Questions and Answers of Managing Organizational Change

A focus on purpose goes beyond asking questions about whether a business is operating profitably or whether an action is legal—it engages a soulsearching focus on questions at a core level, such
Were they presented with an organizational vision for this change, and if so:What was the vision?What effect did this have on them?Were they involved in developing the vision?To what extent did the
If your interviewees were not given an organizational vision for this change, ask them:Would a vision have helped them to understand and become involved in the change?How important is vision to
When you have completed your interviews, consider the responses that you have documented.What general conclusions emerge regarding the relationship between vision and organizational change? What have
Of the reasons discussed in this chapter concerning why visions fail, which are applicable to Mentor Graphics?
What is your assessment of the vision content and the process through which it was introduced in the Mentor Graphics context? What lessons emerge from your assessment?
Based on what happened at Mentor Graphics, what are the implications for the three debates discussed in this chapter: whether vision drives change or emerges during change; whether vision helps or
What criteria do you use in order to decide whether a particular vision or vision statement is likely to be useful in your organization? What other criteria might you wish to take into account?
What is your preference: a short vision statement or a longer vision story? Why? How do you use vision statements or stories?
How do you distinguish vision from mission, planning, and goals? Are these important distinctions? In your organization, how aligned is vision with these other factors? Are there competing visions in
What is your experience: are visions more likely to “take” in some organizations or cultural contexts compared with others? Why is this the case? What criteria can you develop to help assess when
What process have you used, or seen in use, to craft an effective vision? Do you have a personal preference toward an intuitive or an analytical approach to vision development? Why?
Is there an “inner voice” in your organization?What are the “bread-and-butter” issues? Are there“undiscussable” issues in your organization?
What is your judgement: When do visions fail, and when does their effectiveness fade? Can visions be revitalized? How?
What is your position: Does vision drive change?Does vision help change? Does vision need visionary leaders?
Did your organization have a strategy for initially announcing the change?
What strategy was used to communicate information during the change process? Was one or more of the strategies from figure 7.2 used? Was this strategy adopted consistently, and for all members across
On a scale from 1 (ineffective) to 5 (very effective), how would you rate the communication strategy overall?
With hindsight, what changes would you have made to improve the effectiveness of the change communication strategy?
To what extent will those recommendations apply to future changes in this organization?To what extent will that depend on the further changes that are proposed?
What do you think you need to know about the restructuring?
From whom would you like to get this information?Why?
Would you prefer to receive this information in person or in a group setting?
What for you would be the best channel (e.g., management briefing, email, video) for receiving this information? Why?
As a change manager, how will you use your answers to these questions to help design a communication strategy?
Listen to the language being used. What different types of languages in use can you observe, such as commanding, respectful, demonstrating concern, displaying condescension?
Do individuals tend to use one type of language in their interactions?
To what extent does the talk convey information about power and gender differences?For example, who takes credit, who exudes confidence, who asks more questions?
What conclusions can you draw from your analysis about the way language constructs and reinforces differences within the organization?
As a change manager, how will your awareness of these differences influence your future interactions with staff?
Are you open, or defensive? What are your normal behaviors? Where are your preferences?What do you need to change? How would this improve your relationships and personal effectiveness?
In what ways could social media applications contribute to the mission of your organization?
How could social media change or strengthen the culture of your organization, with regard to widening collaboration and becoming more agile and responsive?
To what extent will your current organization silos and hierarchies inhibit the communication and collaboration opportunities opened up by social media? Or, will social media help you to break down
How should your organization balance the need for management control with the desire to open up conversations more widely across the organization in order to encourage experimentation with social
In your assessment, would your organization benefit or suffer from working in a “perpetually beta” state of mind, constantly experimenting, learning—and improving—from the mistakes?
In what ways does your personal use of language reinforce power and gender differences in your organization? What effect do you think this has in terms of how your change messages are received? What
Do you see yourself as a reporter of change information? Or are you a sense-maker, helping staff to understand change actions, and seeking input from them?
To what extent do you focus on getting the word out, rather than seeking staff buy-in? Do you tend to use the same communication methods, or do you adopt different approaches depending upon the type
Are you more comfortable using “rich” communication media (face-to-face), or “leaner” media(email)? Do you adopt different forms of communication depending on the type or stage of change?
Does your organization have a strategy for using social media? If so, how would you assess the effectiveness of this approach, and what recommendations would you make in order to strengthen the
Who does most of the talking? Who asks most of the questions?
Begin change initiatives with a systematic inquiry into organizational members’ memories of past changes.
