Page 280 - Managing Change in Organizations

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Programmes of change
such tensions, how can we encourage at one and the same time integration and
learning? Set out below are a series of steps:
1 Building relationships: company conferences; cross-functional management; devel-
opment and functional training; job rotation; building networks.
2 Creating project groups: solving problems via project groups and task forces; cre-
ating centres of excellence throughout the organization.
3 Focused training and development: total quality management programmes; action-
learning-based management development; company-tailored development;
business process re-engineering programmes.
4 Career management: defining and developing managerial competence; perform-
ance appraisal; career counselling and planning.
Each of these steps is designed either to link or interface individuals in problem-
orientated settings or to link the individual to the organization in an output-ori-
entated way, focusing on achievement of objectives. Thus managing change
appropriately can and should create and sustain both learning within the organ-
ization and also its integration.
If these are the issues which we must consider in creating a programme of
change, and if there are various stages to include, what will a programme look
like in practice? Normally it is possible to create a project plan which sets out the
key events, including time scales, resources and inputs, target population and key
dates/milestones. Set out in Figure 14.4 is such an implementation programme
detailing the development of a human resources (HR) strategy within an oil indus-
try ‘major’ over a 12-month period.

CASE
STUDY Wilkinson Sword

Wilkinson Sword is a well-known fmcg (fast-moving consumer good) and manufacturing
group trading throughout Europe and North America. It manufactures razors and other
personal care products. With headquarters in Germany, it was valued at US$600 million

in 1990. During the period of the change to be described the group was experiencing
major operational problems: the owners were moving towards divestment and a wide
and complex set of financial arrangements was being refinanced and/or restructured.

Beginnings
The chief executive’s initial problem was that in difficult circumstances he was trying to
manage the group ‘blind’. The most successful product had been launched in too many
markets. Demand far outstripped supply. Retail customers were threatening to withdraw
business. The group was profitable only in Europe, and there mostly in Germany. The
‘star’ produce needed specialist equipment to expand manufacturing with an eight-
month lead time. Inventory levels were high and on a worsening trend. The monthly
report was 60 pages long and unintelligible.
A project was defined, designed to help the board understand the following:

■ How the group had been managed to date using the existing management information. ➔

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