Cultural Changes and Management Techniques at Heinz Australia

This report analyzes the case study of Heinz undergoing cultural changes by analyzing the cultural web so as to determine how the cultural has changed. It also suggests the forces that acting in favor and against the change. It also provides the strengths of new culture as well as the aspects that needs to monitored and sustained for ensuring the ways in which they do not go back to old ways.

Change Management

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Cultural changes effect the business process hence companies should also focus on the
applying best of cultural management techniques so as to reduce its impact on their
performance. This report analyses the various elements of the cultural web so as to
understand the cultural changes taking place at Heinz. There are various forces that act
against and in favour of the change. These factors have been represented in this report. Due to
the cultural change at Heinz, company developed various new strengths which will favour the
firm’s business in the future. In order to ensure that company do not get back to the old
culture, various steps need to be done so as to monitor and sustain with the new culture.

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Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY...................................................................................................................1
INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................................2
Cultural health of Heinz Australia.........................................................................................................2
Cultural change at Heinz Australia....................................................................................................2
Key forces in favour and against the change......................................................................................4
Key strengths of new culture.............................................................................................................5
Aspects that need to be monitored and sustained...............................................................................6
CONCLUSION.....................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES......................................................................................................................................7

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INTRODUCTION
Many organisations have changed themselves as per the requirement of the environment and
industry situation. In most of the cases cultural changes were highly important. Cultural
changes are hard to make as it affect the working of many employees at once. In cultural
changes there were many elements that were involved. It is essential that company does
cultural management in a better manner so as to reduce the negative effect of these cultural
changes (Alvesson and Sveningsson, 2015). This report analyses the case study of Heinz
undergoing cultural changes by analysing the cultural web so as to determine how the cultural
has changed. It also suggests the forces that acting in favour and against the change. It also
provides the strengths of new culture as well as the aspects that needs to monitored and
sustained for ensuring the ways in which they do not go back to old ways.
Cultural health of Heinz Australia
For any organisation it is essential to analyse the elements that could lead to change in the
cultural health (Kotter, 2012). Heinz was facing many types of challenges and for this
Widdows made many types of changes.
Cultural change at Heinz Australia
Cultural changes can be understood with the help of elements of the cultural web. According
to Johnson and Scholes there are many elements that influences organisational culture
(Cummings and Worley, 2014). The most crucial aspect from the Cultural Web for strategic
decision making is that of coherence. It is also to be noted that the greater the level of
coherence within the organisation the greater is the advantage to the organisation in the
competitive markets. Heinz need to put strong cultures as a potent source of competitive
advantage as it is hard to imitate. They should also think that they get trapped by their
coherent culture into routines. This might hamper the development of new strategies and lead
to terminal decline in the longer run. The analysis for Heinz is as follows:
 Control systems: In the process of monitoring there was development of “Great place
to work” mantra. Everyone ideas were entertained and inputs was welcomed. Every
staffs were involved in the process. Company’s values were communicated to staffs
by the senior managers so as to bring confidence in them. Continuous communication
with the staffs was done by the senior managers so as to ensure that changes were
managed properly. Apart from this a collaborative team was made within the

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organisation that helped in controlling the processes that are going on in the
organisation.
 Stories: At Heinz there was negative, low risk and punltive culture that was followed.
People stated that everything seemed to be difficult. Emphasis was led on handling
out punishments rather than rewarding success. It was also said that company was
unable to meet the product demands. There was negativity that was present about the
organisation due to decrease in the production of the organisation. Company was
focusing on giving punishments to the defaulters but was not very enthusiastic about
the success. They were not giving rewards to their employees if they achieve anything
that is good.
 Organisational Structure: In the change process change of organisational structure
plays a very crucial role (Reiser and Dempsey, 2012). Previously the organisational
structure was complex which was made easier. The new team of executives were
made which consisted of new middle level board members. The hierarchy was
brought at the organisational structure even at the executive levels. The number of
head counts in the organisation is reduced by 25%. Company is also taking initiatives
to improve the communication within the organisation. This was done for changing
the approach to business. A smoother organisational structure was capable of making
the business process easier. Leaders were made at every level of the organisational
structure.
 Symbol: The changes were made in the way staffs were taking their work. In the
process of restructuring, the head office was moved at Southbank Melbourne. There
were no significant changes that were made in terms of symbol use but company was
determined to bring all the staffs under one roof.
 Power structures: The power of the company was the senior managers. They have the
role of managing changes at the organisation. Widdows took the charge of the process
accordingly. New middle level board members were created that hold the power to
take many decisions (Heinz, 2018). Company restricted development of individual
power structure so that a team culture can be brought into the work process.
 Rituals and Routines: The daily actions and behaviour were changed. The attitude
towards their work was changed. Positive and caring community was promoted within
the organisation. Mutual trust and confidence were built up within the organisation.
Senior managers were expected to model the new behaviour for their staffs and
implement it in a manner they proposed. Every senior manager was assigned the

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duties so as to improve the work process. A more attention towards employee’s
wellbeing was promoted.
Under widdows leadership there was several changes were adopted. Special focus was put on
the work life balance & wellbeing of the employees. Under his leadership the variety and the
numbers of projects is also increasing. This kind of change also helped the company in not
only improving its culture but also helped them in achieving what is unachievable. Widdows
focus was on improving the cultural negativity that was present within the organisation.
Key forces in favour and against the change
Cultural web audit suggests that there were many elements that were taken care of while
making the changes (Thomas and Peterson, 2017). There are certain factors that are working
in favour and some are working against the changes that were done at the Heinz. Force field
analysis by Kurt Lewin can be a strategic tool that can be used in this so as to understand
these factors (Swanson and Creed, 2014). Factors are as follows:

