Organizational Change Management Analysis: Lakeland Wonders Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of organizational change management, focusing on the case of Lakeland Wonders. It examines the change initiatives proposed by CEO Cheryl Hailstorm, the challenges faced, and the ethical considerations involved. The report delves into issues of lea...Read More

Running head: MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
Management of Change
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary
 The purpose of the following paper is to describe the various issues regarding the
organizational change management.
 The chosen company for this paper is the Lakeland Wonders situated at Minnesota. The
ways for changing the organizational systems have been identified in the following paper.
 The issues within the Lakeland Wonders have been found in this paper. The leadership
issues of the new CEO Cheryl Hailstorm have been identified.
 The ways of communicating the change have been described as well. The
recommendations have been made about how these issues can be mitigated and the
change management plan can be implemented properly.

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Managing organizational change.....................................................................................................4
Change initiatives by Cheryl Hailstorm..........................................................................................5
Importance of change in Lakeland Wonders...................................................................................7
Ethical issues in the change management and leadership...............................................................7
Training of the employees...............................................................................................................9
Leadership abilities..........................................................................................................................9
Recommendations..........................................................................................................................10
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
References and Bibliography.........................................................................................................12

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Introduction
The purpose of the following paper is to focus on the several perspectives of the
organizational change management. Organizational change management has been considered as
a very important aspect for all the organizations in the modern competitive business
environment. The business managers have the responsibility to ensure whether the current
systems of the organizations are acting properly to gain the competitive advantage. Sometimes
the managers find out the organization is not working in the way as it is expected (Jones, 2013).
This is the time they go on to implement certain programs by which the organizations take new
turns. This is very important to note that the change initiatives for the organization are indeed
beneficial for their overall development.
If these changes can cater to the developments of the organization, it will progress
towards gaining the momentum and perform in the best ways. The organizations must work
according to the changing business environment. It is the responsibility of the organizational
managers to find the odd things within the business environment that are hindering the growth of
the organizations (Jones, 2013). The managers would review these shortcomings and make
recommendations to the employees how the system would be working better. The discussion in
the paper would be based on the ways how Cheryl Hailstorm has discussed about the changes in
the organization based on the proper communication between the employees and the
management. Some recommendations would also be given in this prospect since the problems
should be sorted out and the organization should thrive for the positive system changes.

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Managing organizational change
The topic of this paper is the organizational change management. The case study named
Welcome Aboard (But Don’t Change a Thing) has to be discussed in this light (McNulty, 2002).
The organizational change management is one of the most important issues within the business
organizations (Benn, Edwards and Williams, 2014) As the main purpose of the change is to gain
the competitive advantage the organizations should try to make the proper inputs within the
organization regarding the ways the employees should approach and their attitudes.
The new technology systems are very much within the organizational operations. This is
why the managers should look to implement this updated technology in the operations. Another
approach to the organizational change is that of the bold and innovative ideas by the
organizational leaders. It is the initiative of the leaders of the organization who would like to
make the best decisions by applying the change management theories in order to make the most
of the decisions (McNulty, 2002).
It has been noted that the business organizations face several troubles within their
business environment and they face a lot of problems to overcome them. The leaders would like
to employ the several initiatives for the changes within the organization for the better
productivity of the employees and gaining more profits (Alvesson and Sveningsson, 2015).
According to the critics, the employees do not like the change that is being initiated
within the organization. It is because it takes a lot to adjust within the new organizational
environment. It is the responsibility of the leaders to make the proper changes so the employees
can be able to cope up with the situations. The change initiatives should be associated with the

