How does organizational learning connect with change? |
Much literature exists concerning how to create change in organizations. Change is a constant element in a global environment and the frequency of communication over great distances. Advances in technology are creating new opportunities like never before and new threats to existing markets as well. The ability of an organization to adapt and grow, innovate and identify new markets will determine which organizations thrive or even survive. Because of this increased need to learn to live in permanent white water organizational change processes must be understood by leadership and management.

Perhaps one of the most effective ways to implement organizational change is John Kotter’s (1996) work on Leading Change. Kotter suggested reasons change efforts fail and steps for implementing change: Common reasons change initiatives fail:

Allowing too much complacency.
Failing to create a sufficiently powerful guiding coalition
Underestimating the power of vision
Under-communicating the vision by a factor of 10 or more
Permitting obstacles to block the new vision
Failing to create short term wins
Declaring victory too soon
Neglecting to anchor changes firmly in the corporate culture |

Steps for implementing change

1. Establishing a sense of urgency
Kotter suggested that a sense of urgency is a crucial beginning step for a change program. Even a crisis or manufactured crisis can be used to heighten awareness, increase anxiety and conflict in order to remove complacency. Leaders that have been previously rewarded for stabilizing the environment may have an especially difficult time with the increased uncertainty. Without raising urgency, groups may never push through to honest and groundbreaking discussions and problem solving, “Never underestimate the magnitude of the forces that reinforce