facilitating change
Case Study Analysis: The ADA Way of Working
INTRODUCTION
Archie Norman seeks to restructure the entire ASDA organization but with a need for near-total control, a lack of personal and top management team retail experience, and excessive plans for a complete overhaul, his plan will face a grave level of employee resistance and the potential for insufficient teamwork and communication.
BACKGROUND
Implementing Organizational Change: Theory into Practice (Spector, 2013) presents a thought-provoking case study on a grocery store chain, ASDA, in the United Kingdom. Established with the intent to cater to the “blue-collar” market by providing exceptional pricing in a warehouse atmosphere, ASDA reaped growth and sales success for over 50 years. More recently, ASDA’s management sought the more upscale customer base, invested in non-grocery items to sell in their stores, expanded storefronts into wealthier locations and began to squander company profits on lavish corporate spending. In the wake of imminent corporate failure, Archie Norman is recruited to save the future of ASDA’s 205 stores.
Boasting successful work experience with his previous employer, McKinsey & Company, Archie Norman served as CFO for a large retail operation. Facing complete demoralization within the organization, a lack of company communication, teamwork or collaboration initiatives, and no decisive corporate vision or goal, Norman saw an unsurmountable degree of debt and a vast need for change within ASDA. Norman and ASDA’s board of directors agreed to a 3 year change model.
This 3 year change model included wiping the top management team almost exclusively to consist of new hire employees. Norman sought to convince the employees of a true financial problem; detailing ASDA’s poor spending habits, investments, and communication. Open communication and a vision for a total company overhaul fueled Norman’s actions to renew the current 205 stores.
Archie Norman seeks to restructure the entire ASDA organization but with a need for near-total control, a lack of personal and top management team retail experience, and excessive plans for a complete overhaul, his plan will face a grave level of employee resistance and the potential for insufficient teamwork and communication.
KEY PROBLEMS
While the current ASDA administration lacks self-control and a clear chain of communication, Norman enacts a potentially overbearing grip on both management and the employees. As the case study details, Norman is frequently referred to as “controlling”; a label which will result in a lack of trust and the necessary degree of freedom and ownership local store managers need for success. Delegation, a key trait of effective leadership, instills self-esteem and self-development with subordinates (“Leadership Skills Training”, n.d.). Norman seeks to instill a sense of empowerment and responsibility among individual management teams; however, his need to control and his inadvertent degradation of suggestions contrary to his own will quickly diminish these intentions and result in low morale and responsibility.
There is no question that ASDA is in need of change implementation. However, one must question the degree of change Norman has in mind. As the case study states, Norman believes that every single aspect of the organization needs change. For a company boasting 205 storefronts, this magnitude of overall change is an intense undertaking. Are there truly no relative positive aspects of the ASDA that can be salvaged or serve as baselines for a change model? Will the overhaul of the company scare off valuable employees with experience and sustainable assets? Is Norman prepared for such a difficult and dangerous undertaking?
Do Norman and his top management team have the retail experience necessary to adequately advise and implement radical change for ASDA? Norman was CFO for a large retail operation; however, he has “no specific experience in the grocery business and no general management experience” (Spector, 2013, p. 17). Norman chose to replace 2 of the 3 top management team members with individuals also lacking previous retail experience. Norman did not take considerations to hire within and seek counsel with current ASDA employees.
Finally, the level of company and individual employee resistance will increase with the degree of projected change. As with the implementation of any change model, a certain degree of resistance should be expected. In this particular situation, Norman is not taking into account that expansive degree of change, over 60,000 current employees who will be effected, and the varying degrees of commitment and history these employees have with ASDA. The employees are set in their ways, accustomed to a certain way the company has been run, and may not fully grasp the level of severity with the current situation.
ALTERNATIVES
As a potential solution to the before-mentioned problems, Norman may consider delegation techniques with the individual departments and store locations. Lower-level management needs to feel a sense of responsibility and ownership. Delegating responsibility allows a higher level of employee interaction, brainstorming, experience-based knowledge, leadership roles, and communication (“Leadership Skills Training”, n.d.). Many of the overwhelming decisions Norman is faced with can be cohesively absorbed among the various lower-level leaders.
With over 60,000 employees, ASDA has a combined level of retail experience far exceeding that of Norman and his top management team. These employees provide a unique advantage and insight to the needs of the company. In previous years with top level management teams, upward communication was neglected. Encouraging a new era of upward communication alleviates collaboration concerns and establishes a greater level of trust. True innovation to accommodate Norman’s desired change model becomes a tangible reality.
