Organizational Change Assignment: Strategy for Improving Business Based on Personal Experience

Question

Task: To prepare this organizational change assignment, you are required to write an essay to Identify and describe a variety of examples of Reframing as a Strategy for Improving Organizations that are known, drawn from your experience working in your respective organizations.

Write reflections by using academic references and arguments on the following statement.
1. How Power is used as the ability to get someone else to do something you want done, or the ability to make things happen or get things done in the way you want?

2. As Dominant culture refers to most widely shared values and assumptions of the organisation. Discuss Subcultures and Countercultures as refer to unique patterns of values and philosophies within a group that outwardly reject the dominant culture?

3. How Successful change requires framing issues, building coalitions, and creating arenas where conflict can be surfaced and agreements negotiated?

Answer

Introduction to the context of organizational change assignment
Organisations operate in very diverse and uncertain environments that always need constant revision and adaptation to the evolving environment that it faces, which might be legitimate henceforth being able to fulfil the purpose of the required changes (Mutch 2018). The main focus is on the actors and their capacities to bring about the changes. It is generally seen that this reframing strategy has been adopted by many organisations that aim to change the power structure and provide forums for open discussions about the issues of the employees such that the dominant culture can be kept to a sustainable level and a healthy work environment can be preserved for all the employees.

Objectives

• To adapt to the changing times and the differing characteristics of the market they operate in and therefore be prepared with the actions to be taken at different times.
• To find a way to provide the employees a suitable structure where balance is maintained in power distribution and grievance redressal.
• To enhance productivity by reducing the risks associated with operation.

Methodology
The data I have used for this report is secondary. Primary data is the collection and analysis of different elements from the source or place of origin while secondary data is the data collected from the reports of the primary data for any other purpose of research and analysis which is usually done by individuals or organisations having budget and time constraints (Johnston 2017). In this regard, it is of great help if the primary data is available as reliability is of utmost priority but due to lack of it, I incorporate my experience from the previous organisation, Woolworths, as well as use the journals and e-books to explain the concepts in a much clearer way.

In the secondary data, I have taken the resources from the year 2017 till now as this gave me the latest trends and reports that are crucial. The first-hand experience regarding the organisation worked in gives me the capacity to explain the psychological and bureaucratic structure present more precisely. Hence the reflection can be more detailed and the reformation policies can be provided on a much broader and diverse basis.

1 Use of power and ability to get things done
The organisations in the current scenario all have people in different positions. Some are at the top levels and take direct decisions based on the performance of the others and have a say in the working of the company as they are under the direct influence and guidance of the board of directors. Hence, the lower-levelstaff are those that have the most pressure of proving their efficiency at a sustained level (Froncek and Rohmann 2019). This power structure is based on the Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) that has its roots in every business organisation (Leguina and Downey 2021). It can sometimes lead to biases and prejudices against a group of organisations based on impersonal agendas and exercise of forced to hierarchical supremacy over the subordinates. The directors of the company appoint the top-level executives that follow their vision but it can be seen that they often try to indulge in favouritism and leisure and outsource the work by putting additional load on their group in a way that they are suppressed and if by any chance the grievance is brought to light, they have the power of influence the directors and throw them out without any cautionary notice. This has been the case in most the organisations and is the root cause for a toxic work environment with lower efficiency according to me.

Nowadays the results-based management has become the trend that has been able to take over the organisations and only focus on the achievements of targets within time by any means necessary (Froncek and Rohmann 2019). It creates an environment that renders individuals powerless and makes them vulnerable to the actions of the top executives of the companies who do not provide any security of tenure. They sometimes cross the borders with the distribution of penalties and few benefits along the lines of race and caste within the organisation which affects the efficiency of operations as I experienced in Woolworths. There were collective power domains and conflicts of interests and resulted in the disproportionate distribution of the economic interests. Hence, the habit of exploitation and over pressurising the lower-level staff on which they have direct control is kind of inculcated in the minds of the individuals (Leguina and Downey 2021).

