Change Management Tools Research Articles

Change management at clusters: first results of a change management survey among clusters at European level

Change is a natural characteristic of organisations at the end of the twentieth century and in the upcoming ages. The dynamism of the environmental effects and the heterogeneity of the environment urge organisations to continuously adapt to these changes. It means that organisations and clusters which are more or less agglomeration of organizations should be open to external influences and those organisations responding faster are more viable. From the professional literature several change management methods and tools are known. However, few sources deal with clusters. A cluster is also a unique organizational structure: its specialty lies in the fact that even large clusters are built up from smaller organisations in an environment where flexibility, rapid economic decisions and high level buoyancy is needed. The question is whether the general change management methods and approaches can be interpreted regarding clusters.

LIVING WELL DYING WELL: PUTTING THESE WORDS INTO ACTION

BackgroundProviding quality end of life care in residential aged care (RAC) is influenced by multiple drivers including the workforce to deliver care. Older Australians rank palliative care and dying with...

Anxiously Waiting No More: Innovative Approach to Improving Access to Care and Decreasing Wait Times in the Mood Disorders Clinic

The Centre for Addictions and Mental Health (CAMH) is the largest psychiatry facility in Toronto, Canada. The Mood and Anxiety program is one of the clinical programs out of nine. It provides inpatients and outpatients services to patients with mood and/or anxiety disorders. The core outpatient services of the Mood and Anxiety Program (MAP) are comprised of the following clinical services: Mood Disorders Clinic (MDC), Early Intervention Clinic (EIC), Anxiety Disorders Clinic (ADC), Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) and the Day Treatment Program (DTP). In 2007 the Mood and Anxiety program took on a program wide improvement initiative. Prior to this initiative each service maintained a separate and distinct intake process. Following the 2005 accreditation process and the surveyors made recommendations to the program to: Adopt an integrated approach to delivering care to patients with mood and anxiety disorders. With the current process the Mood and Anxiety Program was also concerned that the fragmentary nature of this arrangement was confusing to the community and added to the lengthy wait times at each clinic. The purpose of this initiative was to develop a streamlined, centralized intake process, establish internal benchmarks and provide continuous performance measurement, ultimately, improving patients’ services, increasing patient access to CAMHs Mood and Anxiety programs ambulatory services and decreasing wait times. Quality improvement and change management tools and methodologies were used. This report illustrates the work done at the largest clinic, MDC, and the results achieved. The initiative was carried out in two phases, a consultative and implementation phase of developing a centralized intake utilizing the process improvement tools. A managerial (process control) phase to take the newly developed process and establish a continuous improvement culture of developing and utilizing internal benchmarks, performance measurement indicators and consistent change management methodology.

Systematic approach in maintenance management improvement

Process performance measurement is a strong tool for change management in organisation which supports process improvement. This definition includes all activities which present objective and detailed information about process performance. Therefore, it is necessary to set appropriate key performance indicators (KPI) which can objectively describe process effectiveness. In an organisation, the mostly used indicators are amount of production, amount of non-conformity of financial indicators. This paper presents the major advantages and disadvantages in creation processes of KPI, especially in maintenance management processes. It compares different uses of KPI/MPI/SPI in several industry areas and highlights gaps in methodology of KPIs creation and their management according to monitored processes and activities. The aim of this contribution is to create fundamental framework for KPI/MPI/SPI identification in processes of maintenance management related to known processes in several industry enterprises.

Change Management Tools for Systemic Results

This case study explores the tools used by a change agent within a public school system. Theoretical connections, results, and resistance are discussed in relation to the change. The author reinforces the practical application of theory during an episodic Lewinian change within a single organizational context.

SERCREA+ model: a business tool for change management in Mexican organizations

PurposeThe goal of this article is to develop a SERCREA+ model for the case of Mexico, paying special attention to the aspects concerning change management that allows, among other things, the promotion of high‐quality entrepreneurships that would facilitate a greater business sustainability over time, and that would have positive effects on economic growth and employment.Design/methodology/approachTo develop the empirical analysis, an interview with 36 Mexican businessmen involved in the management process has been done.FindingsThe data obtained show that change management has important positive effects in promoting sales, and the creation of a support group, that is an entrepreneurship club, would make business activity more sustainable over time.Originality/valueTraditionally Mexican analysis has focused on the economic part of the companies, without considering the aspects of change management. This paper studies the different elements of the change management process that allow the promotion of high‐quality entrepreneurship that would facilitate a greater business sustainability over time, and which would have positive effects on economic growth and employment.

