Organizational Change Efforts Research Articles

Remind me that I matter: how self-worth bias can enhance employee support for organizational change efforts

PurposeThe purpose of this empirical study was to test whether presenting organizational change in a way that enhances employee self-worth will result in increased employee support for the identified change. In doing so, we developed a new measure, which includes a novel baseline element.Design/methodology/approachItems were developed, and then categorical validation data were collected through an online cross-sectional survey in which 222 respondents (adults over 18 years of age, and at least 6 months tenure) participated.FindingsWithin the items, we framed the activation of self-worth bias as requests for employee comments regarding change efforts. Results indicate there is a difference between asking for employee comment on change efforts, compared to asking for employee comment on change efforts and also providing feedback considerate of that input.Originality/valueThis study explores and presents a convergence between behavioral economics, management and applied psychology research – using both self-worth bias, and organizational change management communications; no other such comparable study or analysis could be found during the preparation of this research effort. Furthermore, a novel measure and innovative method is presented for developing and measuring self-worth bias during organizational change management communications.

An end to the "muffin meeting": Conceptualizing power and navigating tokenism in patient engagement for health leaders.

Patient engagement is emerging as a priority for Canadian health leaders. Alongside the proliferation of patient engagement efforts in healthcare organizations and networks, awareness that tokenism can potentially occur within such efforts, as well as strategies to mitigate it, are gaining increased attention. While many actions associated with more tokenistic forms of patient engagement have been identified, this article posits there is a need to pay critical attention to the concept and role of power in enabling these actions in the first place. Of particular importance is how power and knowledge work to shape healthcare organizations and can create unequal relations with the patients they seek to engage. Drawing on the literature, this article serves as a theoretical roadmap for health leaders to think critically about power, as well as a set of prompts that can be used to reflexively consider their role in navigating power dynamics in the context of patient engagement efforts. This article contends that building awareness of power is a critical step for health leaders and organizations and that navigating power differences is a necessary leadership competency for engaging patients in decision-making throughout all stages of healthcare improvement and organizational change efforts.

Patient-planetary health co-benefit prescribing in a circumpolar health region: a qualitative study of physician voices from the Northwest Territories, Canada

BackgroundDespite climate change being described as a code red for humanity, health systems have been particularly slow in both climate mitigation and adaptation responses. The effects of climate change on...

Emergent Properties of Organizational Sensemaking Systems: A Grounded Theory Assessment of The HITEC Project

The process of organizational sensemaking initially attracted empirical attention as a tool for retrospectively assessing organizational decision-making during critical incidents (Weick, 1988, 1993). However, recent advancements in multilevel theory design have created an opportunity to re-envision organizational sensemaking not only as an individual and retrospective process but as a broader macro-cognitive and multilevel organizational system. The identification and intentional design of organizational sensemaking systems can potentially facilitate present and future decision-making processes and organizational change management. Using the organizational sensemaking systems paradigm proposed by Hughes, et al. (2022), this study builds on the inductive assessment of a significant organizational change effort to extract novel theoretical propositions of the emergent properties of organizational sensemaking systems. Results include the identification of properties of organizational sensemaking systems and a series of theoretical propositions about the nature of sensemaking emergence. The potential implications for change management practice and future empirical work are discussed.

Investigation of PESTEL factors driving change in capital project organizations

In a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous environment, organizational change has been a central concern for capital project organizations, that continue to suffer from poor project performance in a growing industry. As such, capital project organizations must understand the changing environment and the factors driving change within their organizations to remain successful in a changing environment and adapt to change. To help the capital projects industry achieve successful organizational change efforts, this paper aims to 1) identify the external factors that are pushing capital project organizations to change and 2) investigate whether these factors impact organizations differently. To achieve the desired objective, a total of 22 PESTEL (political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal) factors were identified and validated with a group of 14 subject matter experts and defined via the context of literature. Then, the factors were evaluated via an online survey to understand whether they impact organizations differently based on their age maturity (including contemporary, transitional, and legacy organizations) and type of work (including owners, contractors, and service providers). Findings from this study can provide capital project practitioners and researchers with valuable insights needed to understand the external factors shaping change within the industry.

