Organizational Change: A Case Study Of Virgin Australia Essay.

Example of Virgin Australia

Question:

Write about the Case Study for Organizational Change.

In the current article, I will discuss the issue of organizational change. It has been rightly said by the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus – “Change is the only constant”. This is true for the commercial enterprises of the current times. To sustain the position of the company in the final market, it must bring forward various changes within the company from time to time. This will ensure that the company remains dynamic internally and is ready to meet various types of challenges of the market. This is a continuous practise followed by a wide number of business organizations across the world (Grimsley, 2015). 

In the present discussion I will cite the example of Virgin Australia. This is one of the premier aviation companies of the world. The company has decided to revamp its operations in the Australian market, so that it can attract a larger number of corporate flyers from the end market. In the process of doing so, the management had thought of introducing a large number of changes in the various aspects of the company. This had met with some resistance from the employees that had to be handled by the management and the senior leaders of the company (Virgin, 2016). 

The current discussion will look into this example by investigation the case study. This case study had exhibited the trends and patterns of change management. I will discuss the impact of the same in one of the premier organizations of Australia. 

The case study is of Virgin Australia had been considered for the need of this article by me. This is being illustrated by me as a case of organizational change. The market of aviation in Australia has a lot of competitions; hence the situation happens to be a challenging one. To meet this challenge, the management of the company has designed various strategies to prepare the company for the stiff competition of the market. In this context, the company would be highly customer focused at this junction of their career. The company will be designing business plans, which will attract maximum attention of the corporate business class Hence a large number of changes are to be brought within the operations style of the company and also the structure of the organization. However this is a process that would be automatically met with antagonism from the members of the company. In this context, the leaders and the management of the company would enter into a partnership. Both the parties will be effectively involved in that where they would convince the employees of the company regarding the beneficial change for the company and for the employees. The management of the company is, in fact, looking forward to make the leaders of the company instrumental for this. They would be able to manage and settle the resistance which may come up from the various tiers of the company (Myassignmenthelp, 2015). 

One thing is established by the case study that change is the synonym that marks dynamism in any company. The market context in which a company seems to work is one which is marked with changes. In such a situation I understand change is the only way that any company can prepare itself for the epoch challenges of the market. In fact, change is an aspect which denotes that the company is an evolving one. The management of the company made proper analysis of the various changes which should take place as per the demand of the market. This is one of the reasons why I understand that some of the most progressive and successful companies of the world make very frequent changes within their companies. This is one of the best ways through which the company can constantly upgrade itself to prove sustainability in future period (Murmann & Cogin, 2003). 

The Impact of Change Management

This is exactly what has been done by the management of the Virgin Australia. However, in the process of doing so, I observe that the company had introduced a large number of changes which did arise certain problems amongst the employees of the company This is because in most of the cases it has been seen that employees of a company are reluctant to change. They like to operate in an ambience which gives them comfort with routine jobs which are known to them. Any change in this structure would mean a discomfort to them.

In this context I will draw the conclusion that the management must involve the leaders to handle the problems. Problems of the employees pertaining to the various proposed changes are to be handled delicately. However, a more detailed and planned approach for changing work culture could have done better for the company and also for its management. 

So far I presume, the very first thing that the company could do is to create a panel of people who would act as the change management team for the company. Now I observe that earlier it was only the leaders and the managers of the company who were involved in the process. However in this context it needs to be mentioned that only the leaders are not adequate for panelling such a sensitive body. Certain members of the management of the company must also be involved in this panel (Virginaustralia, 2015). 

In the next step I suggest that urgency must be created amongst the employees pertaining to the change. This is a phenomenon that would also make the employees equally eager to accept any change in the system. The next approach by leaders is to share the vision of development of the company. The very reason why the employees of the company would be okay to accept a change is because he or she would be convinced that the things are changing for the best. Again the employees must be shown their own profits in the change. This is one of the best ways through which the employees could be encouraged to embrace the change. The team of change management must then effectively communicate all the benefits that could happen to the employees due to the forthcoming change. This will help the employees to accept the change better. 

