What are the Participation and Organizational Change?

Organizational change is inevitable in a progressive culture. Modern organizations are highly dynamic, versatile, and adaptive to the multiplicity of changes. This article explains employee Participation and Organizational Change; According to Cambridge Dictionary; “A process in which a large company or organization changes its working methods or aims, for example, to develop and deal with new situations or markets”.

Explain are employee Participation and Organizational Change.

Organizational Change looks both at the process in which a company or any organization changes its operational methods, technologies, organizational structure, whole structure, or strategies, as well as what effects these changes have on it. As well as Organizational change usually happens in response to; or as a result of; external or internal pressures.

“Around 25 to 30 percent of the existing companies might force to stop operations in the country in the next 2 – 3 years. This trend is likely to take place because of the increasing change in the Indian economy which has moved from the regulated and protected regime towards a more open and competitive the regulated and protected regime towards a more open and competitive economy. In this changing perspective, only those who can compete and survive would emerge and take over the place of old ones.” Also learn, What are the Participation and Organizational Climate? employee Participation and Organizational Change.

Meaning of Organizational Change:

Employee participation and Organizational Change looks both at the process in which a company or any organization changes its operational methods, technologies, organizational structure, whole structure, or strategies, as well as what effects these changes have on it. Organizational change usually happens in response to – or as a result of – external or internal pressures.

It is all about reviewing and modifying structures – specifically management structures – and business processes. Small commercial enterprises need to adapt to survive against larger competitors – they also need to learn to thrive in that environment. Large rivals need to adapt rapidly when a smaller, innovative competitor comes onto the scene.

Definition of Organizational Change:

Company or organization going through a transformation. Organizational change occurs when business strategies or major sections of an organization are altered. Also known as reorganization, restructuring, and turnaround.

FACTORS IN ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE:

Organizational changes are required to maintain equilibrium between various external and internal forces to achieve organizational goals. What are Factors in Organizational Change? Therefore various factors that may be important for necessitating organizational changes may be group into two categories: external and internal.

• EXTERNAL FACTORS.
• INTERNAL FACTORS, and.
• PLANNED CHANGE.

One of Newton’s laws is that “bodies in motion tend to stay in motion: bodies at rest”. There is an organizational version of this basic truth. Those who believe in growth and forward movement tend to be exemplars of change, while those who believe in “this is how we do things around here” lead to doom. Therefore, bringing change in the planned manner is the prime responsibility of all forward-looking managers.

The planned change aims to prepare the total organization, or a major portion of it, to adapt to significant changes in the organization’s goals and direction. Thomas and Bennis have defined planned change as follows: “Planned change is the deliberate design and implementation of a structural innovation, a new policy or goal or a change in operating philosophy, climate or style.”

TECHNOLOGY-RELATED CHANGES:

Technology refers to the total of knowledge providing ways to do things. It may include inventions and techniques which affect the way of doing things, this is designing, producing, and distributing products. Technology related changes may include:

• Changing problem – solving and decision-making procedures.
• Introduction of automated data processing devices like computers to facilitate managerial planning and control.
• Change in methods of production like the conversion of unit production to mass production.
• Thus any change in technology necessitates the change in all these factors.

TASK-RELATED CHANGES:

Technology – related changes determine the types of tasks that may require completing an operation. However what alternatives are chosen must consider the core job characteristics – skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback from the job. Task-related changes must focus on:

• High internal work motivation.
• High quality work performance.

STRUCTURE-RELATED CHANGES:

Structural changes redefine the nature of relationships among various organizational positions and may include:

• Changing the number of hierarchical levels.
• Changing one form of organization to another form.
• The Changing span of management, and.
• A Changing line – staff and functional authority.

When structural changes are affecting, these may affect the formal reporting relationships, formal interaction patterns, and consequently informal relations.

PEOPLE-RELATED CHANGES:

Changes of any type as pointed out above require changes in people in an organization. These changes may be of two types – skills and behavior. The magnitude of these changes depends on the type of change. For example, if there is a change in technology says from manual to automated, it requires the different type of skills in the operators as compared to the previously used skills. Similarly, changes in behavior and the social-psychological factors determining behavior are requiring.

OBJECTIVES OF PLANNED CHANGE:

The planned change is needed to meet the overall objectives of the organization. Since there may be changes in the forces – both internal and external – affecting organizational functioning the organization has to make a suitable change to meet its objectives. Thus objectives for such change may be two-fold:

• Modification of the organization’s mode of adaptation to changes in its environment, and.
• Modification of structure, technology attitudes, values, and other behavioral constructs of people in the organization.

1. Environmental Adaptation:

The organization is an adaptive – coping system, it has to work in an environment that is marked by dynamic characteristics. Every organization tends to maintain balance and equilibrium. Because of changes in the environment, the organizational equilibrium is affecting. If the changes are minor and come within the preview of existing programmers, the organization will accommodate them automatically.

However, if the changes cannot adapt to the existing framework, the organizational equilibrium will imbalance and organizational effectiveness is adversely affected. IN this case, the organization requires some innovation. This innovation is in the form of various changes that the organization has to incorporate. Simply because of this reason, every organization has an adaptive subsystem, such as the research and development department, marketing research department, and so on.

2. Individual Adaption:

The second objective of the planned change is to achieve individual adaptation. The organization cannot reach the objective of its environmental adaptation unless some basic internal adaptation is achieving. These internal factors may-be individuals, organization structure, technology, and task. Individuals are the first in this contact.

For organizational effectiveness, people have to change themselves so that they can cope with the requirement of change circumstances. Such changes may require in their attitudes, communication system, the way of behaving, leadership and work styles, and other relevant organizational behavior. Such changes must make according to the need for a new situation.

3. Structural Adaption:

Organizational structure is the pattern of relationships among various positions and various position holders. Structural adaptation involves changing the internal structure of the organization. This change may be in the whole set of relationships, work assignments, and authority structures. Changes in organizational structure are requiring because old relationships and interactions no longer remain valid and useful in the change circumstances.

4. Technological Adaptation:

The impact of recent technological development has forced the organization to take into account the role of technology in organizational success. To cope with the changing environment which may include technological factors as well, the organization has to incorporate new technology. Thus this technological adaptation forces directly the organization to change its task.

5. Task Adaptation:

Technological changes may bring many types of changes in an organizational task. Task forces on the job performed by the individuals in the organization. Since there may be many new types of jobs, the existing job performing techniques may not be suitable. Moreover, there may be a new job load because of job enlargement. In such a case, a new equilibrium has to found out which matches people with jobs. In this matching process, there may be several problems that must encounter by the plan change.

Reference:

1. Meaning – //marketbusinessnews.com/financial-glossary/organizational-change-definition-meaning/
2. Definition – //www.businessdictionary.com/definition/organization-change.html
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