ASDA must have existing circumstances and practices within the organization that can be salvaged or restructured without a total overhaul. The current experienced employees and managers can be met with to discuss these possibilities; avoiding potential renewal costs, mistrust between employees and new leadership, and decreasing the inevitable rise of resistance.
PROPOSED SOLUTIONS
The Beckhard and Harris Change Model presents the opportunity to address several of the key elements of concern with the ASDA case study. This change model determines if the necessary conditions for change are present, determines the level of dissatisfaction, verbalizes the vision for change, and lays out the necessary steps for effective change. In the case of the ASDA Way of Working, this level of breakdown and communication will benefit the tiers of employees and encourage the upward communication. Norman will benefit from addressing the necessary conditions for change within the organization; eliminating unnecessary change areas and an overwhelming resistance among the employees.
Trust within the ASDA organization was irrelevant among the top level management team prior to Norman being hired with the company. Trust is the most important element of change Norman needs to address. The Beckhard and Harris Change Model will focus on employee, stakeholder, and customer trust. Norman must ensure commitment and understanding of the change among all levels of employees. Relaying the desired vision, breaking down the change model into appropriate steps, and communicating the necessary employee contributions will exemplify delegation, retain valuable team members, and balance the overall change model workload.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Norman has met with the individual stores, employees and management teams. He has interviewed countless employees, taken notes, and considered their inputs. However, Norman still feels that his plans and methods of implementation are the most effective. He has not presented his plans with a clear vision and a step-by-step process to these employees and lower-level managers to allow for upward communication and alterations. Norman will face resistance, a decrease in communication, and quickly burnout on the project plans without implementing a more structured and specific change model.
The Beckhard and Harris Change Model provides an opportunity for Norman to fill in the gaps in retail experience by incorporating employee experience and suggestions and collaborating in a more effective change process. The change in communication will answer the questions concerning the degree of delegation needed, reduce the overhaul commitment and profit turnaround time, and significantly encourage decreased resistance among employees and management.
REFERENCES
Leadership skills training. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.ncsu.edu/project/parkprgrd/PSTrainingModules/delegating/del13frame.htm
Spector, B. (2013). Implementing organizational change: theory into practice (3rd ed.). : Prentice Hall.
INTRODUCTION
Archie Norman seeks to restructure the entire ASDA organization but with a need for near-total control, a lack of personal and top management team retail experience, and excessive plans for a complete overhaul, his plan will face a grave level of employee resistance and the potential for insufficient teamwork and communication.
BACKGROUND
Implementing Organizational Change: Theory into Practice (Spector, 2013) presents a thought-provoking case study on a grocery store chain, ASDA, in the United Kingdom. Established with the intent to cater to the “blue-collar” market by providing exceptional pricing in a warehouse atmosphere, ASDA reaped growth and sales success for over 50 years. More recently, ASDA’s management sought the more upscale customer base, invested in non-grocery items to sell in their stores, expanded storefronts into wealthier locations and began to squander company profits on lavish corporate spending. In the wake of imminent corporate failure, Archie Norman is recruited to save the future of ASDA’s 205 stores.
Boasting successful work experience with his previous employer, McKinsey & Company, Archie Norman served as CFO for a large retail operation. Facing complete demoralization within the organization, a lack of company communication, teamwork or collaboration initiatives, and no decisive corporate vision or goal, Norman saw an unsurmountable degree of debt and a vast need for change within ASDA. Norman and ASDA’s board of directors agreed to a 3 year change model.
This 3 year change model included wiping the top management team almost exclusively to consist of new hire employees. Norman sought to convince the employees of a true financial problem; detailing ASDA’s poor spending habits, investments, and communication. Open communication and a vision for a total company overhaul fueled Norman’s actions to renew the current 205 stores.
Archie Norman seeks to restructure the entire ASDA organization but with a need for near-total control, a lack of personal and top management team retail experience, and excessive plans for a complete overhaul, his plan will face a grave level of employee resistance and the potential for insufficient teamwork and communication.
KEY PROBLEMS
While the current ASDA administration lacks self-control and a clear chain of communication, Norman enacts a potentially overbearing grip on both management and the employees. As the case study details, Norman is frequently referred to as “controlling”; a label which will result in a lack of trust and the necessary degree of freedom and ownership local store managers need for success. Delegation, a key trait of effective leadership, instills self-esteem and self-development with subordinates (“Leadership Skills Training”, n.d.). Norman seeks to instill a sense of empowerment and responsibility among individual management teams; however, his need to control and his inadvertent degradation of suggestions contrary to his own will quickly diminish these intentions and result in low morale and responsibility.
