Leading Change: Analyzing Midsummer House Restaurant Operations

This report provides a detailed analysis of leading change within the context of Midsummer House restaurant. It begins by comparing the impacts of organizational and strategic changes at Midsummer House and Chez Bruce, focusing on production and promotional strategies. The report then examines how internal drivers like innovation and customer complaints, and external drivers such as government policies and technological innovations, affect team, individual, and leadership behaviors. It also delves into the various barriers to change and their influence on leadership decision-making. Finally, the report explores different leadership approaches to managing change within an organization. The analysis includes real-world examples and offers insights into effective change management strategies for the restaurant industry. This report is a valuable resource for students studying leadership and change management, available on Desklib, a platform offering AI-based study tools.

UNDERSTANDING
AND LEADING
CHANGE

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1 Compare various example where there has been impact due to change in organisation
operations and strategy................................................................................................................1
P2 Ways in which internal and external drivers of change impact team, individual and
leadership behaviour...................................................................................................................3
P3 Different measures to minimize negative affect of change on behaviour of organisation....6
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................7
P4 Analyse different barriers for change and evaluate their impact on leadership decision
making.........................................................................................................................................7
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................9
P5 Various leadership approaches to deal with change in context of an organisation................9
CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10
.......................................................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Understanding and leading change is an aspect in which employees are trained to deal
with changing situation in an effective manner. These changes are required when an organisation
transits itself from current state to desired future state. Managing these changes are not possible
without appropriate planning and implementation of policies (Anderson, 2016). This assignment
is based on Midsummer House which is a medium sized restaurant, headquartered in Cambridge,
England, UK. Manager of this restaurant want to implement some changes in the operations and
process of organisation. This report involves impacts due to change in organisational operation &
strategy along with internal and external drivers which have an affect on team, individual
behaviour & leadership. Also, different barriers for change are discussed. At last, various
leadership approaches are mentioned which are required to deal with change in context of an
organisation.
TASK 1
P1 Compare various example where there has been impact due to change in organisation
operations and strategy
Change is treated as a Constant force within an organisation. In some cases, these
changes takes place because a company is growing or sometimes because company wishes to
achieve organisational objectives in a better way. It is concerned with modifying or transforming
the process or structure of a company. These changes have a considerable impact on the manner
in which employees of a firm carry-out business operations. To enhance their profits and
customer base, a company can modify their mission, vision, objectives and policies anytime.
Here two medium sized organisations has been taken i.e. Midsummer house and Chez Bruce. In
today's scenario, every individual wants to sustain a healthy and balanced life. Due to this,
customers have changed their preference form oily & spicy food to oil free and nutritious food.
To cater the needs of clients, both organisations i.e. Midsummer house and Chez Bruce have
decided to implement change in their working pattern (Ashley and Empson, 2013). They have
decided to improve their food quality by incorporating healthy ingredients in their dishes. Due to
this, both restaurants have decided to adopt considerable changes in their strategies and
operations.
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Basis Midsummer House Chez Bruce
Organisational Strategy Strategy is a long term plan
which helps an organisation in
achieving organisational vision
and goals. To cater the
changing needs of clients, it is
very important for Midsummer
House to change its production
and promotional strategies.
Production strategy: Under
this strategy, company needs
to eliminate unhealthy and
unsaturated food items which
results in health issues like
heat disease, cholesterol etc.
Manager of Midsummer house
needs to add healthy
ingredients and more green
vegetables in their dishes. Due
to this, nutritional value of
dishes offered by them will
increase and more customers
will like to buy them.
Promotional strategy: Earlier
restaurant was focusing on
promoting their fast food
because of wide popularity.
But as preference of customers
have changed, in accordance to
that their menu is also
changed. Now they are
It is a medium sized restaurant
in UK which offers fast food
and other eatables to their
customers. According to the
changing demand of
customers, manager of
restaurant have decided to
change their production and
promotional strategies.
Production strategy:
Manager in restaurant have
decided to hire a nutritionist so
that proper direction must be
given to employees while
preparing dishes for customers.
Along with this, owner of
Chez Bruce have decided to
remove unsaturated fats form
their eatables so that customers
don't have to compromise with
their health while consuming
their products.
