02. Critical Importance of change management and HRM management for business success

Change is important for businesses to stay afloat. The markets and consumer needs are evolving and thus businesses should be mindful to move alongside them. Businesses such as Apple, revolutionized the markets and they are progressing rapidly with technology and hence, they are at the top of their market. Similarly, Nokia was a great example in the technological field that failed as they were not keen on adopting change (Lam, 2013).

With the change, the most challenging aspect to manage is the human component. Employees are generally resistant to change. Businesses must pay attention to this when evolving. Failing to do so could have sever repercussions.

Employees should be given due notice and communicate the dire need to change. This will help them adjust to the changes coming up and they would be more cautious to be on alert to improve themselves. The Japanese concept of Kaizen is a great practice for employees to improve and better themselves and also to stay ahead of the competition. Kaizen is the concept of continuous improvement, where the employees improve themselves (Manos, 2007). With such practices, transitioning into change is seamless.

Some of the change factors are discussed below. A change factor can be identified as an aspect that could impact a business environment internally or externally and businesses usually update work processes, introduce new strategies, shifting internal work culture and such to negate impact (Kotter, 2008).

The importance of change can be identified as organizational change adopting and updating would lead to retaining a competitive advantage in the market. As organizations adopt and evolve they stay current and relevant to the field. This gives an added edge over rivals. 

Moreover, another main benefit of staying up to date is that change promotes innovation within the staff, develops the skills of the employees, develops the workforce and it leads to better business opportunities and improves staff morale.

It is the responsibility of the business and the management to keep the employees up to date and create a positive notion over changing business environment. If this is not handled well, employees could end up rebelling and resisting change

▪       Changing Economic and Market Conditions

Economic factors are changing according to the forces of the market. Changing demand, resource availability and supply, changing market trends and technological impact are some of the factors that promote change. For a business to stay ahead of the wave, it should be vigilant and should act pre-cautiously.

▪       Structural Changes

The pandemic had a major impact on inflicting change in the workplace. At the time these changes were presumed to last temporarily, however, these habits are extending and have completely altered the workplace. Structural changes brought about by the pandemic is a major change (Teodorovicz, et al, 2022). Employees were compelled to work remotely during the pandemic and now even with the clearance of the pandemic, more and more people are still willing to telework. The businesses prefer this concept as well and they are proposing and adopting hybrid structures that are more flexible.

Conclusion

Evolving and adopting change based on market conditions and other factors is critical for the survival and success of a business. Some of the key changes that could be seen in the current marketplace are structural changes where more employees are working remotely. This change was brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and these changes have made a long-lasting appearance in the market.

References:

• Kotter, J.P., 2008. Corporate culture and performance. Simon and Schuster.
• Lam, A.H., 2013. Change management at Nokia. Warwick University Master of Science Programme and Project Management Study. Erişim adresi: https://www. coursehero. com/file/13261614/ChangeManagementAtNokia.
• Manos, A., 2007. The benefits of Kaizen and Kaizen events. Quality progress, 40(2), p.47.
• Teodorovicz, T., Sadun, R., Kun, A.L. and Shaer, O., 2022. How does working from home during COVID-19 affect what managers do? Evidence from time-Use studies. Human–Computer Interaction, 37(6), pp.532-557.