The Harder Side of Change (2) - Why

Change management plays a crucial role in an organisational context, as it involves the supervision of transformational processes within an organisation. Investing time and energy to understanding the what, why, and how of change management will allow organisations to avoid consequences of inadequately managed change.

The Why of Change Management

After knowing about what change management is, the next step is to understand why change management is important. Effective change management is essential for the success of the intended organisational change, and there are various reasons to support this idea. Change management primarily deals with the people-side of change, which is often the most challenging and critical component of any organisational transformation. Hence, there are some fundamental reasons to employ change management, and how these reasons are relevant to the overall success of the initiated change.

When initiating change within an organisation, it occurs on an individual basis, one person at a time. You cannot expect the personnel within the organisation to adapt to the change instantly, nor can you integrate everyone into the new policies simultaneously. Organisational change is a process of establishing familiarity and gradually adhering to the transformation. Success of organisational change is only evident when each personnel are capable of functioning productively within the new framework. They are the agents of change, and their cumulative efforts in changing decide the impact of change and whether change ultimately succeeds.

Another reason to highlight the importance of change management is the multitude of negative implications on the organisation when change management is absent. When the interpersonal aspect of the organisation is neglected, the organisation is affected by internal factors such as declining productivity and slumping employee morale. External parties are also affected and adversely respond, as stakeholders and customers begin to feel the negative impact of domestic disruption within the organisation. Unexpected and unnecessary reworks result in a financial impact on the organisation, a problem which would be mitigated if change management was successfully applied.

Change management also matters as effective application increases the likelihood that a project meets its desired objective. Be it a merger or an acquisition, effective management of the social aspect within the organisation increases the probability of being successful. By focusing on the people side of change, projects are more likely to meet the intended objectives, and prevent any tangible consequences from jeopardising the progress of the organisation.

Why is change management important? Unless an organisation would prefer for transformational efforts to produce no results, for employees and associated parties to endanger the welfare of the organisation, or to be less likely to succeed in initiating change, effective change management should be given due emphasis.

Inspiration: The Harder Side of Change: The What, Why, and How of Change Management

Image Source: peoplematters.in

Benjamin Lee Cheng Han | Benjamin is a student of International Relations at the University of Nottingham, currently exploring unchartered realms in the Public Relations field. Writing is clearly his interest – a decisive contributor to his foray into the public relations industry. To date, he boasts the proud record of having tamed one of the office cats, and drinking expired tea from the pantry.