Promotional strategy:
Company has planned to
change their promotional
tactics by introducing their
new dishes to customers on
free basis as samples. This will
allow customers to
acknowledge their nutritious
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focusing on promoting their
food items on the basis of their
nutritional value so that their
dishes can gain wide attention
from people in UK.
products in a more desirable
way. This will considerably
benefits the restaurant in
enhancing their customer base
and sales.
Organisational Operation Midsummer house has adopted
certain changes in its
operations to enhance their
customer base. One of the
change formulated and
implemented by them is Mass
customisation in which
manager of restaurant
produces customised food
items according to the
specification and requirements
of customers. Due to this,
customers are taking more
interest in the products and
services of restaurant which
will benefits them in
enhancing their revenues and
profit margins. This will
benefit them in gaining
competitive advantage against
rival firms.
Operational changes carried
out by Chez Bruce is that
company has started service
production. Distribution and
delivery of services is regarded
as service production. In case
of Chez Bruce, other changed
operational process is batch
production in which
production manager is going to
produce dishes in large
quantities according to
nutritional level so that
demands of customers can be
catered within short time
period. This will benefits them
in increasing their sales and
revenues which will results in
enhanced profit margins
(Lawrence, 2015).
Change in technology Midsummer house required to
adopt updated technology
which help them in smoothly
run of business operations in
When technology and method
is change so the company
manager required to train their
employees how to perform
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better manner. When
technology has been so this
will create major issue and
problems in front of
organisation and as result
reduction in profitability.
work on it. Chez Bruce is the
restaurant which adopt that
technology which help them in
analysing their customers
needs and wants in proper
manner.
Functions If they are not perform
effective functions so this will
impact on company strategies
and operations.
Chez Bruce require to manage
and maintain effective
functions. Along with this,
they are operate and regulate
business functions for gaining
high income and profitability.
P2 Ways in which internal and external drivers of change impact team, individual and leadership
behaviour
In business environment changes are taking place with rapid speed in hotel industry.
Hence, managers of Midsummer House has to work with external environment in order to make
long term existence in industry. There are many changes which has to be considered such as
change in technology, more use of internet, up-gradations of technique etc. are parts of internal
and external drivers.
Internal drivers
These driving forces occur within the business and are easily controlled by the company.
Some of these internal driving forces are mentioned below:
 Innovation: As demands of customers change on timely basis, it is very important for
employees of restaurant to innovate new strategies in order enhance engagement of
customers. This can be carried out by using new machinery and adopting advance
technology while producing food items. In this context, leaders needs to provide training
and orientations to employees so that they can easily learn new ways of production.
Individual employees needs to observe the changing habits of customers properly so that
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desirable changes can be carried out. Also, team needs to change their working pattern so
that customers can be satisfied according to their expectations (Finn, 2012F).
 Customer complaints: Previously customers were complaining about unhealthy and oily
food due to which sales of Midsummer House has decreased. To overcome these issues,
manager of restaurant has formulated some changes and decided to prioritize customer;s
complaints so that desirable changes can be carried out within dishes and services. In this
case, leader needs to initiate feedbacks and survey so that opinions of customers can be
collected (ullan, 2014). In case of team and individual employees, they need to listen
complainants of employees properly and try to sort out them in an efficient manner so
that satisfaction level of employees will enhance.
 Improved products and services: Restaurant has shifted their preference form fast food
to healthy & nutritious food. This will helps Midsummer House in sustaining a desirable
customer base. In this leader needs to properly analyse food products and their
ingredients before production so that unhealthy ingredients can be substituted by healthy
ones. Team and individual employees needs to follow the orders and directions of
manager & leader so that desirable change can be carried out without any complexity.
External drivers
There are certain outside drivers which have a considerable impact on the business. These
factors have the ability to effect investment of business and achievement of organisational goals.
Usually these factors involves legal, technological, economic, political and social factors. Some
of external drivers are mentioned below:
 Government policy: With the change of government or rules & regulations formulated
by government, it became important for an organisation to formulate their policies in
accordance with the governmental norms. In this respect, leader in Midsummer house
needs to formulate policies and regulations according to chan9ign political scenario of
country. Also, teams and individual workers needs to adopt those policy changes in an
appropriate manner so that restaurant can sustain a strong position while maintaining
their customer base (Glass and Cook, 2016).
