Most classes I have had in Adult Learning program are incredibly
practical. I can apply what I have learned immediately to my work in FI program
and at the Writing Center. However, ADLT 625 is a little different. Probably
because it’s a class in HRD track, it is clearly aimed at organizational
development in work settings, which I do not have as much experience as my
classmates. That’s why I found the class challenging and a little distant to me
at first. However, as I read more about it and conducted interview and
facilitations with my group members, I feel much more confident about it, and
realize how useful it is.
The first topic we discussed in class was what change is. I thought
change was simply the fact that something became different from what it was,
and it would happen at a certain point on the timeline. But this class has
opened up my mind and transformed my understanding of and attitude towards
changes. Now I would regard change as an on-going process. It does not
necessarily happen suddenly and end immediately, but usually takes place in an
organic manner. It is not limited to fix what is not working, but also includes
positive inquiry and further improvement. It is not only about the leaders,
managers or directors who decide that something needs to change, but also about
the whole system, including the past, present and future of the organization,
as well as all the individuals and groups in the organization. It is usually
hard to promote a change since it is affected by various factors. Therefore,
strategies are needed to cope with unintended changes and to promote and
conduct planned changes.
After understanding what change is, we began to explore how to deal with
changes and promote organizational development. What I find extremely helpful
are the theories and models we have learned about this topic. They provide
clear guidelines for change agents to conduct successful changes. One of the
most eye-opening models for me is Kotter’s Eight-step model (Kotter, 2006). In
this model, change is a well-designed, carefully conduced, and consistently
enhanced process. None of the steps should be overlooked, or the real change may
not take place. Communication is particularly emphasized throughout change
process. Through communicating and sharing, members in the organization line up
for the same goal, contribute to it collectively, and celebrate the achievement
together. On the one hand, the new behavior should benefit the organization in
its productivity and efficiency; on the other hand, the collective effort will
bring group members closer and enhance the enjoyable working environment.
When examining my experience in the Student Union in my college with
this model, I notice that there are things I would like to do differently if I
had another chance. First one is about share the reason for the change before
the actual change. In Kotter’s model (2006), the first four steps are the
preparation and foundation for a successful change. The whole organization need
to be involved in the change, and be motivated and committed to it, no matter
it is a tope-down decision or a bottom-up one. It is crucial to have all the
members understand why the change is necessary, where the change is leading the
organization to, and how they can contribute to it individually. To achieve
that, the change agent needs to establish a sense of urgency, form a powerful
guiding coalition, create a vision and communicate the vision (Kotter, 2006). When I tried to promote a change, having
weekly meeting instead of monthly meeting, in the Student Union, I did not
communicate well to all the group members why it was necessary. My intention
was to bring member together and enhance the social connection in our
organization. I thought that all the members would like to devote as much time
and energy as I did to the Student Union and would like to build their network
with other members. Therefore, I made the decision based on my assumption and
made it a new rule without getting feedback from other members, especially the
new ones. Of course, since the urgency, motivation and vision were not shared,
many members complained about the new rule. As a result, it was forgotten one
month later. If I could sharing my idea with department leaders and other
ordinary members, and confirm my assumption with them, things would turn out
differently. Also, maybe they would like to social more with other members, but
in other forms than department meeting. If the members had had the choice to
envision the activity, they could have committed to it and stuck to it. Again,
the importance of whole system involvement can never be over emphasized.
Another interesting idea in Kotter’s model is to create short-term win
(Kotter, 2006). According to him, there is a much high chance for people to give up if
there is no short-term goal. Therefore, "planning for visible performance
improvements”, “creating those improvements” and “recognizing and rewarding
employees involved in the improvements” are essential to prevent regression or
desperation, keep members positive and motivated about the change, and
guarantee the ultimate success (Kotter, 2006, p. 243). I am quite impressed by
the optimism here, and it also reminds me of other models and theories we have
discussed, such as the Appreciative Inquire (Whitney &Trosten-Bloom, 2003) and Open
Space Technology (Owen, 2008). In all of them, positive perspective is adopted
in designing and promoting a change. In Kotter’s model, short-term wins and
small improvements are celebrated because it is a sign of success. The
organization believes in the capability of its members and is grateful for
their excellent work. In Appreciative Inquiry summit, people focus on what they
have been doing great and try to build on their strength. They believe that the
power lies in themselves, and all they need to do is to find it in their daily
practice and keep promoting it. In terms of Open Space Technology, group
members are given the freedom to have a dialogue and develop their solutions.
