Change Model Assignment
Assume you are the Sales and Marketing Director for Sea Treasures, a small group of well-known retail stores specializing in exotic sea life and high-end accessories for aquariums. The company has been in business for over 50 years, but the customer base is shrinking, sales are slow, and you are faced with reducing staff and closing stores. Sea Treasures will be out of business within a year if innovative and creative changes are not made quickly. After many months, you have finally been able to convince the owner that the only way to sustain the business and increase revenue is to create an Internet Website to sell the large inventory of aquarium decorator items (currently gathering dust in a costly warehouse) . This will be a short-term, small scale change. Six months later, you will expand the Website to sell live sea creatures such as tropical fish and small sea turtles online, which is a long-term, large-scale change.
You face many challenges in this transformational change initiative, beginning with strong employee resistance, new technology, and shipping methods. Many small businesses have been faced with these same issues, and have made the transition successfully. Consider the humble beginnings of Amazon, and look where they are today. Selecting the best change model for this business, and implementing it step by step provides the foundation for creating an exciting new company.