13 Organizational change management
This chapter covers
- Reasons for reorganizations
- A framework for managing organizational change
- How to handle a change in leadership
- The aftermath of changes in the workforce and how to deal with them
Change is the law of life, and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.
In today’s fast-paced business world, change is inevitable for organizations aiming to remain competitive and relevant. Despite the natural inclination to resist change, it’s crucial for individuals and organizations to embrace it. Ultimately, profitability is key for a company’s survival, regardless of its stated mission. Understanding this fact is essential for effective leadership as an engineering manager (EM).
This chapter explores organizational change management, highlighting the reasons behind reorganizations and strategies for navigating change successfully. It underscores the importance of collaboration, communication, and a shared vision in achieving collective goals.
Organizational change can be incremental or transformational. Shifting from on-premises servers to cloud computing, for example, can be approached incrementally. Similarly, cost-cutting measures like layoffs can be executed incrementally over time, but they may also take place through a single transformational event.