 Technological innovation: Other driver that can compel an organisation to sustain a
change is technological innovation. Advanced machines will be more capable to manage
nutritional intake level which will helps Midsummer House in providing a healthy
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lifestyle to their customers. In this leader needs to purchase new and advanced machines,
so that improved production of eatables can takes place. In this respect, individual staff
members and teams needs to learn this new technology properly so that optimal
utilisation of resources can takes place.
 Competition: It is also an important driver which directs Midsummer House towards
change. Other restaurants have also changed their menus and delivery services so that
they can serve their customers in desirable manner. To overpass them, leader needs to
formulate efficient pricing and promotional strategies which will assists the firm in
enhancing sales and revenues (Gnan and et. al., 2013). Team members and individual
employees needs to adopt those strategies well so that profitability of organisation can be
maintained.
Drivers of change affects leadership:
There are different aspects through which it can be considered that these internal and
external drivers impacts leadership and entire organisation. Below is mentioned some factors
which results in considerable impact on leadership:
 Goal setting: These internal and external drivers change the work performing pattern of
Midsummer House due to which leader needs to formulate and implement some changes
in their objectives and goals. Also, they needs to change their manner in which they will
set desirable goals for company.
 Great speaker: Due to these changes, workers needs to change their working habits.
New innovative aspects may demotivate employees in performing their business
activities. It is important for the leader to motivate them and guide them the right tactics
to adopt those changes so that employees will be capable to perform well in changing
conditions also (Gupta, 2011).
 Monitoring and controlling: It is the duty of leader to monitor implemented changes, so
that if some issue originates, it can be resolved without any big problem. If monitoring
and controlling process will be not appropriate then this can results as business failure for
Midsummer House.
P3 Different measures to minimize negative affect of change on behaviour of organisation
Other than providing advantages and benefits, organisational changes can also results in
negative outcomes like reduced working potential of employees, decreased productivity and
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ineffectiveness while performing business operations. There are some measures which can be
adopted by manager in Midsummer House to reduce the negative impact of these changes. Some
of these are mentioned below:
 Creation of pathways: When a new plan or strategy is implemented within an
organisation, it is the duty of manager to formulate an effective action plan to implement
it. This will benefits the workforce in acknowledging the desirable outcomes of these
changes. Also, it will helps the employees of Midsummer House in understanding the
right tactics to adopt these changes which will helps them in accomplishing their goals
and targets desirably (Hintz and Bahia, 2013).
 Explanation of plans: Manager of Midsummer House can arrange conferences and
meetings to make employees understand regarding the changes and new innovative
concepts in an appropriate manner. This will helps the workers in acknowledging the
changes and their impacts which will helps them in performing their duties properly. This
will helps the employees in satisfying the needs of customers more desirably.
 Monitor changes– In this, negative people generally have a sphere of influence. This is
required for company is to make improvement and monitor it in order to gain attention of
large number of customers. Manager of Midsummer House can monitor and manage all
business operations which help them in gaining higher income and profitability. The
manager required to monitor changes which are adopted for make improvement in better
manner.
 Effective communication – It is another method which help them in reduces the
negative impact of change on employees behaviour. The company manager require to
effectively interact with their staff members which reduces possibility to develop
conflicts or disputes within an organisation.
Manager in Midsummer House can also implement PDCA model to reduce the impact of
these formulated changes. Important points associated with this model are specified below:
PDCA Model:
It is a four step approach which assists in continuous improvement of product, services
and processes in order to resolve conflicts & problems. It includes testing of potential solutions,
assessment of outcomes and implementation of desirable outcomes (Kotter, 2012). It is an
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effective and simple approach to manage change and solve issues & conflicts. Basic components
of this model are mentioned below:
 Plan: This stage involves identification of problem and collection of relevant data. Also,
this step is concerned with acknowledging the root cause for a specific problem which is
faced by Midsummer House and development of hypothesis about that problem.
 Do: In this stage, an effective solution is developed and implemented within working
premises. After that management of Midsummer House will measure its effectiveness
and test the impact of potential solution to measure the outcomes & results.
