Leading and Managing Organisational Change

This article discusses the relationship between leadership and change management in organisations. It explores various change management models and emphasizes the importance of effective communication in successful change implementation.

LEADING AND MANAGING ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE 1
Change Management
In the wake of the increased globalisation, the organisations are consistently facing
the challenges of change in the external and internal environment with respect to the
technology, regulations, consumer and employee’s aspirations and others (Benn, Edwards, &
Williams, 2014). It is essential to note that while the while changes must be well managed by
the entities to sustain growth and competition, in addition, it requires effective leadership to
be successfully introduced and sustained.
Leadership and Change Management
It is significant to note that Change programmes often fail because of the poor
management that is the poor planning, monitoring, control, and overall incompatibility in the
corporate policies and practices. Leadership in simple terms is referred to as the use of the
personal capabilities namely the cognitive or rational processes, emotional dimensions and
behaviour to guide the members of the organisation to achieve the desired objectives and
goals Anderson & Anderson, 2010). An effective change management leadership is
comprised of clarity in the vision, possession of the professional values, planning a change
strategy, empowerment, motivation, and inspiration to the employees (Bennis, 2012). These
are in addition to the communication. Thus, there lies a strong and direct relationship between
leadership and change.
Models for leading change
A number of change management models have been developed over the years that
guide the leaders of the organisation to lead the change management process (Attah, 2017). In
addition, there are various types of organisational changes that can be planned or unplanned
and with different scopes (Lewis, 2011). Some of the popular change management models
are Lewin’s change management model, ADKAR change management, Nudge theory, The
McKinsey 7-S model, The Satir change management model, and others. The most popular is
the Kotter’s change management theory as segregated in the eight stages. The model focusses
less on the change itself and more on the people behind it and opts a top-down point of view
(Praveen Gupta, 2011). While the first few stages of the model guide the leaders to set the
foundation for success, the latter section focusses on the drive needed by people to maintain
the consistent momentum. However, the model lacks on the point that it focusses more on

LEADING AND MANAGING ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE 2
leaders guiding the subordinates, while in smaller organisations each of the employees has a
significant role to play and therefore each feedback is important.
Leadership, Communication and Change Management
It must be essentially noted that communication carried on by the leaders in an
organisation influences the reactions of the employees, and therefore leadership and change
management communication can certainly determine the outcome of the change (Abbas &
Asghar, 2010). The process starts with the development of the change management
communication plan. It further goes on with the selection of the medium of the
communication, introduction of the strategy to enhance collaboration and receipt of feedback
(Holten & Brenner, 2015). In terms of internal communication, it is necessary to establish a
connection with the visions and missions and quick addressing of the rumours.
Conclusion
Hence as per the discussions conducted in the previous parts, it can be stated that
there exists a direct and strong relationship between the leadership of an organisation and
implementation of the changes. It can be stated that it is the responsibility of leaders to
translate the vision into change through effective strategy formulation.

LEADING AND MANAGING ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE 3
References
Abbas, W. & Asghar, I. (2010). The role of leadership in organizational change: relating the
successful organizational change with visionary and innovative leadership. Retrieved
from: http://www.divaportal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A326289&dswid=814
Anderson, LA & Anderson, D (2010). The Change Leader’s Roadmap, San Francisco:
Pfeiffer.
Ann-Louise Holten, Sten Olof Brenner, (2015). "Leadership style and the process of
organizational change", Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 36
Issue: 1, pp.2-16, https:// doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-11-2012-0155
Attah, E. Y. (2017). Effective Leadership and Change Management for Sustainable
Development in Nigeria. International Journal of Public Administration, 4(2), 37-42.
Bennis, W. (2012). Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into
reality. Leadership, 2018, 19.
Lewis, L. K. (2011). Organizational change: Creating change through strategic
communication. West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Praveen Gupta, (2011). "Leading Innovation Change - The Kotter Way", International
Journal of Innovation Science, Vol. 3, Issue: 3, https://doi.org/10.1260/1757-
2223.3.3.141