Introduction
For calm and painless changes, I would establish specific measures for the organization’s highest efficiency. I would use a model consisting of three steps: defrosting, changing, and freezing. In other words, it is crucial to create a friendly atmosphere before changing anything and make sure that the changes are gradually implemented (Vakola & Petrou, 2018). One of the main ways to create a calm atmosphere in the team is planning. Each person can participate in this process since they all can be affected by changes. The joint work will lead to building trust in the team (Sidle, 2003). Therefore, everyone will feel as an essential part of the system. Even if someone has to leave the organization, there will be no problems related to it.
Main body
However, conflicts can arise during the changes: they may be related to the struggle for the workplace or unsatisfactory conditions established in a new, combined organization. Therefore, as a manager, I should foresee such conflicts as a part of the defrosting stage in advance (Vivar, 2006). This will help to cope with the stress of employees, better understand them, and offer them the most favorable conditions for solving any problem. Thus, people will adapt to change more quickly and feel confident and calm, knowing that the employer respects them and cares for them.
One of the critical parts of the second stage, the change itself, is the merger of several different teams. Undoubtedly, the distribution of roles in the team and the acquaintance of people are hard parts of this process. The most appropriate strategic step would be to maximize people’s immersion in teamwork (Stouten et al., 2018). At first, such an active interaction can be complicated, but in the end, it will help to overcome this problematic stage quickly. In addition, my goal as a leader will be treating staff with a high level of trust and justice (Cropanzano et al., 2007). As a consequence, employees’ performance will increase, which will have a beneficial effect on the organization’s general condition.
Another big challenge is a new way of budget allocation. The strategy for working on this issue is to attract competent specialists and discuss critical details. A team of managers must also be involved in the process because they can understand where to put more resources and what can be neglected. We will need to arrange this discussion as early as possible to prepare the team for any difficulties.
Conclusion
The implementation of all points of the described strategy will allow leaders to have enough financial and human resources and a plan of work with them (Lewis, 2019). Eventually, this will help make the last stage, freezing, shorter because people will accept changes easier. Researchers state that “contemporary organizations often struggle to create meaningful, sustainable changes” (Stouten et al., 2018, p. 752). Thus, the described approach will lead to a quick and comfortable merger process and efficient work within the new organization.
References
Cropanzano, R., Bowen, D. E., & Gilliland, S. W. (2007). The management of organizational justice. Academy of Management Perspectives, 21(4), 34-48.
Lewis, L. (2019). Organizational change: Creating change through strategic communication. John Wiley & Sons.
Sidle, S. D. (2003). Best laid plans: Establishing fairness early can help smooth organizational change. Academy of Management Perspectives, 17(1), 127-128.
Stouten, J., Rousseau, D., & Cremer, D. (2018). Successful organizational change: Integrating the management practice and scholarly literatures. Academy of Management Annals, 12(2), 752-788.
Vakola, M., & Petrou, P. (2018). Organizational change: Psychological effects and strategies for coping. Routledge.
Vivar C. G. (2006). Putting conflict management into practice: A nursing case study. Journal of Nursing Management, 14(3), 201-206.