Diagnose the reasons for resistance to change
There are numerous reasons for the resistance to change in the Ford Motor Company. Using the Organization Effectiveness Inventory (OEI) and the Organizational Culture Inventory (OCI), there are clear indicators of the resistance to change in the automotive firm. The former tool determines how structure, skills, technologies, and qualities influence the culture in the organization (Blackman, O’Flynn, & Ugyel, 2013). A quick evaluation of the company shows a lack of employee motivation to participate in the change process. In the recent years, Ford has been experiencing significant struggles in the global market and it is slowly losing its status as a strong competitor in the industry (Blackman, O’Flynn, & Ugyel, 2013). The OCI tool looks to evaluate the demands on the workers and how it affects their performance, satisfaction, and motivation to participate in any changes. Following mass retrenchment and closing down of facilities in the UK and Belgium, employees are weary about their positions in the company. They do not feel that the firm values their input in the performance of the automobile company and perceive that any one of them could be next (Blackman, O’Flynn, & Ugyel, 2013). This reduces the chances of the employees supporting any plans for change.
Potential Causes and Sources of Resistance
Poor working conditions are a critical cause of resistance to change in Ford Motor Company. In this regard, the workers feel that there is disconnection between employees and the higher ranking officials. The C-suite personnel are seen to be making drastic decisions like the closing down of facilities in Europe and without as much as informing the workers on the way forward (Blackman, O’Flynn, & Ugyel, 2013). The action is seen as a lack of concern for the employees as important stakeholders in the organization. This practice will result in significant doubt and mistrust between the company and its workers which is a potential source of resistance to future change practices.
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Management problems are another issue in the organization that may bring about resistance to change. The firm has been experiencing a lack of consensus in management during the process of designing automobiles. The failure to equip the Ford Fusion of 2006 with a navigation system and side airbags similar to other cars by competitors is clear evidence of this ineffectiveness. The finance department would liaise with the design team and engineers as they sought to reduce cost of production (Blackman, O’Flynn, & Ugyel, 2013). This would reduce the competitiveness of the Ford cars and prompt young talents in the company to feel that they are not performing at the highest level. The practices led to a loss of $17 billion which prompts many talents to seek alternative areas where they could exert their skills and knowledge.
Another potential source of resistance is the lack of effective communication in the organization. With over 70 plants around the world and more than 171,000 employees, it is essential that the corporation from its headquarters coordinates with all the divisions. It is evident that prior to the entry of Alan Mulally as President and CEO of the company, many of the division managers were reluctant to presenting bad news. The company failed to recognize the changing situation hence the reason heavy loss experienced in 2006. Changing the communication practices may result in significant resistance as it is not part of the organizational culture (Blackman, O’Flynn, & Ugyel, 2013). Many of these leaders will fear that stating the truth may present negative consequences particularly in the permanence of their jobs.
Plan for Minimizing Resistance to Change Management Plan
The Kotter 8-step change model is depicted as an effective measure for reducing resistance during the implementation of significant plans. The tool incorporates eight distinct practices that when implemented will ensure a smooth transition into the changes. The first three are utilized to create a climate for change (Yang, 2014). These include creating a sense of urgency, building a powerful coalition, and establishing a vision for change. These factors involve an honest and open dialogue to show that the company requires changes not just by showing low sales. The process will result in numerous individuals supporting the process and eventually creating a vision that will help guide the change plan. The second phase is the engagement and enabling of the entire organization (Yang, 2014). This practice involves communication of the vision, empowering workers by eliminating obstacles, and creating short-term wins. In this practice, the communication from the highest level to the lowest rank is important to ensure that all persons are aware of the role they will play. Short-term goals will result in wins for the employees and motivate them to stick with the change plan. The final two steps involve implementing and sustaining the change through building further on the change and anchoring it to the firm’s culture.
