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After viewing the Prezi presentation on the 50 Reasons Not to Change, I realize that I too have used those same reasons to avoid change on my workplace. Before enrolling on the master program I always thought, “Why fix something that isn’t broken? Changing it may just create new and more complicated problems”. For some reason back then I always thought that the business industry would stay relatively the same and the few changes that it would encounter would be technological changes or upgrades. After the first class on my master program, I realized that the environment around us is constantly changing and it will continue to change with or without us. Therefore, we must learn to deal with a constant changing environment and industry. Even if we are not on a leadership position at our respective workplaces, there will always continue to be a need to learn about change, resistance of change, how to lead and overcome the resistance of change, and so on. This ever-changing industry will continue to change so it is best to always ask questions, continue learning about the importance and benefits of change, and why change is happening.

As I said earlier, in the past I would show all the same exact signs as any other person resisting change. Now that I’m part of a leader position, it has been important for me to learn about the stages of change, how to overcome the resistance to change, the cycle of resistance to change, and how to lead change. With this new position, I have encountered many occasions where employees have resisted change or just don’t agree with the overall purpose of change. Since my enrollment on the master program my reaction to such situations has changed. Instead of forcing change unto others, I try to find out what is mainly making them uncomfortable about the idea of change, what are their fears or concerns about it, and how can I help them overcome such feelings. Other than having a simple conversation with employees on the reasons and explanation of why change is happening and it’s benefits, I try to find more written information about the subject. Whenever I do not have the answer to their questions, I commit myself to finding the right person who has the answer to the questions so employees’ fears are laid to rest. I find sometimes that some employees do not react as quickly as you would like them to when it comes to overcoming change. Some employees like to “sleep” on the idea and it’s benefits before fully committing to the change program, which actually raises the question: Do people overcome change at different times? Can some people overcome change on their own terms?

Honestly, I have found that those same exact steps that I have taken to help others overcome change have also helped me overcome the “change is bad” type of thinking. It has helped me change my personal opinions about change. In a way I follow the notion of “not judging a book by its cover” when it comes to change. In other words, instead of quickly jumping with everyone else on the bandwagon of “change is bad”, I give myself time to think through the idea, find more information, ask questions, weigh the benefits and disadvantages of the idea on my own, how it affects me, how it may affect the organization, and so on. I find all the information I can, answer all my own questions, ask questions, and the judge for myself if I agree with the proposed change program. If for some reason I continue to be skeptical about the change program, I seek help from a higher position.

On the video The tribes we Lead by Seth Godin, Godin argues that “the Internet has ended mass marketing and revived a human social unit from the distant past: Tribes. Founded on shared ideas and values, tribes give ordinary people the power to lead and make big change” (Godin, n.d.). In my opinion, I have to agree with Godin’s argument that change is driven by tribes. We all have different values, beliefs systems, ideas, customs, religion, passions, and so on. We are not all the same or like the same things at least. So, we tend to look for people who have the same interests as us or people who have the same passion as us about a cause and we begin to connect with them, sharing our ideas and opinions. The ideas continue to get as big and as strong with the more people who join and share the same beliefs that it turns into a movement. This movement or tribe is the one who begins the change process. One person alone cannot lead or force change. That person needs followers. Followers who believe in the same ideas, share the same passions about the idea, and are fully committed to those ideas. Only then can an idea or change be implemented successfully. In an organization’s perspective, the organization uses management to help spread the new vision and ideas. As the vision and ideas begin to grow stronger and more employees begin to believe on those ideas and visions, the movement to change begins. Employees begin to feel more committed to the ideas and therefore, the organization gains the full cooperation of employees to make the change successful and possible.

After watching the above-mentioned presentations, what I immediately take from this exercise to use in my workplace is to continue helping employees overcome the resistance to change by helping them understand the need to change, involving employees on the change process and program, the reasons behind the change, the benefits, answering questions, finding more information about the proposed change, motivating employees to join the change movement, and whenever possible find other committed employees to help others overcome their fears and resistance to change. By involving employees more and creating an atmosphere that is conducive to change, it ensures the organization of the success of the change program.

Reference:

Godin, S. (n.d.). Seth Godin: The tribes we lead | Video on TED.com. TED: Ideas worth

            spreading. Retrieved September 25, 2013, from

            http://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_on_the_tribes_we_lead.html

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During the investigation of the Columbia Shuttle accident, it was determined by the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) that NASA’s current culture played a contributing role on the accident. After careful investigation and assessment by the CAIB, the Diaz Team, and the BST, it was determined that one of categories that deeply attributed to the Columbia shuttle accident aside from mechanical failure was the leadership category and the values of the organization. NASA’s current core values are: Safety, People, Excellence, and Integrity.