Requirements for Operations to Take Advantage of the Flexibility of Soa

Efficient, controlled, and managed IT operations are strongly influenced by the architecture of a solution. A service-oriented architecture has a high level of flexibility and can respond to environmental changes and requirements. In this paper, we show, within the change management process, that simple reuse of operation tools, typically developed for client/server-based architectures, do not work with the requirements of SOA. To take advantage of the flexibility of SOA, the traditional change management system-oriented approach has to be changed into a business process-oriented approach, which results in fundamental new requirements for change management tools and services. Furthermore similar conclu- sions can be derived for other typical operation tasks. Consequently, the common understanding of the necessary central elements of SOA has to be extended. Another fundamental element is required for process-oriented operations: a central operations cockpit. We show what such a tool looks like and which requirements services have to fulfil. We use the exam- ple of change management. For service design and development, a SOA-compatible service has not only to fulfil require- ments of the common basic elements, but also has to provide a central operations cockpit.

Practice change in community pharmacy: using change-management principles when implementing a pharmacy asthma management service in NSW, Australia

This study aimed to investigate the application of a research-based change-management tool, the Pharmacy Change Readiness Wheel (PCRW), in practice, and the impact it had on the implementation of an asthma service (Pharmacy Asthma Management Service or PAMS). All pharmacists implementing the PAMS in the state of New South Wales, Australia, were provided training using a custom-designed module explaining change readiness as it applied to the PAMS. This training and a self-administered PCRW checklist were completed before PAMS implementation. Following PAMS service delivery, semi-structured phone interviews were conducted with the pharmacists and any additional staff involved regarding their experiences of change management. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and content analysed. Thirty seven of the forty five pharmacies who delivered PAMS returned the PCRW checklist (82% response rate) and participants from 29 pharmacies were interviewed (29 pharmacists and six additional staff). Perception of readiness for change before service delivery was remarkably high. From the interviews conducted after service delivery it was evident that systematic management of the practice change using theoretical concepts had not really been undertaken and that many challenges were faced in the implementation of practice change (PAMS). The results of the content analysis from the interviews revealed that factors external or internal to the pharmacy or those related to the individual pharmacist could affect implementation of practice change. Change is not as straightforward as it may appear and is a multi-step process over time. Pharmacists were unaware of this. A change-management framework should be applied to specific services with enough flexibility so that pharmacists can individualise them for their pharmacies.

Are theatre and business links relevant? A conceptual paper and a case study

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine why theatre‐business links are relevant to management. The focus is on two types of links: using theatre techniques as a training method for managers, and using corporate theatre as a change management tool. The paper seeks to share an experience and tries to explicate the processes involved in order to explain the success of these two kinds of courses, both training theatre and corporate theatre (specifically, action theatre in this case).Design/methodology/approachThis is a case study. Theatre has been taught for ten years at the Grenoble Graduate School of Business under the author's responsibility, and also the corporate theatre method is taught to initial students and to continuing training managers. This paper is based on those teaching experiences. To explain the relevance of both of theatre as a training tool and corporate theatre as a management tool, the author relates to both theories of body memory from neuroscientists and to the catharsis phenomenon.FindingsThe goal was to make hypotheses from the above theories which explain the process that takes place inside the manager undergoing training and to open further research.Research limitations/implicationsMain limitations come from the lack of established empirical and relevant measures of the effects of such theatre processes on participants’ management abilities and from the lack of tools to measure the long‐term effects of theatre.Practical implicationsThe most important implication is that practitioners could make more relevant use of such techniques when designing training sessions or utilizing corporate theatre interventions.Social implicationsSocial implications come from how the “human” face of theatre can help the personal development of managers, improving or changing their views on the world and other people.Originality/valueAlthough theatre and business links are more than 20 years old, nobody has previously tried to understand the inner processes involved.

End of life care for people with dementia: an intervention to promote collaborative working between care home staff and healthcare practitioners

BackgroundIn England most care homes have no on-site clinician and rely on primary healthcare for end-of-life (EOL) support. The Evidem EOL study focused on end-of-life care for elders with dementia...

