was planned at the initiation level. The changes to be made were identified by the Jimenez as the increase in morale and the productivity. However, as over the time, there was no specific outline of the changes. The success of the Wichita is attributed to the phrase that “team rolled up with the punches”. In the given scenario the change process was planned at the start but emergent throughout the project.
Question 2
Jimenez’s change initiative addressed the problems of low productivity thin margins, high costs of maintenance and the increasing operating costs. The change initiative also addressed the problem of the increasing conflicts among the “brains” and the “brawns.” The initiative was successful due to the following reasons:
The change process faced less resistance and there were no hurdles in the process of change. The employees showed less friction to the change process and participated willingly showing the readiness to change. The organizational inertia and the negative consequences of the change were not anticipated in the initiative. One of the major reasons for the less resistance from the employees was the integration of the human resource practices with the change initiative.
The change process was bottom-up. The employees participated actively through the problems chats and the SPITS. The cross-functional teams of the employees were formed to fix the issues that were identified in the monthly problem chats. Jimenez identified that the leading problem of the friction was the conflict between the workers and the management and this problem contributed to the decreased productivity. Another reason for the success of the initiative was the feeling that the management was acting on the areas that the workers said need attention and modification. It increased the trust between the management and the workers leading to the increased productivity.
The selection of the David Keller as the project leader contributed to the success of the change initiative. He acted as a leader to the change process. He incorporated the importance of the change imitative among the minds of his workers and the colleagues and extolled that the change process was for the collective benefit of the employees and the organization. It increased the participation of the workforce in the change process at all levels.
Question 3
The problems of the Lubbock are same as that of the Wichita. The maintenance cost is high combined with the high fixed and the operating cost. The productivity at the Lubbock is declining, and the production goals of the planned were not met. The change initiative at the Lubbock was not successful chiefly due to the selection of the wrong model and dimensions.
There were some serious hurdles in the process of the change at the Lubbock. The employees and the workers showed increasing friction and resistance to the initiative. The reasons for the friction are the basic human nature, increasing force from the management and the organizational inertia. These factors are acting as hurdles in the way of the change process.
The Beckhard and Harris model of change initiative is adopted at Lubbock. This model focuses on the future aspects of the change process. The assumptions made regarding Lubbock by the Jimenez and her team was erroneous. The outcomes related the groups and the areas that will be affected by the change were already anticipated. In this way, the outlook on the present stage was ignored
Jimenez assumed that she was implementing the same change initiative at Lubbock as that of the Wichita. However, she changed the model without noticing.
Question 4
Jimenez has to think about reducing the rigidity among the employees for the participation in the change process. The employees at the moment have reduced motivation and involvement in any initiative. The free food and beer offered at the games have turned the event into the free food event, and the basic essence has lost. Therefore, it is time to change the attitudes or the workers. The best practice for this purpose is to hold a workshop directed at changing the beliefs of the employees. The plan and the content of the workshop should be directed at changing the beliefs of the employees so that they become participative.
In the case of Lubbock, the change initiative should be bottom-up rather than top-down. The management should hear to the needs of the employees. There might be some other reasons for the declining productivity and interest in the chats and SPITS. One possible reason for the declining interest can be the dissatisfaction associated with the benefits package. Therefore, the best possible solution is to hear to the employee’s needs.
Moreover, Jimenez needs to find a change leader, and the individual should be someone from the employees. This person will be able to facilitate the change process and will help in incorporating the positive emotions in the colleagues regarding the initiatives. The change leader will be an alternative to the role of the Keller that he played at Wichita.
