Discussion 1
A. Describe the role of organizational development in contemporary organizations. How does organizational development help organizations prepare for or implement change? Provide an example from your organization.
B. What environmental forces drive organization development in your field or industry? What are the steps successful organizations take when responding to change? Have you experienced forces of change in your work environment? How did the changes affect your organization?
Discussion 2
A. Why is vision essential to facilitating successful change in an organization? What is the correlation between a leader's role/vision and a successful change initiative? Describe a vision that you have seen/heard/read/viewed that you felt inspired successful change. How did this vision influence people's behavior and attitudes toward a major change initiative?
B. According to the textbook, people are more motivated when "they are shown a truth that influences their feelings" than they are by analysis. Discuss the relevance of this statement for organizations growing and responding to change. What responsibility does a leader have to honor stakeholder concerns when "feelings" are the primary basis for the concerns?
Discussion 3
A. Compare and contrast two different change models. What leadership approach would you use to implement your preferred model? Why?
B. What is "disruptive change," and how is this different from "incremental change?" How does disruptive change affect an organization? Provide an example.
Discussion 4
A. Discuss the importance of a change agent and a guiding team. What is the purpose of each, and what traits make them successful?
B. Discuss two strategies that can be used for leading change. How do these strategies increase stakeholder support and create momentum for a change initiative to be successful? Why might you want to consider including the most vocal critic of the change initiative in your guiding team?
Discussion 5
A. Explain how successful communication is used throughout a change process to convey vision and strategies to stakeholders. What may be occurring with the communication process if the change process begins to fail?
B. Why is effective and frequent communication so critical to a successful change effort? Describe either a good or a bad example of this from your organization or one that you have studied. Describe how the communication affected the various stakeholders affected by the change effort.
Discussion 6
A. What types of obstacles/objections do leaders face from stakeholders when implementing change within an organization? What strategies can leaders use to work with stakeholders, remove obstacles, and address objections?
B. Describe an ethical dilemma that you experienced, or have witnessed in a change leader, when attempting to initiate change. How was the ethical dilemma resolved? What can a change leader use to guide decision making when faced with an ethical dilemma?
Discussion 7
A. Discuss the importance of identifying and acknowledging short-term wins during change. What types of short-term wins are most meaningful? Why?
B. During a change initiative, what can organizations use to identify or verify truly objective and measureable success? What does your organization utilize to measure its level of success?
Discussion 8
A. Consider an organization in your field or industry. Describe the essential systems necessary to facilitate continuous change without compromising quality or causing burnout among employees. Describe three factors to consider when making sure that the changes made become permanently imbedded in the organization's culture.
B. What is your reaction to change in your personal history? What personal tools do you implement to help yourself navigate change?
RESOURCES
Textbook
1. The Heart of Change: Real-Life Stories of How People Change Their Organizations
Read Chapter/Step 8 and the Conclusion in The Heart of Change: Real-Life Stories of How People Change Their Organizations.
e-Library Resource
1. A Proposed Model for Evaluating the Sustainability of Continuous Change Programmes
Read "A Proposed Model for Evaluating the Sustainability of Continuous Change Programmes," by Brännmark and Benn, from Journal of Change Management (2012).
2. Complex Adaptive Systems and Improvisation Theory: Toward Framing a Model to Enable Continuous Change
Read "Complex Adaptive Systems and Improvisation Theory: Toward Framing a Model to Enable Continuous Change," by Ford, from Journal of Change Management (2008).
3. Managing Change Through Employee Empowerment
Read "Managing Change Through Employee Empowerment," by Rothermel and LaMarsh, from Global Business and Organizational Excellence (2012).
4. Plan Do Stablise Repeat: How to Lead Change Successfully
Read "Plan Do Stablise Repeat: How to Lead Change Successfully," by Andre, from Management Services (2013).
5. Transformational Leadership, Relationship Quality, and Employee Performance During Continuous Incremental Organizational Change
Read "Transformational Leadership, Relationship Quality, and Employee Performance During Continuous Incremental Organizational Change," by Carter, Armenakis, Field, and Mossholder, from Journal of Organizational Behavior (2013).