소프트웨어 개발 프로젝트를 위한 요구관리도구의 기능요건 연구

정보시스템 구축 프로젝트의 복잡성과 규모가 점차 커지면서, 프로젝트가 실패하는 경우가 발생한다. 프로젝트의 실패의 원인을 분석해보면 사용자의 프로젝트 이해 부족, 불명확한 요구사항 및 요구사항변경 등으로 소프트웨어 개발 생명주기 중 요구사항 분석 단계에서 대부분의 원인을 찾을 수 있다. 본 논문은 소프트웨어 개발 프로젝트에서 요구분석을 통해 도출된 기능과 변경요구 기능간의 추적 등 개발 생명주기 전체 기간 동안 지속적인 요구사항 변경 관리가 가능하게 하는 도구를 설계하였다. 그리고 프로젝트 관련자들 사이에서 충분한 합의와 협의를 통해 공통의 이해를 구축하는 효과적인 의사소통을 지원하는데 필요한 기능에 대해 논의한다. Information system gradually increases the complexity and scale of the project, while if the project fails to occur. To analyze the causes of failure of the project a lack of understanding of your project, unclear requirements and requirements change, etc. of the software development life cycle from requirements analysis phase is to find the source of most. In this paper, a software development project needs analysis derived from the traceability between features and functionality, and development needs throughout the life cycle requirements during the ongoing change management tool was designed to allow. And among those related to the project through consultation with a sufficient consensus to build a common understanding of effective communication will discuss the features required to support.

Outcomes Management: Incorporating and Sustaining Processes Critical to Using Outcome Data to Guide Practice Improvement

An outcomes management system (OMS) greatly facilitates an organization or state achieving requirements regarding accountability and use of empirically based interventions. A case example of the authors' experience with a successful and enduring OMS is presented, followed by a review of the literature and a proposed model delineating the key components and benefits of an OMS. Building capacity to measure performance requires embedding utilization of youth-specific, clinically meaningful outcome data into the organization's processes and structures. An OMS measures outcomes associated with services, facilitates implementation of evidence-based practices, informs case decision making, enables better and more efficient clinical management, and provides aggregated information used to improve services. A case-specific supervisory model based on instantaneously available information, including progress to date, helps maximize consumer outcomes. Continuous quality improvement activities, which are databased and goal-oriented, become a positive change management tool. This paper describes organizational processes that facilitate the development of a highly functional OMS.

Aligning change deployment: a Balanced Scorecard approach

PurposeChange literature emphasizes the significance of aligning change at a systemic level for sustained effectiveness of strategic change initiatives. While this body of literature emphasizes the significance of psychological and process dimensions of managing change, research on an integrated and strategic approach to deploy, track, measure and sustain large‐scale changes has been limited and inconclusive. The purpose of this paper is to address this gap in the literature to propose a holistic conceptual framework for identifying, formulating, deploying, measuring, aligning and tracking strategic changes in organizations.Design/methodology/approachSpecifically, core concepts drawn from scholarly literature and practitioner writings from distinct fields of change management and strategy deployment tools, primarily the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) as proposed by Kaplan and Norton, are reviewed, synthesized and critiqued, to inform and advance the integrated framework proposed.FindingsThe suggested approach draws significantly from the BSC framework and focuses on the use of formal steps such as developing change themes and results, setting change objectives, developing lead and lag performance measures for measuring strategic change objectives. Furthermore, the proposed framework also provides directions on how to track the progress of change initiatives with respect to the desired objectives, for evaluating the effectiveness of change deployment efforts, all through applying cause and effect linkages.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough the focus on individual change arose to support technical deployment of change, over the years the strategic deployment process itself has not received the desired focus in the change strategy literature. The proposed framework extends the current literature on strategic change to offer academics fresh insights on the significance of a strategic approach to change deployment. An application of the framework in the context of large‐scale transformational changes in organizations can provide further evidence related to the validity of the proposed approach.Practical implicationsA total of 70 percent of all change efforts fail. While some fail due to incomplete diagnoses, others fail due to gaps in deployment or measurement. However, there is uncertainty about how to prevent change failure, with no one having explicitly articulated the same. A rigorous and practical approach to systematically deploy change with a continuous focus on strategic alignment has specifically been found missing in the literature. The proposed framework fills this gap to offer managers and organizational decision makers a holistic and practical tool to successfully navigate the complexities of their strategic change efforts by measuring strategic alignment in a step‐wise manner throughout the change process.Originality/valueMention of the need to use integrated and strategic performance management tools, such as the BSC proposed by Kaplan and Norton, to measure and review change and to manage the change process has been found in recent literature. However, no studies have yet provided any direction on “how” to use such integrated and strategic tools throughout the change process, to deploy measure and ensure continuous strategic alignment during transformational changes. The paper addresses this gap to propose a systematic, integrated and holistic approach for aligning change deployment.