Responding to the Kairotic Moment: Advancing Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Through Allyship in Canadian Mining

Organizations are seeking to advance equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) to attract and retain their workforce. To support the mining sector’s transition from a traditionally male-dominated workforce, The Mining Association of Canada (MAC) has developed new EDI accountability frameworks. In this paper, I argue that Canadian mining organizations and their leaders are experiencing a kairotic moment — an opportune moment in time requiring action — and need to respond accordingly. Now that the window of opportunity has opened, mining leaders need to act, both to support organizational change efforts and in everyday allyship actions. This article holds significance to equip transformational change-agents.

Challenges in Implementing and Sustaining Community College Organizational Change for Student Success

Community colleges are challenged with creating and sustaining student success organizational change. Institutional-level student success reform efforts are needed to combat the unacceptably low student completion rates, but colleges often struggle to initiate and maintain organizational reforms. After many years of reform efforts, researchers have provided theories for whole college organizational change, in particular guided pathways, that shows great promise in helping community colleges realize student success and completion gains while targeting and reducing racial equity gaps. A literature review focused on determining the internal reasons why institutions struggle to create and sustain organizational change was conducted. Contextual challenges, awareness and motivation, and change management process challenges within the institutions were several of the key causes identified. Within contextual challenges, organizational structures including college policies, practices, and governance, as well as leadership and funding challenges were cited as barriers to organizational change for student success. A lack of awareness of the need for or how change by faculty, staff, and administrators, along with a lack of motivation or resistance to the change can also create significant roadblocks for colleges. Change management process challenges within the institution including a lack of professional development for leaders in change management strategies was also cited as a significant challenge to developing and sustaining an effective organizational change effort. Knowing these challenges can lead to informed approaches that college leaders, faculty, and staff take to implement, hopefully helping institutions sustain change reform at scale over the long-term and ultimately benefit the overall goal of increased student success and completion.

Patient perspectives of the climate of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the emergency department.

ObjectiveAssessing the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) climate of emergency departments (EDs) can inform organizational change to provide equitable, inclusive, and high‐quality care to their diverse patient populations. The purpose of this project was to investigate patient perspectives on the climate of DEI in an urban ED.MethodsThis was a cross‐sectional survey study conducted in a large‐volume, urban ED in Detroit, MI, from November 2018 to January 2019. The survey was developed by an experienced ED DEI committee via an iterative process and broad consensus.ResultsDuring their care in the ED, 849 patients completed an anonymous survey about their perspectives and experiences of DEI in that ED. Overall, the responses were favorable as most respondents reported that the ED staff treated patients from all races equally (75.8%) and made patients feel accepted (86%). However, some respondents felt that the ED staff's treatment of populations with greater complexity, such as patients who are mentally ill (16.8%) or lower income (14.3%), needs the most improvement.ConclusionsThis DEI climate assessment survey of ED patients’ perspectives revealed important insights that could guide strategic initiatives to advance DEI in the ED. This assessment may serve as a model for continuous evaluation of DEI over time and in multiple healthcare settings to help guide organizational change efforts.

Understanding Human Nature, Temporal and Resource Assumptions in Organization Change

Though academic literature has covered organizational change management for more than seven decades, an intriguing question arises “Why do most organizational change efforts fail to achieve the desired goals?”. Given that the majority of large complex change management efforts fail, the fundamental question which intrigues researchers are the reasons for such change failure. One of the possible reasons can be that classical change management theories are based on simplistic assumptions related to resources, temporal and human nature. We investigate and illustrate assumptions related to time, human nature and resources in the context of change management theories. The assumptions in these theories are unrealistic, which hinder our understanding of change management. We posit that a more realistic understanding will help to understand the complex change management process, which will help managers to better implement change management in practice.

