Change Management Tools
Change management is considered to be an essential aspect of the organization and any firm which wants to ensure that it is able to adapt to the different innovative changes which take place in the business environment, needs to ensure that it is able to make changes (Pugh 2016). This essay will be critically analyzing two change management tools which can be used in an organization. The primary aim of the essay is to analyze the two change tools and measure the manner in which the use of the tool changes with respect to the service organization and management organization. For this reason, the essay will discuss briefly upon the importance of the change management tools and will highlight the tools of Total Quality management and the Best practices. It will be figured how the tool of Total Quality management can be applied in both the sectors whereas the tool of Best Practices can be applied only in the service sector. Following this, the critical analysis of these tools will be done along with measuring their tools in service as well as manufacturing organization.
Change management tools
The change management tools go a long way in helping the organization to reduce the uncertainty and confusion which exists in an organization along with successfully communicating the impact of the various changes to the various organizational members (Burke 2017, p. 291-298). There are a large number of change tools which are present in the organization but for the purpose of the essay, the two crucial tools of Best Practices and Total Quality Management will be discussed.
The total quality management change management tool can be essentially described as an approach whereby the organization aims to provide a good culture, organization and attitude to the customers in order to be able to successfully able to satisfy the customer needs. The culture which has to take place needs to possess quality whereby the processes need to be conducted at first and all the waste needs to be successfully removed from the organization. According to Calabrese and Corbò (2015, p. 719-732), using the tool of the Total Quality Management, the organization can be involved in a procedure of continuous improvement with respect to the production of goods and services. It makes use of various quality as well as management tools whose main aim lies to increase the business and reduce the losses of the business by reducing the waste involved. The companies like Ford Motor Company, Philips Semiconductor and Motorola make extensive use of the TQM change tools.
Essentially TQM can be essentially described as the management philosophy which can be used to integrate various functions of the organization like the marketing, finance, design, engineering, production and customer service so that the organizational goals can be achieved easily. Having understood the description of the tool, the manner in which the tool is generally used needs to be understood. The total quality management tool makes use of the various organizational processes and seeks to improve these processes by applying the knowledge of the workers (Aquilani et al. 2017, p. 184-213). The main motive of the tool is to make the processes right the first time. Although originally the tool was applied in the realm of the manufacturing organization, at present the tools are applied in a generic setting as well in service and public sector organizations. TQM makes use of various functions like Line Management Ownership, Reduction of product and service costs, Employee involvement and empowerment, Focus on the processes and specific incorporation among others.
Total Quality Management
The best practices can be rightfully defined as a method or a technique which is generally taken to be of superior in nature and generally accepted as a superior method to any other alternative. This is because this best practice tends to result in a practice which is superior in nature and has a well-defined standard of carrying out the processes. When an organization is going through a change procedure, it thereby becomes essentially important for the particular organization to ensure they engage in a set of practices which can be essentially described to be the best in nature (Alvesson and Sveningsson 2015). These practices make the entire procedure of the change initiative comparatively easier. In order to understand the different best practices which can be used at the workplace, the given set of seven change management best practices have been elaborated as follows:
Mobilizing an active and visible executive sponsor. This means that the person or the leader who will be guiding the change in the organization needs to be clearly identified and that individual needs to be present in the organization throughout the procedure of change. When the leader as present is quite active, the change becomes comparatively easier.
The next best practice is to dedicate the change management resources. This means that in order to achieve success, the organization needs to dedicate a set of resources as well as funding so that the change procedure which is carried out becomes comparatively easier in nature (Alvesson and Sveningsson 2015). The third best practice which can be adopted is that a structured change management approach is used. This means that in order to achieve success in the long run, the organization will be required to make use of a change management approach which is generally structured and based on theory and proof.
The next best practices talk about engaging with the employees and encouraging them to participate in the process. This is because their participation is of utmost importance and thus a clear communication needs to be effectively maintained with the firm at large. When the communication will be frequent and open then the change management becomes easier to implement.
