Organizational change practices aim at making sure that there are improvement and development to enhance the level of responsiveness and effectiveness to the external changes through better management of people, structures, competence, systems, and competence. The increase in the level of dynamic environment forces organizations to continuously be confronted with the desire to implement changes in their culture, strategy, process, and structure and thus need to embrace to change. More specifically, change has become critical in organizations because it helps in adopting new technology which eventually helps in increasing the level of productivity and service.
Change has also become vital in helping the businesses satisfy the needs of the customers. It is worth noting that the needs of customers keep changing and growing thus creating the demand for new services of products. Therefore, change opens up the opportunity for businesses to meet the needs of the customers. Finally, change is vital to organizations because it provides growth opportunities regarding learning new skills and also exploring new opportunities which would eventually benefit the business by increasing the level of commitment and new ideas.
However, change can only be successful if it is done correctly. In many cases, there are conflicts between the expectations of the employees and that of the employer which then results in conflicts that eventually has negative effects on the change process.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is considered to be a business model for self-regulation which helps companies around the world to be socially accountable, not only to itself but, also to its stakeholders and the general public.
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Practicing corporate citizenship help companies in becoming conscious of the kind of impact that their activities have on every aspect of the society including social environmental, and economic. The process aim at making sure that companies operate in ways that improve the environment and society rather than having a negative effect on it. The importance of CSR is evident from a study that was done by Cone Communications in 2017 which indicated that more than 60% of all Americans are hopeful that businesses will implement environmental and social changes in the absence of regulations by the government. 87% of the respondents also indicated that they would purchase a product simply because the company is in support of an issue that they care about. It further indicated that 76% of the respondents would refuse to support a company if they determine that it supports issues that are in contrary to their beliefs (Cone, 2019). Therefore, the issue in the organization that is under study is trying to change the corporate policy to benefit the environment. \nThe purpose of the research
Even though CSR activities have become acceptable in business settings, it is also a challenge to meet the efforts of the business towards maintaining the economic value of the business plus the stakeholders’ value. There are paradoxes and conflicts of the value system that is between the organization and change agents. Therefore, the research aims at identifying the potential conflicts.
The main question that the research is trying to answer is the possible conflicts and paradoxes of the value system which is between the change agents and the organization. The question is vital in trying to identify factors that hinder the success of a change process to identify possible solutions that would ensure that change is successful.
Corporate social responsibilities include some activities that can be undertaken by the company. However, the research focuses on the need to change the corporate policy so that it can be beneficial to the environment.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR)- a business approach that results in sustainable development through the process of delivering social, environmental, and economic benefits for all stakeholders.
Corporate policy- these are guidelines and rules which are adopted or formulated by the business with the aim of reaching its long-term goals. It is often published either in a booklet or any other form that can be widely accessible (Malik, 2011).
Organizational background
Long before its initial public offering (IPO) that was done in 1992, Starbucks was well known for its keenness to corporate social responsibility and also its high commitment to community welfare and sustainability. The company has been able to achieve major CSR milestones that include reaching the 99% target of getting ethically sourced coffee, contribution many of its hours to community service, being able to develop a global network of farmers, developing a high-level college program for its employees, and encouraging green building through its various stores (Starbucks, 2019). However, with the increasing concern of environmental issues, the company needs to change its corporate policy also to consider the environment impact of its cups in addition to engage its employees in improving their environmental leadership.
Because I do not have experience in this organization, the assumption would be that I am the CSR manager in the company. The hypothetical role is for the sake of analyzing the company under research.\nPersonal values, expectations, beliefs, and assumptions
Values are the guiding principles in my leadership which often occurs within a context of values. My beliefs and values provide a vital approach to leadership and problem-solving activities (Tsai, 2011). These values and beliefs include;
Maintaining respect- this is regarding having self-respect and also respecting other people despite their differences.
Making a difference- The next value is making a difference as I believe in putting the personal effort that can result in a positive impact on individuals and the organization.
Maintaining integrity- I also believe in maintaining integrity which can be demonstrated through trustworthiness, fulfilling expectations, moral courage, and ethical strength.
Courage- This is also another value which I have which is demonstrated by the fact that I possess the strength to act with the intention of achieving the common good. I also act boldly to ensure that there is justice.
