Analysis of Change Management and Leadership: Aegon N.V. Report

This report examines change management and leadership within Aegon N.V., a multinational insurance and asset management company. It begins by comparing Aegon's strategies and operations with those of Prudential Financial, highlighting the impact of change. The report then evaluates internal drivers like organizational culture and financial management, and external drivers such as political, economic, and social factors, assessing their influence on leadership, team, and individual behaviors. It analyzes measures to minimize the negative impacts of change, such as the PDCA model. Furthermore, the report identifies barriers to change and explores various leadership approaches to effectively manage change in different organizational contexts. The report provides a comprehensive overview of change management strategies and their practical application within Aegon N.V.

Understanding and
Leading Change

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1 Compare different organisational examples where there has been an impact of change on
an organisation’s strategy and operations...................................................................................1
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................3
P2 Evaluate the ways in which internal and external drivers of change affect leadership, team
and individual behaviours within an organisation......................................................................3
P3 Evaluate measures that can be taken to minimise negative impacts of change on
organisational behaviour.............................................................................................................5
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................6
P4 Explain different barriers for change and determine how they influence leadership
decision-making in a given organisational context.....................................................................6
P5 Apply different leadership approaches to dealing with change in a range of organisational
contexts.......................................................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................10
REFFERNCES ..............................................................................................................................10
.......................................................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
In the competitive business environment it is necessary for the organisation to adopt and
implement change practices so as to sustain effectively. Change management is an continual
process which deals with change in the working practices as well as adopting new methods of
performing task. Furthermore continuous changing business environment allows firm to adaptive
in terms of understanding and leading Change (Alavi and Gill, 2017). The chosen organisation
under the report is Aegon N.V which is a multinational life insurance and a asset management
organisation headquartered in Hague, Netherlands. The report will throw light on various internal
and external factors that affects leadership style and has influence on individual and team
behaviour. At last it will also determines barriers to change and apply leadership approaches to
change management.
TASK 1
P1 Compare different organisational examples where there has been an impact of change on an
organisation’s strategy and operations.
Change is inevitable within the organisation which leads to transformation in
organisations strategy and operations. As the multinational organisation deals in various
countries and nations, there are various factors which leads to change in organisation strategy
and operations (Blewitt, 2012). In context to Aegon organisation which provides its services in
various countries is influenced by the governmental rules and regulations and create a impact on
their working practices. In order to sustain in this competitive market place it is vital for the
organisation to bring change by analysing the competitors strategy and operations. Comparison
between Aegon and its competitor is described as follows-
Introduction of the chosen company The chosen organisation under the report is Aegon N.V
which is a multinational life insurance and a asset management organisation headquartered in
Hague, Netherlands.
Aegon Prudential financial
Aegon which is a multinational organisation
mainly provides services related to life
Prudential Financial is a fortune company which
deals in providing investment and insurance
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insurance and pension schemes. As with the
ongoing changes within the organisation
there has been a change in the organisational
structure as the company follows a
hierarchical organisational structure in which
information flows from top level to bottom
level which takes huge time to reach
information to all the employees and requires
more time in executing and performing work.
Moreover there has been a technological
change adopted by the organisation such as
implementing new techniques of
maintaining and handling data of customers.
Strategy- To keep pace with the changing
structure, organisation should formulate
effective strategy such as they should opt for
flat organisational structure and involving all
the employees in decision making process to
enhance their performance as well as
necessary information should be provided to
all the employees equally so that employees
works in great collaboration by minimising
conflicts (Brown, 2012). In order to adopt the
technological change there is a change in the
organisational strategies as employees should
be provide training so as to work effectively
towards the new software.
Operations- Employees should be provided
necessary knowledge and attributes so that
they can properly understand the information
and which leads to effective performance.
services and other financial products and
services to retail and international customers.
Respective company follows divisional
organisational structure in which business
activities are distributed according to their
division of work. Moreover it requires
specialised technical expertise to ensure better
performance in each division. The another
change within the Prudential financial is the
change in the leadership style as they need
effective leadership style in context to each
department.