From my experience at Woolworths, it is proved that the top management pays little attention to the culture and the workload on the employees. They aim to maximise the utilities and earn profits which they vision and it trickles down among the managers who then mould it their way to prepare a framework where they can easily shift their tasks to their subordinates and make them work harder. It is done to prove the inferiority complex and the sense of satisfaction they receive is utmost. I sometimes used to shift workload and get leisure time purposefully and had the idea that the treatment received by me in the past needs to be passed on to provide me with a sense of relief. This approach is never desirable but unfortunately psychologically imbibed. They were even accused of underpaying staff by about $390 billion after the payments of 70 managers had been surveyed (the Guardian. 2021). Hence it is proved that if this is true for the top levels then lower levels staff is at the mercy of even harsher measures. Restructuring becomes necessary to break this chain of the power hierarchy.

2. Concept of Dominant Culture
It is said that the practice of a particular culture within a diverse society to achieve a certain social, economic or cultural and political identity is the dominant culture concept that might include preference to any language or values and customs among others that aim at setting a standard of operation and interaction in the organisation (Greer 2017). This requires self-knowledge and following the traditions of the society and forms the basis of the working environment of the organisations as normally seen. This also results in epistemological prioritization of a certain common way of doing the tasks and following a specific pattern that goes down the power structure levels from one time period to another.

There are many sources of power asymmetry that create things that get more precisely and very briefly explained with no chances for any relaxation which can create trauma for the individuals and reduce their efficiency (Walter and Aitken 2017). It includes race, biological diversity among others in the individual groups that have a certain preference over many other things and there are conflicts raised among the different ideologies present. This was the case for the Woolworths as well. In the organisation there were different groups of dominance based on caste, creed, ethnicity and others that have led to the conflicts and distortion in the activities of the organisation.

Subcultures might be created in this regard that has some of the principles of the main ideology but differs substantially from the various aspects of race, caste, creed, gender, ethnicity, humanitarian and work cultures (Da Veiga and Martins 2017). One Individual can be present in many subcultures. Hence it is a very lucid way to solve the issue of varying dominant culture or single dominant culture adoption in an organisation. People from various ideologies will coexist and make the most out of the situations by following their ways and reduce the conflicts arising due to the non-existence of the majority. Whereas Countercultures are the values and ethics that are opposed to the basic one and must be developed to maintain the balance between the ideologies and the different contrasting exploiting practices (Presence 2019).

After working in Woolworths, I have experienced the dominant culture of having a very goal-oriented work culture with low priority given on the employee's well-being. It was my experience that the culture present did not have any biases towards ethnicity or caste among other things but was focused on shifting responsibility and misusing the power experience of the superiority complex. Some countercultures like group formation for raising grievances needed to be developed but were lacking as everyone followed their superiors when the time came but little development of subcultures like respecting each other's culture and ethnicity have kept the working environment to a sustainable level.

3. Focusing on framing issues, forming coalitions and setting arenas of conflict solving and negotiation of agreements

One of the main problems in the organisations is the issue of conflicts and their solving based on mutual agreement and negotiations. It is mostly seen that the top executives can mould and diverge the decisions towards their favour and the other subordinates are not able to express their views due to the fear of job loss as I experienced at Woolworths. The compensation issues and the over-emphasis on achieving targets had become their main motive but no heed was paid to the compensation and wellbeing of the employees. The most astounding problem was the contrasting recommendations of the ways of doing tasks and the different frames of mind developing their notions and further communications were based on it mostly, affecting productivity in the long run. No negotiation meetings were organised to harmonise the activities in the right direction which was one of the biggest concerns.