Service- I have a commitment that goes beyond my self-interest because I demonstrate personal humility that is for the sake of a greater cause.
Humility which is demonstrated through the sense of dignity and humbles, also to being aware of my limitation. \nAssumptions
My main assumption is that the expectations of all the stakeholders need to be fulfilled. Shareholders are the most important stakeholders in a company because they are the owners of the company.
Expectation: The main things that I intend to bring in my leadership role are inclusivity regarding considering the needs and voices of all the stakeholders including those of the subordinates.
Coffeehouses come in different forms but, they are traditionally regarded as establishments that sell tea, coffee, and another form of hot beverages that have already been prepared. The company is in the global coffeehouse industry which is growing at a fast rate to the extent that companies in this industry can compete with giants that are in the wider restaurant industry. In this case, the company under research is one of the largest coffeehouse chains around the world and has a well-known brand (Statista, 2019). The industry is large and continues to grow because statistics in the United States alone indicates that 70% of the consumers consume at least two cups of coffee each day.
Sustainability is considered to be the ability of a product or process to be maintained at a specific rate of the level. The industry views sustainability regarding focusing on three main pillars. The first pillar is economic sustainability which is the most obvious pillar because businesses need to make profits so that they can survive in the future. However, when pursuing initiatives that involve environmental and social changes can sometimes have a negative effect on economic sustainability. However, the industry often advice companies not to pursue profits at the expense of the other pillars which include social sustainability and environmental sustainability. This is line with my assumption that the needs of all the stakeholders need to be maintained. However, it conflicts with my belief that the needs of the shareholders need to be highly considered because shareholders are mainly interested in high profits while the industry believes that concentration should not be put on profits to the expense of social and environmental sustainability.
The next pillar is environmental sustainability which is the ability to minimize or eliminate the level of a footprint in the business environment. It is key in this industry so that coffee that is enjoyed by the generation in the future is as good as or even better than the quality of coffee that people drink now. There is enough evidence available that shows that climate change is real and has a real impact on businesses. Therefore, the industry aims at doing what it can to minimize the impact on the continued production and quality of the coffee. The view on sustainability is in line with my values, more specifically, it is in line the value of making a difference as I believe in putting the personal effort that can result in positive impact on individuals and the organization.
The last pillar is social sustainability which is the ability to maintain liveable and healthy communities (Carr, 2018). The industry believes that trying to achieve needs thought of the immediate social environment and the broader impact of the business on the overall society. It is done by having a balance between providing a positive café culture in the immediate environment through the provision of quality coffee to customers and the coffee to the whole community through the process of making sure there is a fair trade. It is in line with my values more specifically making a difference as I believe in putting the personal effort that can result in positive impact on individuals and the organization which is also evident in the industry as it also wants to make changes in the community. It is also in line with the value of maintaining integrity as I also believe in maintaining integrity which can be demonstrated through trustworthiness, fulfilling expectations, moral courage, and ethical strength. It is evident from the fact that the industry also advocates for integrity through fair trading.
Leadership strategies include the methods that are used in leading the subordinates so that they can meet the objectives of the company.
The best leadership model in this company is the transactional model which is considered to be one of the best and most commonly used by leaders around the world (Aarons, 2006). In this model, the leader is expected to assign specific tasks to the employees so that they perform. If they deliver according to the expectations, then they are rewarded (Aga, 2016). However, in cases where they do not deliver as per the expectations then they are punished. In this model team members and managers make specific goals that they agree to follow so that they can achieve the expected results.
The issue that has been identified in this case study is that there are paradoxes and conflicts of the value system that is between the organization and change agents. The issue has the possible risk of hindering the success of a change process, and thus it is vital to identify possible solutions that would ensure that change is successful. The success will depend on the implementation of transactional leadership which includes an increase in the level of managerial power. The process means that managers would review the results of the change initiative, train them and reward them in cases where the desired goals are met. In this case, the desired goal is for the employees to implement the policy. Rewards can be anything including bonuses which would act as an encouragement to the employees to perform better (Sarros, J., & Santora, J, 2001). The option is considered to be the most effective so far and includes a two-way communication process. This choice of model has some link with my positionality. The link is evident from the fact that my values are based on meeting the set goals. For example, maintaining integrity is all about making sure that the expectations are fulfilled which is what the leadership model encourages. Also, the leadership model also encourages employees to be motivated so that they can work with courage to meet the common good in addition to acting with humility for the sake of achieving the greater good.
