Skills Practice 8.2: Applying Lewin’s Change Process Model

• Skills Practice 8.2 Worksheet  
• Self Assessment 8.2  

Objective

To develop skill in applying Lewin’s change process model to effectively manage the overall change process in an organization.

Procedure

Note: This exercise may be completed on an individual basis or in groups of three to five students.

1. Read the following scenario:

Coopers owns and operates 75 department stores in North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. It specializes in high-end apparel and accessories for adults and children. It employs over 50,000 people across its worldwide operations. Coopers entered the retail business in 1890 when it opened its first store in New York City. Since then, Coopers has been a dominant force in the retail industry, as reflected in its status as the largest retailer in the world. Its name has always been synonymous with the concepts of value, variety, quality, and service.

In recent years, Coopers’ overall performance measured in terms of sales, profits, and customer satisfaction has declined significantly as aggressive new competitors have entered the retailing industry. Some industry analysts now view Coopers as a retailer whose merchandise mix and service concept are “out of touch” with its customer base.

Other analysts have said that Coopers is too slow and conservative to compete in today’s volatile and dynamic retailing environment. Finally, customers are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the unprofessional service they are receiving in Coopers stores by sales associates who are rude and don’t know anything about the products they are selling.

Despite these warning signs regarding the current state of affairs at Coopers, senior management appears to be unfazed. Their attitude is that “Coopers is still the number one retailer in the world and it will come back.” They have explained away criticism of the company’s performance as being attributable to unforeseen changes in market conditions or to weak economies in some countries in which Coopers does business. The bottom line is that senior management intends to continue to “do business as usual.”

2. Use Lewin’s change process model to develop an action plan for addressing the key challenges in the situation above.

Note: The worksheet for completing this exercise follows on the text website.

Discussion Questions

1. What are the key activities and outcomes associated with the three phases of Lewin’s change process model?
2. How does your action plan successfully apply Lewin’s change process model? Be specific.
3. What kinds of problems or “barriers to success” might you encounter in implementing your action plan? What steps could you take to overcome them?
4. What are the implications of this exercise for you as a future manager?

Skills Practice 8.3: Overcoming Resistance to Change

• Skills Practice 8.3 Worksheet  

Objective

To develop skill in effectively managing and overcoming employee resistance to change.

Procedure

1. This exercise can be done individually or in groups of three to five students.
2. Read the following scenario:

Scenario —Teamwork in Product Development

TBM Medical Products is a major manufacturer of medical diagnostic equipment used for performing computed axial tomographic (CAT) scans, ultrasounds, and blood analysis. The product development process at the firm involves researchers, engineers, and marketing professionals working independently to develop appropriate technologies and then to design products that use these technologies. This means that there tends to be little interaction between the three groups of individuals during the overall product development process.

A recent internal evaluation of the firm’s operations revealed that the product development process was inefficient relative to other companies in the industry. Senior management has concluded that transitioning into a “team-based organization” would help to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the product development process. However, the problem with this was that the researchers, engineers, and marketing people involved in the process were accustomed to working only with others in their area; they did not like the idea of having to work in “cross- functional teams.” In addition, the work styles of the researchers, engineers, and marketers all differed from one another in fundamental ways. For example, while the concepts of “customers” and “markets” were critical to marketers, many engineers and researchers did not focus on them. Moreover, the marketers did not understand the technical aspects of the products as the researchers and engineers did.

3. Develop an action plan for dealing with the employee resistance to change in the scenario. Be sure to base your plan on the strategies for dealing with resistance to change discussed in the chapter.

Note: The worksheet for this exercise follows on the text web site.

4. Answer the following discussion questions as a class:

Discussion Questions

1. What were the causes of the resistance to change in the scenario?
2. Which strategies did you propose to use to handle the resistance to change in the scenario? Why do you feel that they will be effective?
3. What barriers to success would your action plan face in relation to the scenario?
What could you do to overcome them?
4. What are some implications of this exercise for you as a future manager?