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business goals of the organization. The changes should be communicated to the employees and it
should be the basic criteria to check on the acceptability of the changes within the organization.
Another important factor for the change within the organization is the proper training for
the employees. This training process will be much effective for the employees on how they can
cope up with the several challenges. The training process can be given in both the online and
offline mode (Alvesson and Sveningsson, 2015). The face-to-face training sessions and the on-
the-job coaching sessions should be the most useful ways to make the training of the employees
a successful one. However, the case of the Lakeland Wonders would be discussed as per the case
study in this paper.
The CEO of the company was Cheryl Hailstorm has proposed some relatively new ideas
on how to make the proper changes within the organization (McNulty, 2002). She wanted the
organization to move fast in the competitive business environment and gain the profits so the
organization can be the industry leaders. The enthusiasm of Cheryl has been eccentric and it is
pretty sure that they can improve their customer services. The organization has to flourish based
on their offshore manufacturing of the products. As the company is based in Minnesota, Cheryl
wants the company should open its new branches in the various regions across the country. The
national identity of the organization Lakeland Wonders should be formed properly.
Change initiatives by Cheryl Hailstorm
It has to be assumed that like most of the organizations in the modern business arena the
Lakeland Wonders should also go through the change for the betterment. The betterments should
be made to be fast moving and expanding their business operations. The organization currently
has around 5000 employees the certain change management plan should be implemented to

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organize their operations in the best ways (McNulty, 2002). The company produces the high-
quality wooden toys and the primary target of the new CEO for the moment is to develop their
manufacturing strategies. The Senior Vice President of Operations of the company Mark
Dawson has an immense role to play in this section since he has been in the operations
department for about fourteen years (McNulty, 2002). He is very well aware of all the issues that
can arise in the context of the change management for the organization. However Mark had
decided to step down from his post because of some reasons after serving a long term for the
company (Palmer, Dunford and Akin, 2016).
The experts have observed that Cheryl Hailstorm had been one of the most significant
forces for the overall growth that the company had received earlier. She had an extensive idea of
all the issues within the company because she had been serving the company for a long time
now. The company needed a shift from the current procedures for making the profits. It was
probably the only way left for the company to survive in this changing business context.
She wanted the changes to occur within the company since she wanted the offshore
manufacturing process to take the charge. The application for the change management project of
the company would be highly focused on the offshore manufacturing. In order to begin the
project, they had checked their several facilities for the labor management, evaluating their
several facilities and their capabilities for the manufacturing process. These evaluations would be
very much important for the organization to implement the change projects.
Importance of change in Lakeland Wonders
She is very much enthusiastic about the change within the company because the change
can bring several changes in the positive aspects from various angles. Cheryl thinks she would be

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able to bring in the positive changes within the organization for the better manufacturing. She is
also of the opinion that these innovative changes can be much helpful for the future innovations
of the company or the change of lifestyle of the employees. However, the areas in which Cheryl
Hailstorm wanted the changes are the human resource management, maintenance unit,
manufacturing process and the available facilities. However, the main purpose of Cheryl was to
satisfy the clients of the company by expanding their target market in the offshore marketing
aspects. If they are able to enhance their target markets through this method they will also be
able to learn to be more effective and efficient.
Ethical issues in the change management and leadership
The several ethical issues in the change management can be taken as one of the most
crucial parts of the process. It is because she has to watch over the reactions of their employees
because this matters the most to implement the change process. The cooperation from the
employees of the organization is highly needed for the successful implementation of the change
management plan.
The main issue in her leadership method is the fact Cheryl Hailstorm has been too much
autocratic when it comes to lead the people. She almost orders or threatens the involved people
in the process because she thinks she can get the work done by making the people afraid of her
leadership. Mark Dawson recognized this kind of forcible leadership for getting the work done.
This is not at all the best way for the organizations to get the work done for the betterment of the
procedure. This is why Mark Dawson wanted to give his resignation in this scenario. The
company needs to take the co-operation from all the employees of all the divisions. Especially
the manufacturing division should perform at its best in order to implement the change properly.