The best strategy for implementing change in the company which involves improving the CSR policy by including the environmental policy. It is especially vital as the company needs to change its corporate policy to also consider the environment impact of its cups, in addition, to engaging its employees in improving their environmental leadership, is by taking the concerted action. The strategy is in line with the leadership model because it proposes a delegation of the change where the leader expects the employees to implement the change. It helps in making sure that the change has been applied throughout the organization in terms of making sure that all the employees are active in becoming environmental leaders. To ensure that change is effective, incentives would be offered to them with the assumption that they would be tempted to follow their self-interest. Offering incentives would help them accept and engage with the changes. It is especially vital because some employees may fear that changing the cups to those that are environmental friendly are likely to be expensive which may, in turn, affect their rewards. Employee rewards and recognition programs are often targeted towards certain actions and values. Incentives would help in reinforcing the behaviors of the employees which then means that there would be lower supervision as the change process is implemented.
The proposed change in the company includes a policy that would deal with the environmental impact of the cups which are used to serve coffee to a customer. The policy that is being proposed also needs to include improving the employees’ environmental leadership. From the analysis above, it is evident that there is likely to be some resistance from the employees who fear that the changes would lower their rewards. However, they are expected to be rewarded if they prove to be dedicated to the change process. The shareholders are less likely to benefit from this change. It is worth noting that dealing with the environmental impact of the cup means changing the material that is used to make the cups a more environmental friendly material. It also means that the company would need to take the initiative of disposing of its cups which might mean taking the responsibility of picking the cups from where the customers have disposed them and then dispose of them again in a more environment friendly manner. These actions mean an increase in the amount of expenses to the company which means that shareholders would likely get lower returns for their investments. Therefore, there is the risk of resistance from this group which can hinder a successful sustainable outcome.
They are dealing with the resistance to change means dealing with self-interests among the stakeholders including my self-interest. In this case, my self-interest is in line with that of the shareholders because I believe that the expectations of all the stakeholders need to be fulfilled. Shareholders are the most important stakeholders in a company because they are the owners of the company. Based on the change approaches that were developed by Leonard Schlesinger and John Kotter, the best way of dealing with resistance to change to ensure that there are sustainable outcomes that include communication and education. Informing all the stakeholders beforehand ensures that they get involved in the change process and also helps in avoiding the risk of them getting inaccurate data. Good communication involves training and other forms of education so that they can have a better understanding of the need to change which in this case is to improve the company’s CSR initiative.
The next strategy on dealing with resistance to change is involvement and negotiation. In this case, the shareholders need to be involved in the process so that they can give their thoughts on the process Because both the employees and the shareholders fear that they are likely to lose their rewards as a result of the change process, they need to be kept motivated. Employees have already been considered because they are provided with the incentive regarding rewards in cases where they move in the right direction. The same needs to apply for the shareholders where they need to be provided with the opportunity to negotiate on the number of profits that would go into the initiative so that they can still get some portion of the profits regarding dividends.
From the information, it is evident that change is vital to the success of the company. However, for change to be successful, factors that can have negative effects on the process need to be dealt with. The factors include the personal values, expectations, and assumptions of the person who is involved in the change process. The other factor includes the self-interests of major stakeholders of the company. The best ways of dealing with resistance to change are through the process of educating all the stakeholders so that they can understand why change is needed and how the process would be beneficial to them. The next strategy involves involving them in the change process so that they can have a better understanding of what it entails. Negotiations with all the stakeholders is also a critical strategy in dealing with resistance to change because it ensures that there is a balance so that the interests of every person who is affected by the change are considered. For example, as seen above, negotiation involves considering the return on investment expected by shareholders.
Organizational change and Corporate social responsibility. (2021, Oct 31). Retrieved from http://envrexperts.com/free-essays/essay-about-organizational-change-and-corporate-social-responsibility
