Management Report: Dodo's Exclusive Shoes - Adapting to Change Drivers

This report analyzes the key factors driving change at Dodo's Exclusive Shoes in South Africa, emphasizing the importance of adapting to the competitive environment. It discusses the role of vision, community welfare, and employee involvement in successful change management. The report identifies change drivers such as aggressive marketing strategies, leadership approaches, and training programs. It also reflects on the author's potential future role as a Change Manager, highlighting the necessary skills and attitudes. Furthermore, it includes responses to classmates' perspectives on climate for change, the role of technology, and the impact of social media. The analysis incorporates scenario planning, learning processes, and the need for agility in adopting changes, drawing on various change management models and theories. Desklib provides access to similar reports and solved assignments for students.

Running head: MANAGEMENT
Marketing and management of Dodo
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

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PART A
Key factors for success in case of Dodo
According to Whelan-Berry and Somerville (2010), change is one of the important
agents, leading to change for the firms operating in the retail industry. Within this, mention
can be made of the vision towards change, relates with the aspects of the assumptions of the
Lewis Change Management Model. As a matter of specification, it is the “unfreeze’ stage,
where the personnel realize the necessity of change for adding innovation into the workplace
operations. Within this, the challenge is resistance towards accepting the changes. Aligning
with the business of Dodo, community welfare has enhanced the parameter of corporate
social responsibility, widening the scope and arena of the business. Typical evidence of this
lies in supplying toys and shoes to the 93 children in a crèche of Alexander Township. Along
with this, mention can be made of the plans regarding establishing classrooms in the
threshold of Pretoria (Buchanan 2011). All these initiatives reflects the struggle towards
identifying the areas, which needs to be modified for enhancing the productivity.
Change drivers impacting the success factors
One of the primary change drivers is the accepted vision, which lays off a strong
foundation for the required change. This vision includes definition and clarification for the
need and urgency of the change in terms of the identified and specified organization. As per
the opinions of Gilbert, Eyring and Foster (2019), this acceptance leads to the planning
regarding the processes through which the changes can be adopted. Mention can be made of
the meetings, which the managers of Dodo conduct for communicating the strategies to the
team members. Aggressive marketing strategies helps in increasing the scope and arena of the
business in the stores.

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One of the other drivers towards change is the leaders’ approach towards moulding
the team members towards the required changes. Dodo involves the employees in the
decision making process, as they are the assets for achieving success. Within this, emphasis is
laid on the communication, which averts the instances of conflicts, discriminations and
harassments (Konno, Nonaka and Ogilvy 2014). Effective communication between the
departmental units of Dodo helps in exposing collaborative approach towards executing the
activities in an efficient and effective manner. Training for change is one of the other drivers,
which reflects positive approach towards achieving success. Training enhances the skills,
expertise and knowledge of the employees, convincing them to adopt the changes. Post
training tests and meetings on the scores of the employees would act as opportunity towards
estimating the future progress (Doppelt 2017).
Future role
I think that in future, I would be assigned the role of Change manager in the next 2-5
years. For this, I need the following skills:
 Sound understanding of the key people and change processes
 Sound knowledge of the change management principles, methodologies and
tools
 Exceptional communication skills
Attitudes:
 Leadership
Abilities:
 Proper application of methodologies in leading the change management activities
 Supporting communication efforts (Nibusinessinfo.co.uk 2019)

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 Flexibility in assessing the impact of the change management
Areas needed to modify the performance
 Communication skills
 Proper application of the methodologies
 Meetings for incorporating accurate decision making
Part B
Response 1 (Classmate 1)
Climate for change
Disruptive technologies have led to noticeable decline in the revenue of the
companies and organizations. This became a serious matter, compelling the complexities
within the survival strategies. These aspects necessitates the need for change. This is through
the means of business models. There are two modes of transformations. Transformation A,
which specifies the business model used by companies like Dodo and Deseret News.
Transformation B identifies the drawbacks and helps in adding innovations into the business
practices for upgrading the standards and quality of performance (Cameron and Green 2015).
Adopting social media is one of an effective options for assessing the appropriateness,
feasibility and effectiveness of the changes. This is due to the feedbacks, which helps in
estimating whether the performances are in alignment with the identified and specified
objectives.
Change drivers
Technology is fruitful in terms of adding radical automation within the business of
companies like Dodo and Deseret News. Hornstein (2015) is of the view that Media