Strategy- In order to manage such change
organisational should opt for flat organisational
structure which will reduce their cost of
expertise technical and moreover departmental
functions can be effectively coordinated. This
leads to bringing change within the strategy by
providing appropriate informations to the
employees as well as provide training to the
employees to do all the departmental functions in
coordination. When there has been a change in
the organisational structure, it causes change in
the formulation of strategy as company has
democratic approach towards involving all the
employees in decision making process.
Change in Operations- As with the changes in
organisational structure and leadership it is
necessary to bring change in operations for this
firm should adopt to situation leadership style
and should allot work to the individuals
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Apart from this necessary training should be
provided regarding the new software so as to
make the employees work effectively. It also
causes change in the business operations as
with the adopted change employees will
work more efficiently and will attain the goal
and objectives of organisation.
according to their specialised area which will
reduce their cost of technical expertise. Adopting
to flat organisational structure will reduce their
cost of expertise and would lead towards the
change of business operation's as employees will
work according to their efficient skills leading to
achieve goals and objectives of organisation.
TASK 2
P2 Evaluate the ways in which internal and external drivers of change affect leadership, team and
individual behaviours within an organisation.
Drivers of Change could be internal and external factors which have a major influence on
the company's strategies, policies and plans. These factors affects leadership, team and individual
behaviour within the organisation. Moreover positive change created within the organisation
brings effective and successful results and assist in growth of company. The various internal and
external drivers of change are discussed below-
Internal Drivers of Change-
Internal Drivers of Change consist of the factors such as organisational capabilities,
resources, culture as well as the attitude of the employees which influences respective
organisation to initiate change and sustain effectively in the market place.
Organisational Culture-
Organisational Culture consist of the specific norms, policies, beliefs and attitude of the
individuals towards their job duties and responsibilities. Positive and flexible environmental
culture allows the employees to work effectively and enhance profitability and productivity
within the Aegon. In contrast when employees are depressed with the rigid organisational culture
of autocratic leadership where employees are not involved in decision in decision making.
Moreover change should be implemented within the organisation and democratic style of
leadership should be adopted by involving all the employees in decision making process. This
will impact leadership decision as leader with AEGON has to consult each employee before
taking the final decision, moreover this will help in effective results within the organisation. This
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will impact individual and team behaviour as employees starts working collaboratively and leads
to achievement of common goals and objectives (Blewitt, 2012).
Financial Management-
Another major driver for change in Aegon organisation is its Financial Management.
Financial management within the organisation is responsible for managing funds as well as take
major investment decisions. In order to compete in this complex global environment it is
necessary for respective organisation to adopt and implement innovative technology regarding
managing fund of the customers as well as stores the data of the customer in a proper manner.
This is a major factor towards initiating change within the organisation as well as individuals and
the team would definitely resist towards the change. For this necessary trainings should be
provided to the employees so as to make them work effectively and enhance the profitability
within the organisation.
External Drivers of Change-
These are the external factors which are present outside the organisation and influences
the Aegon to bring changes and maintains sustainability of the business in the competitive
market place. It consist of factors such as technological, factors, social factors, economical
factors and many other factors which are discussed as follows-
Political Factors- This factor comprises of governmental rules and regulations, policies
and framework which creates a basis for the working of the organisation. Changes within the
political environment affects the functioning of Aegon company as it provide it services across
various countries. As Aegon being a multinational organisation is affected by the various laws of
the government and moreover has a greater impact by the Brexit. This forces respective
organisation to bring necessary changes within the organisation and adopt different practices of
working according to different norms and rules of the government. This sometimes effects the
individual and team working as employees are forced to change their working procedure and
adopt to different working practices but also leads to enhanced productivity within the
organisation (Brown, 2012).