Outsourcing as a change management tool in libraries and documentation centers

PurposeOutsourcing is a tool that has been used in companies for decades. However, it has taken much longer for this tool to be implemented in libraries and documentation centers, especially since they are eminently public entities at an international level. The use of such services has increased in recent years and has been especially heightened by the economic crisis in all areas of the aforementioned centers. However, it is important to understand the basis of this type of tool in order to look beyond the fiscal and economic benefits and attempt to see the possibilities provided by the use of these types of services for improving the dynamics of organizations and even creating new professional profiles within the organization itself This study aims to address this issue.Design/methodology/approachThe outsourcing of services need not always lead to a loss of know‐how, and when working from the heart of the organization it is a tool that can even be used to support a culture of change and the revitalization of organizations less likely to change.FindingsThe technological, economic and sociological challenges of the information society are demanding the development of new ways to manage human resources in organizations, ways that allow for a greater degree of flexibility leading to innovation and the strengthening of competitiveness. Consequently, there is a need to adapt to the demands of society with services that in many cases are not performed by the entity itself due to a lack of specialized resources within the organization.Originality/valueMany organizations and especially public institutions do not renew their staff regularly, and thus it is possible to encounter organizations where the average age of the employees has increased as the entity has got older. Although such entities are acknowledged for their prestige and experience, there is a clear lack of new ways of thinking which would enable the organization to advance, above all in technological areas where innovation and change are extremely transient. Therefore, a mixed staff is needed, where the knowledge of the organization and processes held by employees who have been with the company since its foundation is combined with the new knowledge and ways of understanding processes held by new recruits. This leads directly to a change in the values of the organization, since the incorporation of new ideas in process management and the incorporation of technologies, allowing for a more cooperative environment, can end up creating an organizational culture with renewed values, always safeguarding the initial core values of the organization and including the new values generated from the incorporation of new ways of working.

Improving supply chain performance through auditing: a change management perspective

PurposeQuick scan audit methodology (QSAM) has been adapted to include some change management practices. This paper seeks to relate how the company's dissemination feedback presentation sessions and implementation team‐work added value to the established QSAM by: offering a new method of demonstrating a “listening ear” to employees, providing enhanced verification of the QS results, increasing “buy in” and offering the possibility of a deeper knowledge transfer and increased audit accuracy.Design/methodology/approachThis action research project is oriented around diagnosis and improvement of Company A's production‐planning process using an adapted QSAM procedure, and a qualitative investigation into the effect of increasing employee participation in QSAM with a view to increasing its potential as a change management tool. The primary research was largely conducted through semi‐structured interviews designed according to role. An important change management dimension of the primary research was to clearly explain the purpose of the audit at the beginning of each interview. A total of 16 interviews were conducted. The data collected were analysed using standard techniques including: process mapping, Ishikawa cause and effect diagrams, why‐why‐why and Pareto analysis. The accuracy of the company's existing forecasting was measured using mean absolute percentage error (MAPE). The uncertainty circle diagram was used to provide a higher level of analysis, categorising the causes of uncertainty into: supply side, process side, demand side and control side. Once the findings had been presented to the business champion and senior managers, the main findings and suggested solutions were presented throughout the company in a series of six presentations to 40 people over a period of ten days.FindingsA human‐centred QS was successfully applied to Company A with limited resources. With the application of mathematical forecasting models, the forecasting error (MAPE) was reduced from an average of 22 to 18 per cent. Completion of production schedules was increased from 96 to 98 per cent, while packaging efficiency increased from 94 to 96 per cent. Most importantly, the company have established a “road‐map” to achieve a better and more flexible supply chain. The QSAM is a robust auditing tool, but it does not take account of potential resistance to change. Company A have adapted the QSAM to include some basic change management practices, effectively extending its feedback stages through wider dissemination, in order to build consensus and to improve the response to change.Research limitations/implicationsOn the basis of a single case study conducted in a UK food‐manufacturing company, “change management” appears to be compatible with supply chain audit, where this is conducted as a means of driving improvement. The effectiveness of the project is judged via “hard” rather than “soft” measures of supply chain performance. Further external verification would be necessary to generalise from this research, and future research directions are indicated in the paper.Practical implicationsSupply chain improvement projects involving supply chain audit can be enhanced through the integration of change management practices.Originality/valueThe originality of the research stems from the integration of change management practices into the established QSAM.

