Nigel Andrews and General Electric Plastics (A)

Issues

The steering committee is refusing to have a meeting for Workout IV because it is scheduled on Wednesday September 6^th; a day the steering committee decided would be “meeting-free.”  Larry Bossidy (Bossidy) has this date locked into his calendar in order to observe the Workout session. Rescheduling the meeting could take up to three months.

Issue Analysis

Approaching Large-Scale Change

In order to achieve the “lasting and positive large scale change” spoken of by Peggy Holman (Holman), General Electric (GE) had to completely move away from past organizational anchors toward an operation “characterized by ‘speed, simplicity, and self-confidence.’” This organizational change would not simply become an event that was constructed of months of preparation and anticipation only to produce excitement and increased productivity in the short-term. Instead, GE sought for a long-term impact that would, as Holman advocates, become a process of endless dedication and consistency to the revolutionary and systematic operational change.

Systemic, High-Involvement Change

Holman says that achieving large-scale change involves “a wide array of people” who are committed to an approach of systemic change. Nigel Andrews’ (Andrews) staff and the “steering committee” of employees represented roughly 50 to 75 of many of the most dedicated employees within GE to help streamline their most important operational issues. Gathering employees with the greatest conviction to the vision of GE complements Holman’s view on the importance of establishing what, who, and how, through systemic, high-involvement change. Having these preliminary systems in place, with employees from across all functions, ensures the approach to change is likely to be accepted and implemented as the organization renovates operations.

Shared Vision through Asch Conditions

Upon congregating around the issues with Workout, employees immediately began collectively defining their purpose and categorizing the people that would participate in affecting the changes, the steering committee being the most involved. Despite criticism and busy schedules, members of this group met often to understand what they aspired to; doing so organically—without manuals to guide their approach.  This commitment to meet often exemplifies Asch’s conditions to uncovering the conditions for trust within the Workout program. The effectiveness of developing shared vision is demonstrated at the end of Workout I, when a recommendation to make Wednesday free of meetings is supported by virtually all participants. It was noted that the proposal was “greeted with thunderous applause.” This is the type of united energy and shared vision was described by Holman as a bi-product of companies applying Asch conditions when executing a large-scale change.

Informal Caucus

The chair of the steering committee mentioned that the need to reschedule the September session was a matter of principle. He then said that violating the work-free day would “kill Workout.” It would be wise for Andrews to consider how significant the decision to proceed with the workshop is for the committee. This has become a matter of integrity for Andrews. If he moves forward with the meeting, then his commitment will not have as much value to those who support him. This could be a devastating decision for his career—especially when Bossidy has not shown much interest in the program.

Recommendations

Re-scheduling Workout IV

Currently, schedules for both Bossidy and Andrews appear non-negotiable. Therefore, Andrews should arrange to have Bossidy observe a Workout session as soon as his schedule allows. Bossidy should be informed that if a specific date is not available to evaluate the workshops that he is welcome to drop in on a Workout at his leisure. A debriefing e-mail should be sent to Bossidy with details of how the meeting was structured, recommendations that were mentioned, how the recommendations were received, information on how the group is moving forward, as well as details for the upcoming Workout V meeting.

In the meantime, Workout IV should be scheduled for Tuesday September 5^th and not Wednesday September 6^th.  This will maintain the incredible momentum established with the previous Workout meetings. Andrews should contact the steering committee chair immediately to ensure this plan of action sounds reasonable. An outline should then be developed for the Workout. 

Vision: Looking At the End from the Beginning

What Vision Is

A King James Version of the Bible says that “without vision the people perish.” Vision has been a fundamental principle throughout history due to its innate ability to stimulate hope in people. For example, as a fly fisherman vision is cast before a fishing lure in order to ensure the time, resources, and energy are utilized to their fullest capacity. In the movie A River Runs Through It, Paul, a character played by Brad Pitt, beautifully displays his vision each occasion taken to fly fish in the nearby Blackfoot River. With each trip Paul is depicted with a look of determination to bring home not one, but several Brown and Rainbow Trout. This zeal is then executed in an artful display as Paul tactfully casts his line upon the water to entertain and cajole his audience to impulsively act on their instincts and bite the lure.