There is no question that ASDA is in need of change implementation. However, one must question the degree of change Norman has in mind. As the case study states, Norman believes that every single aspect of the organization needs change. For a company boasting 205 storefronts, this magnitude of overall change is an intense undertaking. Are there truly no relative positive aspects of the ASDA that can be salvaged or serve as baselines for a change model? Will the overhaul of the company scare off valuable employees with experience and sustainable assets? Is Norman prepared for such a difficult and dangerous undertaking?
Do Norman and his top management team have the retail experience necessary to adequately advise and implement radical change for ASDA? Norman was CFO for a large retail operation; however, he has “no specific experience in the grocery business and no general management experience” (Spector, 2013, p. 17). Norman chose to replace 2 of the 3 top management team members with individuals also lacking previous retail experience. Norman did not take considerations to hire within and seek counsel with current ASDA employees.
Finally, the level of company and individual employee resistance will increase with the degree of projected change. As with the implementation of any change model, a certain degree of resistance should be expected. In this particular situation, Norman is not taking into account that expansive degree of change, over 60,000 current employees who will be effected, and the varying degrees of commitment and history these employees have with ASDA. The employees are set in their ways, accustomed to a certain way the company has been run, and may not fully grasp the level of severity with the current situation.
ALTERNATIVES
As a potential solution to the before-mentioned problems, Norman may consider delegation techniques with the individual departments and store locations. Lower-level management needs to feel a sense of responsibility and ownership. Delegating responsibility allows a higher level of employee interaction, brainstorming, experience-based knowledge, leadership roles, and communication (“Leadership Skills Training”, n.d.). Many of the overwhelming decisions Norman is faced with can be cohesively absorbed among the various lower-level leaders.
With over 60,000 employees, ASDA has a combined level of retail experience far exceeding that of Norman and his top management team. These employees provide a unique advantage and insight to the needs of the company. In previous years with top level management teams, upward communication was neglected. Encouraging a new era of upward communication alleviates collaboration concerns and establishes a greater level of trust. True innovation to accommodate Norman’s desired change model becomes a tangible reality.
ASDA must have existing circumstances and practices within the organization that can be salvaged or restructured without a total overhaul. The current experienced employees and managers can be met with to discuss these possibilities; avoiding potential renewal costs, mistrust between employees and new leadership, and decreasing the inevitable rise of resistance.
PROPOSED SOLUTIONS
The Beckhard and Harris Change Model presents the opportunity to address several of the key elements of concern with the ASDA case study. This change model determines if the necessary conditions for change are present, determines the level of dissatisfaction, verbalizes the vision for change, and lays out the necessary steps for effective change. In the case of the ASDA Way of Working, this level of breakdown and communication will benefit the tiers of employees and encourage the upward communication. Norman will benefit from addressing the necessary conditions for change within the organization; eliminating unnecessary change areas and an overwhelming resistance among the employees.
Trust within the ASDA organization was irrelevant among the top level management team prior to Norman being hired with the company. Trust is the most important element of change Norman needs to address. The Beckhard and Harris Change Model will focus on employee, stakeholder, and customer trust. Norman must ensure commitment and understanding of the change among all levels of employees. Relaying the desired vision, breaking down the change model into appropriate steps, and communicating the necessary employee contributions will exemplify delegation, retain valuable team members, and balance the overall change model workload.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Norman has met with the individual stores, employees and management teams. He has interviewed countless employees, taken notes, and considered their inputs. However, Norman still feels that his plans and methods of implementation are the most effective. He has not presented his plans with a clear vision and a step-by-step process to these employees and lower-level managers to allow for upward communication and alterations. Norman will face resistance, a decrease in communication, and quickly burnout on the project plans without implementing a more structured and specific change model.
The Beckhard and Harris Change Model provides an opportunity for Norman to fill in the gaps in retail experience by incorporating employee experience and suggestions and collaborating in a more effective change process. The change in communication will answer the questions concerning the degree of delegation needed, reduce the overhaul commitment and profit turnaround time, and significantly encourage decreased resistance among employees and management.
REFERENCES
Leadership skills training. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.ncsu.edu/project/parkprgrd/PSTrainingModules/delegating/del13frame.htm
Spector, B. (2013). Implementing organizational change: theory into practice (3rd ed.). : Prentice Hall.
Mentoring & Coaching Presentation
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Communication Plan Presentation
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