Economic Factors- This factor consist of the elements such as interest rate, tax rate ,
inflation rate and exchange rate. With the downfall of country's economy it will leads to reduce
value of the nations currency. This factor forces the company to initiate changes within the
organisation to shift its prices lower regarding investment portfolio for customers. This greatly
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impacts the performance of the individual, team as they greatly resist towards the change which
affects their performance of work. This will have impact on leadership decision as by analysing
the economical condition, leader can take effective decision by providing products of various
investment plans.
Social Factors- This element consist of the change in consumer demands, taste and
preference as well as the attitude and lifestyle towards the products and services offered by the
company. With the increasing trend of globalisation individuals start demanding new products
and services to have delighted customers. This factor forces the company to initiate change
within the organisation and starts providing new and attractive schemes for pension and
investment so as to attract large customers towards their product. This will lead to enhanced
brand image and maintains sustainability of AEGON in respect to its competitors. This will have
a impact on the behaviour on the teams and individuals as employees have to work according to
changing trends within the organisation as well as it impacts leadership decision by leaders needs
to initiate change by analysing the social trends and take effective decision regarding providing
various investment products.
P3 Evaluate measures that can be taken to minimise negative impacts of change on
organisational behaviour.
There are various measures Aegon should undertake to minimise the negative impact of
change and thereby maintains harmony in the competitive market place. In context to Aegon
which is not updated with the technology has bring change in the organisation by working with
enhanced software for managing and handling customer data. Moreover eliminating the negative
impacts of change will assist company to maintain their sustainable growth. As for minimising
the negative impact, AEGON undertakes PDCA model to enhance the positive outcomes of
change and reduce the negative ones. This model is described as under-
 Plan- This step is concerned with when AEGON brings change within the organisation ,
it has to conduct effective marketing research , analyse the marketing issues and grab the
available opportunities and successfully implements the change process and formulate
strategies for the same. In context to Aegon they should frame strategies for addressing
the political and economical scenarios and effectively sustain in the market and
effectively adopts the recent technology in their working practices.
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 Do- This step need Aegon to evaluate and implement the strategies which are planned in
the previous stage. This step is crucial in order to analyse the effectiveness of the
strategies before implementing them within the respective organisation. For example
when firm sets new strategies to provide its insurance products at a minimum cost to the
customers and providing wide variety of insurance and investment plans so as to meet the
customer needs. This requires company to completely evaluate the strategies frame and
depict all the positive and negative outcomes associated with it (By and Burnes, 2013).
 Check- This step is concerned to in which when AEGON implements strategies has to
evaluate the effectiveness of the strategy. In order to check the effectiveness firm should
compare the current outcomes with the expected outcomes to check out the deviation and
variance between the two. If there are positive outcomes than expected, Aegon should
continue with the pre set strategy but if the results have high deviation, strategies should
be reframed and modified so as to minimise the negative impacts.
 Act- This step is concerned with choosing the most effective strategies or plans that could
be implemented by the Aegon company in the future time period. Moreover Aegon
company should check the viability of the strategies before selecting them for future
course of action.
This model implemented by the organisation assist to check the effectiveness of strategies
before implementing them as well as in minimising the negative impacts of change on
organisational behaviour.
Measures taken to resolve the negative behaviour of the employees
 Increasing involvement of employees- In order to reduce the negative behaviour of the
employees towards accepting the change it is necessary for the management within the
respective company to involve all the employees in decision making process . This would
help the employees to readily accept the change and work in a effective manner.
 Provide training to the employees- Managers within the respective organisation should
provide training to its employees to work according to the change implemented so that
productivity can be enhanced and change can be accepted within the organisation.
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TASK 3
P4 Explain different barriers for change and determine how they influence leadership decision-
making in a given organisational context.
When respective organisation implements change within the organisation, some barriers
to change occurs which creates problem in implementing the change and impacts the
performance of AEGON. Some of the barriers to change implemented faced by Aegon
organisation are described as under-
 Resistance to Change- Resistance to change is normally by the employees within the
organisation as they are comfortable with their routine working practices and adopting
change makes them difficult to accept and make modifications in their working practices.