Do not tell people to leave their past behind.That is not going to happen. The power and credibility of past experiences cannot be erased to order. Attempts to suppress those experiences may mean
If past experiences are impediments to change, their influence will only be challenged if those involved are directly and fully engaged with current proposals, in ways that enable them to learn that
How will this change benefit individual staff, the team, customers/clients?
How will current problems and frustrations be addressed?
How does this relate to the interests and priorities of staff?
How will those involved gain recognition for their efforts?
How will performance be improved?
How could efficiency gains be used to make further improvements?
When did you first become aware of resistance?
What form did the resistance take?
What were your first thoughts (anger, betrayal, confusion, relief)?
What made you decide that you had to do something?
What actions did you take?
What was the impact in (a) the short term and (b) the long term?
If you could “rewind the tape,” what would you do differently?
Who is resisting this change and why?
What behaviors are used to demonstrate that resistance?
What role do emotions play, on both sides of this argument?
What tactics and behaviors do Billy Beane and Peter Brand use to overcome resistance to their new approach?
What lessons can you take from this experience concerning the nature of resistance and methods for overcoming resistance to change?
What symptoms of resistance to change have you observed? Have you observed both active and passive forms? Have you as a recipient resisted change? Have you experienced resistance while responsible
Which of the various causes of resistance to change do you believe to be the most common?What are the “top three” causes in your experience?
As a change manager, which of the various reasons for resisting change do you believe to be the most difficult to deal with? What are your“top three” in this regard?
When senior managers resist change at the strategic level, they are in a position to cause more damage than employees resisting changes at an operational level. Have you worked in an organization
Which particular approaches to the management of resistance attract you? Why do you make this choice? Do you think those approaches are more effective, or do your choices relate to your views about
From your experience as a change manager, what are the three main pieces of advice that you would give to someone new in this role concerning diagnosing and managing resistance?
Arenas: What business will we be in????????? Which product categories????????? Which market segments????????? Which geographic areas????????? Which core technologies????????? Which value-creation
Vehicles: How will we get there????????? Internal development????????? Joint ventures????????? Licensing/franchising????????? Acquisitions?
Differentiators: How will we win in the marketplace????????? Image????????? Customization????????? Price????????? Styling????????? Product reliability?
describe the Staging????????? Speed of expansion????????? Sequence of initiatives?
Economic Logic???????? Lowest costs through scale advantage????????? Lowest costs through scope and replication advantage????????? Premium prices due to unmatchable service????????? Premium prices
Does your strategy fit with what’s going on in the environment????????? Is there a healthy profit potential where you’re headed????????? Does strategy align with the key success factors of your
Does your strategy exploit your key resources????????? With your particular mix of resources, does this strategy give you a good head start on your competitors????????? Can you pursue this strategy
Will your envisaged differentiators be sustainable????????? Will competitors have difficulty matching you????????? If not, does your strategy explicitly include a ceaseless regimen of innovation and
Are the elements of your strategy internally consistent????????? Have you made choices of arenas, vehicles, differentiators, staging, and economic logic????????? Do they all fit and mutually
Do you have enough resources to pursue this strategy????????? Do you have the money, managerial time and talent, and other capabilities to do all that you envision????????? Are you sure you’re not
Is your strategy implementable????????? Will your key constituencies allow you to pursue this strategy????????? Can your organization make it through the transition????????? Are you and your
Where are we now?
Where do we want to get to?
What do we need to do in order to get there?
What are the boundaries of our industry? What is our served market? What products or services do we provide?
Who are the customers? Who are the noncustomers? What is the difference between them?
Who are our competitors? Who are the noncompetitors? What makes one firm a competitor and the other not?
What key competencies are required to compete in this industry? Where is the value added?
Who is our customer? What kinds of things are important to that customer? How does he or she perceive us? What kind of relationships do we have?
Who is the ultimate end user? What kinds of things are important to this end user?How does he or she perceive us? What kind of relationship do we have?
Who are our competitors? What are their strengths and weaknesses? How do they perceive us? What can we learn from them?
Who are the potential competitors? New entrants? What changes in the environment or their behavior would make them competitors?
What is the industry’s value chain? Where is value added? What is the cost structure?
How does our firm compare? How about our competitors?
What are the key factors of production? Who are the suppliers? Are we dependent on a limited number of sources? How critical are these relationships? How solid?
What are the bases for competition in our industry? What are the key success factors?
How do we measure up? How about our competitors?
What trends and factors in the external environment are important to our industry?
How are they likely to change? Over what time horizon?
Are we able, in assessing our knowledge and assumptions, to separate fact from assumption?
Is our assumption set internally consistent????????? For each pair of assumptions, can we answer “yes” to the question: “If assumption A is true, does assumption B logically follow?”

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