Change and Culture Case Study 1 free essay sample

Change and Culture Case Study I Paul Sullivan HCS/514 August 15, 2011 Kendra Slatton Change and Culture Case Study I The job of a middle manager is not easy, especially during times of extreme change. It requires balancing and maintaining varying personnel within the organization including upper management and a subordinate workforce. An option for many who successfully have not influenced the direction of an organization is to leave the company. However, according to Covey (2004), â€Å"A more common but insidious alternative is to remain and become a mindless conveyor of decisions from the top† (p. 47). The middle manager who manages to compete with the pressures from upper management with some degree of success faces alternate challenges from within the organization. According to Armour (2007), â€Å"Middle management jobs have become more demanding. Technology means middle managers have to do more multi-tasking and are expected to be accessible to their staffs, a Herculean challenge in the age of globalization. Employees may be spread across the globe, and a manager may have to get up at 3 A. M. to take a call from an employee in another country† (para. 4). The demanding and steady rate of change throughout the structure of an organization fosters the complications that already exist for the middle manager. The middle manager in a health care organization that has merged with a previous competitor faces many challenges. Up until now, the employees of that organization saw the competition as an enemy that provided poor quality of care. On top of that, the new corporation has in place several inpatient and outpatient services that the organization does not. Knowing that the existing employees of the organization view this new company as an enemy plays an important role in how the middle manager will regulate the change. Recognizing that the employees of both organizations will be resistant to this change, and understanding that a large amount of fear and anxiety will determine how the workforce responds, procedures must be adapted to unite the workforce. The workforce needs to be informed about the specific changes in a manner that will make sense to each of them. In an environment that is already resistant and hostile with change of this magnitude, details of this change must surface no matter how unappealing. Employee reaction needs to reach upper management in an accurate and timely manner. Daily meetings between middle managers and employees and bi-weekly meetings between middle managers and upper management is a means to ensure proper and timely communication. The implementation of procedures to ensure timely and accurate response from the workforce is important. Feedback from the workers needs to be properly and accurately presented to upper management. According to Davenport and Barrow (2009), â€Å"Intense change, especially when it occurs in quick succession, as being experienced by many organizations, can be particularly excruciating for rank-and-file employees. The employees’ frustration is exacerbated when they are not given an opportunity to participate in decisions that affect them. As stakeholders and people that execute the mission of the organization, they feel disenfranchised and devalued† (p. 115). The observation of Davenport and Barrow gives credible reason it is important to ensure an organizations’ workforce is properly informed and given consideration regarding a change of this magnitude. When the proverbial dust settles after the merger, they will still be an integral part of the organization. To further the importance of proper and effective communication between management and the workforce, Davenport and Barrow (2009) stated, â€Å"Communication is the key to organizational success and nowhere is the truism more apparent than in the influence of internal communication during a transformational process as dramatic as a merger or acquisition. During complex and, often, painful process of bringing the two sets of employees together, a continuous flow of negotiation is essential for keeping in touch with how people feel; communicating information clearly across both bidder and target; and beginning the process of creating a new culture for the merged company† (p. 117). Two previous competing organizations are in the process of merging. The process ensuring employees are well informed about the merger is not complete. The merging workforce needs to be brought together and communicate as one organization. This serves as the next task for middle management, to unite these employees so they may form together as one workforce in one organization and dedicate themselves to the mission of the organization. To ensure that the combined staff will work together to provide quality care without remaining competitive among each other, it would best serve the interests of the organization to form a working coalition of employees to guide them in this process. Gathering members of each prior company into a coalition for the purpose of unification is in the best interest of the organization as it is a means to alleviate their competitive nature. It is also in the best interest of the employees as it is a means for them to come together and share their experiences. These members should be employees from each company who have exposed themselves as top performers and respected members of their team. An opportunity to clarify similar goals and recognize potential flaws is provided to the coalition representing both prior organizations. This process will bring the employees of both organizations closer together and support an effective working relationship. The opportunity to educate and respond to the total workforce is availed after the coalition has met and discussed their issues regarding the merger. One of the more productive and effective means of communicating and educating the workforce is through the development of a newsletter. Each time the coalition meets to discuss issues regarding the merger and issues of change that this merger entails, releasing the information in the form of a newsletter ensures this information is accessible to the total workforce. Kandler (2011), furthers the point by stating, â€Å"Although you can’t totally eliminate the uncomfortable feelings of employees have during these times of corporate chaos, there is a tool you can use to help employees cope with the rapid changes: your employee newsletter. By featuring articles that address issues of, â€Å"Is my job safe? If I’m retained, how will my pay and benefits change? † Your employee newsletter can play a crucial role in helping to answer questions and eliminate employee uncertainty† (p. 24). When two organizations merge into one larger company, the shape and systems of the previous company will change. The individuals who work together need to change considerably to achieve new goals and objectives. One company may not share the norms and traditions of the other (Kandler, 2011). Developing a new organizational mission describing the new systems and shape of the organization is conducive to the changed environment. Collectively stating the goals, objectives, and prescribed strategies based on the merger will provide a smooth transition. One of the major changes to this organization is the several inpatient and outpatient services that the organization did not provide previously. Developing effective strategies for how and where these new services are going to operate is a task that needs to be done in a collective manner. Shared information among middle managers regarding prior strengths and weaknesses regarding these services and suggestions for improvement by both management teams will ensure a high standard of patient care and satisfaction. By design, this is a horizontal merger in which two competing companies have merged. According to Mergers and Acquisitions (2009), â€Å"Horizontal mergers are those mergers where the companies manufacturing similar kinds of commodities or running similar types of businesses merge with each other. The principle objective behind this type of merger is to achieve economies of scale in the production procedure through carrying off duplication of installing services and functions, widening the line of products, decrease in working capital, getting rid of competition, minimizing the advertising expenses, enhancing the market capability and to get more dominance on the market† (para. 3). The new organizational structure will reflect an effective independence from the previous structure. It will combine a conventional top-down hierarchial structure that will blend the two existing cultures, maintaining the best features of both. The new system will provide a process for employees to initiate changes regarding the future vision addressing current problems. It is essential to provide a process for each individual program and department, whether it is the inpatient or outpatient medical services, the adolescent gang prevention program, the substance abuse counseling services, or the food and clothing distribution center, to monitor progress in the direction of achieving success in terms of quality, finances, and quality patient care and satisfaction. Educating employees for new roles within the organization is a primary focus, it gives the workers insight into the notion that before individuals can develop new roles within a new organizational structure, one needs to develop the tools and knowledge to do so. Motivating and encouraging employees to discover and seek out new direction, employees will function both individually and as a team. Specific orientation programs will develop the education process. To ensure the educational programs blend effectively within the organization, programs to impart information and knowledge to assume new roles will be implemented. It will require time and patience for the transition to reach completion. Time and a genuine effort by management and the workers to recognize and implement new strategies in place of old practices successful in the past is key for achieved success. Working among new colleagues in an unfamiliar location requires a period of adjustment. References Armour, S. (2007). Who wants to be a middle manager? USA Today, (), 2. Covey, S. R. (2004). The 8th Addiction: From Effectiveness to Greatness. New York, New York: Free Press Davenport, J. , Barrow, S. (2009). Employee Communication During Mergers and Acquisitions. New York, New York: Gower. Kandler, D. (2011). Helping employees cope with corporate downsizing, merger or Acquisition. Project Management Journal, (), 24-25 Mergers and Acquisitions. (2009). QFinance, (), 1. 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