The culmination of A River Runs Through It is witnessed in Paul’s enduring performance to catch a fish who does not reel-in as easily as others. Paul’s vision becomes tested significantly more than past casts. In order for Paul to catch this fish, he must survive being pulled with the fish down the powerful rushing river containing rapids, rocks, and tree limbs. However, having the image of completely reeling in the fish, every necessary action is taken regardless of backlash, fight of the fish, or bruising from being pulled into oncoming rocks. After a considerable change in traditional fly fishing measures, Paul is rewarded for the strides taken toward his vision.

Jick says the true value of a vision is to guide behavior. There is no question that Paul’s victorious experience with the Hawg-like trout was led by an adapting behavior. In order to become the recipient of Paul’s end objective, it was necessary for him to adjust his behavior by degrees in order to attract, set the hook, and successfully bring home the prize.

This fly fishing event is further supported as the result of vision when Jick identifies various characteristics of vision being memorable, exciting and inspiring, challenging, excellence centered, and tangible. Each of these attributes has been peppered throughout Paul’s story, especially the experience being excellence centered. Paul’s brother Norman said of this awe-inspiring occurrence that “he knew at that moment he was witnessing perfection.” [1]These words hold considerable weight considering the majority of Norman and Paul’s childhood was spent fly fishing together. Over the many years fly-fishing, Paul’s expertise had developed into near perfection in the sport. His ability to visualize his objective, recognize the need to be a creator of circumstances, and shift behaviors to meet the demands of his craft’s vision became incredibly fruitful.

What Vision Is Not

Without a strategic process to meet the demands vision, vision becomes merely a nice thought. If it is not effectively constructed, shared vision can be perceived as being unrealistic and be met with skepticism. Vision is not a whimsically conceived idea in the mind and then quickly announced as the current guiding element for the organization. Rather, in most cases, vision is developed over-time; as an idea is planted in the mind, and then refined and supported with purpose, tactic, and accountability.

How Failure to Create Effective Vision Does Not Lead to Success

In the article The Vision Thing it is said that “vision is considered fundamental for helping a firm, quite literally, visualize its future.” In 2011, an effective visionary forecast was not well executed by Reed Hastings (Hastings), the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a popular DVD-by-mail business called Netflix. Rather than craft a vision with a long-term strategy, Hastings announced a change with the hopes for a short-term gain in profit margin. Without considering the end results to his subscriber base, Hastings introduced the separation of DVD and streaming into two payment plans and price increase changes in an e-mail. In addition, the formerly all-encompassing service offered at a reasonable one-time fee, would not be called Netflix anymore, but would be changed to Qwikster. [2]

 Jick says that vision “grabs people” to feel proud of something they can contrast with the realities of today and tomorrow. Hastings decision to make extremely drastic and abrupt changes did not grab people in a positive manner what-so-ever. In fact, almost 800,000 subscribers cancelled their Netflix memberships in the quarter after the e-mail announcement was sent. [3] Additionally, in just a couple of months their stock price plummeted from around $300 per share in July 2011 to about $69 per share in November 2011.[4] As a change implementor, Hastings’s experience not creating an effective vision is analogous to an Indiana Jones movie Jick describes in Implementing Change, “It started out with a real nice beginning. Then suddenly we got one disaster after another. The boulder just missed us, and we got the snake in the cockpit of the airplane—that’s what it’s all about! You’ve got to be down in the mud and the blood and the beer.” However, Jick uses this analogy to describe how implementing visionary changes can lead to success.

How to Develop Vision

According to Jick, visions have been created in many different ways. Sometimes personal experiences and inspiration is sufficient to create effective vision. However, most organizations craft their vision based on a systematic process of information-gathering. Either way, whether this process takes places at a workshop or off-site retreat with key players or via public relations or advertising staff, I agree with Jick when he says that the three most common are: CEO/leader developed, CEO-senior team develop, and bottom-up developed. What these three groups have in common is the leader at the top.

The CEO/leader must be heavily involved in the process of developing effective vision as he/she naturally commands acute communication sensitivity from the constituents involved. When this leader speaks, it is authoritative in nature, and is received as the guiding resource for all upcoming organizational activities.

