Change+in+the+Workplace+Environment

=__Introduction __=
 * //Change of Workplace Environment//**

This wiki examines the effects associated with the change of workplace environment. The wiki takes the view that the workplace environment is both the surrounding conditions in which people operate and the interactions at the workplace. The wiki outlines the changes of environment in the workplace using some examples. The wiki starts by defining what change of environment in the workplace means, and then will examine the types of change, their impact on people and the business. In conclusion, the wiki makes some suggestions on managing change from both the employee’s and management’s perspective, in recognition of the fact that change is unavoidable and is the only constant in both business and ordinary lives in today’s society and notes that change in the workplace has the potential for positive growth and progress as well as for failure. Companies/businesses may need to make changes in the workplace for a variety of reasons, such as: bring in new technology, need for more productive business processes, product changes, loss of suppliers or markets, or a decision to do business differently such as contracting out. Whatever the reason change of workplace environment is inevitable in today’s businesses and companies. [|The Workforce is Changing rapidily - How Will You Manage?] =__What exactly is “Change of the Environment in the Workplace”? __= Change of the environment in the workplace can be described as anything in a company or business that needs to differ for the improvement of the way the system currently functions. “Change has been variously defined as making a material difference in something compared to an earlier state, transforming or converting something, or simply becoming different.” (Mason, undated) It can be related to how the environment, structure, technology or the employees themselves that is altered. The change can be as minuscule as an updated piece of machinery that minimises work load, but needs all employees to learn the new way of operating the machinery or as major as restructuring of the organisation, which includes formulation of new policies and procedures, which will affect the whole organisational operations. These changes irrespective of the size can affect all employees in a positive and/or negative way. There are so many aspects that construct a business that any change can be seen as large or small depending on the impact it has on people within the company/business. “Jeffreys (1995) further considers the situation where a company alters its organisation by reducing or redeploying its workforce, or makes other substantial changes in the way it meets its goals” and argues that change is counted as “loss” to an employee and “brings about a real sense of death” (Finch, 2011), which could understandably be a reason to question the relevance of change within a business. =__Types of Change in the Workplace __= There are different types of change that can occur in the workplace environment that affect the business and its people. In this section, the three factors of change that will be discussed are: Managerial, Structural and Technological change, all of which affect the employees and the business performance one way or another.

Managerial
The management matrix of a company or business may have to change to bring about lean and productive teams for better performance and growth. This will mean that the business may have to lay off some people as well as recruit appropriately skilled workers. == Managerial changes may also mean changes in teams and how these are constructed, breaking working patterns and norms, as well as reporting structures that people have been used to. This change would bring about managerial matrix changes, which has to be adapted for the operations.

In this regard, the employees’ experience of the changes is based mostly on the individual’s attitudes, expectations, perceptions or behaviours toward the environment of the company/business. (Acas, 2011) explained that an employee’s experience and satisfaction in the workplace has an “important impact on their physical and mental health and wellbeing”. As employees, they are seen as a working team, and the environment that they are situated in affects “their performance, and ultimately this can affect the productivity and profitability of their employer.” (Acas, 2011) The expectations and perceptions of employees can also affect the productivity of the company/business as employees have unwritten sets of rules and standards which are applied as they perform their role in that company. Therefore changes to reporting lines and/or teams people work in will disrupt the flow as it impinges on these rules and standards, thus affecting employees’ productivity and morale within the workplace. In addition the management treatment of people has a bearing on how people function in the workplace. Failure by management to recognise or acknowledge the work people put into the company will undoubtedly affect productivity and work efficiency. It is normally noted that employers restrict personal matters from getting into the work space however people’s emotions cannot easily be separated from the individual hence there is need for managerial understanding and support. If companies require maximum efficiency, the managerial and team changes in the work environment needs to be addressed sensitively and with clarity for positive outcomes.

