Unilever's Change Management: Drivers, Impacts, and Minimization Plan

This report provides a detailed analysis of change management within Unilever, a public limited company founded in 1929. It examines the organization's change processes, internal and external drivers such as PEST and SWOT analyses, and the impact of these drivers on Unilever's organizational ...Read More

Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
Overview of organisation and it’s change processes...................................................................3
Internal and external drivers of change.......................................................................................4
Evaluation of drivers and impact on organisational strategy.......................................................6
Evaluation of change on leadership, individual and team behaviour..........................................6
Impact of change can be minimised............................................................................................7
Recommendations........................................................................................................................7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFERNCES...................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Management refers to a single group or individual person who is facing issues and
challenges so that goals and objectives can be accomplished (Galli, 2018). Unilever is a public
limited company founded in 1929. The report examines, change process in organisation, drivers
of change such as, PEST and SWOT analysis is discussed. Evaluation of drivers and impact of
change on organisation. Evaluation of how change has impact on leadership, individual and team
behaviour. Evaluation of impact of change was minimised and application of appropriate models
to plan for and implications of change for effective planning.
MAIN BODY
Overview of organisation and it’s change processes
Unilever is a public limited company which was founded in the year 1929. It’s headquarter
is situated in London, England. It is providing product all over the world and satisfying need of
people. This helps in generating more profit and creating good image in market. Unilever is one
of the fastest growing company and making new products so that need of customers can be
satisfied and it helps in earning profit. Unilever was founded by Lever brothers. Company is
providing different products to customers like, food, ice cream, minerals and supplements,
coffee, beauty care products, personal care products. Managers are managing all the work and
handling all issues so that goals and objectives can be accomplished (Dzwigol and et.al., 2019).
Change management process is the process of requesting, determining attainability,
planning, implementing and evaluating of changes in system of organisation. Managers are
responsible for solving problems and making plans which is beneficial for company and helps in
achieving goals and objectives. Change management process includes, five steps i.e., prepare
organisation for change, make a vision and plan for change, implement the changes, company
culture and practices are changed and last is to review & analyse results. Managers of Unilever
company are, making plans and strategies to make changes so that targets can be accomplished.
They are creating vision and communicating change within the organisation. Managers are
making change in the process after analysing market situation so that better services can be
provided to customers and it helps in achieving targets (Rosenbaum, More and Steane, 2018). It
is essential to make changes in process like, leadership style, structure for communication and
working style of members so that they can perform better than others and more profit can be
earned.

Internal and external drivers of change
Internal and external factors are affecting performance of organisation and managers are
responsible for making plans to control these factors so that goals and objectives can be
accomplished. Internal factors are present within the organisation and it can be control by
managers. Internal factors include, SWOT analysis i.e., to identify strength, weakness,
opportunity and threats. It is essential to make plans and strategies after analysing market
situation so that targets can be accomplished and it helps in gaining competitive advantage.
Managers of Unilever company are determining positive and negative points of firm and growth
opportunities before making any plan (GURL, 2017). This is beneficial for growth of firm as
when strength and weakness are determined then it becomes easy for managers to make plans.
SWOT Analysis
It means to identify strengths, weakness, opportunity and threats so that plans and strategies can
be made accordingly. This helps in gaining competitive advantage and more profit can be
generated.
Strength- it means positive points of a company which helps in achieving targets. Strength of
Unilever company is it operates in nearly 190 countries around the world and satisfy need of
customers. Research and development initiatives are managed to bring new and innovative
product in the market. Unilever has a distinct competitive advantage in market as they are
providing good quality products at reasonable prices.
Weakness – it means to identify negative or weak points of company so that improvement can be
made and it helps in achieving goals and objectives. Weakness of Unilever company is it
operates in the market where there are strong competitors and it is difficult to attract customers.
Other weakness of company is that its products are easily replaces as many close substitutes
goods are available in market. So, managers should focus on improving weak points and make
better plans so that targets can be achieved (Teoli, Sanvictores and An, 2019).
Opportunity- it means to identify growth opportunity in market like, in this globalised world,
choice of customer is changing and it is important to identify choice of people and make plans
accordingly so that profit can be earned. Unilever has a good track record of social and
environment responsibility which helps in creating good image in market and attracting people.
Managers of Unilever company should make plans to expand their business in other countries