Neurolinguistic programming: does it have a role in supporting learning or OD interventions?

PurposeThis article provides an overview and consultant experience of using NLP in learning and organizational development situations.Design/methodology/approachThe paper includes a theoretical discussion of NLP as a potential learning and OD tool and practical examples of how it has been utilized within the context of HR and LD practices.FindingsThe paper demonstrates that NLP can be effectively used in a learning and OD context and has both benefits and limitations.Practical implicationsNLP is a “soft skills” toolkit that develops and builds on performance excellence and as such is ideally placed to be used as an adjunct or support to standard learning and OD practices. It also provides an excellent diagnostic and change management tool to enable effective OD.Social implicationsThe human potential is a core asset of many businesses. NLP works with the subjective experience of individuals and provides an opportunity to harness the strengths within the workforce and use these to maximum benefit.Originality/valueThe paper proposes that NLP is an effective support methodology to standard learning and OD practices and provides simple examples of how this has been done.

Reflection on developing an undergraduate course: the value of an action research approach

Busy practitioners may not always act on their critical reflection though critical reflection is key to improving practice. This paper presents action research (AR) as a tool that could help to translate reflection into action which can aid improvement of practice. To critically discuss the development of a medical education course to illustrate the use of AR in enabling reflection on action and improvement to practice in complex educational environments. Developmental evaluation cycles were employed in designing and integrating a cultural diversity course for student doctors. Iterative cycles of evaluation on the cultural diversity course resulted in: (1) increased student centred activities in the course; (2) recognition and attempts to improve student reflective ability around cultural competency issues; (3) opportunity to monitor own teaching practice and; (4) improvement in practice. However, the model described here fell short of a true AR approach because of limited involvement of stakeholders in all stages of the process. Future research should investigate AR as a tool for educational change management, postgraduate learning and portfolio documentation.

Internal marketing as a change management tool: A case study in re-branding

This article examines the rational, power and political considerations of internal marketing (IM) when implementing a change management initiative, such as re-branding. Based on the findings of a qualitative case study of a Canadian university and the views of multiple stakeholder groups, additional considerations have been identified that relate to the transformation or ‘control’ stage of change. Particularly, tactics have been presented that are believed to facilitate the transition or re-branding process. This research provides important perspective on the role of IM in the context of organizational behavior. Using a grounded theory research method, an adapted model is proposed that comprises elements of internal marketing as well as change management.

Human aspect in reengineering projects—Conclusions from industrial application

AbstractThe aim of this article is to present the methodology of reengineering projects, taking into consideration the systemic and systematic aspect of human factors so that it constitutes a crucial component of the methodology. The idea of considering this factor stems from investigations connected with the reengineering project that was implemented in a factory producing ship engines. On the one hand, the research resulted in identifying a gap in the reengineering methodology (i.e., not taking simulation into account). On the other hand, an idea appeared to use the simulation as a factor that can prevent or reduce unfavorable reactions and opposition from workers reluctant to accept changes that are an unavoidable effect of a reengineering project. This article presents a literature review on change management, reengineering methodologies, and simulation tools (putting special emphasis on Petri nets). The case study of the implemented project consists of two stages. At the first stage, the methodology of the project was defined, based on the simulation with the use of Petri nets; next, the project was implemented, and, as a conclusion, the need for additional investigations was determined. At the second stage, the scope of the additional research was determined based on Rapid Re methodology; then the investigations were conducted and the suggestions for specific changes in the investigated process were defined. The article ends with general conclusions and suggests changes in the methodology (providing Rapid Re as an example). The authors suggest introducing mechanisms that take into account the human factor based on the simulation technique. The proposed changes give a solid foundation for developing a precise solution for a company, and, as such, they will be the subject of further investigations by the authors. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The history and evolution of bankruptcy as an international strategic management tool

Over the centuries, social and cultural norms, in different countries, have led to legal systems that recognise bankruptcy as a viable strategic change management tool. The purpose of this paper is to study bankruptcy and insolvency approaches different countries use to solve their economic problems. Also, this paper examines the influence country culture and legal systems have on evolution of bankruptcy management practices. Bankruptcy data and legal practices of different countries were obtained from those countries' websites and various published reports. The data were examined and compared, noting differences in legal structures among the countries studied. It was found that, whereas the aim of bankruptcy laws was to remedy the countries' economic problems, the approaches taken differed markedly. Little specific work has been done in this area and in that sense, this study is warranted. Effective bankruptcy insolvency management may benefit world economic stability and growth.