Next step is rigorous and thorough training to be provided to the employees of the company so that they can understand the new change and can operate with ease and confidence. A regulator process of appraisal of the change standards are to be maintained. This will allow the leaders and the managers to understand which the state of change to settle down is. Both long term and short term goals are to be set. The employees must be celebrating when these targets are achieved. This will encourage them to perform better in the future. In this context we see that it is imperative that the employees of the company are happening to get apprised on a regular basis. The process of change management must be appraised from time to time. This is the only way which is perfect to bring the change of management with effectiveness. This can be brought to any company with the objective of bringing a substantial change in the business culture and the operational style of any company (Randstad, 2016). 

Approaches for Managing Change

In the light of the above discussion I would like to say that change is the most imperative agent that can assure you about the quality of the company and also its dynamism. In fact I am of opinion that in the current state of super competition, it is almost impossible for any company to sustain the forces of market competition without bringing changes into the structure of the company. This is why I feel that most of the managements of the companies globally are bringing changes in their company structures and also their mode and style of operations. In this context I will state that it is not always enough to visualize a change that needs to be brought into the company. What is equally important is that the managers and the management of the company must know the exact way in which this change can be managed within the company. The employees must be guided and also motivated so that they can see the benefits of the change and can accept the changes without any hassle. This is very important if the company is looking forward to operate in an effective and efficient manner. In this context I have realized that change management and settlement is yet again one of the most important factors that need to be addressed. This can be done through certain systematic and reasonable steps. The employees of the company must be convinced that the change which is being proposed will bring the best for the company and also its employees. So far I feel it is the only way to change the strategies of the company as per the objective set through mission. 

So far I thought changes are instances that are never really liked to be accepted by the employees of a company. This is because we see that the employees are not very much open to the idea of changing their ways and moving out of their area or zone of comfort. Hence the changes that are being brought about in the company must be explained to the employees. The employees must understand the competition in which the company as a whole and they as individuals do happen to reside. In this context they must understand the requirement of the changes that are being proposed for the company. The employees must understand the benefits that they can derive out of the various changes that are being proposed for the company. This is the only way that they can accept the change. Now this is a very much gradual process and the management must prepare a team that can help the employees of the company to understand and accept this change. The employees must also be trained in this purpose. 

As per my observation, the management happens to be playing a very important role in this context. Although the senior managers and the leaders of the company generally come together to form the change management team, these teams are never complete without the involvement of the management members. This is one of the reasons why we see that management members must actively come out to talk to the employees. This can persuade the employees.

References:

Grimsley, S., 2015. What Is Organizational Change? - Theory & Example. [Online] Available at: https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-organizational-change-theory-example-quiz.html [Accessed 11 May 2017].

Murmann, J. & Cogin, J., 2003. Changes at Virgin Airlines (Australia) 2000-2012. [Online] Available at: https://professor-murmann.net/teaching/Virgin_Case_2013.pdf [Accessed 11 May 2017].

Myassignmenthelp, 2015. Change management in Virgin Australia. [Online] Available at: https://myassignmenthelp.info/assignments/change-management-virgin-australia/ [Accessed 11 May 2017].

Randstad, 2016. Virgin lands top spot to become Australia’s most attractive employer. [Online] Available at: https://www.randstad.com.au/workforce360/archives/virgin-lands-top-spot-to-become-australias-most-attractive-employer_651/ [Accessed 11 May 2017].

Virgin, 2016. Virgin Australia: The fastest growing Virgin Company in history. [Online] Available at: https://www.virgin.com/virgingroup/virgin-australia-fastest-growing-virgin-company-history [Accessed 11 May 2017].

Virginaustralia, 2015. Annual Report. [Online] Available at: https://www.virginaustralia.com/cs/groups/internetcontent/@wc/documents/webcontent/~edisp/annual-report-2015.pdf [Accessed 11 May 2017].