Structural
In addition to managerial changes, structural changes may also mean dealing with such factors of structure such as alterations in authority, job design and coordination mechanisms. (Root, undated) discussed in an article how structural change may be drafted from “internal or external factors”and that the ability to identify the signs of oncoming organisational change can help better prepare for the change that will be implemented. In addition,(Singh, 2009) explains that to, “most people, organisation structure means organisation chart, a pattern of boxes and lines reflecting a traditional, functional, hierarchical organisation” but it is more about how the people work in their surroundings, and the day to day comforts of work is what keeps the satisfaction of the employees high. Companies have presented varies numbers of structural changes over the years to maintain and possibly to gain comparative advantage against their competitors as innovative and new ideas are shaping the world. As a company, the structure needs to continuously grow and transform to keep their business efficient and productivity high. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The structural work environment also involves the physical geography as well as the immediate surroundings. This therefore may involve relocating offices, which may increase travel time, reduce other benefits such as parking spaces and even provide for less attractive work environment. Or it may simply mean rearranging the working space people have currently. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">More importantly too are such factors as quality of air, noise levels, lighting and actual work stations as well other perks such as break facilities. Changes in any of these aspects relating to work will affect people in the workplace positively or negatively depending on the actual change that has taken place. In this regard, the impact on the health of the employees is a critical factor when introducing changes in the work environment. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">In most companies the issue of health and safety has taken a key position with regards to workplace environment, and therefore employers have to take these into consideration when making changes. Such issues as sitting positions, personal space and supportive equipment for such conditions as back pain, repetitive injuries cannot be ignored.

Technological
<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Significant changes in the workplace are the result of new and advanced technology. For the past generation, technological inventions and improvements seem to be introduced every week. The trend is guaranteed to continue. Technology makes it possible to telecommute, work from virtual offices and communicate with businesses and individuals across the globe. Flexible work schedules are popular because so many duties and responsibilities can be accomplished from home or while the employee is traveling. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Technological change involves the introduction of and/or update of new machinery, or software in the workplace. This can vary from a new printer to brand new data software on the computers. Introducing new technology in the workplace is mostly designed to make work life easier and/or to ensure increase in efficiency and productivity. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The introduction of new technology has been known to cause the most anxiety and stress for employees as they are afraid of the unknown as well as are anxious about their ability to grasp new forms of doing things, which would affect their comfort zone with respect to routine within their environment. (Doogan, 2009) argues how innovative technology actually does not have a significant effect on employees when it comes to change and how it is grossly overstated, however, “in the workplace, technological change is, to a large extent, circumscribed by the pre-existing institutional structures and forms of work organisation.” It is safe to say that while the technological change itself does not affect the work environment as such, and as Charles Handy said when he spoke of a period of ‘discontinuous change’, also (Doogan, 2009) quoted, “new technology reinforces what already happens. It does not replace it”. However the employees see this differently as it evokes feelings of insecurity for them, which invariably has a bearing on their performance and productivity. [|Embracing Technology in the Changing Workplace]

__ Creating a possessive response to change in the workplace environment __
The business environment is ever changing; there is new technology available with social, economic and political pressure affecting the operation of organisations, meaning that change is something which has to happen to survive (Proctor, 2013). The Institute of Leadership & Management have identified five reasons why change is important, they say “change is an inevitable part of development, and it often bring hope and opportunity” (Institute of Leadership & Management, 2007:1). These reasons are:


 * Jobs will inevitably become tedious; changing the workplace structure will bring a new interest for the job which increases motivation and moral within a company.
 * Employees can feel stuck in their jobs with no way out, introducing change to the business will open up new prospects for them and increase their career development. By doing this a company will retain employees.
 * With experience come the idea that a job that has been done the same way makes you believe there is no other way of doing it, introducing change can add new angel on tasks and new ways in which to complete them which could lead to higher efficiency.
 * By introducing new technologies, systems and people will give the current employees the opportunity to learn new skills.
 * With team members that don’t feel valued change to the work place can give the opportunity for them to become more involved and empowered within their job roles.

From these we can see that change is a positive thing for a company. It allows them to move forward within the business and helps to create a motivated and enthusiastic work force. Businesses who identify and accept change are the ones which are more likely to survive and grow. Encouraging change in the workplace

When making changes within a business, managers often encounter resistance to this change it is important for these managers to use different steps and techniques to make these employees resisting become more acceptant of change (Schroeder-Saulnier, 2009).

Innovation and creativity in employees is a valuable asset for a business to have, but it is something that all managers must encourage in their employees. By doing this they are able to create change with in the business. The pace of change is measured by a business’s ability to adapt and change in new innovative ways and have these ideas implemented successfully. To encourage employees to be more creative and innovative managers must be open to new ideas. This means that they should welcome any suggestions from their teams that could help to improve the business and not to be dismissive of employees getting involved by finding ways to make their ideas work. Mangers must remember that change is inevitable and listening to new ideas will contribute to the survival of a company, (Institute of Leadership & Management, 2007).