It also affects the productivity within the business. As AEGON brings changes by
adopting recent technology in managing data of customers. This creates resistance to
change by employees as they find it difficult to work with new software. Moreover
necessary training should be provided to the employee so as to work according to the
adopted technology and enhance their performance level (Kotter, 2012).
 In effective Communication- When change is implemented within the organisation it
should be effectively communicated among all the employees within AEGON. Poor
communication leads to rise in issues and conflicts which hampers harmony at work
place environment. Therefore proper communication regarding the changes implemented
in the Aegon should be effectively communicated to all the employees so that employees
work more productively and achieves success of the organisation.
 Lack of Management support- It is the another barrier to change because of the lack of
the management support, if the management of the respective company doesn't provide
training needs to he employees, this will not allow the employees to work in a effective
manner and will lead to reduce productivity and profitability. Therefore management
should provide effective support to the employees as a way of providing effective
trainings to them to make them work effectively and attains goals and objectives of the
organisation.
Force Field Analysis model will assist AEGON that when change is implemented in the
organisation there are two factors for change such as driving forces which initiates change within
organisation and restraining forces which avoids implementation of change and therefore affects
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leadership decision making within the respective organisation. For implementing change within
the respective organisation, driving forces should exceed the restraining forces which is
described as follows-
Illustration 1: Force Field Analysis, 2019
Source:(Force Field Analysis, 2019)
Driving Forces of change for AEGON
 Innovative Technology- Adopting new and innovative technology will assist in the
growth of the company for a long time period. In order to compete in this competitive
market place Aegon needs to use innovative technology and should adopt modem
software so that work can be performed effectively and within the short period of time.
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 Demand of advanced insurance and investment products- With the increasing trend
of globalisation customers starts demanding advanced insurance and investment products.
This forces the company to initiate change and make certain strategies regarding
providing upgraded insurance plan to the customer( Doppelt, 2017).
This influences decision making of the leaders to adopt to the change effectively in the
organisation and frame proper policies and strategies so as to overcome the resistance to change
and allow respective organisation to attain higher growth and success.
Restraining Forces of Change for Aegon
 High Cost- In order to adopt to recent technology and providing training thereby requires
huge cost for the company and thereby impacts the profitability and success of
organisation. This restricts the company to effectively to survive effectively in the
competitive market place.
 Less involvement of employees- When change is implemented within the organisation
employees within Aegon restrains towards the change as they have to move out of their
comfort zone and work according to the change implemented. This will involve less
participation of employees and affects the growth and success of the company (Latham,
2013).
This influences leadership decision within the respective organisation as they have to create a
friendly atmosphere at the work place environment and influences the employees to accept the
changes and work according to the change implemented within the organisation and assist in the
success and high growth of company.
TASK 4
P5 Apply different leadership approaches to dealing with change in a range of organisational
contexts.
In order to manage and implement change within the respective organisation it is
necessary for the organisation to adopt effective leadership approaches and choose the effective
change management model to effectively manage the change management strategies and helps in
the success of the organisation. Various approaches to leadership are described as follows-
 Autocratic Leadership- This style of leadership is the most effective one while
implementing change within the organisation. Under this style of leadership decision
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making power lies in the hand of subordinates within the Aegon organisation and doesn't
include employees within the organisation in decision making process. Moreover it is a
effective approach as major decisions regarding the change could be taken effectively by
the manger of AEGON and also reduces time for taking effective decisions related with
implementing change within organisation. This type of leadership approach can be used
by the leaders within the respective organisation when there is situation to adopt the
change in the organisation so as to survive in this competitive business world.