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coverage of the business operations is one of the ways of broadening the perspectives on
reaching to the benchmark level of performance.
Role of Deseret News in responding to the change
Deseret news is a challenge for Dodo in terms of encountering fake news, bots and
trolls. Lackadaisical approach towards adopting defense mechanisms like risk mitigation,
verification of the posts aggravates the complexities within the security issues (Cummings et
al. 2016).
Questions for colleague
 What are your views regarding the importance of pace of the change for Dodo’s
survival?
 What, according to you, is the role of technology on change processes?
 How can social media help in averting the instances of conflicts?
Response (Classmate 2)
Climate for change
Planning is an agent for Dodo in terms of predicting the future progress with the
current strategic position. Mention can be made of the aspect of ‘scenario planning”, which
enhances the awareness of the personnel regarding the basics of the scenarios. If the concepts
related to the scenarios are cleared, then planning becomes easy. Here, problem solving
techniques can be related, as possible interpretations are made for the scenarios for
approaching to the appropriate change (Morin et al. 2016).
Change drivers
The need of the hour is strong and flexible processes, which are practical and helps
the organizations in sustaining their market position within the competitive ambience.

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Meetings, presided by the managers (leaders) is important in terms of setting new
organizational processes. Mention can be made of capabilities exchange, which can be
productive in terms of transferring knowledge, skills and capabilities without altering the
mission (Hornstein 2015).
Role of Deseret News in responding to the change
Cutting the operational costs proved effective in terms of penetrating the digital
market. Identification of the opportunities helped in modifying the infrastructure. However, at
the initial stages of adopting the changes was difficult and complicated. However,
incorporation of the learning processes of intuition, interpretation, integration and
institutionalization proved beneficial in displaying the appropriate approach towards the
required change. Here, cognitive learning theory can be applied, as the employees learn by
interpreting the scenarios (Konno, Nonaka and Ogilvy 2014).
Questions for Colleague
 How does scenario planning help in adopting the changes?
 Can learning processes be one of the drivers towards acquiring the required changes?
 What role does social media have on the reputation of the companies?
Response 3 (Classmate 3)
Climate for change
Mindset and approach of the employees sets the ground for acquiring changes within
the business practices. Agility towards change reflects the behavioural options of the
employees towards adopting the change. Effective management of these resistances enhance
the leadership skills, qualities and competencies of the managers (Doppelt 2017).
Change drivers

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Scenario planning is an effective tool for mapping the feasibility of the current
strategic position in terms of the identified and specified objectives. Investigations of the
business practices is assistance in terms of seeking alternative ways of adopting the changes.
Transformation models seem productive in terms of mapping the avenues, which can be
pursued in terms of altering the scope and arena of the workplace (Cameron and Green 2015).
Role of Deseret news
Penetrating into the foreign markets is one of the means through which Deseret News
can enhance its printing business. Adopting change management models of Kotter would be
fruitful in terms of regulating the business. Within this, market research for modern
technological innovation would lead to radical automation in the business practices. Irrational
approach in terms of “not learning from the mistakes” would be catastrophic in terms of
enhancing the productivity. Contacts with the research and development team is vital in terms
of gaining exposure to the external environment. Lackadaisical approach towards modifying
the drawbacks would add vulnerability in the market position, dwindling the pararmeter of
customer satisfaction (Gilbert and Foster 2019).
Questions for colleague
 How can Deseret News enhance their profit margin?
 To what extent business models are feasible in enhancing the learning of the
employees?

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References
Buchanan, D.A. (2011) ‘Good practice, not rocket science – understanding failures to change
after extreme events’, Journal of Change Management, 11 (3), pp. 273-288.
Cameron, E. and Green, M., 2015. Making sense of change management: A complete guide
to the models, tools and techniques of organizational change. Kogan Page Publishers.
Cummings, S., Bridgman, T. and Brown, K.G., 2016. Unfreezing change as three steps:
Rethinking Kurt Lewin’s legacy for change management. human relations, 69(1), pp.33-60.
Doppelt, B., 2017. Leading change toward sustainability: A change-management guide for
business, government and civil society. Routledge.
Gilbert, C., Eyring, M. and Foster, R. (2019). Two Routes to Resilience. Harvard Business
Review.
Hornstein, H.A., 2015. The integration of project management and organizational change
management is now a necessity. International Journal of Project Management, 33(2),
pp.291-298.
Konno, N., Nonaka, I. and Ogilvy, J., 2014. Scenario planning: The basics. World
Futures, 70(1), pp.28-43.
Morin, A.J., Meyer, J.P., Bélanger, É., Boudrias, J.S., Gagné, M. and Parker, P.D., 2016.
Longitudinal associations between employees’ beliefs about the quality of the change
management process, affective commitment to change and psychological
empowerment. Human Relations, 69(3), pp.839-867.

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Nibusinessinfo.co.uk. (n.d.). Advantages and disadvantages of using social media. [online]
Available at: https://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk/content/advantages-and-disadvantages-using-
social-media [Accessed 19 January 2019].
Whelan-Berry, K.S. and Somerville, K.A., 2010. Linking change drivers and the
organizational change process: A review and synthesis. Journal of Change
Management, 10(2), pp.175-193.