Personal Experience
Change is one of the forces in life which cannot be avoided. In most of the cases, many people find it difficult to accept change because of the fear of the unknown (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012). I have a personal experience of how challenging it may be to introduce change in an organisational setting. I was in my third year at the University of Melbourne when the management decided to digitise the library.
This was a new technology-supported system where students were enabled to access all the materials within the library in a digital platform. The management made this decision because of the limited number of some critically important books. This new system was developed after a series of consultative forums involving the students, teachers, management, and other related stakeholders.
The reading areas within the library were fitted with personal computers connected to the database. The students would use their student identification numbers to login to the system and access all the relevant materials they needed. The chief librarian and other staff members took time to explain the reason this decision was made, how the system worked, and the benefits it had to the users of this library.
At first, a number of students were sceptical about the new system introduced in the library. However, they slowly came to embrace the new system. It became very popular among the students, eliminating the need to have physical books in the library.
Main Principles of Change Management
According to Apple (2004), successful organisations are those that have learnt the art of managing change. In order to manage change successfully, it is important to know some of the principles of change management. Creation of a shared vision is one of the most important principles of change management (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012).
With a shared vision, it becomes easy for all the stakeholders to accept change without any serious resistance. The case presented above about University of Melbourne’s new system in the library is a clear example of the relevance of developing a shared vision. The management involved all the stakeholders and ensured that they all understood the need to move to a new system.
According to Apple (2004), communication is another important principle of change management. Change involves coming up with a new concept of addressing various tasks within an organisational setting. In most of the cases, it is always an idea of an individual who has visualised how a given process can be undertaken in a better way.
In order to make other people understand and appreciate the relevance of such a new system, communication is very important. The management should ensure that all the stakeholders understand the new system. Any question about the new system should be addressed to ensure that doubts and misconceptions are eliminated. This task was addressed satisfactorily by the chief librarian and other junior employees.
Engagement of the stakeholders is another important principle of change management. According to Hargreaves, Lieberman, Fullan and Hopkins (2014), before introducing a new system or concept within an organisation, it is important that all the relevant stakeholders are engaged in the entire process.
Engaging the stakeholders creates an environment where the stakeholders feel they own the new system instead of feeling that the management imposed it on them. This is what happened when the new digitised library system was introduced at the university. All the relevant stakeholders were involved. This way, the new system became acceptable among the students because they felt that they were part of its formation.
Jones (2012) says that another important principle of change is the development of enabling structures. The scholar says that before introducing change, the management must ensure that there are structures in place that can support the system. Change can only make sense when it is sustainable.
The University of Melbourne decided to introduce a new system. This new system needed installation of personal computers in the reading areas. It also needed an IT system that would enable students to access information available in the database. The management had enough funds to install these structures.
The entire reading area had fully equipped personal computers that were linked to the main database through an integrated communication system. These structures made it possible to have a functional system that supported operations of the firm.
Culture cannot be avoided when managing change in an organisation. According to Jones (2012), this principle requires that cultural factors be put into consideration when managing change. Many organisations always ignore the role of culture in change management. There are cases where some stakeholders may reject change simply because it is not aligned to their cultural beliefs and practices.
It is, therefore, necessary that the management finds a way of aligning cultural values to change management principles. This is one area that was not given much consideration when this new system was introduced.
According to Fullan (2014), for a long time, physical books have been a sign of knowledge, especially to student of higher learning. However, a time had come when this had to change. The school made a radical shift from the use of physical books to the use of digitised books. This transition should have been gradual.
Strengths and weaknesses of the way in which change was managed
The digital library at the University of Melbourne was a new system that was meant to improve students’ experience every time they visited the library. One of the main strengths of the way in which this change was managed is that all the stakeholders were actively involved. This made it possible for the new system to be accepted among the stakeholders. The management also maintained a clear system of communication.
The librarians were available to address any question that the library users had about the new system. The highly integrated communication system also enhanced information sharing. The library users made a number of suggestions on how to improve the system to make it user-friendly. Within the first few months, a number of adjustments were made in the system based on the suggestions of the users.
This improved its efficiency. However, the major weakness that was witnessed in the way this change was managed was that it was implemented within a short time. Some student complained that the change was so sudden that they had to take several weeks to make proper use of the library.
Summary
Understanding how to manage change is very important in the current organisational setting. From the critique and review of literatures done above, it is apparent that communication is critical when managing change. It facilitates engagement of all the stakeholders to ensure that they understand and appreciate the relevance of the new system.
References
Apple, M. (2004). Creating difference: Neo-liberalism, neo-conservatism and the politics of educational reform. Educational Policy, 18(12), 12-44.
Fullan, M. (2014). Positive Pressure in Second International Handbook of Educational Change. Chicago: Sage.
Hargreaves, A. & Fullan, M. (2012). Professional Capital: Transforming Teaching in Every School. Norderstedt: Books on Deman.
Hargreaves, A., Lieberman, A., Fullan, M. & Hopkins, D. (2014). Second International Handbook of Educational Change. New York: Cengage.
Jones, G. (2012). Organisational Theory, Design, and Change. New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.