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Cheryl wants to implement this change management plan properly so the employees can work
with much proficiency indeed. The human resource management system should also response in
the positive ways regarding this change management system (Lewis, 2019).
The leadership of Cheryl Hailstorm has also been regarded as one of the most important
issues in the implementation of the change management plan. The leadership management has
become one of the most crucial issues for the future success of the organization in the best
manner (Jacobs, van Witteloostuijn and Christe-Zeyse, 2013). She has to remember that all the
employees of the manufacturing division are not enough skilled for the implementation of the
change management plan. The employees should look to gain the skills that are needed for the
overall success in mastering the offshore manufacturing process. If Cheryl Hailstorm thinks that
the employees would be able to adapt and adjust to the issues properly at a very short time she
might not be right. The communication with the employees is an essential issue in this regard.
However, she changed the interior décor of the house as well. She converted the corner office to
the conference room thinking it to be a positive symbolic act having a positive impact on the
psychology of the employees. She has also set her eyes on the branding and packaging of the
products. These things might be effective from several viewpoints for her. The issue still stays
that the employees her not properly trained.
Training of the employees
The effective training of the employees could lead them towards implementing the
change management plans successfully. The lack of training and communications gaps with the
upper management has been very much problematic for the employees. Lewin’s change
management model could be very much effective for the organizations in this scenario. The three

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steps for changing the methods of change management would be implied in this scenario. Cheryl
must keep in her mind that occupying a high position and title will not automatically make her a
true leader and a person to follow (Cummings, Bridgman and Brown, 2016). In order to be a
positive leader she has to mix with the employees like a team member first. Only then she would
be able to know the changes they face. When she would know these problems she would surely
arrange for the training programs for the employees to develop their skills.
Leadership abilities
Being the Chief Executive Officer does not give Cheryl Hailstorm the tight to lead the
organization just in the way she likes. She will have to think in a way that she can handle all the
issues that would arise when the change is being implemented. She has to motivate all the people
within the organization so they all can work for the common cause of launching the offshore
manufacturing plan for the better services and profit (Cummings, Bridgman and Brown, 2016)..
As per Cheryl this can lead the company to the competitive advantage over their rivals in the
industry. The full commitment and dedication of Cheryl would be on leading the change and
make the best out of their employees.
Recommendations
It has been noticed in the case study that the change management plans for the betterment
of the company to gain the competitive advantage has not been accepted in a positive manner by
most of the employees (Shirey, 2013). It is because the decisions have been mostly autocratic in
nature and the leadership skills of Cheryl Hailstorm have not been that much effective for the
successful organizational change. The employees are not properly motivated at all and they are
not ready to adapt to the new business environment. It can create a barrier for the organization

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and vision and mission of Cheryl Hailstorm. Some recommendations can be given in this regard
about how they can improve the situation and achieve their desired position.
 Cheryl Hailstorm has to motivate the employees in the positive ways and make them
understand that this change initiative is for their career development only. They will be
able to earn more money if this plan is successful. The offshore manufacturing will
enhance the client base of the organization and motivate employees can effectively fulfill
the desires of the organization.
 Organizational ethics is another significant issue that should be discussed in this context.
Cheryl Hailstorm should interact with the employees properly so she is able to know their
strengths and weaknesses. Only then she can judge the individual capacities of the
employees. This will be effective for her to judge and judge the workload accordingly.
 She should always be aware of the current developments in the industry the company is
operating in. The character strength and integrity of Cheryl Hailstorm should be the
ultimate thing that Cheryl should inherit within her.
 She should set her business goals and desires in a manner that all the employees can work
by understanding her vision and mission.
 Cheryl Hailstorm can motivate her employees by presenting them with the rewards.
These rewards might be in cash or in kind. These rewards would lead the employees to
implement the change plan.
 The communication skills should be improved for the people in the organization. This
would be much helpful for the organization in all the manners.

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 Cheryl Hailstorm has not been much open to all her employees. They cannot approach
her properly in case of any difficulties faced. This will create a negative impact on the
employees. She must behave in a manner that everyone can approach her.
Conclusion
As per the above discussion the paper can be concluded by saying that the organizational
change plans described in the case study have not been that much fruitful. It is because the CEO
of the Lakeland Wonders has not been able to exercise her leadership qualities in the best ways.
However, she has been a visionary to identify that the issues within the company. However, it
can be said that the organizational change management has been one of the most important
issues for gaining the competitive advantage. Lakeland Wonders has not been able to address the
issues within the change management properly so they need to brush up the strategies to
implement the change management plans.
References and Bibliography
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work in progress. Routledge.

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