NBN-Telstra Deal: Impacts on Telecoms and Customer Service

The NBN-Telstra deal represents a significant shift in Australia's telecommunications landscape. This comprehensive analysis examines the agreement's implications on market dynamics, specifically how it influences competition, infrastructure investment, and strategic positioning among Australian telecom companies. By examining various theoretical frameworks on planned change management such as constructivist approaches to organizational development and the dynamic capabilities view within strategic management, this paper assesses how these concepts are reflected in the NBN-Telstra deal. The analysis also investigates potential unintended consequences of this corporate partnership, drawing from case studies and empirical data including customer service experiences reported post-agreement. Finally, it explores the broader impact on consumer satisfaction levels and provides recommendations for stakeholders aiming to enhance service delivery within a rapidly evolving digital marketplace.

Running head: MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
Management of Change
[Telstra, Australia]
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
Table of Contents
Q1:...................................................................................................................................................3
1.1 Identifying two different theoretical perspectives ontologies and world-views....................3
1.2 Explaining and critically discussing the key ideas in reference to the organizational
change-.........................................................................................................................................3
1.3 Two different definition of organization based on the two perspectives-.............................4
1.4 Brief explanation of link between each definition and underlying theoretical perspective-. 4
Q2:...................................................................................................................................................5
2a: Brief introduction of the organization-..................................................................................5
2b: Identifying the change that has happened or happening-......................................................5
2c: Finding the relevancy of identified definition with the change-............................................6
Q3:...................................................................................................................................................7
3a: SWOT analysis in table form to analyze the proposed change-............................................7
3a.1: Explaining, discussing and integrating the analysis-......................................................9
3a.2: Concluding the change management-.............................................................................9
3b: Critically evaluating the benefits & drawbacks of using SWOT to analyze the needs for
change (consider objectivist and social constructionist perspectives)-.......................................9
Q4:.................................................................................................................................................10
4.1 Identify, explain and critically assess the role of change agent-.........................................10
4.2 Applying the analysis to the change in Telstra-...................................................................11

2MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
Q5:.................................................................................................................................................12
5.1 Define and critically discuss both problem-centric and dialogic approaches to change-....12
5.2 Briefly identify which theoretical ontology of organisational change (which you discussed
in question 1) underpins each-...................................................................................................13
5.3 Critically assess the benefits and drawbacks of each of these approaches to change
management-..............................................................................................................................14
5.4 Identify the preferable approaches to manage the change for Telstra with explanation-....15
References-....................................................................................................................................17

3MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
Q1:
1.1 Identifying two different theoretical perspectives ontologies and world-views
Ontologies and world-views are two different philosophical views of looking at the
organizational change. Ontology occurs through a systematic approach and is felt by every
associated member. This means that organizations will undergo a change in a systematic way
from the ontology views. A systematic move may include many such as encouraging a learning
environment before reaching to a planned strategy. This can be done through training &
development process. On the other hand, world-view is related to an individual’s way of looking
at the world. This will entertain the traditional and the cultural background of the individual.
Decision made by the CEO of an organization is the one example of the world-view of
organizational change (Hayes, 2014).
1.2 Explaining and critically discussing the key ideas in reference to the organizational
change-
Both the theories provide different key ideas in context to the organizational change. An
ontological view is a continuous process that lasts for a significant time span. The perspective
attracts the involvement of different groups; however, they may have different roles to play. This
will indeed attract the valued contribution of employees as well as the middle and the top
managers. The ontological view is useful in some situations. On the other hand, this may fall flat
in situations where instant decision making is required (Muzio, Brock & Suddaby, 2013).
A world-view is different to the ontology in its orientation. It is rather an individual
process. A single person may take the sudden decision. This will involve the higher positions
such as the company’s CEO and the top managers. This is required sometimes when there is a

4MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
need to take some real decision on changing the organizational hierarchy. The change of
leadership is one of such examples (Muzio, Brock & Suddaby, 2013).
1.3 Two different definition of organization based on the two perspectives-
From the ontological point of views, Organizational change can be defined as a collective
process where different levels of the organization are involved in the change management
process. All the members to support the change process by being at their position and
encouraging the change through their contributions as well (Muzio, Brock & Suddaby, 2013).
The world-view perspective of organizational change can be defined as an individually
oriented process where an urgent decision is made based on some facts. The decision may look
like as a sudden announcement; however, this also goes through some process. However, the
process is different to the process involved in the ontological perspective of organizational
change. The continuous process in world-view is restricted only to the top managers where they
conduct several meetings on a particular agenda to reach to a conclusion (Muzio, Brock &
Suddaby, 2013).
1.4 Brief explanation of link between each definition and underlying theoretical
perspective-
There is a link in between the two different perspectives. They share common values in
terms of getting the needed change to the organization. However, both the perspectives have a
very different approach to bring the felt change. World-view encourages the making of a sudden
decision whereas ontology is related to a continued process towards the desired change (Langley
et al., 2013).

5MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
The underlying theoretical perspective between the two different views is to bring a
much-needed change in the organization (Langley et al., 2013).
Q2:
2a: Brief introduction of the organization-
Telstra is the largest telecommunication company in Australia. It builds the different
types of telecommunication devices such as fixed line, mobile & others and provides the
broadband services. The era of David Thodey (CEO) from 1010 to 2015 had witnessed notable
changes in the company in terms of sales and customer service. They are now more focused on
proving the utmost customer service. To enhance the customer service standard, the company
introduced the live chat facilities in 2011. The service enabled live chat facilities to its
customers. The service was a huge success and registered a whopping growth of 600% until
2013. This was indeed a very interesting move, which helped its customers to come closer to
Telstra. This was also beneficial for the company as Telstra will now have a much better
understanding of customer’s issues. Interestingly, the move has helped to reduce the number of
complaints. There was a significant drop in the number of complaints from 2010 to 2015
(Telstra.com.au, 2017).
2b: Identifying the change that has happened or happening-
The change is about to happen in Telstra. The proposed change is another step towards
bettering its customer service standard. They are in plan to enhance their broadband service
efficiency through expanding its internet network. The company will invest $36 billion to
improve its broadband service at the national level. However, the proposed goal will need some
change in the organization. The company in the leadership of David Thodey has planned some

6MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
structural change, which will comprise hiring of few experts such as the appointment of chief
customer officer Gordon Ballantyne (Austlii.edu.au, 2017).
The appointment of chief customer officer will integrate sales & service into one single
unit. An Applications and Ventures Group will also be created. This will be headed by Deena
Shiff. The purpose of the investment is to enlarge the broadband network in the country. The
CEO has confirmed that the initiatives that will be taken and the appointments that have been
made are in line with the long-term strategy of Telstra. The long-term strategy of David Thodey
is to improve the customer service standard of Telstra. The move will prove their thought process
true (Austlii.edu.au, 2017).
The move follows the recent deal between the Telstra and the NBN Co. The deal had
attracted an $11bn investment. The CEO David Thodey is making successive investments to
improve the internet service network of Telstra and to enhance its customer service standard. The
appointment of chief customer officer is indeed a very bold move. This will change the number
of people who are on the board of directors group (Austlii.edu.au, 2017).
2c: Finding the relevancy of identified definition with the change-
The identified change process in Telstra looks relevant to both theoretical perspectives
such as Ontology and World-view. It is similar to Ontology as this will follow along continuous
process of network set up throughout the entire country. The setup process does not happen at
just one go. It rather requires a large number of workforces, which will be used to install the
network in the planned area. Additionally, they require a brief training on the needs work needs.
In this regards, it rather shows its orientation with the ontological views of organizational change
(Vogel & Güttel, 2013). It is very much relevant to the world-view as CEO David Thodey is

7MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
responsible for the decision. The CEO has taken a decision, which will now be helped by the
others in order to fulfill the needs. The CEO requires the support of additional staffs that will be
needed to commence the network expansion project (MacKay & Chia, 2013).
Q3:
3a: SWOT analysis in table form to analyze the proposed change-
Strengths  It is Australia’s leading provider of
telecommunication services
(Austlii.edu.au, 2017)
 The company has an extensive range of
Service Portfolio
 Over 35,000 employees are serving
their contribution through their
different roles and from in different
countries (Austlii.edu.au, 2017)
Weaknesses  It has a very limited liquidity position
 The competition is much stiffer that
will affect its market shares
(Accc.gov.au, 2017)
 It has been affected from customer
service related escalations in past. This
is why the company is now much
focused on enhancing its customer

8MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
service standard (Accc.gov.au, 2017)
Opportunities  Expansion is always there in the
telecommunication sector
(Accc.gov.au, 2017)
 The growing IT Services Market is an
enhanced opportunity
 The launch of 4G network will help to
increase the customer base. This is
indeed a growing industry where
customer base is expected to be
affected with the inception of every
new technology in broadband service
(Accc.gov.au, 2017)
Threats  Rapid technological change can be a
threat
 Strict regulations of governing body is
another threat that directly hampers the
cost-effectiveness that is a key to
success in the telecommunicating
industry (Communications.gov.au,
2017)
 Numbers of customers are increasing
for broadband and other mobile

9MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
services, which will make things
tougher. This is because some
companies will go to select a cost-
effective approach or vice-versa
(Communications.gov.au, 2017)
Table 1: SWOT Analysis of Telstra
(Source: created by author)
3a.1: Explaining, discussing and integrating the analysis-
The SWOT analysis of Telstra has produced some useful points that support the
expansion target of the company. The company has been affected from the outage issue in the
past. The outage issue can be because of various reasons. However, an expansion of network will
mean that they are into a safe hand. Rightly so, the move will be facilitated with the help from
NBN Co., which is an owned company of Federal Government. The company will help Telstra
to roll out the panned network line through the entire nation. The move is expected not to
provide solutions only for expansion of broadband network but this will also ensure a quality
service. The deal will move in collaboration with the governing body. Hence, there will be a
close scrutiny on the network coverage. Additionally, there will be some relaxations as well such
as the relaxation of costs. Telstra will be able to get the required cables from NBN Co. This is
enough support to produce a cost-effective performance (Nbnco.com.au, 2017).
3a.2: Concluding the change management-
The change that is happening to Telstra may be a beneficial move for the company. This
is so because it will help to reach to a much wider customer base. Additionally, an improved

10MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
customer service is also expected as the expansion will be brought in collaboration to the NBN
Co., which is a Federal Government owned company. However, the company needs to
continually focus on some more innovative strategies to enhance the level of customer service
(Baden-Fuller & Haefliger, 2013).
3b: Critically evaluating the benefits & drawbacks of using SWOT to analyze the needs for
change (consider objectivist and social constructionist perspectives)-
The need to change is probably identified based on the results of SWOT analysis. This
helps to know the weaknesses that a specific company has and is causing it to be less effective in
a specific external environment. In such circumstances, a change is felt as a solution to mitigate
the identified weaknesses and threats. They view this as an opportunity to mitigate the threats
and enhance their competitiveness. However, this may have some drawbacks as well as the
benefits. The intended change may or may not necessarily bring the desired result. This could
well be understood from the perspectives of objectivist and social constructionist (Sutherland,
Fine & Ashbourne, 2013).
Objectivist believes in creating something. It does not believe in what is made to believe.
More specifically, it believes in developing thoughts with the help of creation based on
individual capability. This perspective is in favor of the benefits that have been felt by Telstra
through its SWOT analysis. This is so because the perspective believes in creating something
based on the evidence. However, social constructionist, on the other hand, believes in created
things. It does not believe in looking for the requirement to change. More precisely, it does not
advocate the importance giving efforts to find the necessity of creation. According to this

11MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
perspective, the decision of Telstra to go for an expansion based on the SWOT analysis may
prove to be a loss to it (Taghipour, 2014).
Q4:
4.1 Identify, explain and critically assess the role of change agent-
There are different roles that a change agent plays in an organizational change process. It
investigates the supportive environment prior to the change process. This helps to progress with
high chances of success. This will also help to analyze what resources are required for this
change to get effective. Advocacy is also required for an effective change management process.
This must be from an individual who can effectively communicate the needs for change.
Moreover, this will help the others to integrate with the process. Encouragement is another role
of a change agent that used to encourage the others who are being involved in the change
management process. Facilitation is another very important characteristic of a change agent.
Through this role, the change agent helps others in the process. The support can come in various
ways such as through some encouraging words such as the appreciation words or else (An,
2012).
Mediation is another very important characteristic that will try to resolve any conflict.
This is required indeed as conflicting thoughts are bound to happen in a change management
process. Change agent also plays the role of an advice that encourages it to rely on the expertise.
This is indeed required as a change management process cannot just happen without a prior
dedication from the experts in different domains. Management is one of the roles of a change
agent that keeps a good track of everything such as the set objectives of the project. The change
agent will ensure that everything is happening as planned (An, 2012).