Institutional Partnerships for Transfer Student Success: An Examination of Catalysts and Barriers to Collaboration

Objective: Strong institutional partnerships are critical to the transfer process for students because they can help ease navigation from one college to the next. This research seeks to better understand the nature of high-performing transfer partnerships, and the factors that can either promote or hinder their development. Methods: Drawing upon qualitative data from a larger mixed methods study, we visited seven institutional pairs of community college (sending) and baccalaureate-granting (receiving) institutions and interviewed 170 administrators, staff, and faculty. Data were analyzed using perspectives on educational collaborations and the forces that can impact organizational change efforts. Results: Our findings highlight factors that influence the development, growth, or continuation of transfer partnerships. We propose a framework that can be used to analyze transfer partnerships based on institutional culture, practices, and policies. Contributions: This research extends the work on transfer partnerships by providing a comprehensive picture of the organizational forces that impact their change over time. We also offer suggestions for how these findings can be used to develop or enhance transfer partnerships that can move institutions toward more equitable student outcomes.

Refining a DEI Assessment Tool for Use in Optimizing Professional STEM Societies for Gender Equity.

Historic science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplinary cultures were founded in a system that was predominately male, white, heterosexual, and able-bodied (i.e., “majority”). Some societal norms have changed, and so has demand for inclusive STEM engagement. However, legacy mental models, or deeply held beliefs and assumptions, linger and are embedded in the STEM system and disciplinary cultures. STEM reform is needed to maximize talent and create inclusive professions, but cannot be achieved without recognizing and addressing norms and practices that disproportionately serve majority vs. minoritized groups. As leading voices in disciplinary work and application, disciplinary and professional societies (Societies) are instrumental in shaping and sustaining STEM norms. We, leaders of the Amplifying the Alliance to Catalyze Change for Equity in STEM Success (ACCESS+) project, recognize the need to provide Society diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) change leaders with tools necessary to foster systemic change. In this Perspectives article, we present the Equity Environmental Scanning Tool (EEST) as an aid to help Society DEI change leaders elucidate legacy mental models, discern areas of strength, identify foci for advancement, and benchmark organizational change efforts. We share our rationale and work done to identify, and, ultimately, adapt a Society DEI self-assessment tool from the United Kingdom. We share background information on the UK tool, content and structural changes made to create the EEST, and an overview of the resulting EEST. Ultimately, we seek to increase awareness of a Society-specific DEI self-assessment tool designed to help Society DEI change leaders advance inclusive reform.

How Diversity Fails: An Empirical Investigation of Organizational Status and Policy Implementation on Three Public Campuses

Although diversity has been a guiding preoccupation in higher education for several decades, organizational diversity practice, i.e., what happens when colleges and universities implement diversity plans, is rarely a subject of inquiry. As a result, there is relatively little empirical understanding of why diversity has failed to significantly advance racial equity on college campuses. In response, this ethnographic, collective case study draws on interviews with 54 respondents, archival and organizational documents, and campus observations to interrogate diversity practice on three campuses of different status in one public system in the U.S. This study employs Bourdieu’s theory of practice, specifically institutional habitus as an analytic lens, to examine the influence of campus social status on diversity practice related to a statewide policy. Findings reveal that each campus has a unique institutional habitus—that is, a status-linked sense of campus identity, constraints, and opportunities—that prefigured and, on most campuses, derailed diversity practice in response to the policy. Only the middle-status campus made any substantive progress. By juxtaposing these findings, this analysis demonstrates that diversity practice does not exist within a campus vacuum; instead, it is inevitably influenced, constrained, or aided by the institutional habitus of the organizational environment. The paper concludes by arguing that organizational change efforts that recognize diversity work as a situated organizational practice that reflects broader power relations can better challenge inequities to spur transformative change across educational levels and contexts.

Exploring Variety in Factors That Stimulate Project Owners to Address Sustainability

Concerns about sustainability drive organizations to assume responsibility for societal impacts. Reducing negative impacts requires organizational change. Given the ability of information technology/systems to optimize business processes, it is an important contributor to more sustainable business practices. Projects play an instrumental role in the transition of organizations towards sustainability. Within projects, the project owner bears the responsibility of aligning the project with the strategies of the organization. However, in the assignment and governance of projects, project owners need to balance different interests and limitations. The study reported in this article focuses on the factors that stimulate project owners to address sustainability. Deploying Q-methodology, the study found 4 distinct stimulus patterns of project owners. The findings confirm that the behavior of managers is influenced by both rational and emotional factors. With these findings, organizations can fine-tune their organizational change efforts, in order to realize their sustainability strategies.