The main issues that create the conflicts are unpredictable decision making, incomplete knowledge and ambiguity of the different ideological aspects, which in totality create a different set of ways about how to perform the tasks (Dewulf and Biesbroek 2018). Hence it proves that the understanding of the difference against those involved in the organisations’ operation is in fact at a very different psychological area where it is difficult for anyone to meet at a specific area of thought without a concerted effort from all in the organisation.

In this regard, the coalition of the individuals is necessary not only to make the smooth functioning among themselves and eradicate the problem of lack of information and communication problems (Dewulf and Biesbroek 2018). Therefore, according to me, there needs to be a forum created where all the individuals can raise their voice for the correct purpose and one of the employees will be the head of the committee that will be responsible for maintaining a coherent group of workers based on sound humanitarian work practices and without the essence of the favouritism and biases. The leader of the committee has to be chosen by the employee so that confidence is generated among them about the proper redressal. For issues that are little sensitive and pertain to a group without relying on individualistic measures, there needs to be a certain way to deal with it, forming coalitions and representing the contrasting ideologies such that direct controversy is avoided. It is seen that this is a far better way than having a situation of cold wars and non-cooperation among the separated groups of the organisation.

In this situation, the Human Resource Management team must play a very important role to make sure that the committed team is given the power and they are willing and able to meet at a common point that results in the solving of the different issues that are raised, as soon as possible to help the organisation perform harmoniously towards the achievement of the set objectives. This is the major restructuring that needs to be done in all the organisations that do not have it. Collective say and decision-making through negotiations in a certain forum is the key to healthy organisational relations.

Conclusion and recommendation
Now coming to the end of this reflection it is clear to me that the logic of institutional restructuring is very crucial for the ever-changing environment of the businesses and the changing roles of the people in the organisation. The top-level executives have to be aware of the needs and rights of the staff and provide them with the necessary framework for the resolution of their problems. The dominant culture needs to evolve and the subcultures along with contrasting cultures need to come up that safeguard the interests of every individual. Apart from this, there needs to be a change in the power structure that focuses on the utilisation of the individuals by giving them the freedom to work diligently.

Reference List
Da Veiga, A. and Martins, N., 2017. Defining and identifying dominant information security cultures and subcultures.

Computers & Security, 70, pp.72-94. Available through: http://uir.unisa.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10500/23160/Comp%20and%20Sec%202017%20Dominant%20 and%20Sub%20cultures.pdf?sequence=4. [Accessed 17 September 2021].

Dewulf, A. and Biesbroek, R., 2018. Nine lives of uncertainty in decision-making: strategies for dealing with uncertainty in environmental governance. Policy and Society, 37(4), pp.441-458. Available through: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14494035.2018.1504484. [Accessed 17 September 2021].

Froncek, B. and Rohmann, A., 2019. “You Get the Great Feeling That You’re Being Heard But in the End You Realize That Things Will Be Done Differently and in Others’ Favor”: An Experimental Investigation of Negative Effects of Participation in Evaluation. American Journal of Evaluation, 40(1), pp.19-34. Available through: https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/44297500/Public_Administration_Diversity_and_the_20160401-9946-g1ylwo-with-cover-page-v2.pdf?Expires=1631866166&Signature=Kon3hnVbYes8mGM1C6-CXi2Ks00hPclNTH4U2J0rY2SUuARAUgCNd2R6gtxXGb~04irVxRXZrEQt1FYbAEZF6ryFYGI7NI9 OjUmabYdKvrf~alegUEqUBzswrdvthizzx4wqFYa~4WboJMmiM8DfpxcG10jjJ1VG3eLjcmE~- 95gpsDnKGhAjfyJS1EaZppcioEerBX-~goR92PBlVTkILJVsOu~un4RLCtzJLMnxy4pLNrMXjM5hy-x-wQFps0nuUInoOr7hLub5DyL3POjoek4SLLcTEM40Jl6v9np9~ 95Pn0fkZVlwS0L7wiQETpOn5psUnnMSkqVeklirrjcbA__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA. [Accessed 17th September 2021].

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