Shadows on the wall: Organization culture and change
LPart 2
organizational culture is. We stressed that every workplace has a culture, its own way of “doing things.” It shows in its policies and practices based on a shared system of beliefs, values, assumptions and expectations and demonstrated in the workplace in the manner constituents communicate, dress, do their respective tasks, follow protocols, decide, perform their task, view authority, etc.
Depending on an organization’s culture, the extent to which constituents have adopted such culture compatible with their personal “blueprint for living”—these considered, could either advance or impede desirable change in an organization.
Culture types of organizational constituents.
Like we wrote last week, there are three types of constituents. The who are content to keep the status quo even if circumstances demand a change and the
who wouldn’t allow new ideas to see the light of day. Third, are the
who study potential pay-off, armed with a studied risk to strive for desirable change.
The stages of change.
Psychologist Kurt Lewin suggests three stages of change—the present state, the transition state, and the desired state. A change leader discusses with constituents what’s undesirable and listens to their opinions on what seems lacking in an organization’s current state. Introducing change is not without pain; hence, constituents would be unwilling to undergo uncertainty while departing from the present state. For constituents to accept prove to those affected “that the present way of doing things is more painful than the pain that accompanies transition.” The leader or his team must be able to explain in a convincing and persuasive way why there is need for a change. Thus, before beginning any change, the current state,” points out clearly what is lacking, and “explains the potential approaches for improvement.” To be convincing, the change leader should explain the consequences of gaps that leader should be able to convince stakeholders what could be a systems breakdown if the status quo persists and would prevent planned change to materialize. What would be the side consequences if the desired transformation does not take place? The intended transformation is to be clearly expressed as intended outcomes of the needed change. These outcomes should be with clear targets and metrics and that such outcomes must be desirable for all.
The need to change necessitates assigning enough - gic tasks to collegially act as a team. They tasks during the process of introducing resources to carry on the tasks. They may need some coaching which the leader should be ready to provide for the teams to be able to collegially execute the details. “Transition planning might also involve creating new processes, writing
The transition state.
job descriptions, establishing performance expectations” and providing skills training. Very critical at this stage is an assurance of sustained support from the organization’s stakeholders. During this stage the leader must regularly update constituents and stakeholders about the steps being taken and progress made in accomplishing the strategic plan for regular feedback is a must.
“Changing an organization that is deeply and culturally set in its ways poses a challenge for a change leader.” To keep on track, a regular monitoring compliance to the agreed strategic plan “should be instituted to ensure that it remains on track.” “Established monitoring points will maintain the strategic direction,” for otherwise “the implementation phase gets bogged
The desired state.
Accurate feedback to constituents and stakeholders is critical. To ensure the progress of the desired state of organizational change is right, evaluate the effects of the planned change at phases of the strategic plan. This evaluation “provides an opportunity to benchmark results and compare them with goals and results, as well as
One wakes up was lost. How could such a thing happen? Could it be because life-views of constituents do not match that of the organization? Acculturation to organizational culture as “a socially constructed attribute of organizations” is critical to achieve desirable change. It is “the prevailing ideology that people carry inside their heads.” Thus, it affects “the way they think, feel, and behave.” It serves ‘as the social glue’ binding an organization together.”
Shadows on the wall?
As Aristotle’s story goes, a group of people who have long lived in darkness in a cave, sitting and facing a wall, while behind them was the cave’s opening to the real world, knew no reality except - tions of the world outside. Given they and see the actual world, they hold tightly to the shadows they have been used to—confusing these shadows with reality. Sad that they have transformed as
Risk takers could make us uncomfortable. But “without them, we risk spending our what we believe in.” Having been long in our respective caves, our beliefs and assumptions “are merely shadows on the wall.”