In my opinion, it is important that the NASA administrator Sean O’Keefe addressed NASA employees about the findings of the CAIB, and BST assessments, and the proposed changes to the NASA culture. It’s important for employees to see leaders taking the situation as serious as it should be taken. It helps them understand the severity of seriousness of the situation, and it also helps to see management on that leadership role where they are taking control of the situation. This type of situation calls for a leader that can point to the new and improved direction of the organization, to set the example of the high valued culture of the organization and so on. Right now, this meeting is very critical for the success of the organization because in a way it helps employees reflect of where they are as an organization right now and where they will be when the implementation of changes have been completed. This presentation also helps set the tone of the change implementation as well as the new expectations in which all employees will be held accountable to.

Overall, it just shows: employees that management is not taking the situation lightly and that management is doing something about the situation, helps employees feel part of the company, that employee’s opinions are valued, management respects the employees of the company by involving them on the change process, there will be better communication between employees and management, that management will provide employees with the support needed, and there will be truthfulness on the severity of situations and/or issues. In my opinion, O’Keefe spoke about the NASA values to remind employees what the organization’s values are and their importance. It also helps ensure employees that those values will be and are directly linked to everything that goes on in the organization. For example, if employees do not have a clear understanding of what the NASA’s values are, they may not have an idea of how their actions may affect the culture of the organization. These values are also there as a guideline for employees to follow whenever they may seem unsure about which direction to go and it makes all employees responsible for the overall culture of the organization.

Reflecting on the overall presentation, O’Keefe did look believable about how serious management is taking the situation and about the proposed changes to the organization’s culture. O’Keefe had a serious, determined expression on his face and his tone reflected the same expression. Therefore, from watching the video I get the feeling that he is a very honest person, who takes his job and the life of others very serious. What I take from this exercise to immediately use in my organization is the importance of organizational values. Values are the drivers of employee behavior. When values are clearly stated and demonstrated by management, it creates a work atmosphere of success and employees will follow the same behavior. So, it is important to model the organizational values because it provides a form of communication between management and employees as well as a path to employee and organizational success.

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In the Harvard Business Review video of “How companies can make better decisions, faster” by Marcia Blenko, Blenko argues that decision effectiveness correlates positively with employee engagement and organizational performance (How Companies Can Make Better Decisions, Faster, 2010). In my personal opinion, I would have to agree with Blenko’s argument. An employee who feels engaged in the decision making process and feels empowered by the organization to make such decisions, would work harder, smarter, and be much more efficient and effective compared to employees outside of the decision making process. I think one of the reasons for this is that employees feel personally and professionally responsible for the decisions made and taken as well as the overall success of the organization. In other words, due to clearer understanding of the goals that need to be reached, employees have a stronger connection during the decision-making process and therefore, end up being much more committed to the organization by making effective decisions as a high performance team. Companies where employees are more engaged in the decision-making process make it easier to get things done more quickly and effectively.

There could be many impediments to good decision-making such as coming up with a bad idea due to misunderstood, faulty, or missing information. Another impediment is making decisions too fast. Sometimes, in very competitive markets it is important to stay ahead of the competition and therefore, quick decision-making can be an impediment of good decision-making if we make an irrational decision. Also, not involving the right people on the decision-making process can damage or hurt the organization’s ability to make good decisions. Lastly, there are times where we miss opportunities, are scared of the consequences of taking huge risks, or fear failure overall. So, we end up taking the safe route or making the safe decision even though it might result in loss of market share, position in the marketplace, and so on.

On the video, Blenko continues by suggesting that there are four elements of good decisions: quality, speed, yield, and effort. The first element is basically saying that decision makers should ask themselves: Did we make a good decision? Is this a high quality decision? Is this the best we can do? Blenko defines the second element speed as: Did we make a quick decision? Are we staying competitive by making quick decisions? How quickly can we make important decisions? The third element of good decision is yield. Blenko suggest that decision makers should ask themselves: To what extent do we execute decisions the way it was intended? Do we put enough pressure to provide good decisions? The last element Blenko suggests for good decision is effort. Are we putting all of our efforts and resources to this decision? Are we making the effort to make the correct decision? Even though Blenko does not mention to this but to my opinion, these four suggestions to good decisions is what makes up a high performance team. High performance teams have clear understanding of the goals that need to be reached and by the members implementing the right amount of effort needed to make decisions, the quality, yield, and speed of decision-making will be there. Therefore, other than calling a high performance team another form of the external-internal OD practitioner team, I don’t believe there is anything else missing from the four suggestions to good decision.