Moreover, the best practice change tool also states that the change procedure needs to integrate and engage the entire procedure with the project management which means that it needs to be taken seriously and aligned with a specific schedule which thereby makes use of a time frame in which the different tasks need to be successfully completed (Cameron and Green 2015). Once this is done, it becomes comparatively easier to ensure that the entire process of change becomes simpler. Moreover, in this scenario, the engagement of the organization with the middle manager needs to be made in order to ensure long term success.
Characteristic features of Services and Manufacturing sectors
The services can be essentially described as the activities whereby the production of the goods are not involved and the service is intangible in nature the different customers taking in the services are generally present during the workplace. The different characteristics of the service are as follows:
Best Practices
Intangibility: This means that the services cannot be heard, felt, smelt or tasted. For instance, the online passengers are only offered a ticket at the time of booking but nothing remains fixed.
Inseparability: This aspects refer to the feature that the services are produced as well as consumed at the same time. This means that they cannot be separated from its providers.
Variability: This means that the variability of the quality of services being provided can differ from person to person and the scenario. Based on this the organization needs to ensure that they are successfully able to take the appropriate decisions.
Perishability: The perishability aspect means that the services cannot be stored for the future and that they need to be consumed immediately.
This means that in case of a service, an individual cannot possess a service.
The characteristics of manufacturing procedure:
Focused on the consumer: It is generally designed in a manner such that the focus lies essentially on the consumers (Ceptureanu 2015, p. 28-32).
Owned: They possess ownership. This means that in general the product is owned first by the seller then by the buyer.
Transferable: This means that the project is transferable and it can be experienced by various parties.
Comparing service with manufacturing organization
After the different characteristic features of the service organization with the manufacturing organization has been done, the following section compares the features of both and highlights the differences between them.
The first difference between the service firms and the manufacturing firms is that the latter is tangible and the first is not. Service comprises of operations like training maintenance and others. Secondly, the inventory levels in case of a service firms are not existent and the service is generally created when a client requires it. However, in the case of manufacturing goods, large amount inventory levels are generally maintained (Doppelt 2017). The third difference is that the services are based on consumer demand whereas the products are made based on the manufacturers forecast and generally without the order of the customers.
According to Fu et al. (2015, p. 123-139), the Total quality management tool of managing change in an organization can be used effectively in the manufacturing sector. This is because, the total quality management is based on a well-defined set of principles which are related to various factors like lean manufacturing, production processes and producing the goods as per the best quality which can be measured accordingly. Therefore, Herzallah, Gutiérrez-Gutiérrez and Munoz Rosas (2014, p. 635-649), also believes that the TQM tool of change management has its base foundation in the manufacturing industry where it first begin and from that period onwards, TQM has also been applied by various organizations like Ford and Toyota. The primary advantages of the use of the specific tool in the manufacturing organization is that it assists the firm to improve upon its end output. Additionally the shortcoming is that it is highly dependent on the people in a firm which makes it relative in nature.
Seven Best Practices
Hornstein (2015, p. 291-298), states that a service can be essentially defined as an intangible offering having been made by the firm to the customers. It includes examples like a haircut, a waiter service or a call center support. Although the Total Quality Management has been essentially associated with the Manufacturing industry but the benefits of the specific tool have been felt in the customer oriented services as well. The main applicability of the TQM in a service organization lies in ensuring that a smooth connection is developed between the different business processes in order to ensure, successful relationships with the consumers. According to Jaca and Psomas (2015, p. 958-970), the TQM tool of a quality approach is used to ensure that the service processes, especially the ones with respect to the customers, remain consistent throughout. However, the author states that the benefits of the TQM tool are not available instantly, it requires commitment as well as patience so that it can successfully blend with the customers. The major advantage of the tool in this sector is that it assists in improving the processes and the disadvantage lies in the fact that the quality of the services are difficult to measure.
