Change Management Plan

Assignment 2: Diagnosing Change

Kirsten Farnham

Dr. Allan Beck

HRM 560 – Managing Organizational Change

January 28, 2019

“Despite the fact that change is constant, it seems that organizations are, in some cases, not getting any better at leading and managing it successfully” (Hodges & Gill, 2014, p. 3). Change is inevitable, and organizations must always prepare for it to remain competitive in the industry (Barcan, 2012). Besides, organizational change happens when an enterprise undergoes a transition from its present condition to a future state that is desirable. Moreover, effective change management is crucial for the success of the change effort since it reduces resistance as well as minimizes costs, and optimizes the outcome of the change effort (Jones, 2013). However, before initiating any change, diagnosis is essential to establish the areas and processes that need change. By utilizing the concept of this topic, this study aims to analyze the change need at Walmart by using various diagnostic tools and change management theories.

Company Description: Walmart, Inc

Walmart, Inc, is an American multinational company in the retail sector, which has established several departmental, grocery stores, and chain of supermarkets across the globe. The company was founded in 1962 by Sam Walton and has its headquarters in Rogers, Arkansas. It provides various products including beauty products, household consumables, electronics, cleaning products, furniture, clothing footwear, jewelry, toys, auto, etc. Currently, Walmart has about 260 million customers and has established operations in more than twenty-eight nations. The company also has approximately 2.3 million employees who are located in various locations across the world. It is ranked one of the largest companies in the retail industry regarding revenue as well as sales.

Current HR Practice, Policy, Process, or Procedure that Needs Change

One of the things that Walmart needs to change relates to employee compensation and benefits. In recent years, Walmart has faced a lot of criticism for low pay to its employees, something that has adversely impacted Walmart’s reputation and customer base. The firm has been taken to court several times to raise its minimum wages to its employees. As such, Walmart should make some modifications in its compensation and benefits that are congruent with the market rates to retain as well as attract talented workers.

Secondly, the training policy and procedure of the firm should also change. Walmart should change its training and development approaches following constant complaints from consumers about poor customer service. Employees need to receive proper training that can enable them to handle clients effectively. The training needs to be ongoing as well as consistent with the customer needs. Additionally, diversity training is a must as Walmart is an international company with employees all over the world.

Reasons for the Proposed Change

Improving the compensation and benefits of employees will enhance their morale to work which will, in turn, increase their productivity. If workers can receive better pay that is similar to other employees in the same industry, they are likely to increase their effort in reaching organizational goals. Their enhanced efforts can be reflected in improved profitability and overall organizational performance. According to Anderson and Anderson (2010), initiating an appropriate change in the organization can result in positive outcomes that can enhance the competitiveness of the enterprise. In this case, modifying employee compensation and benefits would be an appropriate change at Walmart because not only will it increase the productivity of the company but also enhance its corporate image as well as prevent it from court fines.

Moreover, the need for proper training to employees will enable them to effectively respond to customer needs which will enhance customer loyalty as well as attract new clients to the company. Customer service is one of the crucial business elements that can significantly contribute to the success of any business. Therefore, by providing appropriate customer care training, Walmart will be able to differentiate its services in the market which will enable it to gain a competitive edge. According to current studies, customer needs and preferences are changing on a daily basis; therefore, organizations must keep up with such changes by initiating appropriate strategies to remain relevant in the industry.

Finally, the proposed change about diversity training will be crucial to Walmart because it will enable its large number of workers spread across the globe to recognize and appreciate the individual differences of their colleagues. It will enhance diversity tolerance which would ensure teamwork, thus improve performance. According to Kotter (2013), the change should be constant and ongoing because of the changing external environment. Therefore, diversity training should be ongoing to achieve desirable outcomes. For instance, diversity laws and regulations keep on changing and Walmart needs to respond to these changes appropriately through constant training.

Diagnostic Tools to Determine Readiness for Change

Several frameworks including Burke-Litwin, Seven-S and COPS can be used to assess the readiness for change of an organization. The COPS framework tends to evaluate four various elements of the enterprise (culture, operations, people, and systems) as well as the comparative strengths and weaknesses (Anderson & Anderson, 2010). The Seven-S model tends to focus on the interaction of various parts of the business. The framework is based on the interdependence of several components including strategy, structure, systems, staff, style, skills and shared values. Moreover, in the Burke–Litwin model, the interdependence and complexity of the exterior and interior change influences are analyzed.

Besides, in the case of Walmart, the two diagnostic tools that would be utilized to determine the readiness for change include Burke-Litwin and Seven-S models. The Burke-Litwin would be appropriate because it is predictive and straightforward. Understanding the outcome can enable one to integrate proper adjustments and strategy. The Seven-S model would be necessary because it will evaluate all the critical components of the company to establish the readiness for change. It will also ensure that the seven elements are aligned with the company’s mission and vision.

Assessment of the Organization’s Readiness for Change

Based on the variables in the Seven-S model, it is evident that Walmart is ready for the change. The current system is not operating at its maximum, and it is below the expectations as noted by the staff. As a result, the company’s structure is also failing and unable to facilitate the attainment of organizational objectives. Moreover, the strategy of the company is also not working efficiently as expected. Because of the ineffective HR strategy, the firm has not been able to meet its goals. Furthermore, Walmart’s style has faced considerable criticisms in recent years for failing to address employee concerns adequately. Finally, the shared values of the company have also to change to remain competitive in the retail industry.

Besides, the results from the diagnosis showed that Walmart needs a transition from the old ways of handling employees and consumers. The current HR practices are not resulting in employee satisfaction as well as desirable productivity. As such, customers are also negatively affected due to poor customer service. Therefore, the company needs to implement the proposed change to enhance the productivity of workers as well as the overall organizational performance (Anderson & Anderson, 2010).

Nevertheless, these results mean that employee satisfaction and customer service are crucial for the success of the business. An organization should ensure that its HR policies and strategies are appropriate to enhance employee satisfaction and customer service to attain its objectives efficiently. Without having productive workers and satisfied clients, gaining a competitive advantage in the market might be difficult.

Interpretation of Whether the Organization is ready for Change

Finally, based on the manner in which Walmart is shaping up the retail industry, the company is ready for a change. The company understands that it has to remain competitive in the market by adopting new changes. As such, the organization should utilize Kurt Lewin’s three-step model of change to unfreeze the old ideas and integrate the new ones into the culture through the refreezing process (Palmer et al., 2016).

References

Anderson, D., & Anderson, L. A. (2010). Beyond change management: How to achieve breakthrough results through conscious change leadership (Vol. 36). John Wiley & Sons.

Barcan, L. (2012). Organizational change management approach in an international context. Young Economists Journal / Revista Tinerilor Economisti, 9(18), 113-122.

Company Facts. (2018). Retrieved January 27, 2019, from https://corporate.walmart.com/newsroom/company-facts

Hodges, J., & Gill, R. (2014). Sustaining Change in Organizations. Thousand Oaks, CA:

SAGE Publications.

Jones, G. R. (2013). Organizational theory, design, and change (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Kotter, J. (2013). The 8-Step Process for Leading Change. Kotter International.

Palmer, I., Dunford, R., & Buchanan, D. A. (2016). Managing organizational change: a multiple perspectives approach (3rd ed.). Dubuque, IA: McGraw-Hill Education