Warren Bennis discovered that when creating vision for long-term success, a study of the top leaders throughout history indicates that a visionary CEO/leader must adequately search for ideas until there is a clear on concise vision that articulates a strategic direction and cultural values, and then motivate the organization to adopt the vision through as many persuasive communication channels as available. Also, since most of the recipients of change will not understand or embrace the vision immediately, it will be critical that leadership at all degrees advocate an empathetic approach to understand concerns and how the vision affects people as an individual and as a department. The vision should concentrate of the rudimentary strengths of the organization and resonate with how the people being guided by the vision can grow as a bi-product of the implemented vision.  Measures of success must also be enacted in order to assist the organization in being accountable to the end results.

How Creating Effective Vision Can Lead to Success

Effective visionaries are born out of many years of persistence, patience, and improvement. Over the many years fly-fishing, Paul’s expertise had developed into near perfection in the sport. Eventually, he developed an incredible ability to visualize his objective, recognize the need to be a creator of circumstances, and shift behaviors to meet his visionary objective. These characteristics were developed from his childhood.  

In the case of Netflix, Hastings may have had vision, but in order to execute it effectively it should have had the long-term interests in mind for stakeholders. If he would have delineated the impact to the organization in the long-term, considering the role he plays as a change leader, the stock price of Netflix may have risen over $300 a share instead of the 60% decline they devastatingly experienced.

When crafting effective vision, the end result of success must be defined. Next, distinct and measurable tactics should be directly correlated with the end objectives to ensure accountability and to instill an increase in motivation to that end.

Bibliography

1.

Drew. (n.d.). A River Runs Through It Script. Retrieved November 15, 2012, from Script-o-rama.com: http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/r/river-runs-through-it-script.html

2. Fox Business. (2011, September 19). Netflix CEO Aplogizes, Renames DVD Division Qwikster. Retrieved November 15, 2012, from FoxNews.com: http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2011/09/19/netflix-splits-in-two-renames-dvd-division-qwikster/

3. Pepitone, J. (2011, October 24). Netflix loses 800,000 Subscribers. Retrieved Novemeber 15, 2012, from CNN Money: http://money.cnn.com/2011/10/24/technology/netflix_earnings/index.htm

4. Reisinger, D. (2011, November 23). How low can Netflix's stock go? Much lower, analysts say. Retrieved November 15, 2012, from cnet.com: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-57330305-17/how-low-can-netflixs-stock-go-much-lower-analysts-say/

 

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[1] (Drew)

[2] (Fox Business, 2011)

[3] (Pepitone, 2011)

[4] (Reisinger, 2011)

Forecasting the Need for Change

Forecasting the Need for Change

It is noteworthy to recognize the mature stage of James’s leadership. It would seem obvious that a manager should be aware of economic and industry changes comparable to efforts of the executive officers of the organization. However, it has been my experience that most managers focus on the people within their department and develop blinders toward anything externally—as if to hope higher leadership will become aware of potential problematic issues.

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is a case example of not identifying an economic or industry change that portended a need to meet the financial needs of their consumers until it was far too late. The results of neglecting initial indications of the financial concerns of AIDS victims, led to a the development of several interest groups who formed similar alliances to campaign against GSK; with the mission to obliterate the unethical prices weighing on the people of South Africa and other developing countries. If GSK had made it a priority to evaluate and discuss potential threats to their organizational success, relationships of trust and profit margins could have been maintained. Instead, neglect of the arduous costs upon consumers necessitated the rise of interest groups whose goal was to “hit where it would hurt the most—GSK’s share price.” Their campaign was so effective that most of the profits within South Africa and other nations in similar circumstances were reduced to almost nothing.

Why Change Now

Given the perspective James has gained in terms of economic and industry changes, it is important to enact change now. It is important for James to realize that change will happen by degrees, but must be initiated as soon as possible in order to prevent potential turbulence that may surface in the near future, as it did for GSK.  In addition, change must begin now—due to the amount of time and resources that may be needed. In Implementing Change, Jick says that “No matter how much effort companies invest in preparation and workshops—not to mention pep rallies, banners, and pin—organizations are invariably insufficiently prepared for the difficulties of implementing change.” Once again, James must begin the change process now in order to gather sufficient organizational necessities to hedge against any unforeseen forces both inside and outside the organization.

