Communication during Organizational Development and Change

1
Communication during Organizational Development
and Change

• Presented by Al Huf
• Argosy University, DBA Student

2
Introduction

• Alfred Huf
• Background
• Argosy University
• Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) Program
• Lockheed Martin
• JSF MS2 Process Standardization

3
Academic vs. Industry Literature

• Writing Style
• Academic tends to focus on building a proof
• Industry tends to focus on best practices
• Evidence
• Academic builds a case by providing proof via
  statistical analysis on research data
• Industry may or may not have data to
  substantiate findings
• Utilize both, just be aware of the difference

4
Definitions

• Communications
• Schiffer, 1999
• Organization
• Reinsch, 1991
• Organizational Communication
• Schiffer, 1999

5
Critical success factors to organizational change

• Visible management support and commitment
• Proper preparation for a successful change
• User/client participation
• A strong business-related need for change
• A reward system that supports necessary changes
• A high degree of communication

Pittman, 1994
6
As the Change progresses so does the communication

• Kurt Lewinian Change Cycle Model

• 30,000 Ft Message
• Town Halls
• Keeping Communication lines open
• Small amounts of good information are better than
  no information

• Involve stakeholder in the change process
• Town Halls
• Surveys
• 5,000 Ft Message
• Keeping Communication lines open

• Town Halls
• Live the change at all levels
• Keeping Communication lines open
• Assess how the changes are working
• Surveys

Un-Freezing
Changing or Moving
Re-Freezing
Klein, 1996 Goodman, Truss, 2004
7
Case of No Communication

• Corporation A
• Two locations
• Merging common tasks
• The change effort was masked in secrecy
• By time the Change and Move phase were reached
  much of the damage was done
• This was a clear case of
• Communication is something you do to someone

DiFonzo and Bordia, 1998
8
Case of Communication

• NCR Corp.
• CEO change
• Mark Hurd to Bill Nuti
• There were clearly different communication phases
  in this case
• The employees didnt know everything, but they
  knew what their leaders new and provided feedback
  along the way
• Clear case of listening to the stakeholders

Bird, 2005/2006
9
Summary

• Organizational Development and Change efforts can
  be stressful to everyone involved
• Be strategic in your communication efforts during
  these efforts
• Small amounts of good information early are
  better than the whole picture after the fact

10
Questions?
11
Further Reading

• www.hdunlimited.net - This paper
• DiFonzo, N., Bordia, P. (1998). A tale of two
  corporations managing uncertainty during
  organizational change. Human Resources
  Management, 37, 295-303.
• Goodman, J., Truss, C. (2004). The medium and
  the message communicating effectively during a
  major change initiative. Journal of Change
  Management, 4(3), 217-228.

12
References

• Bird, S. (2005/2006). Communicating through
  changes in leadership at NCR. Strategic
  Communication Management, 10(1), 30-33. Retrieved
  June 12, 2006, from the EBSCO Host database.
• DiFonzo, N., Bordia, P. (1998). A tale of two
  corporations managing uncertainty during
  organizational change. Human Resources
  Management, 37, 295-303. Retrieved May 10, 2006,
  from the LIRN, ProQuest database.
• Goodman, J., Truss, C. (2004). The medium and
  the message communicating effectively during a
  major change initiative. Journal of Change
  Management, 4(3), 217-228. Retrieved April 30,
  2006, from the EBSCO Host database.
• Klein, S. M. (1996). A management communication
  strategy for change. Journal of Organizational
  Change Management, 9(2), 32-46. Retrieved May 1,
  2006, from the EBSCO Host database.
• Pitman, B. (1994). Critical success factors to
  organizational change. Journal of Systems
  Management, 45(9), 40(1-2). Retrieved June 12,
  2006, from the EBSCO Host database.
• Reinsch, L. (1991). Editorial What is business
  communication? Journal of Business Communication,
  28(4), 305-310. Retrieved June 28, 2006, from the
  EBSCO Host database.
• Schiffer, M. B. (1999). The Material Life of
  Human Beings Artifacts, behavior, and
  communication. New York Routledge. Retrieved
  April 30, 2006, from the James J. Hill
  Netlibrary, eBook Collection.