In this assignment, you and your team will develop a change management plan to support your project with Husky Air.
You and your team arrive on time for your meeting with Richard Woodjack, vice president of operations for Husky Air. The conference room has a finely polished oak table that can comfortably sit everyone. On the walls are pictures of older airplanes that epitomize a long-ago period. Richard greets you and the members of your team and then asks if anyone would care for a beverage before getting started.
As Richard takes a seat at the conference table, he smiles and says, "I want to thank you for coming in on such short notice. I know that the project has been progressing as planned, but I wanted to make all of you aware of a situation that may cause some problems going forward. We have two employees who have voiced several concerns with the new system that you will be implementing. One of the employees is Betty, who has been with the company for many years.
Betty is close to retirement, but she knows more about the internal operations of this company than anyone else on my staff. In fact, most people around here say that if you have a question, go ask Betty. She's also well liked and respected by just about everyone. Some of the pilots and mechanics even call her Mom because she tends to look out for their best interests. The problem is that Betty does not like change. As a matter of fact, she came into my office yesterday and told me that the idea of learning how to use a computer system frightens her.
She's thinking of taking an early retirement before the sys- tem is implemented so that she won't have to deal with all the stress. I was counting on her being here for a few more years, or at least until I could find someone to replace her. Her leaving before someone could transition into her job would have a major impact on company operations. Moreover, she is so popular that I think we would have a morale problem around here for a while. If at all possible, I would like to have Betty stay on and get someone up to speed to take over her job in the next couple of years."
Richard paused for a moment and then drew a deep breath before continuing. "And then there's Junior. Junior has been with Husky Air for about three years. He has an uncle who is on the airport's planning and control com- mission. Quite frankly, Junior is not one of our favorite employees, but every time we've tried to get rid of him, he threatens that he will sue for wrongful termination or uses his uncle's connections to create all kinds of problems for us. Even though we have nothing to hide, the time and money to fight these little problems are a disruption we can do without. Although he can be a troublemaker, it's been easier for us to keep him around and let him do things that won't impact safety or quality. However, Junior has been spreading rumors about the new system to just about any- one who will listen. The latest rumor is that the new system will allow the company to lay off half of our employees. That's totally untrue, as you know. In fact, our management team is predicting significant growth and planning on adding more planes, pilots, instructors, mechanics, and staff to support that growth."
A secretary knocks on the conference room door and tells Richard that he is needed in the hangar. Richard asks if you and your team have any questions. He then excuses himself and leaves the room.
Based on your conversation with Richard Woodjack, develop a change management plan to support the imple- mentation of the new system.
Please provide a professional-looking document that includes the following:
1. Project name, project team name, and the names of the members of your project team.
2. A brief project description. (This helps your instructor if different teams are working on differ- ent projects in your class.)
3. The project's MOV. (This should be revised or refined if appropriate.)
4. A list that identifies the change sponsor(s), tar- get(s), and agent(s) of change.
5. A change assessment-Assess the two employees' willingness, readiness, and ability to change.
6. A change strategy-Develop and discuss a strat- egy for change. Your strategy should be based on one or a combination of the following approaches:
a. Rational-empirical
b. Normative-reeducation
c. Power-coercive
d. Environmental-adaptive
7. A process for monitoring the change initiative-Develop a process for tracking the progress of your change management plan.