and provide innovative products so that customers can be attracted and it helps in achieving
targets.
Threat- it means competitors that can affect performance of company as they are providing good
products. Nowadays, competition is increasing and this is a threat for Unilever company because
there are applying new techniques or satisfying need of people. Another threat for company is
entry of Asian multinationals into global arena. So, competition is one of the biggest threat for
organisation because it affects sales of company.
PEST Analysis
PEST analysis is done to identify external factors. It includes, political, economic, social and
technological factor. This helps in making better plans and does not affect performance of
organisation. It is essential to determine external factors so that business can run smoothly and
profit can be generated.
 Political factor- it includes factors such as, tax policy, tariff barriers, trade restrictions
etc. These are decided by government and it can be changed anytime. This factor affect
Unilever company as rules and regulations are different in different countries. While
doing trade, company faces problem as there were many restrictions and it is difficult to
do trading of goods and services (Perera, 2017).
 Economic factor- it includes, interest rate, economic rate etc. which affect performance
of company. Consumers want good quality products at less prices and demand for
products at cheaper rate. Consumers directly affect products which is provided by
Unilever company and this is affecting profit of company.
 Social factor- people are from different background and their choice is different so,
managers should make products after analysing market situation. Products of Unilever
company focus on personal care and well- being. This attracts people but sometimes,
people did not like the way marketing is done.
 Technological factor- technology is changing rapidly and it is important to apply new
techniques so that people can be attracted. Nowadays, marketing is done with the help of
social networking sites so that customers get information and it helps in achieving goals
and objectives (Christodoulou and Cullinane, 2019). Managers face problem in applying
new techniques as it requires investment.

Evaluation of drivers and impact on organisational strategy
There are two types of factors that can affect performance of an organisation i.e., internal
and external factor. Internal factors are present within the organisation, managers have to
identify elements and find solutions so that they can perform better than others. Managers are
responsible for handling and managing all the activities so that work can be completed on time
and better products can be provided to customers. For analysing internal factors, swot analysis
should be done because it helps in determining strengths, weakness, opportunity and threats. It is
essential to focus on satisfying need of people (Hassan, Nordin and Azamin, 2021). When
positive and negative elements are identified then it becomes easy for managers to make plans
and strategies which is beneficial for growth of firm. Swot analysis helps in making better plans
so that firm can perform efficiently and gain competitive advantage in market.
External factors are present outside the organisation and affects performance of company.
Managers are not able to control external elements but they can make plans so that firm does not
have to suffer loss. It is essential to identify external elements like, political, economic, social
and technological. These factor affects performance of firm as it is not controllable. Managers
should determine these factors and make plans accordingly so that targets can be accomplished.
Technology is changing rapidly and it is essential to apply new techniques so that goals and
objectives can be accomplished (Morais and Franco, 2019).
Evaluation of change on leadership, individual and team behaviour
Change can affect leadership, individual and team behaviour. In an organisation managers
are making plans and strategies so that goals and objectives can be accomplished. Impact of
change on leadership is that it affects company’s goals and objectives directly in positive and
negative way. It is essential to implement change for growth and development of organisation.
When change is made by managers in policies and procedures, rules and regulations, leadership
style etc. then it affects performance of company because employees are not able to complete
work.
When changes are made then it is difficult for leaders to manage work and focus on
achieving targets. Individual and team behaviour is also affected by change as they are not able
to work properly and they need time to understand how to do work. When new technology is
applied then it becomes difficult for employees to work (Jayatilleke and Lai, 2018). Change
affect behaviour of individual person and team also. When work is given in teams and leadership

