Analysis of Organizational Change Management at BR Richardson Company

This report examines the organizational change management challenges faced by B.R. Richardson Timber Products, a family-held corporation. The company struggles with employee safety, poor communication, low morale, and inadequate supervision, leading to inefficiencies and reduced productivity. Key issues include unsafe working conditions, lack of clear communication channels, high employee turnover, and a lack of employee development opportunities. The report analyzes these problems and recommends solutions such as improved communication strategies, enhanced employee training, updated safety protocols, and the establishment of a functional reporting structure. The analysis emphasizes the need for better management practices, including clear job descriptions, performance evaluations, and proactive problem-solving to improve overall organizational performance, employee morale, and the company's competitive advantage. The report suggests that addressing these issues will lead to improved cash flow, enhanced productivity, and a more positive work environment.

Running head: ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 1
Organizational Change Management
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 2
This paper features the B.R Richardson Timber Products which is a family-held
corporation comprising of four other small companies – a lumber mill, a logging operation, a
mill over in Oregon and a laminating plant. The company’s performance has been overall and the
business has been doing well. However, the company has been facing various issues which affect
its development goals. Some of them include the safety of the employees which has not been the
best as they work under an unsafe environment making them become prone to injuries and other
dangers (Chapman & White, 2012) Lack of proper communication and poor supervisory
procedures is among other challenges faced by the company.
One major challenge has been the low morale portrayed by the company employees.
Reviewing the staff at the company especially in the lamination plant, it revealed that a massive
majority of the organization was categorized as white collar versus blue collar employees. This
classification was based on the small difference in the level of education among them. The work
positions at the plant include quality control, supervisors, and about 20 skilled front office
administrators. After an analysis, there seemed to be high turnover rate and low morale among
the few remaining employees because they did not have cohesion and teamwork and this affected
the development of the shared morals of the plant (Krell, 2011). Despite the high turnover, there
were no possible candidates to fill the left vacancies. The staff is also said to move from one job
to the other without the cross training and this is a serious toxic to any business organization.
One of the factors that led to the low staff morale is the lack of promotions within the
organization caused by the minimal hierarchy. This discouraged most of the employees since
they felt that their efforts to study further and acquire more job skills were not being recognized.
Their long-time stay in one position for several years also led to boredom and lack of interest in
the job hence affecting their performance (Kloster & Swire, 2015). Others were found to have

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 3
held job positions that did not match their education, experience, and talents which means that
the possibility to perform well was low and their talents were not exploited. They also lacked job
descriptions which ultimately meant that it was not possible to assess the kind of the
competencies required in their various job positions.
In evaluating the skills in a given company, several factors are to be put into
consideration such as the current skills, the expected skills and the gaps that are present and how
the skills are evaluated and censored. At the BR Richardson, strong skills existed regarding
gluing, cutting and milling which kept the company at a standard pace. However, various gaps
also existed within the organization including the safety of the employees which was at an
unacceptable level evidenced by a number of accidents happening among the workers (Lussier,
2016). In B R Richardson, one would expect to see heavy machinery, equipment and a standard
organization of physical labor. However, this is not the case as most of the systems are under-
functioning, outmoded and dangerous posing the lives of the employees at risk. Most of the
employees complained about the poor quality of the equipment and the laxity of the managers to
address the issue. For instance, a recent fatality occurred to one of the employees who died
following injuries and others who were seriously injured to an extent of getting hospitalized for
three weeks (Lussier, 2016). The employees did not have safety glasses and helmets and most of
the equipment required repair. This lack of safety equipment offers the basis for the development
of the company.
Proper communication is vital for any organization as it ensures a good flow of work and
the cropping issues are easily discussed and solved. In B R Richardson, communication has been
poor posing great challenges in the organization. This would mean that when a problem arises, it
would take a lot of time before being rectified hence affecting the company’s output and

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 2
employees’ performance. This is because the information regarding the performance of the
employees, work schedules, and productivity was rarely shared with the seniors so as to instill
proper measures. Additionally, the supervisor and the manager communicated well only after a
fact occurred and not through proactive planning as it should be the case and this cost the
company’s performance a great deal. The bulletin board was not in operation and this means that
the employees are not aware of the work schedule and the possible changes in the organization
since there are no means of getting updates. This also has got an effect on the morale of the
employees since they just report to work without knowing where to start or what to do first. It is
also not possible to be aware of the jobs that need to be attended to urgently hence the workers
only stick to their daily boring schedule regardless of the job changes unless they are approached
directly and this becomes a waste of time and inefficiency in performance. One of the employees
reported that the lack of communication, especially in the cash flow systems, was a great
weakness. Poor communication mechanisms lead to poor budgeting, leads to cash flow mistakes,
and leads to ultimate loss making by the firm. It is very important for companies to establish
proper communication mechanisms and policies to improve their net worth and liquidity. For
instance, enhancing order of command and unity of command under which all instructions come
from a given and selected person.
The management of the employees was also inadequate as the employees kept on doing
the same mistakes over and over again simply because of poor answerability and supervision.
Such repeated mistakes included delivery of messy work by some employees, lateness, and
failure to meet deadlines and such mistakes were often overlooked hence drawing the company
backward. For instance, an employee by the name Jack had good computer skills but did not
utilize them well as he was not competent in completing the typing and editing work and other

