JPMorgan Chase
JPMorgan Chase Bank is one of the leading financial institutions in the United States. It has overseas branches in Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America, and Africa. With an employee base of 265,395 people and a total asset of USD 2.6 trillion, this firm is a dominant player in the world’s banking industry. Most of the top employees of this firm in the oversea branches are always selected from the headquarters in the United States. The management believes that this is the best way of retaining its identity.
Reasons Why Change is Important
JPMorgan Chase’s policy of hiring parent country nationals at the top managerial positions in the oversea branches should change. The strategy is not only costly but also sends a wrong message that the locals lack the capacity to head these branches. In fact, Kumar (2012) says that the locals are in a better position to head these branches because they understand the local market forces.
Organization’s Readiness for Change
The current top managers of this firm are ready for this change, especially having commissioned a research on the employees’ effectiveness. They have identified their weaknesses and they are now ready to embrace policies that will make their workforce more effective. The board of directors is more likely to resist this change. However, the chief executive manager should be ready to convince them otherwise.
Theories of Change Management
Change management theories such as Kurt Lewin’s Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze model and Transformational Leadership Theory may be instrumental as the banks try to introduce new systems. These two models will make the change process less disruptive even to the aging board of directors who suffer from the fear of the unknown. The employees will also feel respected and trusted.
Internal and External Forces of Change
To achieve success, the management should understand both the internal and external forces of change. Complains from the employees about promotion, demands from business owners, and the desire for higher profits are some of the internal forces (Reiß, 2012). Government policies, market forces and trends are the external forces that may drive change.
Change Management Plan
According to Ververken (2012), initiating change may be a challenge for many organizations. For JPMorgan Chase to ensure that the implementation process is as smooth as possible, it should involve all the stakeholders at all the stages. This will make them feel that they are part of the change. The process of change should also be gradual to avoid disruptions that always come with sudden changes.
Changes That Link to Vision
The vision of a firm defines the strategies it uses in the market. The management of this firm may need to restructure its vision and mission statements to reflect its new commitment towards comprehensive employees’ development in all its branches. This will convince everyone that the new policy of employing the host country nationals at the top positions is appropriate.
Strategies for Communicating Change
Effective communication may help reduce the impact of disruptive nature of change. All the stakeholders will be aware and feel part of the new systems that are introduced. Stakeholders’ forums such as annual general meetings and special meetings are very appropriate for passing such messages. Letters, phone calls, mass and social media may also be used to communicate with the target audience (Certo, 2010).
Action That Can Assist in the Sustaining of Change
The biggest challenge in change management is ensuring its sustainability. The proposed policies can only be sustainable if the stakeholders support it. To get this support, the management will need to ensure that these stakeholders are always engaged as much as possible in policy development. This can be achieved by maintaining effective communication within the firm.
Summary
A time has come when JPMorgan Chase has to embrace a new employee’ recruitment policy. The recent studies have proven that employing host county nationals as top managers is more beneficial than hiring parent country nationals. This firm can no longer ignore the need to hire locals in its foreign branches. To achieve greater success, it will need to communicate effectively with all the relevant stakeholders.
References
Certo, S. C. (2010). Supervision: Concepts and skill-building. New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
DuBrin, A. (2011). Leadership: Research findings, practice, and skills. South-Western: Cengage Learning.
Kumar, B. R. (2012). Mega mergers and acquisitions: Case studies from key industries. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Reiß, M. (2012). Change management: A balanced and blended approach. Norderstedt: Books on Demand.
Ververken, S. (2012). Did JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. v. Charter Communs. Operating, LLC (In re Charter Communs.), 419 B.R. 221 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. 2010) violate hte absolute priority rule in bankruptcy. New York: Cengage.