style is changed then members need time to adopt new style and this has negative impact on
performance of employees. Changes are made by managers in communication structure,
leadership style or apply new technology so that goals and objectives can be accomplished. It is
essential to make changes to gain competitive advantage and to earn more profit. In Unilever
company, autocratic leadership style is applied in which leaders are giving instruction to
members and they have to work accordingly. managers are changing this and apply democratic
style in which members are having right to share their views and give suggestions or new ideas
so that goals and objectives can be accomplished.
Impact of change can be minimised
Impact of change on organisation is loss of benefits, goals and objectives of company is
not achieved, reduce employee’s efficiency, overall productivity of company can be decreased.
To minimise impact of change, managers of Unilever company should apply proper strategies
and make plans after analysing market situation so that goals and objectives can be
accomplished. Leadership style should be used properly and make changes after determining all
the factors. This helps in achieving targets and profit can be earned. Proper structure should be
applied in which roles and responsibilities of every member is defined clearly. This helps in
reducing confusion and misunderstanding (Matthews and et.al., 2018). Managers should set
timelines for every employee and distribute work as per their specialisation so that they can work
efficiently and complete work within the given time period.
When timelines are set then it reduces chances of delay and work can be completed on
time. managers should identify market situation and make plans accordingly so that goals can be
achieved. Managers should discuss with employees before making change because they can
suggest better ideas which is beneficial for growth of company. Don’t keep people in dark
because members should know about changes that are made by managers so that work can be
completed accordingly. to minimise impact of change, managers of Unilever company should
apply some strategies and make plans properly so that work can be completed within the given
time period.
Recommendations
Some recommendation which can be applied by managers of Unilever company so that
they can perform better than others and goals of organisation can be accomplished. Managers
can use Porter’s five forces for analysing external factors as it includes, competitive rivalry,

buying power of consumer and supplier, threat to substitute goods and new entrants. Democratic
leadership style should be applied because in this members are having right to share their views
and better plans can be made for growth of organisation. Before making change, market survey
should be done so that good plans and strategies can be made and it helps in achieving goals and
objectives of firm.
CONCLUSION
From the above discussion it can be concluded that, management plays a crucial role in
an organisation so that targets can be achieved. Change process of company has been described.
Internal and external analysis i.e., SWOT and PEST analysis has been described. Further,
evaluation of impact of change on organisation has been discussed. Impact of change on
leadership, individual and team behaviour has been described. Evaluation of how impact of
change has been minimised like, set timelines, share all the information with employees and
apply leadership style has been discussed.

REFERNCES
Books and Journals
Christodoulou, A. and Cullinane, K., 2019. Identifying the main opportunities and challenges
from the implementation of a port energy management system: A SWOT/PESTLE
analysis. Sustainability. 11(21). p.6046.
Dzwigol, H., and et.al., 2019. Formation of Strategic Change Management System at an
Enterprise. Academy of Strategic Management Journal, 18, pp.1-8.
Galli, B. J., 2018. Change management models: A comparative analysis and concerns. IEEE
Engineering Management Review. 46(3). pp.124-132.
GURL, E., 2017. SWOT analysis: A theoretical review.
Hassan, A. S. A., Nordin, N. and Azamin, A. A., 2021. The Influence of Organizational Culture
and the External and Internal Factors on Performance Measurement System Adoption:
A Conceptual Framework. Asian Journal of Interdisciplinary Research. 4(1). pp.101-
110.
Jayatilleke, S. and Lai, R., 2018. A systematic review of requirements change
management. Information and Software Technology. 93. pp.163-185.
Matthews, J., and et.al., 2018. Building information modelling in construction: insights from
collaboration and change management perspectives. Production planning &
control. 29(3). pp.202-216.
Morais, G. and Franco, M., 2019. Deciding factors in cooperation and trust between internal and
external auditors in organizations: An exploratory analysis. International Journal of
Auditing. 23(2). pp.263-278.
Perera, R., 2017. The PESTLE analysis. Nerdynaut.
Rosenbaum, D., More, E. and Steane, P., 2018. Planned organisational change management:
Forward to the past? An exploratory literature review. Journal of Organizational
Change Management.
Teoli, D., Sanvictores, T. and An, J., 2019. SWOT analysis.