Communication with employees is key when making changes to the workplace environment. Employers must listen to the reactions of their employees, take into consideration their concerns and respond to this by acknowledging their feedback and explain why the changes need to occur and will help the business. Allowing employees to get involved with the changes that are occurring will help to make sure they are done right with the changes to the workplace being agreeable to all. When the changes of the workplace happen new skills training may be required, this will be an essential part of the environment change ensuring that all can still work within it. Finally recognition and reward will be an essential technique for managers to adopt when adapting the work place; this will create less resistance to the changes. It is important to reward those who adopt the changes well and encourages those who are slower to, it is also important to note that if there are still employees resistant to the changes implemented to have negative consequences as a means of changing them (Crum, 2014).


 * 4 C’s of Accepting Change in the Workplace. **

To help support these points The HR Specialist has devised a theory to help employees accept change to the workplace by using a 4 C’s method to prompted change acceptance (The HR Specialist, 2008):

**Caring**, which involves listening and responding with people’s reactions which is claimed is as important as explain why change is important.

**Control,** explains how if suggestions are asked for by staff about the change they should be taken into consideration and not ignored. It is a waste of time and resource asking to opinions if they are going to be ignored.

**Choice,** change will have a better response if employees are given a choice to the changes happening, it will make them more comfortable and acceptant to these changes.

**Competence**, this point suggests that employees will be more acceptant to change if they have the skill require to successfully work with change. This means that appropriate training is essential to speed up the acceptance to change.

=__<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Benefits of Change in the Work Environment __= <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The business environment today demands that businesses remain on top of their game from product innovation to customer relationships there is very little room for error. The world expects instant delivery of high quality goods or services and the time between ordering and delivery has reduces significantly.Therefore companies and businesses need to continuously reorganise and rethink about their strategies as well as the efficiency of their operations. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">For both management and employees changes brings about rejuvenation of the work environment by promoting new ways of thinking and doing things, especially as old strategies become obsolete and do not deliver on expected results.The initiation of change within the workplace can open up potential for growth in directions people had not envisaged before, both for the business and for the employees. For employees this may bring about promotion as well as opportunities to learn new skills and gaining new knowledge. It provides opportunities for generating new ideas, allowing some people to demonstrate their star qualities. As such change makes the work environment more interesting and challenging in a positive way. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">For the business, c <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">hange in the environment means continuity by staying relevant to the market, retaining of one’s competitive and meeting customer need and expectations as they change with the coming of different technology and increase of suppliers in the market place.For example in <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">2012, there were three main markets shift that changed the face of business, that is mobile, social and cloud and before long everyone had a smart phone and with a strong and successful connectivity and it became the way businesses communicated with customers and employees. This major change also forced companies to make the necessary changes in their environment to remain relevant in the market place. Mobiles also revolutionalised how business is handled, and the 9-5 working concept disappeared for good. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">With changes in the work environment, the business has skilled work force who can think creatively and are motivated by results and management that encourages and recognise the employees’ contribution to the success of the business/company. As over the years demand is greatly heightened, it is essential for both employees and the management to keep up to date with required skills, products, the potential markets and generally the trends. What is known to be the current trend of a working environment can soon become a past strategy, which will potentially slow down productivity and profitability. Furthermore, environmental changes in the work place, for the better, means the company can keep and attract the best people as the environment is attractive and conducive to working. =__<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Disadvantages of Change in the Work Environment __= <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Not all change in the work place is good and this can produce bad results. The key disadvantage of change of workplace environment in today’s market is that it erod <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">es <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">loyalty and commitment to the organisation particularly if the employees view that the management does not care about them and that change is motivated by need to save money. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Change can also result in reduced productivity, due to low morale and feelings of insecurity associated with the unknown. Where employees have to be made redundant, there is always a risk of destroying the intellectual capacity as the more productive people leave the organisation early due to insecurity. In addition the loss to the organisation of the institutional memory is inevitable when such change has to take place and finally one maybe creating competition if those who leave as a result of the change go out and create rivalry companies or businesses.