It is believed that people hold the wisdom of success, and they have the
creativity and ability to develop the organization. It is the genuine belief in
human capability that promotes change in a positive manner. Therefore, when I
tried to enhance the new meeting rule in Student Union, instead of criticizing
those who ignore it, I could had reward those who did well to reinforce the
change.
When introducing my major to others, I usually describe it as “a
combination of education and business”. This class demonstrates the combination
perfectly. It focuses on changes in work settings, especially in corporations
and organizations, and highlights learning of individuals and groups. I really
appreciate the emphasis on learning because it is both the motivation and the
mean of change. First, one of the reasons for change is to learning new ideas
and behaviors that improve individual and group performance. Through learning,
individuals become more competent in their fields, which impacts their life
positively. Along with individual improvement is group advancement, which helps
it stand out among other groups and better serve its customers and members.
Therefore, the appreciation of learning starts a virtuous cycle where
individuals and groups are powered for continuous development.
Second, learning is an indispensible factor that leads to successful
change. As pointed out in Bolman and Deal (Bolman & Deal, 2006), training
helps organization deal with resistance and moving toward new norms. In many
cases, resistance to changes is resulted from the fear for the unknown. People
are reluctant to step out of their comfort zones and change what they have been
used to because there is a high risk that they may fail. They may perform worse
than before, as they are unfamiliar with the new norms. Therefore, training is
the primary solution to acknowledge and cope with the fear and resistance. By
learning about what’s new and how to perform under the new rules, individuals
are prepared with the knowledge and confidence to deal with new situations. It
is just like asking people to swim. It is extremely unsettling to be thrown
into a different environment and know the end will be either to survive or to die.
However, if the individuals are offered training coursed to acquire necessary
skills and equipped with life-saving gears, they will feel much more prepared,
both mentally and technically, for the change. As a result, they will accept
the change and enjoy it.
In terms of the group facilitation in our class, I regard the experience
as one of the most valuable for me. As I said in another final reflection, what
I like the most is practicality of the courses. I got hands-on experience of
facilitating group meetings, which is slightly different from what I
facilitated in ADLT 612. These experiences are what I lack most comparing with
other classmates, so that I am really grateful that I had so many opportunities
to try it out. By conducting and observing group facilitations in different
strategies, I understand how knowledge can be constructed socially. As I
mentioned in our final class, I realize that the future of an organization is
deeply connected with its past, present, as well as every member in it.
Therefore, no matter what facilitative strategy is adopted, it is critical to
have the holistic perspective when designing a change and envision the future.
Moreover, the three strategies we used in class are not in conflict with each
other. They can be combined and modified, if necessary, to better serve a
particular group.
To sum up, this course is much more useful than I thought in the
beginning. I have learned theories, analyzed cases, and gained experience of
facilitating a group. I expect to use what I have learned in this class, as
well as others, to my summer internship and work with groups of Chinese high
school students. It is such a great
feeling to know that I can use my knowledge to help others feel better about
themselves.
Reference
Kotter, John P. (2006). Leading Change: Why transformation efforts
fail. Joan V. Gallos (Ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Bolman, Lee G., & Deal,
Terrence E. (2006). Reframing change:
Training, realigning, negotiating, grieving, and moving on. Joan V. Gallos
(Ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Whitney, Diana,
&Trosten-Bloom, Amanda (2003). The
Power of Appreciative Inquiry. San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler
Publishers.
Owen, Harrison (2008). Open Space Technology: A User’s Guide (3rd
Ed.). San Francisco, CA:
Berrett-Koehler Publishers
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