Assessing The Factors Enabling Systematic Change

Abstract

The goal of this research article is to examine the relationships between the research variables change-management actions, change readiness, and systematic change. Change management is defined by three factors: leadership, project management, and learning. Change readiness is defined by two factors: knowledge and resources. Systematic change is defined by one factor of carefully sequenced actions that align customers, products/services, processes/tools, structure, and skill mix. This framework is operationalized and applied using a survey of participants in a high-tech organization's transformation. The results show that as change-management actions increases or decreases, there is an increase or decrease in change readiness, which supports systematic change. Managers can use the findings to assess the effectiveness of their change actions, change readiness in their organizations, and outcomes of their systematic change efforts. Managers can also use the findings to define their specific change-management actions. This is a limited case study, and the findings are based on a single case study in a large government agency. This article contributes a framework for defining and measuring change readiness. The framework defines change-management actions leading to change readiness leading to systematic change.

Keywords:

• organizational change
• change readiness
• systematic change
• change-management actions
• survey research
• government agency