=__<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Adaption to the Change __= <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Company owners and management have a responsibility to manage change in the workplace, if they are to minimize the damage to the business as well as the moral within the company. It is however important to note that with change there will be winners and losers both of whom have to be handled with care. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">For both management and employees the result of change depends largely on understanding the reasons for the change and the perceived benefits. Therefore it is necessary to prepare people for change and to give ample time for them to absorb the pending changes. Irrespective of the potential benefit of change, it is normally meant with fear and anxiety and the common reactions include <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">anger, denial, opposition and depression. How the change is received depends to a great extend on the personalities and attitudes of the people on the receiving end of the proposed change. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Therefore it is necessary for the change managers to <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">illustrate to employees the benefits of change so that they, hopefully, develop an excited and positive attitude. Point out how change brings with it new ideas and opportunities as well as the chance to shine as an important part of the company. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">In addition, the process of change needs to ensure that there is equity in the intended changes in the workplace and management must recognize appreciation and respect the contributions of employees. The change process will benefit from shifting the perception from a negative to a positive as this will see the staff morale improve and the change being internalized within the company. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">For employees often change is often frightening and conjures negative feelings and for most people <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> the thought of change can be a rather troublesome thought, and for employees it is a much harder reality. When an organisation decides to initiate change, the employees’ reasoning of resistance may be dependent on a broad spectrum. It can be one of intellectual dispute or a direct personal challenge for an individual. However, (Mason, undated)stated “resistance to change, as put forth by Kurt Lewin, affects managers and employees when systems undergo change”. The reasons for resisting the change can be multiple and these are compounded by personal circumstances as well as possible ‘group’ mentality in the work place. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">[|Overcoming Resistance to Change] = = = Organisational Culture (Additional Content - Tim Baker) =

Organisational Culture has already been touched upon; however there is much greater depth and relevance to the success of change in work place environments. Organisational culture is the attitude of those within a workplace. These attitudes are commonly established at a very early stage in the organisations history and are passed from one employee to another. More information on organisational culture its self can be found here.

Organisational culture is often considered by many to be negative, however it can also have positive implications when change is being managed effectively and in a way in which considers the employees attitudes.

There are several ways of measuring organisational culture all of which share similar dimensions, these dimensions are listed below. Mallinger highlights that these dimensions should be considered when looking at change in the workplace which may upset the organisation’s culture.


 * • Ability to Influence
 * • Comfort with Ambiguity
 * • Achievement Orientation
 * • Individualism versus Collectivism
 * • Egalitarianism
 * • Time Orientation
 * • Space Orientation (Mallinger, 20019)

By understanding each of these aspects of the organisations culture and subsequently formulating a plan which respects this points there is a much greater chance for organisational change to succeed.

=Change in the Workplace Example: ACAS and Johnson Matthey=

In 2001 Johnson Matthey worked closely with ACAS (The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service) to change how local pay levels of staff were managed in a newly acquired business division known formally as ICI Synetix (ACAS, N/A). ACAS were brought in specifically to handle negotiations with employees and to resolve at the same time many of the grievances that many employees had with the wider company. This is an example of a substantial change in the work place environment.

Being a chemical manufacturing and processing firm based in the UK there was a high demand for highly skilled staff – something which dictates the need for a competitive salary. In order to retain offering competitive salaries ACAS studied what were considered to be competitive rates, but equally important what effect change within the working environment may have. ACAS undertook this project by arranging workshops primarily for managers to assist the change in the workplace, and to further explain how the bargaining process would work before the next financial review of all company salaries.

The program was deemed to be ongoing, and once the initial negations had taken place there were subsequent reviews with ACAS, Unions and Johnson Matthey to ensure that all obligations for the change were being fulfilled and to implement any further changes that were required.

The project was considered to be a success, with the majority of staff being satisfied with how it had been handled. This is contributed to the continued success of Johnson Matthey today.

