HR's Role in Managing Change and Organizational Design at Unilever

This report examines the critical role of Human Resources (HR) in managing organizational change and design, using Unilever as a case study. It begins by defining organizational change and its importance, then highlights the significance of HR in facilitating these changes. The report explores Lewin's change management model (unfreezing, change, refreezing) and how Unilever applies it to adopt new technologies and improve manufacturing processes. It details the key roles of HR, including motivating employees, recruiting new staff, and fostering employee relationships. Furthermore, the report discusses HR's role in organizational design, such as implementing innovations, providing employee training, and upgrading resources. The analysis emphasizes the need for organizational design to adapt to change, including strategies like hiring experienced employees, resource upgrades, and employee training. The conclusion underscores the necessity of change management for enhancing working procedures and profitability, recommending that Unilever adopt organizational restructuring, develop detailed plans, create appropriate budgets, and provide employee training to successfully implement new technologies and reduce waste in manufacturing.

Value and Contribution to Organizational Success
Introduction
Organization change refers to a procedure, which is adopted by a company in order to change
or update their strategies, technology, culture, process and other activities. Through this,
company able to attain their objective in effective manner. Organization taken in for
respective project is Unilever, which is founded in 1929, and it is headquarter is in London,
United Kingdom.
Lewin's change management model
Kurt Lewin develops this model, which include three track i.e. unfreezing, change and
refreezing. The respective model is adopt by a company for various reasons such as for
adopting change, moving towards for adopting new level, motivate employees and many
more. In respect of Unilever, they choose respective theory for espouse change at its
workplace so that they manufacture products that are more fascinating and sell it in attractive
way. Explanation of these stages are given below-
 Unfreezing: In this Unilever manager, develop a new plan such as they want to
adopt new technology, which help them in producing products with minimum
wastage. Then they will ensure with their employees that they are ready for adopting
respective change.
 Change: In this stage manager of Unilever will execute all plan in order to
implement new technology so that they able to reduce wastage and manufacture
effective products. Through which respective company can attract more customers
and investors. At this level company conduct changes on temporary basis and here
their main motive is to test the new technology.
 Refreezing: It is the last stage at which Unilever will develop strategies in order to
adopt new technology, which help in reducing wastage for permanent. This will done
after successful testing of technology at change stage.
By adopting this theory, HR manager of Unilever able to implement new technology
for manufacturing products, which help in reducing wastage in effective manner.
Role of HR in managing change
If a company adopt change their human resource manager need to conduct various work or
play several role so that they can implement change in effective manner. Below some major
roles are mentioned which does HR manager of Unilever for managing change and
organizational design in order to conduct organization restructuring play:-
Role of HR in managing change-
• Motivate and encourage employees: Unilever's HR manager will ensure that their
employees will be motivated in order to adopt plans for restructuring i.e. change in
manufacturing process. Along with this, they also encourage them to participate in decision-
making process.
• Recruit new staffs: HR manager of respective company also recruit new and
experienced employees in order to adopt new manufacturing process so that it will execute in
effective and appropriate manner.
• Employees relationship: In respective company HR, manager develop as well as
maintain proper relationship among staffs. This is so because through it they able to espouse
new technology which help in reducing wastage during the time of manufacturing.
Role of HR in organizational design-
 Implementation of innovation: In order to conduct organization design HR
manager of Unilever will develop proper change management strategies, which help
them in adopting innovations in effective manner. Such as if respective company
adopt new advance technology for productions they need to conduct organization
design so that each and every employees will understand objective and encouraged
to adopt changes.
 Train Employees: Role-play by HR manager of respective company in order to
conduct organizational design is that they must provide training and development
activities to their staffs. Through which they able to adopt new technology of
manufacturing in effective manner that will help in reducing wastage.
 Up gradation of resources: In respect of this role played by HR, manager of
Unilever is order to conduct organization design is that they must upgrade their
resources so that they can implement respective manufacturing process in
appropriate manner, which help in reducing wastage.
By conducting this role human resource manager of Unilever able, to implement
changes in effective manner as well as it will also help them in proper organizational design
by adopting new technology of reducing wastage while manufacturing.

Recommendation
Organisational design must respond and adopt change
Organization design refers to a procedure in which there is aligning of structure is done in a
company which help in attaining objective and aim in effective way. There are several
elements of organizational design such as work specialization, chain of command, span of
control and many more. In respect of Unilever, procedure, which they adopt in order to
implement plan of organizational design, is given below-
 Hire experienced employees: According to this strategy respective company
employer need to hire experienced employees who can guide other staffs that how
they will use respective manufacturing machine so that it will produce less wastage.
Through this respective company employees able to attain their target in effective
manner by minimizing wastage.
 Upgrade resources: It is also necessary for respective company HR manager to
upgrade their resources according to new technology so that they can adopt
procedure in properly which help in manufacturing products by reducing wastage.
By these Unilever employees also able, to utilize resources in effective way that
leads to attainment of goal.
 Provide training and development: For Unilever it is necessary that they train their
employees so that they know best ways to use technology which respective company
is adopting in order to reduce wastage. For this, they may hire experienced
employees or trainer of advance technology.
By implementing these stages respective, company HR Manager able to adopt
advance technology, which help in reducing or minimizing wastage from production process.
Recommendation
Through analyzing above situation, it can be recommended to Unilever that by conducting
organization restructuring them able to attain their goal as well as objective properly. For this,
they need to adopt changes and organizational design, which help in implementing new
technology in effective way. There are several recommendation which respective company
can adopt such as develop proper plan by discussing with employees so that they also
understand objective of company. Along with this company, also need to develop appropriate
budget, which help in identifying resources and managing funds. It is also essential for
respective company to hire experienced employees who can guide other staffs for using new
technology. They must also need to train their staffs, which help them in conducting work in
effective way that leads to attainment of goal as well as objective. By adopting these
strategies Unilever able to adopt new technology for organization, restructure which help in
reducing wastage during manufacturing effectively.
CONCLUSION
By evaluating above discussed point it can be summarized that change management
is essential for a company because through it they able to adopt new things which help in
improving their working procedure and enhancing profitability ratio. An organization can
adopt various theories and methods in order to implement change such as lewin's change
management model. This will help them in adopting change in proper manner as well as when
change occur company HR manager play various role which help in adopting change and
organization design such as motivating employees, train them and many more.