Van der Voet (2014,p. 373-282),states that the Best practices as a change management tool is one of the most effective tools which are used rightfully in order to change the ways in which an organization conducts the different business practices. If the organization changes its practices, it shall be able to serve the customers in a better manner and ensure long term success for the firm at large. In the manufacturing sector, the system of best practices with respect to the manufacturing procedures are not applicable because it is mostly connected to the employee and customer aspect whereby these aspects are not required in the manufacturing where there does not exist any direct connect with the customers other than the transfer of ownership (Kuipers et al. 2014, p. 1-20). Hence, this tool reflects that the applicability of the Best practices in an organization does not exist.
According to Zeng, Phan and Matsui (2015, p. 216-226), best practices, if applied considerably can go a long way in ensuring that the organization is successful in the long run. The best practices activities makes considerable use of the efficiency of processes and the way in which the employee carries out their operations. This means that, in the service organizations, the practices are directly applied on the customers with the help of the different employers and for this reason, using the best practices as a change management tool will have a direct impact on the different customers and improve the performance. The advantage of using this tool in the service organization is that it tends to have a direct impact on the quality of services being given to the users.
Conclusion
Therefore, from the given analysis, it can be rightfully stated that, the change management tool goes a long way in ensuring that the organization is successfully able to ensure success in the long run and adapt to the demands of the business. The essay highlighted the two major tools of change named the Total Quality management and the Best Practices. Their applicability in both the service as well as manufacturing sectors were analyzed and it can be stated that while TQM can be used in both the service as well as the Manufacturing sector whereas the Best Practices can be applied in the service industry only.
References
Alvesson, M. and Sveningsson, S., 2015. Changing organizational culture: Cultural change work in progress. Routledge.
Aquilani, B., Silvestri, C., Ruggieri, A. and Gatti, C., 2017. A systematic literature review on total quality management critical success factors and the identification of new avenues of research. The TQM Journal, 29(1), pp.184-213.
Burke, W.W., 2017. Organization change: Theory and practice. Sage Publications. Hornstein, H.A., 2015. The integration of project management and organizational change management is now a necessity. International Journal of Project Management, 33(2), pp.291-298.
Calabrese, A. and Corbò, M., 2015. Design and blueprinting for total quality management implementation in service organisations. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 26(7-8), pp.719-732.
Cameron, E. and Green, M., 2015. Making sense of change management: A complete guide to the models, tools and techniques of organizational change. Kogan Page Publishers.
Ceptureanu, E.G., 2015. Research regarding change management tools on EU SMEs. Business Excellence and Management Review, 5(2), pp.28-32.
Doppelt, B., 2017. Leading change toward sustainability: A change-management guide for business, government and civil society. Routledge.
Fu, S.L., Chou, S.Y., Chen, C.K. and Wang, C.W., 2015. Assessment and cultivation of total quality management organisational culture–an empirical investigation. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 26(1-2), pp.123-139.
Herzallah, A.M., Gutiérrez-Gutiérrez, L. and Munoz Rosas, J.F., 2014. Total quality management practices, competitive strategies and financial performance: the case of the Palestinian industrial SMEs. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 25(5-6), pp.635-649.
Hornstein, H.A., 2015. The integration of project management and organizational change management is now a necessity. International Journal of Project Management, 33(2), pp.291-298.
Jaca, C. and Psomas, E., 2015. Total quality management practices and performance outcomes in Spanish service companies. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 26(9-10), pp.958-970.
Kuipers, B.S., Higgs, M., Kickert, W., Tummers, L., Grandia, J. and Van der Voet, J., 2014. The management of change in public organizations: A literature review. Public administration, 92(1), pp.1-20.
Pugh, L., 2016. Change management in information services. Routledge.
Van der Voet, J., 2014. The effectiveness and specificity of change management in a public organization: Transformational leadership and a bureaucratic organizational structure. European Management Journal, 32(3), pp.373-382.
Zeng, J., Phan, C.A. and Matsui, Y., 2015. The impact of hard and soft quality management on quality and innovation performance: An empirical study. International journal of production economics, 162, pp.216-226.
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