//‘When you look at what the alternatives are, when we were looking for Acas or anybody else, you really struggle because what you’re talking about is quite conceptual. It’s new. And not enough people out there are able to deliver what we were looking for. And I think (with) Acas, we were very fortunate that they were able to deliver.’//

(End of additional content)

=__<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Conclusion __= <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Some reasons include; ability (perceived or real) to learn new skills, effects on personal or family time, loss of income and social status and job security.Therefore for employees to adapt to change there is need for clarity about the objectives of the change and how it will benefit them. Employees need to accept that change happens and continuation of denial only complicates things. They need to stay alert and follow through the processes. Both management and employees need to maintain open communication channels, <span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> seeking more details and being proactive and fully utilize existing skills as well as acquire the required new skills and knowledge, recognizing strengths and making use of these. <span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">During the change process there is need to remain a flexible and optimistic with a positive attitude. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Some changes in the workplace environment stir up curiosity and excitement, depending on the interests of the different people in the work place, for example introduction of a cool new piece of technology or the sudden departure of an unpopular manager. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">However other changes can seem revolutionary, like a reorganization or merger/ acquisition making the market feel like a jungle, while others are just somewhere in the middle of a crisis or an irritation, like losing a major customer or moving desks in the office. The change maybe internally or externally motivated.Whatever it is, change in the workplace environment can have either or both negative and positive effects to the business and its employees. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Effective managers and company owners recognize that employees have a better chance of embracing workplace change when they can see the benefits behind the changes for themselves and their colleagues.Therefore managing workplace environment change requires a firm understanding from managers and owners, involvement of employees and an appreciation of the complexities. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The employees on the other hand need to get on board and be involved with the process as early as possible, from planning stages. Employees should seek clarity and information. There is need also to be flexible and take a long term view with respect to benefits of the change visa-vie those of staying the same. Employees need to realise that change is usually non-negotiable and that resisting it will only make it more difficult and painful for everyone involved. Embracing the change enables one to influence the outcomes, remembering the saying "the more things change, the more they stay the same" and be prepared for your workplace to sometimes come full circle, change is inevitable and necessary to envolve in all spheres of life. [|What Does the Workplace of the Future Look Like? From Future Workplace]

=References=

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Acas (2011) ‘The future of workplace relations – An Acas view’ Acas Policy Discussion Papers. [Discussion List]. Available from: http://www.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/n/8/The_Future_of_Workplace_Relations_-_An_Acas_view.pdf .18 April 2013 [Accessed 12 March 2014).

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Doogan, K., (2009). //<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">New Capitalism. // [e-book] Polity Press. Available from: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=AcS8i8qXSx8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=Facilities+change+management&hl=en&sa=X&ei=I0MsU-TrBcqihgf-voCYBg&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Facilities%20change%20management&f=false [Accessed 10 March 2014].

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Finch, E., (2011). //<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Facilities Change Management. // [e-book] John Wiley and Sons. Available from: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=AcS8i8qXSx8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=Facilities+change+management&hl=en&sa=X&ei=I0MsU-TrBcqihgf-voCYBg&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Facilities%20change%20management&f=false [Accessed 17 March 2014].

<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Institute of Leadership & Management, (2007). //Understanding Change in the Workplace Super Series//. 5th ed. Burlinton: Routledge. 1.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Mason, (undated) Reference for Business: Managing Change [Online] Available from: http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Log-Mar/Managing-Change.html [Accessed 19 March 2014].

<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Proctor, T. (2013). //Creative Problem Solving for Managers, 4e: Developing Skills for Decision Making and Innovation//. 5th ed. Oxon: Routledge.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Root, G (undated) Small Business: What Causes Structural Change within an Organisation? [Online] Available from: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/causes-structural-change-within-organization-436.html [Accessed 10 March 2014].

<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Schroeder-Saulnier, D. (2009). // Organisational effectivness. // Available: http://www.right.com/capabilities/organizational-effectiveness/preparing-your-workforce-for-change-a-strategy-for-success.pdf. Last accessed 15th May 2014.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Singh, K (2009) Organisation Change and Development. [e-book] Excel Books India. Available from: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=rQLjYrAcKWkC&pg=PA152&dq=most+people,+organisation+structure+means+organisation+chart,+a+pattern+of+boxes+and+lines+reflecting+a+traditional,+functional,+hierarchical+organisation&hl=en&sa=X&ei=80EsU-PZKM2M7Aah4IDwAQ&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=most%20people%2C%20organisation%20structure%20means%20organisation%20chart%2C%20a%20pattern%20of%20boxes%20and%20lines%20reflecting%20a%20traditional%2C%20functional%2C%20hierarchical%20organisation&f=false [Accessed 13 March 2014].