In Common Pitfalls of Implementation, survey results of 93 medium and large-sized firms uncovered a trend of seven major problematic issues that developed with at least 60 percent of the organizations. The study revealed that in most cases implementation: 1) takes more time than originally allocated, 2) major unforeseen issues surfaced during the process of change, 3) implementation activities were not effective enough, 4) competing activities and crises detracted from implementing the change, 5) employees involved with change implementation were not sufficient, 6) training was not adequate for lower-level employees, 7) and there were uncontrollable factors in the external environment. Having previously met with his superiors to help them become aware of his concerns, James must consider how these seven points relate to changes that will need to be made in his department.

How to Initiate Change

Having already met with upper management to emphasize the economic and industry alarms, regardless of what is said for or against James’s argument to implement change; he must consider the leaders degree of support based on the information delivered and begin analyzing the seven points as a guide in developing a strategic plan of action. These efforts will assist in implementation of change in his department and will further illustrate James’s desire to improve the organizations growth.

If James’s direct leadership did not agree with his argument what-so-ever, then James must request an additional meeting with the higher authority. Being that the manager is resistant to what the information that surfaced in the previous meeting, this meeting will serve to remind the leader of the respect he has toward this person; and to help the leader understand how important their role would be in making necessary changes now to prevent any future harm to the organization.

 In the meeting, James should simply ask him/her what their perspective is of the current economic and industry status; thereby, applying the principle of “Seek First to Understand, then to be Understood” in Stephen Covey’s book titled The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. When applied effectively, this habit promotes an empathetic and trusting environment that should then allow James to effectively deliver the primary issues of concern as he perceives them, to layout the seven principles of implementing change as James thinks they apply to his department, and to receive input. The ultimate objective of this meeting is to have two way communications and to dialogue about the potential risks of waiting to make changes.

Why People Resist Change

According to Jick, the initial resistant reactions to the need to make changes to prepare for external forces are a direct result of human behavior. People are prone to perceiving change as a threat to their position, and become immobilized and defensive. James must realize that now that he has stated his opinion of what could be severely detrimental to the organization; that rather than resist those resisting change, it will be critical to create an environment capable of receiving change.  The best managerial example of creating an environment of great camaraderie among her team given the uncertain horizon is Ofra Sherman (Sherman) of Wellcome Israel. Sherman was placed in a position of complete isolation, having identified several discouraging issues with upper management. However, instead of allowing her department to become shaken she too recognized the need to “start developing a strategy” and maintained leading her team forward.

Being a Change Implementor

James’s strategy should be similar to Sherman’s in how he fulfills his duties to his department. Also, Sherman was faced with the question of how to approach upper management regarding several issues as they related to the future. Because her company was transitioning into an acquisition with GSK with no real notice, she was uncertain on which leader to communicate to and support. James is fortunate in that, even if an acquisition occurred, he has time to communicate and support his leaders.

Jick would recommend James to generate a sense of urgency “without appearing to be fabricating an emergency, or crying wolf.” After creating urgency and a shared vision in the second meeting with upper management, James’s intent should be to gain an alliance with this leader as a change advocate. In addition to creating a culture that can adapt to change, the most effective thing James can do as a change implentor is to recognize that any large-scale change must be undertaken with an authoritative leader who can command a greater margin of support. James can seek to understand what the leader would want James to do within his department and begin identifying what Jick calls the enabling structures.

Preparing Change Recipients

Whether or not James gains the support of leadership to support a strong leader role, it is strongly advised that James begin preparing change recipients within his department. He should begin establishing enabling structures to mitigate uncertainty given the economy and the industry conditions. The most relevant issues within the seven points mentioned by Jick relate to training lower level employees and identifying current processes that could be done more effectively in order to reduce the amount of time and focus given an unforeseen even. These two points should be introduced and discussed within James’s department to understand how his team thinks they should be handled. Then as a team, they should schedule measures of implementation in front of the group on a calendar so as to improve focus and accountability. Enacting these enabling structures will further prepare the department for future change and also help to stimulate the urgency for others within the organization to give adequate consideration to preparing for what could be developing economy and industry-wide forces of change. 

