Paulina Smolen
Section 4 – Change
a) According to Kurt Lewin, the organisation is a system where the present situation is not a
specific model, but a dynamic balance of two opposite [Link] the changes happen the
driving forces has to exceed the restraining forces.
Lewin also suggested that in order to any changes to happen there has to be three stage
proces of unfreezing, changing and refreezing. Process of unfrezing involves preparing,
motivating the organisation for changes and analysis of oppose forces in order to reduce
barriers to change.
The process of changing involves developing new attitudes and values as the restraining
forces has been minimised and the changes then can be introduced. Finally, refreezing
involves ensuring that change becomes permanent and the new habits, rules, or procedures
become the norm.
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The JD strategy change over time as they were more “driving” forces than “restraining”.
Driving forces are those which help to promote change within the organisation. People in JD
Wetherspoon were more likely to accept change because they feel that there is a need for it
as the numbers of new opening pubs slow down which also reduced sales and profit which
could result in people loosing their jobs. The forces that lead to changes in the company
included:
The entry of new competitors- supermarkets started selling drinks at very cheap prices
and also a large number of pubs had been opened
Changes in consumer tastes & preferences- ale beers start declining as customers
prefers new flavoured drinks and wines
Government legislation- pubs could no longer be seen to be encouraging to binge
drinking, pubs could no longer offer cheap drinks promotions
Challenge of economic downturns and tougher trading conditions- current recession
results in less disposable income of consumers
The restraining forces in JD Wetherspoon included:
Established organisational culture – individuals could be resistant to change as they
already established they way of carry out tasks
Fear of unknown – people could be often resistant to change when they don’t have a
clear idea of what the change is going to involve and if the will be able to perform well in
new situation
b) Social responsibility
Corporate social responsibility endorses the responsibility for the company’s action and encourages
a positive impact through its activities on the environment and all the stakeholders.
CSR in JD Wetherspoon
The company enhance their social responsibility because of the increased needs of their
stakeholders e.g. customer wants to see the organisation which behave responsibly, employees
wants to feel good about their organisation and also investors value companies that have a positive
contribution to the environment
Areas in which the company create the contribution to society: environment, communities, charities,
people and ethics.
Examples of CSR in JD Wetherspoon:
“minimise the extent of the environmental impact of its operations minimising
consumption and maximising efficiency
minimise the use of materials which may be harmful to the environment.
promote efficient purchasing which will both minimise waste and allow materials to
be recycled, where appropriate.
adopt efficient waste-management strategies which reduce the amount of waste
going to landfill or to other disposal sites.
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embrace the use of recycled materials and ensure that materials or waste generated
by the business are recycled, where appropriate.
raise awareness of environmental issues among all of its employers and
suppliers/partners.
ensure appropriate training, in environmental issues, of all employee
local sourcing of products and services
The launch of Lavazza Tierra coffee is helping to make a positive contribution to
growers’ communities in Colombia, Honduras and Peru – building schools, homes
and medical facilities, as well as planting 27,000 native trees
Responsible approach to drinking- ‘Challenge 21’. This initiative explains the need
for acceptable photographic evidence for those who appear to be under 21”
The company had to change their operations and train the staff in order to reduce a
negative impact on the stakeholders and environment.
The JD Wetherspoon socially responsibility help improve profits and being profitable
can help companies stick to their social mission.
c) Five different approaches to effecting change were identified by Thurley and
Wirdenius :
Directive strategies- this strategy involves the authority of manager to impose the
change with very little involvement of staff. It has the advantage of quick
implementation of changes but it does not take into account the views and belief of
people involve in that process. This process does not take into consideration the ideas
from employees and lead to staff being irritated about the change not discussed with
them.
Expert strategies- this involves the process of change to be seen as problem solving
process and is likely to involve a senior manager or specialist project team. This
approach is used with technical problem and usually does not engage any staff
participation. This strategy can also be implemented quickly and like the directive
strategies the employees could have different views and might not agree with imposed
changes.
Negotiating strategies – this strategy involves the negotiations of management
with the staff in order to implement any changes. This approach recognises the
staff views and opinions but on the other hand it could take more time to apply
the changes and also the staff opinions could differ from management
expectations.
Educative strategies - this strategy involves persuasion, training and education in
order for employees to fully accept and support the changes being made. Again
this strategy will take longer to implement but on the other hand individuals will
be more persuaded and will have positive attitude towards changes.
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Participative strategies – this strategy involve a full participation of those being
affected by the changes and will involve the views of everybody before the
changes are made. This strategy requires very long time to implement ad could
also be costly due to number of trainings and meetings. On the other hand all
staff will be involved in changes being made and they are more likely to support
it. This also lead to staff will have more knowledge about the organisation and
therefore they would increase their skills and be more effective
The roles of management in JD Wetherspoon when dealing with changes involved educative
and participative strategies where company offered their staff ongoing training such as the
one offered by British Institute of Inkeeping and also involve them in the company’s
operation e.g. taking into consideration staff suggestion on all aspects of the business in
weekly company meetings where staff are rewarded for their suggestions and also adopt
the suggestion from staff in everyday activities of the company.
d) The analysis of change in an organisation should involve the setting clear objectives
about what the organisation wants to achieve with the changes, how the change will
be implemented and who will be involved. Good communication is an important part
of the process of changing the organisation and it help to understand why the
changes are needed. Change could be resisted because the management failed to
explained need for change and involve the people.
First off all, when dealing with change in JD Wetherspoon’s management should
prepare staff for the change by discussing the need of change and roles and
responsibilities of individuals. It might be also useful to analyse the strength and
weakness of the organisation and also external environment to better understand
the major issues and concerns. When dealing with changes in JD Wetherspon I would
recommend further staff training and involvement of people affected by the
changes. The involvement of staff could be very helpful when overcoming any
resistance to change as people are more likely to co-operate when they are involve
in the process.
References:
Harwood, R. (). Organizational Change in Today's Economy . Available:
[Link] Last accessed 29th
March 011.
J D Wetherspoon. Our responsibilities. Available:
[Link] Last
accessed 29th March 2011.
Northumbria University . (2009). Change strategy and approaches. Available:
[Link]
approaches. Last accessed 29th March 011.