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 3
basic office tasks on time. This went unquestioned since the supervisors were less concerned and
just remained reluctant on such issues. The lack of supervision and poor managerial skills would
cost the company unnecessary expenses. For example, only a 35% of the lumber which was
purchased for use in the laminating plant was purchased within the Richardson mill while the
other was purchased from other suppliers despite the fact that the mill would still provide most of
the lumber required by the laminating plant. This would cause extra budgets in the company
which would otherwise yield the company many profits hence reducing the costs of purchasing
the wood. Reducing the costs of buying manufacturing plants results to improved cash flow,
liquidity, and profitability hence improved productivity. Enhancing supervision and proper
management of organizational resources leads to safety and proper conflict resolution among the
conflicting employees. Purchasing highly efficient plant and machinery by a company enhances
cost effectiveness, and this greatly helps the company maximize its productivity.
In dealing with various challenges by the company, certain measures are being put into
place to curb the problems. For example, the company’s managers have decided to be gathering
information from several points of view in a case where a large project is involved and organize
the data systematically so as to assess the current process and status of the organization. This will
help a great deal in knowing the necessary measures to take to address a particular problem and
determine what other best strategies can be implemented to make improvements (Miller, 2014).
The managers review the current position of the company in accordance with the related aspects
and study their relationships with each other. For instance, in order to boost the morale of the
employees, the managers have come up with ways of interacting with the employees freely so as
to bring them closer to enable the easy gathering of information regarding development
strategies (Ventrice, 2010). This interaction plays a great role in ensuring that a harmonious

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 2
relationship is built within the organization which makes the employees come to work with a
positive mind of working harder to improve their performance besides just getting a pay for their
job. They also feel that they are equally valued by their seniors and that their efforts are held
with serious regard. Employee interaction contributes to teamwork which has a direct impact to
staff morale. Motivated employees produce more as compared to demotivated employees.
However, communication is the most important factor which needs to be put into
consideration and implemented as it determines all the activities and efforts made in the
company. Once the communication strategies have been put in place, almost all the other aspects
run smoothly within the organization (Muema, 2012). Communication plays a great role in all
the aspects of an organization and has various roles including the need to offer instructions by
the managers to the employees. The employees need to be directed on what to do and how so as
to get the work done and this is only possible through proper communication. Communication
also offers a basis for employee motivation since most of the conflicts can be solved hence
creating harmony among the employees which boosts their work morale (Krell, 2011). It is also
through communication that the employees submit their comments, work reports, and grievances
to the managers for actions. If proper communication policies are implemented, some problems
like misunderstandings, delays, and confusions would be solved and establish harmony among
all the departments. Effective communication also helps to maintain a good human relation and
gathering ideas from employees and implementing them helps to increase productivity at a low
cost. It becomes possible to win the trust of more clients and maintain those that have been there
due to the good relationship (Muema, 2012). This ensures that the company maintains a
competitive advantage. It is, important, therefore, that the company implements and maintains a
system of effective communication which is the tool for understanding and creating

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 3
cohesiveness. Excellent human relations within the workplace ensure reduced delays,
confusions, and misunderstandings in the manufacturing processes of a firm hence increased
productivity. Therefore, employees should take the responsibility of cooperation as an individual
role to enhance productivity.
There are also other measures which need to be implemented in order to maintain the
company in a growing state. For example, the strategies and the policies of the company need to
be clearly stated and implemented as they analyze how a company uses the available resources to
achieve their goals and earn a competitive advantage. The goals for the company should,
therefore, be formally written down and made available to every employee and be well explained
to them such that they understand them well and make them work hard towards the achievement
(Cummings & Worley, 2013). The mission statement should also be clearly mentioned and
illustrated and the functional policies made clear to the employees. This would make it easy for
them to understand their role and expectations in the organization. I recommend that the
organization establishes a functionally reporting structure which will clearly outline the role of
each employee and the reporting channels to avoid contradictions in the job. In order to address
the employee complains, it is important that the company creates a table illustrating the negative
and the positive aspects reported by the employees and the consultants which will make it easy to
recognize the strengths and the areas which still need to be addressed. For example, a chart
should be made providing all the safety accidents that have been reported over the last two
months in order to take the necessary measures. It is also critical for the managers to hold
meetings with the employees and interact with them so as to gather information regarding the
development processes. The grievances aired out by the employees should be listened and paid
attention to so that they feel valued in their workplace.

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 2
References
Chapman, G. D., & White, P. E. (2012). The 5 languages of appreciation in the workplace:
Empowering organizations by encouraging people. Press.
Cummings, T. G., & Worley, C. G. (2013). Organization Development and Change. Stamford,
CT: Cengage Learning. Press.
Kloster, T. W., & Swire, W. S. (2015). Anytime coaching: Unleashing employee performance.
Press.
Krell, E. (2011). Managing the Matrix. HR Magazine, 56(8). Press.
Lussier, . (2016). Leadership. Cengage Learning. Press.
Miller, K. (2014). Organizational communication: Approaches and processes. Press.
Muema, T. M. (2012). Effects of poor communication in an organization: Case of Kenya Seed
Company. Press.
Parker, Chris. (2013). Closing the Communication Gap: The Power and Importance of
Communication in the Workplace. Kogan Page Ltd. Press.
Rogala, A., & Białowąs, S. (2016). Communication in the organizational environment:
Functions, determinants and areas of influence. Press.
Worley, C. G., Porras, J., & Lawler, E. E. (2013). Built to change: How to achieve sustained
organzational effectiveness. San Francisco, Calif: Jossey-Bass. Press.
Vaughan, S. K., & Arsneault, M. (2013). Managing nonprofit organizations in a policy world.
Ventrice, C. (2010). Make their day!. Readhowyouwant.com Ltd. Press.

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT 3