Page 321 - Managing Change in Organizations

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Chapter 16 ■ Learning from change
Table 16.1 (Continued)

Syndrome Characteristics Symptoms Strengths Weaknesses Examples
Leaderlessness Leadership No involvement Creativity Inconsistent ‘Withdrawn’
vacuum strategy chief executive
Incremental
Power struggles change Lack of
leadership
Poor information
flows Climate of
distrust
Effective power
in shifting coali- Poor cooperation
tions of second-
level managers

If we can identify some of the origins of and signs of crisis and decline, how can
such situations be managed? The need to turn an organization around creates
pressure to achieve sustainable changes quickly but without the resources that
are often available in periods of growth. The organization must reorganize and
rationalize either at the level of the firm or, sometimes, at the level of the indus-
try in order to cut overcapacity. Difficult decisions must be taken and imple-
mented. Pulling out of traditional areas of activity is easier said than done.
Building up new areas of activity may require new skills and new people.
Redesigning products, updating processes and revitalizing services takes massive
effort. Taking advantage of new technologies quickly enough to capitalize on
them is often a key issue. It must be done quickly enough to turn them to advan-
tage, but not so quickly that the firm becomes overexposed with an ill-developed
technology. For Taylor (1983) these challenges require a new style of manage-
ment, incorporating the following eight features:
1 Decisiveness: the situation calls for a speed of decision and ruthlessness in deci-
sion making: a willingness to take unpleasant decisions and to face public crit-

icism in order to ensure the continuation and recovery of the overall business.
2 Direct communication: management must rely more on personal face-to-face
meetings and telephone conversations, rather than on formal committees and
paperwork systems.
3 Personal responsibility and accountability: there must be a greater emphasis at all
levels on personal responsibility and accountability for meeting the targets
and deadlines which are necessary if the business is to survive.
4 Central control of funds: this accountability is accompanied by a tighter central
control of cash and an assumption by top management of the right to reallo-
cate cash among divisions.
5 Investment and disinvestment: there is a need to rethink the future prospects for
each product and market segment – in terms of the growth and profit poten-
tial and how to stay competitive in price, quality and service, often on a lower
level of business, and take radical decisions to invest or disinvest.

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