Extensive summary Strategy Implementation (Lectures + Articles ) 2021/2022

Summary –
Strategy implementation




Lectures




By: Shane van Hekken

, Chapter 3

Lecture 1 –

Relationship between costs and the value of providing additional financial information
- Providing extra financial information increases value in
the short-run. However, in the long-run it actually has a
negative effect on value.

Why are there so many failures in business?
- Lack of clearly defined and/or achievable milestones
and objectives to measure progress
- Lack of commitment by senior management
- Poor communication
- Employee resistance
- Insufficient funding

Strategic drift




The challenge of organizational change
As the rate of change in the business environment continues to increase, the premium on organization’s being
able to change is growing every more significant.
Organizations are built to be stable…
As a result, most efforts at designing and managing organizational change are dismal failures

Formulaic approach to Strategic Change
Off-the-shelf solutions or change agents’ preferences  Implementation strategy  Change outcomes
Context-Sensitive approach to change
Change context  Implementation strategy  Change outcomes

Two basic types of change
 Reactive change  Proactive change
(1) Closing a performance gap (what is (1) Closing an opportunity gap (what is
and what should be) and what could be)


Four distinct Scenarios Types of change in specific contexts

, Chapter 3

3 distinct organization change phases (Lewin)
1. Mobilization phase
- Make the case for the change initiative
- Build the organizational capacity for change
2. Movement phase
- Build momentum for change initiative
- Preserve and continue to build organizational capacity for change
3. Sustain phase
- Institutionalize change initiative

Kotter’s 8 steps Mobilization phase = 1-3
1. Establishing a sense of urgency
Movement phase = 4-6
2. Forming a powerful guiding coalition
Sustain phase = 6-8
3. Creating a vision
4. Communicating a vision
5. Empowering others to act on the vision
6. Planning for and creating short-term wins
7. Consolidating improvements and producing still more change
8. Institutionalizing new approaches

Change formula
(D x M x P) > cost of change (if change is to occur)
D = Dissatisfaction
M = model; P = Process

Reasons for individual resistance to change
 Direct costs  Breaking routines
 Saving face  Incongruent systems
 Fear of the unknown  Incongruent team dynamics

Resistance to and Costs of change

Resistance to change Costs of change
 Anger  Change in reward structure
 Active or passive aggression  Power shifts
 Withdrawal  Requirement for new competencies
 Fear of loss  Need for new relationships
 Challenge to identity
 Require time and energy

Raising dissatisfaction
Dissatisfaction = Emotional energy about performance or opportunity gaps
 Communicate NEED for change and COSTS of not changing
 Performance/opportunity gap analysis (internal and external_
o Comparative data
o Contextual landscape analysis
o Benchmarking
o Employee attitudes
 Sharpen awareness of gap analysis
 Involve key people

, Chapter 3

M: Focusing Dissatisfaction




 Clear and widely understood model for change (M), sometimes referred to as visions
 What is being changed and why?
 Where we want to go/ what do we want to become
 Model/vision must be compelling and meaningful
 Appeal to logic, emotion, and values

Characteristics of effective models/visions
 Desirable
(1) Satisfies stakeholders
(2) Motivates employees
 Feasible
(1) Opportunity for short term wins
(2) Realistic stretch
 Relevant
(1) Contextually sensitive

P: Some key process choices
 Build credibility
 Communication plan
 Build coalition
 Pace and involvement
 Training
 Build organizational capability
 Metrics and measurement

Pace of change

Directive Persuasion
 Urgency or crises  Not a crisis
 High dissatisfaction  High need for commitment to engage
 Low resistance in change
 High level of support  Change is not clear
 Change agent has relevant  Change is not complex
information  Change agent needs support of key
 Changes are clear constraints

There are six types of change levers.
Enabling- These levers raise awareness for targets
 Credibility (e.g., invite external consultant to extoll change)
 Communication (e.g., initiate town hall meeting)
 Training (e.g., provide external training experience)
Substantive – these levers facilitate adoption by targets
 Technical (e.g., align the reward system to with change initiative)
 Political (e.g., privately confront a resister)
 Cultural (e.g., tell a success story)