 Check: This stage is concerned with conforming the results and outcomes by comparing
the before & after data. After comparison, the manager of Midsummer house needs to
study its results to analyse whether the developed hypothesis is desirable to solve the
problem or not (MacKian and Simons, 2013).
 Act: This is the final stage in which results are documented and employees are informed
regarding the changes in process. Along with this, recommendations have been given for
futuristic PDCA cycles. In this stage, it is also acknowledged if the solution is impactful
or not. In case if solution is successful next problem is tackled.
TASK 2
P4 Analyse different barriers for change and evaluate their impact on leadership decision making
Understanding change barriers benefits an organisation in creating successful strategies
which assists in analysing and implementing changes. Change is an vital aspect with an
organisation which results in shifting of targets from one state to other in order to attain
organisational goals. Below are mentioned some reasons which can acts as a barrier while
implementing changes in Midsummer house:
 Fear of unfamiliar outcomes: Due to the risk of failure, sometimes an individual fear
changes. If manager is not capable to implement changes in right manner, this will results
in business failure or heavy revenue loss for Midsummer house. But if company is
capable to overcome this barrier and able to implement new strategies appropriately,
exponential growth of revenue & profits can be achieved. If the decisions of leaders
regarding strategy implementation are not right or appropriate, then it will ultimately
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impacts on firm's performance (Miller and et. al., 2013). Wrong decisions leads them to
the fear of unfamiliar outcomes that negatively impacts on growth and success of firm.
 Political issues: Due to the rules and regulations specified by government, it can became
difficult for Midsummer House to implement changes in their organisational strategies
and operations. To overcome this, manager of restaurant needs to analyse political norms
of UK desirably before implementing policies and laws of restaurant. Leader needs to
formulate those policies which are under the regulations of government otherwise firm
may have to pay taxes & penalties.
 Complexities – Changes is the biggest impact on organisational operations which can be
complex and lengthy in process. For an organisational change to be successful
implementation, they need to communicate with their employees and analyse their view
or opinions regarding specific change. Midsummer House require to focus on changes
which has been implemented in order to gain high income and profitability in proper
way.
 Broken communication – When company manager introduce some change within an
organisation so it is the duty is to interact and communicate with changes being
implemented to each level. If all the employees does not effectively communicate
regarding changes with their employees so this will create major issue and problem for
them.
Force field Model
Force field model is used to specify the changes in management which is carried out
within an organisation. This model helps in acknowledging the organisational change which are
in favour & against of factors:
Forces which are in favour of change
 Customer wants: First force which is in favour of change is the preference and
requirements of consumers. In today's time customers are more concerned about their
healthy life. Implementing change in their food items while incorporating healthy
ingredients will helps in catering the needs of customers in appropriate manner. This will
benefit Midsummer House in enhancing their revenues and profit margins (Painter and
Clark, 2015).
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 Low maintenance cost: Production and maintenance cost of company will decline as
only those products will be produced which are demanded by customers.
Forces which are against the change
 Employee turnover: Due to the changes, it became difficult for employees to perform
business operations in a desirable manner. Due to the complexity of work and lack of
proper guidance, employees of Midsummer House can quit their job which can have a
bad effect on the working potential of restaurant (Thomas and et. al., 2013).
 Cost increment: Implementing new technology and advanced machines can cost very
high. Due to which is it very important for manager of Midsummer House to manage
finances and budget in a profitable manner.
TASK 3
P5 Various leadership approaches to deal with change in context of an organisation
(Covered in PPT)
CONCLUSION
From the above mentioned report, it has been comprehended that changes have
considerable impact on the organisational strategy and operation of a company. There are certain
internal and external drivers which results in organisational changes. Different measures will
helps in reducing the negative impact of these changes. But there are certain barriers due to
which it is difficult to implement changes within a firm. Different leadership approaches assits in
dealing with these changes in desired manner.
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REFERENCES
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Fullan, M., 2014. Leading in a culture of change personal action guide and workbook. John
Wiley & Sons.
Glass, C. and Cook, A., 2016. Leading at the top: Understanding women's challenges above the
glass ceiling. The Leadership Quarterly. 27(1). pp.51-63.
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management in health and social care. Routledge in association with The Open
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the challenges of technology and distance education. Stylus Publishing, LLC.
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