Exploring transformational change in a state wildlife agency

ABSTRACT Changes in public values, beliefs, and expectations are leading to calls for transformational change in natural resource management agencies. Paradoxically, however, organizational features of management agencies condition them to seek stability rather than change. We evaluated quantitative data from 2012 to 2017 surveys of personnel and coded employee focus groups and individual interviews to evaluate an organizational change effort within a state wildlife agency (SWA). Results suggested that employees perceived increased positive changes and increased support from management for the change initiative, which contributed to greater personal commitment to the change initiative. No differences, however, were detected in other indicators of change in the culture, such as openness to new ideas, over the five-year period. Qualitative findings revealed specific drivers and barriers to change. We interpret these findings and provide recommendations to leaders in other SWAs who may be considering organizational change efforts. Our findings suggest that tempered expectations among stakeholders and organizations are warranted regarding the rate and magnitude at which organizational change can occur.

Diversity and Inclusion Working Group: Beyond the IFAC Statement of Values

As set out in 2021, the profile of the International Federation of Automatic and Control (IFAC) has been evolving in the area of Diversity and Inclusion (O'Neill et al, 2021). The paper presented by O'Neill et al, 2021 raised the profile of D&I within IFAC. Momentum was gained with the statement of values in the process of being adopted by the IFAC D&I Committee. The original contribution of this paper is that it details some of the solid positive progress made within IFAC in the interests of D&I since then. As with all change, when there is a strategy that is well communicated to the organization, then it is more likely to have a successful outcome. Kotter and Schlesinger discuss a systematic way to select an organizational strategy with a set of specific approaches for implementing an organizational change effort (Kotter, J. P. and Schlesinger, L. A. 2008). Progress is being made but change is slow. This paper outlines progress to date and speaks to future possibilities and connecting with other large groups such as the IEEE to see how they explore the diversity and inclusion potential within their organization as a means of moving forward. It aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development goal 5 Gender Equality. It presents a leadership opportunity for IFAC as an organization. Finally, this paper acts as an opportunity to open the discussion and be more inclusive. Inputs are sought rather like a green paper which could potentially lead to a policy document.

Influential Article Review - Physical Response to Transition and Organizational Wellbeing

This paper examines corporate social responsibility. We present insights from a highly influential paper. Here are the highlights from this paper: Organizational change has become inevitable. Although modernity is characterized by change, humans struggle with change as the future becomes increasingly unpredictable. The extended disorder that has become the norm can cause a sense of loss as well as anxiety for individuals, organizations and society. Unrelieved stress becomes perpetual and will undeniably influence organizational change efforts negatively. Thus, the impact of fear, anxiety and stress at an individual and organizational level is accentuated. This study followed a qualitative research approach and adopted a grounded theory methodology. Negative emotions dominated the research data which further indicated that individuals find it difficult to engage with change in a meaningful manner as fear, anxiety and stress dominate. Thus, human reactions to change are discussed, as the organizational challenge seems to be how to find workable methods to reduce fear, anxiety and stress. Else it may become persistent, intense, chronic or recurring. Real-life stresses may then further hamper individual functioning. The researcher conceptualizes the anti-leader and anti-manager. These concepts depict the negative characteristics of leadership and management which invariably increase individuals’ fear, anxiety and stress levels. Emotions elicited by the anti-leader or anti-manager could potentially split, divide and fragment a workforce. For our overseas readers, we then present the insights from this paper in Spanish, French, Portuguese, and German.

Mapping social structures for sustainability transformation at McGill University, Canada