 Democratic Leadership- Under this approach of leadership employees are involved in
decision making practices and their ideas and suggestions are considered important. It
leads to effective communication and creates harmony at work place environment. Aegon
organisation should adopt effective approach to leadership in order to get innovative
ideas and thoughts by the employee regarding managing and implementing change within
the respective organisation. This will allow the employees to work according to the
proposed changes within Aegon (Lawrence, 2015). This type of leadership style should
be adopted so as to adopt the change in a successful manner within the organisation by
involving all the employees in the decision making so that they may feel valuable and
easily adopt the change and work in a effective manner.
Moreover manager within the organisation should implement best strategies and effective
models of change Management which are described as follows-
Lewin's Change Management Model
It is the most effective model which helps employees within Aegon to properly
understand organisational and structured Change. It consist of three main stages such as
unfreeze, change and refreeze. These stages are discussed in detail-
 Unfreeze- First stage of this model involves preparing the employees for the change, as
when change regarding organisational structure and technology is being implemented in
the respective organisation, employees resit towards the change as they have to move out
of their comfort zone. Manager within AEGON should provide necessary information
and providing training to the employees regarding change implement within the
organisation which makes them ready to accept changes (England, 2016).
 Change- This step is concerned with when the changes takes place within the respective
organisation. The main objective under this step is to create awareness and motivates the
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people to work their job duties in Aegon in context to change implemented. Moreover
role of effective leader is required in providing correct direction to the employees to work
in coordination with the change implemented within the respective organisation.
 Refreeze- Under this step changes implemented within Aegon are accepted and
implemented by the individuals and stability begins to arise within organisation (White
and Robinson, 2014). Under this step employees and working procedures within AEGON
starts working according to the routine as they have accepted the change. Here the
employee become confident and comfortable to the acquired changes.
Hence this is the effective model of change management which can be effectively applied within
AEGON and assist company in managing and implementing the change successfully. This will
assist the manager of AEGON to successfully implement and manage the change and attain
desirable results in a positive manner. This is an effective approach to change which assist the
leaders to easily implement the change as with the help of unfreezing stage it assist the
employees to make them ready to accept the change in an effective manner , moreover in the
second step change is actually implemented within the organisation and measured against the
success or the failure of the change at the last stage of refreezing change is actually implemented
and stability is arisen and make the employees to stop their old working procedures and work
according to the accepted change.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it has been concluded that in order to sustain in this competitive
market place, organisations needs to implement change within its working procedures and
practices. There are various internal and external drivers of change which influences the
company to initiate changes within the organisation. Moreover these factors assist the company
to initiate the change within the organisation and assist in the growth and success of the
company. Various leadership approaches and le wins change management model assist the
respective company in managing and handling the change effectively within the organisation.
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REFFERNCES
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Organizational Change Management. 25(4). pp.560-575.
By, R.T. and Burnes, B. eds., 2013. Organizational change, leadership and ethics: Leading
organizations towards sustainability. Routledge.
Doppelt, B., 2017. Leading change toward sustainability: A change-management guide for
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England, N.H.S., 2016. Leading change, adding value. British Journal of Healthcare Assistants.
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Espedal, B., 2017. Understanding how balancing autonomy and power might occur in leading
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Henderson, R., Gulati, R. and Tushman, M. eds., 2015. Leading sustainable change: An
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Iveroth, E. and Hallencreutz, J., 2015. Effective organizational change: leading through
sensemaking. Routledge.
Kotter, J.P., 2012. Leading change. Harvard business press.
Latham, J.R., 2013. A framework for leading the transformation to performance excellence part
II: CEO perspectives on leadership behaviors, individual leader characteristics, and
organizational culture. Quality Management Journal. 20(3). pp.19-40.
Lawrence, P., 2015. Leading change–Insights into how leaders actually approach the challenge
of complexity. Journal of Change Management. 15(3) . pp.231-252.
White, V. and Robinson, S., 2014. Leading change in policing: police culture and the
psychological contract. The Police Journal. 87(4) . pp.258-269.
Online
Field Force Analysis. 2019. [Online] Available Through: <https://www.edrawsoft.com/force-
field-analysis-diagram.php>
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