It appears that Roberta Jackson is trying to make improvements to the current information management practices. Roberta is an experienced first-level manager working in the headquarters site for the manufacturing and distribution divisions for PolyProd. Although she has acknowledged it will not be an easy task to make such improvements, she identifies that not making such improvements could impact PolyProd millions of dollars in future cost of direct expenses. It could also impact long-term market shares because they would decline in PolyProd products. The task/goal is to change the documentation processes and procedures because there is so much room for errors and manipulation of documents as it goes through many hands of people (Cummings & Worley, 2012). There are many obstacles when trying to improve the way some tasks are done, they include, but limited to, an organization’s resistance to change, culture and trust issues, and the willingness to learn. Further details will be provided within questions 2-4.
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Problem and Diagnosis: Very similar to many other organizations, creating change in the way a business handles its procedures is always difficult. Due to the size of an organization, the number of employees, the various beliefs and personalities, missions and visions, creating change can be very challenging and difficult. One of the main problems with PolyProd is that it is a big organization that rapidly grew and continues to for 11 years. Because of this rapid growth, PolyProd focuses on increased speed intricacy, and expense of their unique high-volume automated manufacturing processes that produces products. The system that is currently in place at PolyProd is struggling to keep up with the growth; with exponential increase in locations, sales, capital equipment’s, product lines and personnel support systems such as information and knowledge management system. Secondly, PolyProd has hired temporary and inexperienced personnel which also contribute to the problem. Hiring temporary and inexperienced employees makes it difficult for PolyProd to maintain their culture. According to the case study, over the last several years, there has been friction between the headquarters and the other locations, and the friction is getting worse. There is a disconnect between them both because the other locations feel that the headquarters have demanding attitudes and are also patronizing them. The headquarters on the other hand feel as those they dislike the individualism of those locations. One thing that is evident in the case study is that the headquarters have a strong resistance to change and synchronizes the other locations when it comes to single processes or technology. The case study also acknowledges that there were attempts to create change in the past but have been “doomed to failure” for the headquarters find such change to be too risky.
The key organizational problems at PolyProd are (1) the culture of an organization is difficult to change, because it is what molds the organization. PolyProd has a long history of being a conservative organization who resists change. (2) PolyProd has been rapidally growth in and it makes it hard for the organization to maintain some type of order and conformity. A hard and expensive task that can be done includes creating a new information management system that can update and conform itself and then maintaining that system. (3) The organization experiencing some type of difficulties in having a unified culture because of rapid hiring, insufficient mentoring for employees, promotions, massive outsourcing and also downsizing certain competencies. The organization extensively hires temporary employees which impacts the culture at PolyProd. Since PolyProd is growing rapidly, it is imperative to have a strong culture foundation. If nothing is done from the three listed, PolyProd can experience a great impact on revenue and profits which comes from the expansion of the manufacturing and distribution departments; and needs to be addressed in order for the organization to be successful.
Problems with Documentation: there is a lack of trust for the documentation system. Since there has been bad past experiences on outdated and incorrect information, there has been a lack of trust for the documentation system. The design department, employees and management at the headquarters are dissatisfied with the documentation system. Secondly, the high manufacturing system, that allows products to be scanned for quality is to high-controlled and could possibly deem products as “bad” causing a huge loss in quantity in products.
In order for me to convince Stewart Jones, it is important to present him with facts, proves, examples, on information that is accessible to employees. Assuming that Stewart Jones is a very busy man, it is a great idea to present the information in a manner that gets straight to the point and provides much detail that he can look after our meeting. Providing a small 3-5 page recommendation report and visual aid should be created during a 30 minute meeting. Within that recommendation report, it is important to create a successful strategy that provides positive outcomes to implement a general organization vision, mission, and/or strategy in creating a documentation system. Also addressed would be the differences within each department and how there is a huge lack of information sharing and communication among departments and locations within the organization. The first solution is implementing a system that can gain the approval and trust among the headquarters management. It is up to them to be willing enough to change their minds and be open to a new and improved program. In order for this to be achieved, awareness needs to be created (Cummings & Worley, 2012). Showing how the change is imperative to the success of the company will be an ongoing process and should be reflected in the actions of throughout all management at PolyProd. Failure to do so can destroy the organization slowly. When trying to implement change, leaders are needed to motivate their employees and show them the right way of doing things, and this cannot be done unless the leaders themselves truly believes and trust the change also.
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Next, PolyProd should create a stronger vision and conformity among the different departments within the organization. Because the organization is growing so rapidly, the lines of communication among employees is diminishing and lack of shared information and knowledge. Empowering managers in the shared vision and shared knowledge to higher needs can be done in hopes of bringing the departments together and having meetings and share the new information technologies. With PolyProd being a huge company, empowering managers and leaders to shift power down from the top of the organizational hierarchy is a great weigh in creating new leaders among their subordinates. The third solution is to implement and sustain a successful and competent hiring of new permanent employees while maintaining a standard for current employees (Cummings & Worley, 2012). The culture of PolyProd is changing because of the separation of a shared culture and beliefs. With the ongoing hire of temporary employees, the organization will continue to breed a culture where temporary employees that lack the skills, knowledge and abilities to connect to the shared goals of the organization. Management has to understand the importance of personal qualities for leading diverse employees. With PolyProd having so many locations worldwide, having a personal, long-term and long-range vision will recognize and support a diverse organizational community. Adaptation is a great way to bring many diverse backgrounds together. It is not forcing them together but slowly integrating them to work as one body. With the organization having interest in a unified culture and emphasizing it, PolyProd can develop a strong culture that encourages teamwork, collaboration, and trust.
There are many reasons for failure to change and adapt, according to authors Thomas Cummings and Christopher Worley. A primary solution is better change leadership. Leaders are role models for change and they can provide the motivation and communication that keeps the new change moving forward in the positive direction (Cummings & Worley, 2012). There are five important steps when implementing change, they include: motivating change, establish a vision, develop political support, manage the transition and sustainability within the change. My solution would be to focuses on leadership, the system, and the trust and willingness within upper management. It is a great ambition to overcome resistance to change. Leadership can help Roberta by implementing a vision for PolyProd that all employees can understand. Next, a strategy should have the ability to empower all managers within each location and departments to make sure that everyone is on the same track. Apart of implementing change can assure that PolyProd has established that there culture has shared vision and beliefs. Besides leadership, sharing knowledge and technology is key to a successful organizational change. The next step would entail leadership to manage the change transition from its current state to the new ideal/desired state. Implementing the information management system can help share networks among all locations including the headquarters and will create a positive and successful change at PolyProd. After implementing the change, the managers can closely monitor and also participate in the employee feedback surveys that will be distribute to employees at least three times a year, or the preference of leadership (Cummings & Worley, 2012). Data will be collected to view the progress of PolyProd. With the new system, and sharing a culture of knowledge and technology, PolyProd can maintain unified and can achieve goals and obtain profits from their products.
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