Managing technological change at Long Beach Mortgage Company

¶ … Change Review

In the business world, change has always been at the order of the day. In the current so-called information age, this is more prominently the case than ever before (Yeaky, 2002). Existing and developing technology has provided the backdrop for rapid change not only for businesses internally and locally, but also externally and internationally. Globalization, for example, has become an accepted and well-utilized fact. Large businesses survive by expansion and by incorporating international business relations. On the local scale, technology is utilize to increase the speed not only of communication, but also of record keeping and quality assurance (Leonard, 2003). These practices have become essential in the increasingly competitive world of business. In order to remain at the forefront of competition, it has become essential for companies to keep at the forefront of technology. Basic business functions, record keeping and communications are facilitated by technology, which provides for time and manpower to effectively be invested in innovation and other areas of improvement in the company. Saving time and manpower are however only one area of importance as regards the implementation of new technology; other areas might include surveillance, security, accuracy assurance, and the like (Yeaky, 2002).

For whichever purpose technology is used in a specific company, the fact of change remains. Along with change comes the necessity for change management. From a human management perspective, this is no easy task. Many contingencies need to be considered in terms of change in the business world. Concomitantly with the fact of change, it is also true that human beings in generally dislike change, and some resistance will result. Nevertheless, the inevitability of change makes it impossible to avoid it, and managers therefore need to have strategies in place for managing change optimally within their specific situations. For the Long Beach Mortgage Technology Project Plan, for example, the changes and additions to existing technology has been shown not only to be necessary in terms of retaining a competitive edge, but also in order to increase the speed and effectiveness of client communications and business. It has also been shown that networking and concomitant security practices are essential to the success of the new implementations. The new implementations will furthermore be quite complex, even while they are integrated with existing systems. In order to manage such wide-scale changes effectively, it is essential that the IT manager, Mr. Andrade, effectively manage the implementation team and the personnel involved in the changes. In order to do this, he has to keep in mind that technological complexity and the implementation of new software that workers have to familiarize themselves with involve a certain amount of uncertainty and thus fear and also resistance to change (Parker, 2002).

In Chapter 3 of their work Hughes, Ginnett, & Curphy (2002) describe various factors that may influence the process of management during change. There may for example exist a tension between individual and group goals, and between the different needs and personalities of group members and management. In terms of the Long Beach Mortgage situation, for example, the group goal is to implement the most current technology for a variety of reasons, which include accurate record keeping, integrated and rapid service to clients, and compliance with the most recent laws on record keeping practices. Personal goals may relate more closely to personal security in terms of occupational stability. In resolving such conflicts, various theories of leadership and change can be investigated and implemented according to their perceived effectiveness.

The Action-Observation-Reflection Model

According to this model, described in Chapter 3 of Hughes, Ginnett, & Curphy (2002) the leadership process is also used as a learning experience. This model can be used from the viewpoint of both leaders and followers. In short, the model involves actions on the parts of leaders and followers. These actions are observed in terms of their consequences, which are positive or negative. After such assessment, the actions are internalized through reflection. This process involves decisions regarding future actions.

The model can also be applied to the change process itself. Managers implement certain changes. When the technological changes proposed for Long Beach Mortgage are implemented, for example, the effects of this action are observed and assessed by managers and followers. The reflection phase will then reveal difficulties and problems that need to be addressed by further action, and the cycle begins again with the action phase. This model is useful in order to determine whether specific actions are effective or not. This is also particularly applicable in terms of leadership style and how this functions concomitantly with the different personality types within a company and the changes to be implemented. The authors refer to this type of experiential learning as the "spiral of experience."

