1. Reframing Organizations, 3rd ed.

2. Reframing Change: Training, Realigning, Negotiating and Grieving
Chapter 18
Reframing Change: Training, Realigning, Negotiating and Grieving

3. Reframing Change: Training, Realigning, Negotiating and Grieving
A Common Change Scenario: DDB Bank
Reframing Organizational Change
Change and Training
Change and Realignment
Change and Conflict
Change and Loss
Change Strategy
Team Zebra: The Rest of the Story

4. A Common Change Scenario: Thomas Lo at DDB Bank
Profitable bank faced changing environment
Thomas Lo recruited to improve service and innovate
Lo introduced many changes, but six months later nothing was different
Lo encountered lip service, passive resistance, but no overt conflict
Familiar story: hopeful beginning, muddle middle, disappointing ending
Change strategies that rely on only one or two frames usually fail

5. Table 18.1(a) Reframing Organizational Change
Frame
Barriers to Change
Essential Strategies
Structural
Loss of direction, clarity and stability; confusion, chaos
Communicating, realigning, and renegotiating formal patterns and policies
Human Resource
Anxiety, uncertainty
People feel incompetent and needy
Training to develop new skills; Participation & involvement; Psychological support

6. Table 18.1(b) Reframing Organizational Change
Frame
Barriers to Change
Essential Strategies
Political
Disempowerment
Conflict between winners & losers
Create arenas for negotiating issues, forming new coalitions
Symbolic
Loss of meaning and purpose; clinging to the past
Transition rituals; mourn past, celebrate future

7. Change and Training
Change initiatives often fail because employees lack knowledge and skills
People resist what they don’t understand, don’t know how to do, or don’t believe in
Training, participation and support can increase understanding of why change is needed, as well as skills and confidence needed to implement

8. Change and Realignment
Structural change undermines existing patterns, creating ambiguity, confusion and resistance
People don’t know how to get things done or who’s supposed to do what
Change efforts need to anticipate structural issues, realign roles and relationships

9. Change and Conflict Change creates winners and losers
Winners support the change and fight for its implementation
Losers resist, try to block change effort (and often succeed)
Conflicts often are buried, where they smolder and become more unmanageable
Successful change requires framing issues, building coalitions, and creating arenas where conflict can be surfaced and agreements negotiated

10. Change and Loss
Loss of a cherished symbol produces loss – akin to losing a job or a loved one
Change produces conflicting impulses: replay the past vs. plunge into the future
Cultures create transition rituals to ease loss
Ritual and ceremony are essential to successful change: celebrate or mourn the past and envision the future

11. Kotter: Stages of Effective Change
Create sense of urgency
Pull together guiding team with need skills, credibility and connections
Create uplifting vision and strategy
Communicate vision and strategy through words, deeds, symbols
Remove obstacles, empower people to move
Create visible progress: early wins
Persist when things get tough
Nurture and shape new culture to support new ways

12. Reframing Kotter’s Change Model
Kotter stage
Structural
Human resource
Political
Symbolic
Sense of urgency
Involve, solicit input
Network with key players
Build power base
Tell compelling story
Build guiding team
Coordina-tion strategy
Team building
Stack team with key players
Put CEO on team
Uplifting vision, strategy
Implemen-tation plan
Map political terrain
Create vision rooted in past

13. Reframing Kotter’s Change Model
Kotter stage
Structural
Human resource
Political
Symbolic
Communi-cate through words, deeds, symbols
Build structures to support change process
Meetings to communi-cate, get feedback
Create arenas
Build alliances
Kickoff ceremonies
Visible leadership
Remove obstacles, empower
Change old structures
Training, support, resources
Public hangings
Early wins
Plan for short-term victories
Do what it takes to get wins
Celebrate early progress

14. Reframing Kotter’s Change Model
Kotter stage
Structural
Human resource
Political
Symbolic
Keep going when going gets tough
Keep people on plan
Revival meetings
New cul-ture to support new ways
Align structure to new culture
Create “culture” team
Broad involvement in creating new culture
Mourn past
Celebrate heroes
Share stories

15. Team Zebra: The Rest of the Story
Top-down, Bottom-up Structural Design
Learning and Training
Areas for Venting Conflict
Occasions for Letting Go and Celebrating
Core values
Encouraging rituals
Anchoring vision
Inventing ceremonies to keep spirit high

16. Conclusion
Major organizational change inevitably generates four categories of issues
Affects individuals’ ability to feel effective
They need training, participation, support
Change disrupts existing patterns
Structure needs to be realigned
Change creates conflict
Need arenas to negotiate conflict, reach agreements
Change creates loss of meaning for recipients
Need transition rituals to mourn past and celebrate future