Managing Organisational Change - decentralization of power and the Essay

Managing Organisational Change - decentralization of power and the empowerment of employees - Essay Example The scope of this already demanding situation is further aggravated by the ensuing technological revolutions that are unleashing ground breaking changes at a rapid pace. The source of such a change traces its origins to both within and outside the organisations. External social, economic and technological changes push the organisations and institutions into an adaptive mode. The resulting pressure ultimately percolates down to the individual employees that alters or motivates to alter the basic aspects of the concerned individuals' overall personality and style of communication (Burnes, 2000, p.258-259). Now if such a competitive scenario is further analysed in the context of the universal economic integration that is the direct outcome of globalization, one comes to the conclusion that it is next to impossible for the organisations and businesses to survive without a proactive initiative on the part of their individual employees in favour of change (Ollinger, 2006, p.1). A fast evol ving and metamorphosing global economy demands every individual to be an instrument of change. Off course such a change can only be meaningful if it is well managed and positive in its outlook. The query that deserves one's utmost attention is that are the organisations able to adapt to change in a smooth and eas... rves one's utmost attention is that are the organisations able to adapt to change in a smooth and easy way Does change automatically moulds the organisations in its natural course or does it require to be meticulously managed There is no dearth of theoreticians who believe that organisations are naturally malleable to change and somehow manage to adapt to the unfolding circumstances on their own (Thompson, 1967, p.35). However, there does exist a school of somewhat cautious thinkers who hold that there exists a sense of inertia within the organisations, the magnitude of which may vary from one organisation to other, that makes them somewhat inflexible and if left unmanaged may turn out to be eventually hazardous (Hannan and Freeman, 1977). Realistically speaking, organisational change is often a double edged sword that may prove to be either disruptive or adaptive in its outcome (Haveman, 1992, p.48-75). Usually it often gets very difficult for organisations to accept change and the initial reaction is always marked by a spontaneous or deliberate resistance. The framework of almost all the organisations often rests on certain institutional or technical structures built over time that often turn out to be the very source of such resistance (Granovetter, 1985, p.481-510). The astonishing fact is that such structures do not directly oppose any sort of change within the organisations, at least at an obvious level. The ultimate resistance more then often comes from the members or the employees in the organisations who can be considered to be the eventual outcome or the final by product of such structures (Coch, & French, 1948, p.512-532). Infact such institutional or technical structures insidiously oppose the change in the sense that even when the change is accepted and