Wellcome Israel Case Study

Wellcome Israel Case Study (A)

Issues

Ofra Sherman (Sherman) is in a predicament foreign to anything she has ever encountered. With the acquisition between Wellcome and Glaxo, she is striving to determine whether or not to succumb to a new cultural environment, due to the upcoming merger, or to begin sending resumes to find new work. Her decision to stay or leave has caused her great anxiety primarily because of the commitment she has demonstrated to Wellcome, and because of the loyalty she has to her team of employees. In order to determine whether or not to remain with the upcoming changes on June 1, she must decide whether or not to speak to the general manager of Glaxo to understand what the firm is interested in doing with their department.

In order to develop an effective strategy moving forward, it is important to understand how Sherman has handled the various changes within Wellcome to date, as well as the managerial atmosphere of trust she has instituted thus far. This analysis will supply a foundation of influential options to create reliable, relevant, and product decisions in creating an environment capable of effective change.

Issue Analysis

Change Stages

It seems natural for a person in Sherman’s circumstances to be in and out of shock. Currently, her last five years of time and efforts within her managerial position are in jeopardy or are being placed at a standstill. In addition, it is no wonder that it has been difficult to know how to act considering a conflicting argument between a former leader and current leader within Promedico on how to act for the best interests of the marketing department.

Confusion and ambiguity may have been a trending pattern within both Wellcome and Promedico as seen in the lack of concrete organizational structure with items such as reporting lines. Employees identified Sherman as someone with incredible autonomy. Her display of independence could be a defensive retreat due to the unstable appearance of her working environment where she was unable to delineate her allegiance due to being in the middle of two companies with an undefined relationship.

Sherman displays and uncanny ability to execute her role as the manager of Wellcome Israel, despite the fluctuating degrees of change and responsibility. In the midst of change, the ability Sherman has to earn the trust and respect from her team is admirable. She is not only a manager to the 14 people she leads, but also a friend. This is due to her efforts to effectively communicate and empower the employees. Her exertions seem a result of a pattern being reciprocated—where the more energy she puts into the growth and development of her department, the more energy, comfort, and assertiveness she develops to take proactive risks for herself and for her team.

Managerial Atmosphere

Communicating the vision for the marketing department—given the abruptness of an unpredictable situation, is the most important role for Sherman. She has been remarkable in being quick to access the needs of the team given the circumstances. One of her strongest attributes has been her discipline to filter the message she delivers to her department. It has been her advantage not to engage employees in the conflicting messages of Sherman’s various managers. Involving employees in this dialogue could destroy moral. However, it may be in the best interest of the department to allow for people to vent their frustrations before she decides whether or not to approach Glaxo management. It will be important to understand where members of her team are as recipients of change; in order to gaining the mental framework and synergy to prepare for a departmental change.  Once the environment has been created for people to be capable of transitioning, Sherman’s talent of motivation will be ripe for execution.

Recommendations

Creating the Capability for Change

Sherman has already begun rethinking positive steps toward change. She has collected many critical insights to provide her with the energy and options of how to move forward in the change process. She must now gather her department employees for a meeting to council together. She should encourage the department to ask questions and should seek to understand the degrees of frustration that have surfaced in their work and family lives as a result of the unplanned event. Because there is a culture of trust and respect established, team -members are likely to be open to explaining their perspective on the situation, dialogue back-and-forth in order to identify current and potential options, and to explore risks. The success of the meeting will be directly correlated to the atmosphere Sherman and employees have created together, where sharing and collaboration is a natural occurrence. However, it will be important for Sherman to be the mediator of the discussion in order to ensure that in the end of their meeting people have felt listened-to and validated, options have been entertained sufficiently, and a mutual understanding of action is obtained.

How to Act

 After meeting with her team, Sherman should make time to consider both the advantages and disadvantages of carrying the team into the transition or searching for employment elsewhere. She must consider the overall mood at the end of the meeting, specific points of action the group would adopt given best and worst case scenarios, and how this change would be good personally and for the individuals of the group.

Upon collecting the most influential advantages and disadvantages moving forward, Sherman should contact Glaxo management and inform them of her desire to understand the vision for the company acquisition. She should then prepare for a meeting, acknowledging that the points of discussion that surfaced when counseling with her team may help to persuade management to retain the marketing department. She should also e-mail a list of items and minutes she would like to review. Also, in her preparations, she should consider the tremendous growth she would undertake during and after the merger. Realizing the amount of growth and accomplishment that will take place personally will stimulate an increased level of security and capability given abrupt and ambiguous circumstances in the future.