The problem related to this model is, however, that the spiral of experience includes perceptual sets influenced by personal biases such as feelings, needs, prior experiences and expectations. The problem is that these factors are highly subjective in terms of the human element. This could be addressed by means of group coordination; where observations are shared for a collective learning process. The leadership style that is most effective for this model would then be the participative style (Eagly, Johannesen-Schmidt and Van Engen, 2003)

Situational Leadership Theory (SLT)

This is a very prominent and widely used model in companies worldwide, because of its focus on human relationships (Yeaky, 2002). This theory addresses the varying manifestations of the relationship between leader and follower not so much depending on situations or decisions as upon the competence, expertise, motivation and confidence levels of the follower. These are the primary focus for decisions regarding management style in handling situations of decision making and change.

The authors identify two factors that influence this relationship: an employee's job maturity and psychological maturity levels, as these relate to the task assigned to them at any given time during their career. According to these levels, decisions are made regarding the leadership style that would best suit any particular type of follower concomitant with the given task. A leader may for example select developmental interventions in order to enhance the maturity of followers.

There are not many shortcomings to this model, apart perhaps from the fact that it would benefit from a greater balance between considerations in terms of human relationships and the situation at hand. The focus on the follower is so great that more important issues such as leader personality and the requirements of particular situations may suffer as a result.

The Contingency Model

In contrast to the model above, the focus of the contingency model is on the leader and his or her dominant behavioral tendencies. Here situations and followers are required to shape themselves around the leader's traits and tendencies rather than the other way around. Particularly, Eagly, Johannesen-Schmidt and Van Engen (2003) address this issue in their article as it relates to women. In the contemporary world, business has followed general culture in its increasing integration of female leaders in increasing amounts. Women bring their own particular traits and characteristics to the leadership paradigm, which are more suitable to some decision-making situations than others.

The main problem of this model in terms of usefulness for the current business world is once again one of balance. There is no acknowledgement that leaders may indeed be flexible according to the situation and followers that they are dealing with. Even though women, for example, may favor a more laissez-faire type of leadership style than men (Eagly, Johannesen-Schmidt & Van Engen), this does not mean that they will do so in all circumstances, or indeed that all female leaders will have this tendency.

The Path-Goal Theory

The path-goal theory is one of the most flexible and popular models used in the changing business world today. It allows for an integration of various styles, personalities and situations. The components inherent in this theory is the particular path that employees are expected to follow in order to reach a certain desired goal. The position of the leader in this model is to provide followers with desirability in terms of goals and the removal of obstacles along the way towards obtaining the goals.

In terms of critical success factors for Long Beach Mortgage, significant obstacles can be removed by increasing the perception of desirability. Employees should be provided with a full description of the benefits inherent in implementing the new technology. The obstacle of resistance can be significantly reduced in this way. Furthermore, as mentioned above, open communication is a vital component of any change process, as emphasized by Kuriger (2006). While management must communicate with employees regarding the prospective changes, it is also necessary to provide employees with a platform to voice their comments and concerns. Only by communicating in an open way, can change models be effectively implemented.

In terms of effectiveness, I believe the path-goal model provides the greatest potential for specific applicability to the situation of Long Beach Mortgage. Technological change necessarily involves a large amount of uncertainty, fear, and hence resistance. The path-goal theory includes all the elements necessary to enable the elimination of this obstacle.

Sources

Eagly, A.H., Johannesen-Schmidt, M.C., & van Engen, M.L. (2003, July). Transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership styles: A meta-analysis comparing women and men. Psychological Bulletin, 129(4), 569-591.

Hughes, Richard L., Ginnett, Robert C. & Curphy, Gordon J. (2002). Leadership: Enhancing the lessons of experience (4th ed). New York: McGraw Hill.

Kuriger, Craig C. (2006, July/August) Workplace change and worker fears: when new technology enters the workplace. Army Logistician

Parker, Dennis R. (2002, January/February). Create opportunities, not fear, through change. Leadership.

Skipton, L.H. (2003, Winter). Leadership development for the postindustrial, postmodern information age. Consulting Psychology Journal, 55(1), 3-14.

Yeakey, G.W. (2002, January/February). Situational leadership. Military Review, 82(1), 72.