<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The HR Specialist. (2008). //How to help employees accept change in the workplace: It’s all about the 4 C’s.// Available: http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/22547/how-to-help-employees-accept-change-in-the-workplace-its-all-about-the-4-cs. Last accessed 15th May 2014.

In the main wiki article three main topics are covered, Managerial, Structural and Technological change. Burnes (Burnes, 1996) highlights that in the harsher more authoritarian age of management organisational and technological change were seen as weapons that could be used to control a workplace environment. “Despite the increasing opposition of ‘organised’ labour, the work practices associated with the factory system gradually permeated every aspect of industrial and commercial life ... by the end of the nineteenth century; there was no unified or accepted approach that managers could apply to organisations in their entirety” meaning that the management system of a business was needed to be changed significantly in order to progress to what is available and commonplace today. The management of a business today is often referred to as a more “transformational” (Easgly et al., 2003) style, where this leadership style has been conceptualised as contributing to the success of organisations since management change was recognised as a key factor in providing a stable and productive workplace environment in which change can happen successfully. “One of the main criticisms of the Classical approach as a whole is that its view of people is negative” (Easgly et al., 2003) due to its constant drive to reduce the employees of an organisational to merely workers that carry out the same job repeatedly without need for job diversification, meaning that the level of change management needed in an organisation of this type would be very low. Current managers are thought to work within a ‘Human Relations’ approach, in which managing the employees through times of change takes on more prevalence in recognising that employees are humans and not just ‘cogs’ as the Classical approach would have managers believe.

Burnes (1996) goes on to point out how bureaucracy has changed with the development of the ‘Human Relations’ approach and how change is managed. “Rapid and unexpected change – bureaucracy’s strength lies in its ability to manage efficiently the routine and predictable; however, its pre-programmed rules and inflexibility make it unsuitable for the rapidly changing modern world.

Growth in size – as organisations become larger, then bureaucratic structures become more complex and unwieldy, and less efficient. Increasing diversity – rapid growth, quick change and an increase in specialisation create the need for people with diverse and highly specialised skills; these specialists cannot easily or effectively be fitted within the standardised, pyramid structure of bureaucratic organisations.

Change in managerial behaviour – the increasing adoption of the human relations approach by managers challenges the simplistic view of human nature put forward by the classical school, which underpins bureaucracy. If coercion and threats administered in a depersonalised, mechanistic fashion are counter-productive as a way of controlling people in organisations, then the case for bureaucracy is severely diminished.”

The Human Relations approach goes on to be developed that job roles can be not only developed for the benefit of humans but for the benefit of the organisation in which they work, this would increase job satisfaction and productivity. Along with this the increase in ease of which people can be managed through times of change are increased because the employees are happier to believe that their managers are working for their benefit, thus if a change is needed to be implemented that at first appears to the employees as non-beneficial to them the humans relation approach shows that having jobs designed to allow for employee engagement is more likely to allow for successful change. At the centre of successful workplace change is a leader, leaders are at the centre of the three dimensions of a successful change as (Cameron & Green, 2004) Cameron & Green (2004) highlight these are as follows:

“Outcomes: developing and delivering clear outcomes; Interests: mobilising influence, authority and power; Emotions: enabling people and culture to adapt.

Leaders are at the centre of all three. They shape, direct and juggle them. One dimension may seem central at any time: for example, developing a strategy. However, leadership is about ensuring that the other dimensions are also kept in view.”

If a manager is unaware that change is happening they are not thought to be a good leader, this is because a leader is not always the manager of the employees. A leader in a workplace change environment could be one of the employees themselves, for example in an office if all employees are unsettled with the move to a new office space direction from the manager could aggravate the situation causing the employees to be distrusting of their manager, however if an employee took the lead in the change situation and reassured the other employees it is more likely that the employees will feel comfortable as the direction has come from one of them and not from the manager, resulting in a more positive change experience.

The central issue of managing change is to read the environment in and around the change process, this will start from the outset of change, and should involve the employees of the organisation in the change process, from this the employees will feel as if they are a part of the change decisions and can, if needed, stop a change that will in fact result in severely negative implications on the employees themselves. Keeping employees informed throughout the process will allow for a leader to emerge, who will then take on a role that a manager can feed into in order to gain the trust of the other employees, if done successfully the change will happen more easily.

