Change Management Theory: Briefing Essay To CEO Of Singapore Airlines. (70 Characters)

Each student individually shall draft a briefing memorandum to the CEO of the chosen organisation. This briefing memorandum presents in the formal structure of a business communication, an issues analysis and proposes theoretical approaches to leading the change.

The purpose of the memorandum is to clearly and effectively communicate the core change issues that need attention for successful change, such a briefing should be informed by change concepts, theories and frameworks. The finished memorandum should inform the CEO of the issues that the CEO should focus on and explain why. The memorandums are to be submitted via turnitin through the course blackboard site.

The Need for Change in the Appraisal System of Cabin Crew

Memorandum

TO: The CEO of Singapore Airlines

FROM: Name of the Student

CC:

DATE: October 1, 2018

SUBJECT: Singapore Airlines To Change Appraisal System For Cabin Crew

The Singapore Airlines has always given the utmost importance to its customers and crew. The Cabin Crew of Singapore Airlines can now take medical leaves for common ailments like cough and cold without the fear of having their incentive points docked. The change that comes after a year, after the staff of Singapore Airlines complained to the authorities, states that the present system discourages people to take a leave and stay at home even if they are genuinely sick. According to The Straits Times this comes in the wake of a broader overhaul of the appraisal system.

According to a spokesperson of Singapore Airlines, the present system that takes into account feedback of the customer and the knowledge of the cabin crew regarding operational and regulatory matters will be ‘restructured’. Not divulging any details, the spokesperson further said that the changes strive to reflect more accurately the work performance of the cabin crew. According to the present system, each member of the cabin crew starts with ten incentive points a year, which are gradually deducted when the need arises and all the points are lost once the twelve causal medical certificates are gained. A medical certificate is considered as casual if it is submitted for common illness. The annual appraisal is made up of six to twelve components of MC.

While the cabin crew of Singapore Airlines have largely been unhappy with this present system, their complaints came to the fore in February when a stewardess of Singapore Airlines was found to be dead in her hotel room. She had earlier told her colleagues that she was not well. That time the Manpower Ministry had said that paid and sick hospitalization leave is “a basic protection” (Skolilova, 2017) under the Employment Act and is an integral benefit in all agreements. A spokesperson of the Manpower Ministry had said that the employers should avoid reprimanding someone solely because of taking a sick leaves as that was an inherent right of the employee and was a basic protection under the Employment Act. The spokesperson of the Manpower Ministry had said that organizations and employers should adopt performance management systems or appraisals which are objective and fair and which takes into  consideration the ability of an employee, performance of the employee and the contributions of an employee. Human Resource expert from People Worldwide Consulting, David Leong had said that the decision of Singapore Airlines to reorganize its appraisal system for its cabin crew is a good move.

Stakeholder Concerns and Benefits of the Change

Companies that look down on staff who takes MC, considers employees as mere assets that are mechanical in nature. This will only lead to animosity between the employees and an organization and will not endear the employees to the organizations. Experts feel that there will always be staff who will take undue advantage of the sick leave, and there are other ways to check and regulate them without punishing all employees of an organization. Mr Alan Tan, the president of the Singapore Airlines Staff Union which is the largest union of Singapore Airlines, and which represents the cabin crew of Singapore Airlines had said that they were in talks with the management of Singapore Airlines to address the concern and unhappiness among staff members. He said that he will be looking forward to the changes that would be made to the appraisal system of Singapore Airlines.

A change management theory is a plan to do something different (Skolilova, 2017) In business, change management theory describes the various ways in which an organization will address and apply changes to the chain of supply, project scope or scheduling among other factors. The goal of establishing a strategy is to ensure that all negative effects of change will be mitigated. Stakeholders of a company must come together and decide when a change is needed, the various ways to approve changes, and the ways to monitor the changes so that they bring about the desired effect.

In projects and business, after a certain point of time changes needs to be introduced and implemented so as to stick to the goals of an organization. Change management takes time, dedication, expertise and efforts to implement and follow (Christina, 2015). Before adopting a change management policy, an organization must think of a reason why a change is required and how to go about making a change. The various approaches to implement change management include Lewis Change Management Model, McKinsey 7 S model, Kotter’s theory of change management, nudge theory, ADKAR model, Bridges’ Transition Model and Kubler-Ross Five Stage Model (Cabos, 2014) 

Kotter’s change management theory is one of the most popular theories of management. It is widely accepted and adopted throughout the world. John P.Kotter who is a professor at Harvard Business School devised this change management theory. He has also written several books based on the theory of change management. John P. Kotter’s change management theory is divided into eight stages. The various stages of John P.Kotter’s change management theory include Increase urgency, Build the Team, Get the Vision correct, Communicate, Get Things moving, Focus on Short Term Goals, Don’t Give Up and Incorporate Change (Cabos, 2014).

Change Management Theory

Increase Urgency involves creating a sense of urgency among the employees of an organization in order to motivate them so that they move forward towards their goals and objectives. Build the Team aspect of John P.Kotter’s change management theory involves getting the people in the team who have the right combination of knowledge, skills and commitment thereby building a good team (Christina, 2015). Get the vision correct is related to creating the right vision by taking into account creativity, objectives and an emotional connection. Communicate includes the communication between the members of an organization and employees regarding the importance of change and the need for change. This is a very important part of the change management strategy of John P.Kotter. Get things moving refers to the fact that in order to get things moving one needs to have support, remove hurdles in the path of success and put into practice constructive response and positive criticism. The aim of focusing on short term goals refers to the act of dividing a goal into small achievable parts so that it is readily achieved. It is a superior way to achieve accomplishment without the added load of pressure. The principle of ‘Don’t give up’ states that perseverance and diligence is the key to success and it is important not to let go or surrender during the course of change management no matter how tough things may give the impression to be. Incorporate change refers to the fact that it is imperative to underpin it and make it the culture of a workplace. The benefit of this model of change management theory is that it is easy to pursue and implement the changes. The primary idea behind it is to acknowledge the change and get ready for it.

The head officials of Singapore Airlines should create a sense of urgency among the members and employees of an organization in order to make them understand the gravity of the problem and motivate them to achieve their goals. The HR personnel of Singapore Airlines should build a new team consisting of members who have the necessary skills and knowledge and commitment to the organization so that the goals and objectives of the team are met and there are no more unfortunate deaths. The officials of Singapore Airlines should get their vision correct and establish an emotion connect with their employees and take into account their health problems under consideration while implementing policies on sick leaves and casual leaves. The higher officials of Singapore Airlines should also conduct staff meetings, address the members of the staff, and communicate with them. The higher officials of Singapore Airlines should open the channels of communication and encourage constructive criticism and feedback from their teams and should frame a plan of action and work towards realizing that plan of action, mitigating roadblocks along the way. The higher officials at Singapore Airlines should focus on short term goals in order to achieve their objective. The head officials at Singapore Airlines should not give up and persevere towards achieving their goals. The officials of the governing body of Singapore Airlines should also incorporate changes and ensure that it is part of a workplace culture. By adopting the above means, one can ensure that the welfare of the employees will be taken into consideration and paid sick leaves and casual leaves and medical leaves will be given to employees who are genuinely ill so that they do not suffer. 

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