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Driving Force Restraining Force
The employee’s morale was on the lower side due to the processes like job cuts and hence it
was restraining the changes that were taking place in the organisation. Workforce attitude and
behaviour towards change was also not positive. Complex organisational structure was not
letting the organisation to work. There was job loss at mass level which was further reducing
the productivity of the organisation and hence changes were not easy to make. Along with
this there is negative culture, low risk and punltive culture present at the workplace. This is
not good for the future of the organisation. The emphasis on handling out punishments rather
than rewarding success has led to defensiveness and retrenchment.
Apart from this the factors like change of management and decision making body have filled
the hopes of positive change. On the other hand the decreasing productivity was an essential
driving force as it started affecting various stakeholders in the organisation. The adoption of
mantras like “Great place to work” was helpful in the change process as it helped in building
Inward focus,
lack of support
from staffs,
costing, higher
employee
turnover, little
engagement of
new ideas
CEO’s will power
Decreasing productivity
Restructuring process
Negative culture
Job loss
Complex organisational
structure
Lower employee moraleMantra like Great
place to work

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a more positive and friendly environment for the employees. Along with this the restructuring
process within Heinz was the major driving force for other types of changes.
Key strengths of new culture
In order to reduce the challenges that the company is facing, Heinz made changes in their
cultural approach. The change in the culture was also understood in terms of the strength that
it added to the firm (Thomas, Sargent and Hardy, 2011). There were several key strengths
that were attached with the new culture that is present within the organisation.
 Positive work culture: There was very much negativity in the culture that was present
in the organisation. Company made changes in the behaviour and attitude of the
people that were working within the organisation. They have tried to build the
changing workforce attitude that was present at the workplace. This will also help in
building trust and confidence in the minds of the people (Burke, 2017). This was
necessary for healthy environment at the workplace as well as for achieving the goals
of the organisation.
 Encouraging Ideas and input: There are many people present in an organisation.
Previously the ideas from all the people were not entertained. After the changes were
implemented people have taken positive approach to the business. This helped in
adding to the employee’s motivation. It was necessary for the company as their
productivity was continuously decreasing. In any change management process it was
essential that company finds a way that their employee’s morale remains on the
higher side (Change factory, 2018).
 Consideration towards staff’s health: It was seen that previously the company thought
about itself only. But after applying the new culture, it was seen that company started
to think about the health of the employees at the same time they think about the
wellbeing of theirs. This helped in building strong bond among various stakeholders
of the firm. This has created an environment that is employee centric.
Aspects that need to be monitored and sustained
The changes that were made in the culture of the organisation were very important to be
made. In the later stage of the process it was crucial that mutual trust and confidence gets
build up regarding the changes. There were several steps that need to be monitored
continuously so as to ensure that company do not return to the previous cultural background.
In this regard company has ensured that there was a team that was made within the

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organisation. Such teams always help in doing things in collaboration. A set up like Great
place to work helped the company to manage the change with the involvement of the
workers. This helped people sharing their ideas as well as also focusing on their own personal
development.
The major aspects that need to be monitored are the employee’s approach towards work and
their capacity to deliver for the organisation also increases (Raineri, 2011). For stopping the
company from sliding back to old ways, it was necessary that company makes a change
management team that checks each and every aspect that could restrict the company from
staying positive. Along with this company also needs to think about the behaviour and the
attitude that employees poses. They need to make efforts so that they could make the
behaviour positive. Company also needs to motor the approach of decision makers as they
play a very crucial role in developing a culture within the organisation. Company also needs
to monitor that the mantra they have made for themselves works for longer period of time.
The environment for Heinz Australia is changing because of the internal and external factors
(Al-Haddad and Kotnour, 2015). In such an environment changes at regular intervals are
necessary. Heinz also needs to rethink about the plans that they have made for itself at the
same time its effect on the culture that is present within the organisation. The cultural change
in the future should respect the culture of the employees from various parts of the world.
More rewards should be given to the employees or the groups for any success they achieve.
This will not only boost up the morale of the employees but will also boost up production
capacity of the organisation. In any cultural change in future it must be ensured that
company’s values are not touched or hampered.
CONCLUSION
From the above based report it can be concluded that organisational changes are important
and in that too cultural changes are further important. In this regards most important role was
played by the senior management. In Heinz, there was huge negative, low risk environment
was present. Heinz was inward focused, retrenchment and defensiveness was at highest
priority. The cultural web helped the company to understand the culture that was present at
the organisation. Mutual confidence, health of staffs and balance between work lives was
some of the benefits of these changes. Steps such as Great place to work needs to be further

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promoted. Along with this it was also necessary that company promotes the ideas from all the
employees so that they can solve the problems easily in future also.

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REFERENCES
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Alvesson, M. and Sveningsson, S., (2015) Changing organizational culture: Cultural change
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Cummings, T.G. and Worley, C.G., (2014) Organization development and change. Cengage
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Heinz, (2018) OUR COMPANY. [Online]. Available at:
http://www.heinz.com.au/about-us/our-company. [Accessed on 13th Sep 2018].
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Raineri, A.B., (2011) Change management practices: Impact on perceived change
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Reiser, R.A. and Dempsey, J.V. eds., (2012) Trends and issues in instructional design and
technology. Boston: Pearson.
Swanson, D.J. and Creed, A.S., (2014) Sharpening the focus of force field analysis. Journal
of change management, 14(1), pp.28-47.
Thomas, D.C. and Peterson, M.F., (2017) Cross-cultural management: Essential concepts.
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Thomas, R., Sargent, L.D. and Hardy, C., (2011) Managing organizational change:
Negotiating meaning and power-resistance relations. Organization Science, 22(1), pp.22-41.