The main wiki comments on how technology has changed the workplace, for example the allowance of teleworking which will now be looked at in terms of managing a teleworking, virtual environment. Illegems and Verbeke (2004) highlight that the most important aspect as to why an employee will take the option to telework is that of job satisfaction. “In many cases, negative effects can be expected unless employees are confident that telework will be embedded in appropriate human resources management (HRM) practices” (Illegems & Verbeke, 2004). Again the Human Relations approach can be applied to managing teleworkers “If telework can help attract, and retain employees whose knowledge and skills are valuable or rare, its impact on superior performance can be enourmous” (Illegems & Verbeke, 2004) because of the workplace environment changing for the employee, ie to their home environment rather than the workplace building. The human relations approach sets to measure the long term benefits to the organisation, for example, staff turnover rates, increased productivity and performance, whereas the classic view would look to measure the direct costs and immediate effect on the bottom line costs. This change in management presents a new perspective on how technological change, ie teleworkers, can be that the measured difference in managers that allow their workers to adopt technology is highly beneficial in comparison to managers that do not allow technology to be adopted, even if it is for the overall good.

Implementing telework can provide benefits for managers, including more flexibility, a reduction in job related stress and an increase in autonomy as employees are managing their own time at home. On the other hand “Adoption may negatively affect promotion possibilities, if it is perceived as creating a ‘new class’ of workers, ‘out of sight, and out of mind’” (Illegems & Verbeke, 2004) because these workers are away from the work environment. Any changes that are due to take place when workers are teleworking can be difficult to manage due to the employees not being present in the work environment where the change will be taking place, they may return to the workplace and the change will have happened, hopefully with their prior knowledge via email / telephone communications from their manager, however the workplace will still be different, this could be a big challenge in managing the workplace environment through change. Technology has been highlighted as a key area to the success of managing teleworkers, and the job satisfaction teleworkers get, for example, if the technology within the organisation is not reliable and the teleworkers cannot interact with their colleagues within the workplace they will suffer from a lack of job satisfaction.

Managing Change in the workplace environment using the three key points highlighted above; Managerial, Structural and Technological, rely on the need for clear and constant access to communication. Without this communication channel between the manager, leader and employees managing change in an organisation will be increasingly more difficult and thus less successful. In order to be successful in managing a workplace environment change all three aforementioned parties must have knowledge and understanding of the three key aspects. From this I think it would be safe to identify that knowledge of technological change must be key as there is a demand for workplaces to keep up to date with the latest technologies that will allow for their employees to work effectively and efficiently, without this technology an employee is at risk of moving to a competitor company or setting up their own rival business.

Additional References

=Bibliography=

Burnes, B., 1996. //Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational Dynamics//. 2nd ed. Prentice Hall.

Cameron, E. & Green, M., 2004. //Making Sense of Change Management: A Complete GUide to Models, Tools & Techniquies of Organisations Change//. London: Kogan Page Publishers.

Easgly, A., Johannesen-Schmidt, M. & Engen, M., 2003. Transformational, Transactional, and Laissez-Fair Leadership Styles A Meta-Analysis COmparing Women and Men. //Psychological Bulletin//, 129(4), pp.569-91.

Illegems, V. & Verbeke, A., 2004. Telework: What does it means for management? //Long Range Planning//, 37, pp.319-34.

=**Case Study: Gamification – New Management Fad or Revolutionary Tool for Structural Change?**=

__What is Gamification?__
“Gamification” is a relatively new phenomenon, but draws on traditional concepts. It was developed over the past few decades as a way of improving employee engagement and motivation by incorporating videogame logic and psychology into real world environments – its application has been seem widely, but predominantly in marketing, education, and in the corporate world (Dewey, 2013). For organisations gamification that utilise this method, there will be forms of structural or technological change taking place. For people who don’t play video games, much of what gamers do can seem like hard work.

Take World of Warcraft for instance, a game in which players spend hours upon hours undergoing repetitive tasks in order to achieve goals, or organise events with dozens of other people in order to take collection action on a quest. Gamification works on the principle that by adding a narrative and game like environment around otherwise normal tasks, employees, students or consumers will be influenced positively and have increased skill levels and engagement.



