critical review of the article titled Organizational change

 critical review of the article titled Organizational change

This work contains a critical review of the article titled Organizational change: Motivation, communication, and leadership effectiveness. In this article, the authors explore the issues of variables that affect the effectiveness of a leader. The study examines the leader’s behavior and his practical ability to organize, discusses the most valuable models of the leader’s behavior and sufficient motivation and communication skills.

Practical leadership skills influence the process of organizing actions in the work environment. The ability of a manager to create conditions for the operations of the active development of a team requires the manifestation of functional skills in motivation, communication, initiative, and creativity. Leaders may function as change agents those individuals responsible for change strategy and implementation by creating a vision, identifying the need for change, and implementing the change itself (Kanter, Stein, & Jick 1992). The opinion that the leader should intervene in all the processes of the team is most often erroneous. Making decisions to intervene in work processes, the leader must understand the dynamics of the team and have the ability to see and analyze the current situation.

Constant changes and monitoring of current trends help companies remain competitive. This indicator has been the result of many studies. More than fifteen years ago, it was believed that not all developed theories, models, and approaches were perfect. It was expressed in the inability of managers to take decisive steps for the successful implementation of changes, as well as in a limited understanding of the methods for implementing changes and the failure to change the management style. This article was written to discuss issues about positive results in changing management behavior regarding successful change attempts.

Studying the types of changes in firms involves an understanding of organizational change since any modification has a consequence for the firm. At certain levels, organizational change focuses on business models, structures, strategies, culture, technology, products, or services. Based on this, change management employs leaders at all levels of the organization. Organizational changes are perceived as episodic or continuous. Change may be further defined when viewed from an evolutionary perspective as transitional, transformational, or developmental (Gilley, McMillan, & Gilley 2009). Interim changes influence and correct alterations in people, structures, or technologies. Transformational changes are more destructive and radical and lead to the management of cultural modification, the formulation of a fundamentally different strategy. In case of success, they increase the competitiveness of the organization. Corporate change shows the rarity with which organizations strive for transformational change. This article explains how, through growth and development, change creates a competitive advantage, which is useful information for organizing changes in the workplace.

The article reviews several change models that are necessary to help leaders organize their entire workflow. Proposed for consideration are Lewin’s Model, Ulrich’s Seven-Step Model, and Kotter’s Eight-Step Model. Lewin’s (1951) classic model, for example, consists of unfreezing, movement, and refreezing. This theory is very simplified, but even after many years, modern models of change are based on it. Unfreezing assesses the current state and the readiness of people and organizations for any changes. The movement is due to the participation of employees in the process of change. The stage of freezing stabilizes the new state of the organization. The Levin model takes into account the property of the system to strive recovery, and it is called homeostasis. At this stage, tools are being introduced to institutionalize new approaches and to define policies and reward systems.

The models Kotter (1996) and Ulrich (1998) suggest the importance of leadership and vision, the formation of leadership coalitions, communication, motivation, and empowerment of others, as well as the consolidation of new approaches in the culture of the company. J.Kotter’s method is most popular among other models. At the heart of this model is the idea change in relationships is the most effective path to organizational change. However, in my opinion, it is better to achieve efficiency in transforming a company by changing the organizational context. Long-term, profound changes occur with the harmonious internal development of the organization, which is facilitated by the perception of the organization as a community. The Ulrich model is designed for large organizations for the personnel management function. This model speaks of the importance of human resource management as business units, without which the enterprise cannot work. The goal of utilizing the Ulrich HR competency model is to be able to make excellent and useful shifts from that of strategic management, to administrative, and Human Resources (Shingal 2020). Ulrich’s concept is controversial; some experts consider it a benchmark for developing the role of manager. Other experts question the effectiveness and relevance of the Ulrich HR model, believing that it has already passed its heyday.

In the next section, the article examines leadership skills. As the authors correctly note, leadership skills are inextricably linked to successful organizational change. The inability to recognize or respond to individual needs during change contributes to leaders’ failures (Shook, Priem, & McGee 2003). The work of all sectors of the organization depends on the effective work and competent actions of the manager. The work of all areas of the organization depends on the effective work and qualified activities of the manager. The inability of a manager to change the management style or functions of an organization, a lack of understanding of methods for implementing changes, inability to motivate subordinates to improve, poor communication skills, all this can become a barrier to achieving the organization’s goals. More than 300 trait studies have failed to generate a final list of agreed-on traits inherent ineffective leaders (Bass 1990). In my opinion, a successful and effective leader should possess several essential qualities. One of the most essential attributes is charisma. With its help, it is easier to achieve a good reputation and to establish the necessary connections with people in the organization. Another condition is the initiative. Not many people can take the initiative for fear of making a mistake. A leader must have a solution that is not perfect but work to improve it. This is more rational than inaction. Equally important is balance, stability in behavior for making essential and life-changing decisions for the company. An essential quality of a leader is sociability, the ability to quickly find a common language with people, and feel confident in a team. It is also necessary to have systemic skills, such as vision, goal setting, determination, perseverance, and flexibility. The ability to motivate a team is one of the most critical and challenging tasks of a leader. The best solution is to have fantastic recruiting.

In the methodological section, the article examined the study of efforts to change the point of view of employees and their beliefs in the effectiveness of their managers in implementing changes. Employee assessment of managerial effectiveness has become more commonplace with the use of feedback methods such as multi-rater or 360-degree feedback, which assesses observable behaviors and skills to develop reliable data for feedback (Campion, Morgan, & Mumford 2005). According to research results, approximately 80% of respondents reported that their leaders never, rarely, or only occasionally effectively implement changes, which shows the incompetence of most leaders. This study also examined previously identified positive skills that influence the success of managers in a changing environment, such as coaching, communication, involving others, motivation, reward, and teamwork.

Without experience in the organization, it is possible to apply the knowledge gained from the article in group work, or organization of social events. Information obtained about Ulrich’s model of how to organize the work of a team will be useful. In group work, it is essential that each person must perform actions appropriate to his profile, only well-coordinated and well-tuned teamwork will bring results. Developing the skills of a modern leader will help organize a social event. It is easy to build a relationship between all the links that take part in a social event by possessing the qualities of sociability and strategic thinking. Understanding and excellent knowledge of the processes of change, leadership skills, and their relationship with the work process can be a bonus at an interview when hiring. Having shown a high level of knowledge is easier to get the desired position. Leadership allows personally developing and feeling the fullness of life. It is possible only through recognizes the uniqueness of personal qualities.