Issues
According to the case study, Connection Company has experienced slight management development in the last few years. Notably, a number of the managers have been promoted based on their technical experiences rather than training. Owing to this, several managers have not undergone through leadership development training.
The case study illustrates that Connection is a bureaucratic company. As such, the leadership styles of its managers are slightly traditional owing to the number of regulations that should be followed. For years, the company has developed a close relationship with Light Rail Service Company. Connection awards tenders to the company. Currently, the tender lease has expired and the company is required to advertise the tender in a competitive way.
Based on the above illustrations, it is apparent that a number of issues are being experienced in the company. There are issues related to how to initiate the strategic change without affecting the operations of the managers. Other issues relate to how to oversee the tendering process in a competitive way as required by the regulations. The tendering process is considered a major issue because the Light Rail Service Company might lose the tender if they do not restructure their management. If the company loses the tender, its relationship with Connections might be affected.
Possible solutions
There are numerous possible solutions to the above issues. To address the issues related to the implementation of the proposed changes, the company may be forced to win the hearts and minds of the managers through persuasion for them to accept the changes. Just like in any other company, changes in the organisations will be met with opposition (Borgelt & Falk 2007). Due to the fear of the unknown, the managers and the employees are likely to oppose the proposed changes. In this respect, the company’s executives and directors should come up with ways of persuading the managers to accept and support the changes.
To address the problem related to motivation of managers and employees during the transition period, the company’s executive can offer the employees and the managers with positive working environment, equal opportunities, or develop an appropriate reward strategy throughout the transitioning period (Chen 2014). Through this, the employees and the managers will be able to support the company’s change initiatives. Usually, companies undergoing through a transition period faced increased turnover. However, with motivated managers the company’s turnover will be minimal.
Another possible solution to addressing the issues related to change is training the managers and the employees on the need for change. Similarly, the company needs to train its managers on leadership and management development. Usually, a number of companies promote loyal staff members to administration positions without training them about management techniques and policies.
The companies fail to recognise that management of employees is a very challenging task that requires trained and experienced individuals. As indicated in the case study, a number of the managers have not been exposed to the above topics because they were promoted into their positions based on their experiences rather than training. Therefore, training will be the best approach in ensuring that effective transitioning is experienced.
Choices
As indicated above, there are numerous alternatives to solving the identified issues. As such, this section identifies the best choices among the alternatives. Of the numerous alternatives identified in the above section, training will be the best choice for solving the issue related to leadership development for members of the management team. Similarly, coming up with an appropriate reward strategy is the best solution to solving the issues related to managers and employees’ motivation during the transition period.
Rigorous training should be conducted before the changes are made. The training should focus on leadership development and the importance of change. In the case study, managers face extraordinary business issues brought about by multifaceted, varied, and speedily changing global economy.
In this regard, leadership roles and abilities needed for efficient leadership during the transition period mandate fresh and innovative training approaches (Probert & Turnbull 2011). The trainings should prepare the managers for the crucial roles they will play in enhancing their company’s change and future success. Before training the managers, the company should ensure that it has a clear vision and identified objectives.
Similarly, through the trainings the managers should be informed about the need for change. In the trainings, the changes to be effected, reasons for change, and change implications should be highlighted. As such, the benefits of adopting the changes should be demonstrated during the training. Managers should also be notified that during the change process they are expected to lead by example.
Performance bonuses will be utilised as an appropriate reward strategy. The strategy will solve the issues related to managers and employees’ motivation during and after the transition period (Hofmans & Pepermans 2013). Performance bonuses will also enhance leadership development. Through this strategy, the company should strive to reward performance bonuses to managers who attain outstanding outcomes during their yearly performance assessments. Performance bonuses should relate the amount of bonuses to the standard of performance.
For example, a manager with the highest performance rating should be rewarded with the largest bonus regardless of his or her managerial positions. Through this approach, all the managers will have equal chances of earning the highest bonuses. The approach will also ensure all managers are engaged and feel appreciated as being part of the company. Similarly, rewarding the employees and managers on merit motivates them reducing on the increase of turnover.
Justification
The above choices are better than the other possible alternatives because they are economical and can be implemented with ease. It would be very costly and difficult to persuade the managers to accept the changes as a strategy of solving issues related to change. As such, the company might be forced to hire internal negotiators who will persuade the managers and the employees to accept the proposed changes. On the other hand, the company can encourage the managers to accept change through trainings.
The trainings should be conducted during part time and over the weekends. Through training, the managers will be taught on the importance of accepting change. Similarly, the trainings will include courses in leadership development. Through this approach, the chances of managers accepting the proposed changed are higher than through persuasion method.
Offering reward performance-bonuses to managers who meet the company’s expectations will not only motivate the managers, but will also enhance their production (Sell & Cleal 2011). The company can still enhance the managers’ productivity and motivation by enhancing positive work environment. By doing so, the company will be required to change the structure of its workplace and ensure that managers share their responsibilities through rotation. Notably, it will be very costly to implement this strategy (Terera & Ngirande 2014). Similarly, the effectiveness of the strategy is lesser compared to offering reward performance bonuses.
Timeframe, measurement, and evaluation
The above strategies will be implemented in a period of one year. The period for the implementation of the proposal are highlighted in the appendix attached in the appendix. The success of the proposal will be measured and evaluated throughout the period.
Measurement and evaluation of the above proposal are critical in ensuring that the initiated efforts yield positive results. In this regard, an effective evaluation and measurement framework will be adopted. The framework will comprise of outputs and outcomes, baseline measurements, and control groups. Outputs quantify how the company is performing. Outcomes evaluate how effective the company’s initiatives work. Setting a baseline of existing operations will be essential in evaluating the degree to which the proposal is effective. Control groups will inform the company if changes are being realised in respect to the baseline.
After assessing the outputs, outcomes, baseline measurements, and control groups’ variables, ordinal scale will be used as a measurement and evaluation tool. The tool will indicate the extent of success achieved through the changes. Measurement and evaluation will obviously lead to alterations to implementation initiatives, objective redefinition, and the formation of new objectives. On the other part of the evaluation and measurement framework, several questions measured on a five point Linker scale will be included. Linker scale is a variable measuring tool with strongly agree, agree, undecided, disagree, and strongly disagree options. The scale is very effective because it will indicate the extent to which the managers perceive the effectiveness of the proposal.
Costs
As indicated above, the cost of implementing the proposal will be lower compared to adopting other possible alternatives. It is estimated that the cost of implementing the proposal will range from £2 million to £5 million.
Appendix: action plan
References
Borgelt, K & Falk, I 2007, ‘The leadership/management conundrum: innovation or risk management?’, Leadership & Org Development Journal, vol. 28, no. 2, pp.122-136.
Chen, S 2014, ‘Organizational Demography or Organizational Culture? The Determinants of Knowledge Transfer Performance’. Journal of Business Management & Economics, vol.2 no.6, pp.1-6.
Hofmans, J & Pepermans, R 2013, ‘Individual differences in the relationship between satisfaction with job rewards and job satisfaction’. Journal of Vocational Behavior, vol. 82. no.1, pp.1-9.
Probert, J & Turnbull K 2011, ‘Leadership development: Crisis, opportunities and the leadership concept’. Leadership, vol. 7 no. 2, pp.137-150.
Sell, L & Cleal, B 2011, ‘Job Satisfaction, Work Environment, and Rewards: Motivational Theory Revisited’. Labour, vol.25, no.1, pp.1-23.
Terera, S & Ngirande, H 2014, ‘The Impact of Rewards on Job Satisfaction and Employee Retention’. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, vol.5, no.1, pp. 4-8.