__In what instances can it be used?__
The concept of gamification has been applied in many different areas – and the type of structural change it may cause within a learning institution or business will vary. The above section mentioning structural as a type of change in the workplace explains that this may include changes in job design and is concerned with how people work in their surroundings as well as what keeps satisfaction high. At its most basic level gamification can be the introduction of competition in a workplace environment such as Microsoft’s introduction of leaderboards – where employees contended to find the the highest number of translation mistakes in its windows operating system. If explained using Vroom’s Expectancy Theory (1964) it could be argued that there has been a change in the valence of the reward due to the change in expected satisfaction. Whilst the satisfaction derived from achieving high results may now be more so placed on peer recognition, for example.

Other applications of gamification include; Hilton Garden Inn who uses ‘ultimate team play’ – a 3D PlayStation hospitality simulation to teach customer service and U.S. Department of Justice’s ‘Incident Commander’ where emergency responders practice drills for directing relief efforts (Steinberg, 2012).

Gamification changes the structure of business activities but this is dependent on application: In the business world primary applications of gamification have so far been in learning and development practices, algorithm refinement and in some repetitive tasks. In reality, the application of gamification in a learning and development programme may entail the relocation of training schemes to the home of the employee – wherein they would need to reach a certain level or refine their skills. The development of games can cost from $5,000-$250,000 and upwards, but if committed to as part of a strategic plan may reduce costs in the long run (Ballanc and Chanin, 2013).

__What are the Benefits?__
Like its application, the benefits of gamification vary. However gamification offers a paradigm in which people might pay to perform repetitive tasks, rather than the other way around. If the compulsion that motivates people to play video games can be harnessed for businesses and thus the good of society then positive outcomes could be bountiful ( Taskforce on Corporate Social Performance, 1980).

Similarly stated in the above discussion the benefits of this kind of change may provide for; a more innovative and adaptable workforce, more opportunity for learning, development, promotion and resource management skills for employees, and cost savings if implemented correctly.

A study by Xanthopoulou and Papagiannidis (2012) examined the spill-over effects of active learning and transformational leadership in a one month long study of 79 MMORPG players (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games). The results “ supported the direct spill-over of transformational leadership, as well as the boosting effect of high game performance in this spill-over effect” ( Xanthopoulou and Papagiannidis, 2012).

__What are the Criticisms?__
Criticisms of the benefits of gamification seem to crop up around every corner. Illustrated well in a blog by The Economist entitled ‘More than just a game’, critics point out that the redesigning of menial jobs can be risky as it may appear patronising to employees (2012). Another criticisms include the reiteration that workers also work for a reward, and that they will react suspiciously to an attempt at change the reward scheme when it is costing the company little. In FTW, authors Kevin Werback and Dan Hunter cite psychological experiments what argue the best motivators for reward are intrinsic – completing the task for the satisfaction of doing so – and that adornments to this mission are often shrugged off when they loose their novelty (2012).

Many management professionals point out that the process of gamification is simply reusing more traditional practices for increasing motivation and engagement such as aforementioned leader boards – a common feature of sales teams’ performance management.

Other criticisms come from game designers. Some argue whilst peripheral features of games have been focused on, the more intrinsic elements are of more importance, such as the hugely immersive potential of video games. More cynical critics contend that gamification exists as a ploy to exploit innate psychological behaviour for corporate gain (The Economist, 2012).

__Conclusion__
Whether the concept of gamification can be used for long term organisational enhancement is open to debate, but innovative companies willing to trial methods such as this will surely reap the rewards of a willingness to be flexible and adapt organisational structure.

Entirely changing the job design of employees will likely backfire in some way, through demotivation due to feelings of patronisation or through an inability to change. If considering whether this type of structural change could lead to long term job enrichment and thus increased performance, organisations will need to contextualise the implementation of gamification and considering outcomes at business, employee and consumer level. Businesses will need to evaluate the properties of their employees in relation to job design in order to assess viability. They will also need to consider the type of game-systems required in relation to available funds for experimental projects.

It is this author’s opinion that gamification has the potential to help organisations, or more specifically employees develop themselves through the learning and trailing of new skills in a safe low-risk environment. Educational and Learning and Development applications of gamification seem to hold the greatest potential for expansion, and may – in the correct institution, for the correct people and jobs – be one of the more exceptional new trends in management.