Relationship between Resistance to Change and Communication
Resistance to change and communication are two factors that are closely related. It is evident that failure to communicate about the necessary components of change will result in high levels of resistance in the organization. During the process of change, it is evident that the employees will determine the smooth effectiveness of a change plan (Yang, 2014). It is for this reason that the senior management personnel should develop clear and direct communication mediums. This practice does not mean that the organization should just transfer data to the lower ranking employees. Rather, an open and honest dialogue should be in place to minimize the impact and occurrence of resistance. The management team may provide the workers with the key changes that are likely to occur and seek their feedback on their thoughts on the same (Yang, 2014). This will help reduce chances of anxiety, distrust, or anger during the implementation process. The management team should also demonstrate their ability to keep an open mind in receiving the feedback.
Communication Strategies
There are multiple communication strategies that the organization may incorporate to minimize the incidence of resistance. The open dialogue is one of the strategies that may be used. It is evident that the change management practice involves a lot of information that may at times result in failure to communicate the integral message (Ghezzi, Cortimiglia, & Frank, 2015). Through open dialogue, the senior officials present to the employees all about the changes and how they affect the particular departments. The conversation will also provide workers with a platform to express their perspectives on how the changes affect them.
Another technique that the organization may use is the selection of numerous representatives to identify the significant departments and sectors. In this case, these individuals are provided with accurate information on the changes that will take place and are asked to present the views of those in their department in an open forum (Ghezzi, Cortimiglia, & Frank, 2015). The practice is effective is identifying a coalition team that will help drive the change management plans. The technique is useful for large organizations where open discussion with all employees is nearly impossible.
Embracing technology use is an integral factor in implementing direct communication of the change management plans. The use of emails and social media platforms will help deliver the message directly to the workers (Ghezzi, Cortimiglia, & Frank, 2015). The messages will be tailored to suit the roles and practices of the employee and how the change affects them. The age of innovative practices has been critical to the enforcement of such communication that is direct and clear to the concerns of the workers. The practice is effective in gathering immediate feedback from the workers.
Recommend Communication Strategy
The most appropriate communication strategy for Ford Motor Company is open conversation with employees. It is evident that the majority of the workers are losing trust in the senior personnel and the organization itself. In this regard, the open discussion will help the company improve the relationship and firmly cement support for the change process (Osiyevskyy, & Dewald, 2015). The use of representatives from the different sectors and divisions will be integral to achieving this purpose. The communication strategy is appropriate for Ford as it is nearly impossible to gather all of its employees in one place (Ghezzi, Cortimiglia, & Frank, 2015). The use of technology is important in delivering information before hand to its workforce and offering enough time for the members to select a representative of their choice while discussing on issues of concern.
Communication Plan
The change management team should implement an effective communication plan that will highlight the objective goals that the company wishes to achieve in the messages sent out. The plan will also include the responsible people for building and management of the information including storage purposes. Some of the key aspects of a proposed plan that should be used by Ford will include five major factors; content, purpose, audience, delivery, and revision (Osiyevskyy, & Dewald, 2015). In this case, the content will be used to determine the different types of messages and how they are conveyed. Surveys, financial reports, speeches, and legal documents will be delivered in different measures to significant employee (Osiyevskyy, & Dewald, 2015). The purpose of the communication will be integral to ensuring messages are delivered in a timely manner. The audience section will determine the type of messages and who should receive them. In the delivery section, the developing team of these messages will identify the mediums to use including, multimedia presentations, emails, podcasts, and other social media platforms. A revision history is necessary to document any changes that are made to the communicated messages.
References
Blackman, D., O’Flynn, J., & Ugyel, L. (2013). A diagnostic tool for assessing organisational readiness for complex change. In Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management Conference, Hobart , (pp 1-18).
Ghezzi, A., Cortimiglia, M. N., & Frank, A. G. (2015). Strategy and business model design in dynamic telecommunications industries: A study on Italian mobile network operators. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 90 , 346-354.
Osiyevskyy, O., & Dewald, J. (2015). Inducements, impediments, and immediacy: exploring the cognitive drivers of small business managers' intentions to adopt business model change. Journal of Small Business Management, 53 (4), 1011-1032.
Yang, Y. (2014). Employees management analysis at Ford motor company. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 5 (10), 80-85.