PurposeFor a university to be a prime mover for sustainability transformation, all units of the university should contribute. However, organizational change in educational institutions is often studied by examining specific domains such as research or operation in isolation. This results in a less-than-complete picture of the potential for university-wide change. In contrast, this paper aims to examine the network of social relations that determine the diffusion and sustainability of change efforts across a university. The authors use McGill University (Canada) as a model system to study the network of actors concerned with sustainability to learn how this network influences the penetration of sustainability throughout the university.Design/methodology/approachTo explore the existing social structure, the authors use an innovative approach to illuminate the influence of social structure on organizational change efforts. Using a mixed methods approach combining social network analysis with qualitative interview data, the authors examine the influence of the social structure on sustainability transformation at McGill University. The authors conducted 52 interviews between January and April 2019 with representatives of different sustainability groups at the university across six domains (research, education, administration, operations, connectivity and students).FindingsThe authors find that McGill University has a centralized system with a low density. The network is centralized around the Office of Sustainability. The limited cross-domain interaction appears to be a result of differences in motivation and priorities. This leads to a network that has many actors but only a limited number of connections between them. The quality of the relationships is often utilitarian, with only a few relationships aiming for support and mutual growth.Originality/valueThis study brings together social network analysis, sustainability transformation and higher education in a new way. It also illustrates the complexity of guiding a large organization, such as a university, toward a sustainability transformation. Furthermore, it reveals the importance of considering each part of the university as part of an interconnected network rather than as isolated components.

The Context of Crisis: Teacher social network effects during crisis-based organizational change

This exploratory study examines the ways in which teacher social networks vary by organizational context. The study draws on data collected in a large urban adjacent public school district in New England after start the start of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent switch to remote instruction. In so doing, the study compares changes in teacher’s informal advice networks in the same schools during both a “Status Quo” context relative to a context of “Crisis-based Organizational Change.” Results indicate that central traits of teacher advice networks – out-degree centrality, tie strength, and network composition – vary with organizational context. Further, these network traits are associated with variation in network mechanisms supporting more positive perceptions of innovative climate in each context. Findings of this study suggest that organizational context may drive variation in the ways that networks support the same organization outcome, furthering the notion that how networks ‘work’ is not the same in all instances. Implications for future research of teacher social networks and implications for school managerial staff involved in organizational change efforts are discussed.

Leading Culture Change in Public Recreation

This study examined the planning, design, and implementation of a culture change program in a major North American public sport organization. Using interview data from 67 participants, the authors offer a rare, in-depth account of organizational culture change and discuss in particular how the change agent in charge of the initiative was able to manage employee concerns and resistance. At the heart of this successful transformation was a careful and intentional willingness of the change agent to consistently revisit, reinforce and recommunicate culture change along with all its facets and to connect all steps of the process to the ritualistic expression of the organization’s identity. This research offers a counter-perspective to technocratic imaginations of organizational culture change as neatly programmed, stepwise activity. Instead, the authors highlight the importance of attending to the continuous, local, and heterogeneous reframing activities underpinning organizational change efforts.

Implementation of participatory organizational change in long term care to improve safety

Introduction: Long Term Care (LTC) facilities are fast-paced, demanding environments placing workers at significant risk for injuries. Health and safety interventions to address hazards in LTC are challenging to implement. The study assessed a participatory organizational change intervention implementation and impacts. Methods: This was a mixed methods implementation study with a concurrent control, conducted from 2017 to 2019 in four non-profit LTC facilities in Ontario, Canada. Study participants were managers and frontline staff. Intervention sites implemented a participatory organizational change program, control sites distributed one-page health and safety pamphlets. Program impact data were collected via Survey (self-efficacy, control over work, pain and general health) and observation (Quick Exposure Checklist). Interviews/focus groups were used to collect program implementation data. Results: Participants described program impacts (hazard controls through equipment purchase/modification, practice changes, and education/training) and positive changes in culture, communication and collaboration. There was a statistically significant difference in manager self-efficacy for musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) hazards between the control and intervention sites over time but no other statistical differences were found. Key program implementation challenges included LTC hazards, staff shortage/turnover, safety culture, staff time to participate, and communication. Facilitators included frontline staff involvement during implementation, management support, focusing on a single unit, training, and involving an external program facilitator. Conclusion: A participatory program can have positive impacts on identifying and reducing MSD hazards. Key to success is involving frontline staff in identifying hazards and creating solutions and management encouragement on a unit working together. High turnover rates, staffing shortages, and time constraints were barriers as they are for all organizational change efforts in LTC. The implementation findings are likely applicable in any jurisdiction. Practical Application: Implementing a participatory organizational change program to reduce MSD hazards is feasible in LTC and can improve communication and aid in identification and control of hazards.