From this exercise, I take away the lesson of engaging employees more in order to gain decision effectiveness and organizational performance. The more employees feel involved in the decision-making the process, the more ownership, commitment, and responsibility they will take of the goals and the decisions that need to be made.

Reference:

How Companies Can Make Better Decisions, Faster - YouTube. (2010, October 13).

            YouTube. Retrieved September 8, 2013, from

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbxpg6D4Hk8&feature=player_embedded

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 According to Brown, corporate culture can be defined as an interdependent set of beliefs, values, ways of behaving, and tools for living that are so common in a community that they tend to perpetuate themselves, sometimes over long periods of time (Brown, 2011). Southwest Airlines has been a company that has always been devoted to its employees, customers, and the community it serves. The Southwest Airline culture is one that follows “The Golden Rule” of behavior, meaning that they treat each other the way they would like to be treated. This behavior is essential to the company and its culture. The company believes that by continuing to do the right thing by their employees and customers the company has grown to what it is today, a fun, loving, friendly, safe, cost-efficient, low-cost and successful passenger carrier (Southwest Citizenship, n.d.).

After watching A Day in the Life of the Culture Committee by Southwest Airlines video, I can say that the Southwest Culture Committee has done a great job in establishing the company’s cultural norms. Employees treat each other equally in this loving, friendly manner that in a way represents the way they feel about the company and in turn it’s contagious. The behavior and feeling about the company just continue to be passed on from employee to employee and to customers. From what I could tell from the video, I believe that the culture committee at Southwest Airlines is in charge of giving back to employees by showing them they can have fun at work, the company appreciates them and their efforts, and that the company is willing to go the extra mile for its employees. The committee just seems to work behind the scenes of the entire company by interacting with its employees on a daily basis and providing them the support they need to continue on with their work day, career, and so on.

            Relating the culture committee of Southwest Airlines to the existent culture committee of my company, I believe my company should implement a culture committee on a regional or district basis. It just feels like the company has a culture but it is not reflected or represented well sometimes. It seems like they don’t truly care about giving back to their employees, the employees who are making the money for them. So, it is hard sometimes to say great things about the company when an employee feels like just another number in the company payroll. I think every company can learn a great deal of how to treat employees and how to show employees that they care about them. Therefore, if I had to choose a viable mission for my company’s culture committee it would be to show employees how much we appreciate them and their hard work.

            There’s one main norm that I take away from this Southwest Airline culture committee exercise, it is to treat others, as you would like to be treated. Sometimes as humans, we get so wrapped up about what is happening to us and what is going on around us that we forget that those standing next to us are fighting along with us. They may even be going through the same thing as us and they deserve to feel treated fairly and equally as well feel appreciated from the company they work for. So even though for some people it gets annoying meeting someone that is very cheerful and happy, it’s best to spread that love, happiness, and friendliness to other employees. The moral of the company may even improve.

            As a result of this exercise, I have stumbled upon Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly’s few secrets to creating a winning corporate culture. These are:

1.     Make culture everyone’s responsibility, ask everyone to own it

2.     Create a culture committee. Southwest has two. Both Local Culture Committees and a Corporate Culture Committee are responsible for keeping the focus on culture.

3.     Make the key components of your culture a part of your leadership expectations. In other words, don’t promote people who don’t reflect the company culture

4.     Include a section on culture on your annual employee performance appraisals. What gets measured, gets done (Oswald, 2009).

Reference:

Brown, D. R. (2011). Changing the Culture. An experiential approach to organization

            development (8th ed., p. 63). Boston: Prentice Hall.

Oswald, D. (2009, November 29). Corporate Culture Done Right: Southwest Airlines |

            The Oswald Letter by Dan Oswald. Hr Hero Blogs. Retrieved September 1, 2013,

            from http://blogs.hrhero.com/oswaldletters/2009/11/29/corporate-culture-done-right-southwest-airlines/

Southwest Citizenship. (n.d.). Southwest Airlines | Book Flights, Airline Tickets, Airfare.

            Retrieved September 1, 2013, from http://www.southwest.com/html/southwest-difference/southwest-citizenship/