Corporate Culture & Change Management

Résumé ou Introduction

Globalization, increasing technology, changing consumer tastes and changing values have all served to undermine what used to be known as “business as usual”. In today’s business environment of constant change, there is no such concept. Processes, structures, the playing field, the demographics of the target market, everything is in a constant state of change. In the past century, the business environment was fairly stable. Jobs were safe to a great extent and careers were guaranteed. Business plans only required annual adjustments and forecasting was a simple operation. Reeves & Deimier (2011) site the fact that changes in top company industry rankings increased by 12 % up from 2% between 1960 and 2008, as evidence of just how much change is happening in the business environment. Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Research In Motion, Blockbuster, and MySpace are some of the well-known organizations that have felt the impact of change (Safian, 2012). Position and scale are losing significance as companies seek to become experts at “learning how to do new things” (Reeves & Deimier, 2011, p.134).

In order to survive in the current business environment, business operators must accept and embrace change and develop a positive attitude towards it. Safian (2012) quotes Aaron Levie and puts it like this “In this world of constant change, following a single system or model is foolhardy – the companies that succeed will be nimble and ever-changing.” However, change must be managed and it must be managed consistently and strategically. Change Management, by definition, is the process of managing change. HR Magazine (December 2007, p. 1) defines change management as “the systematic approach and application of knowledge, tools and
resources to leverage the benefits of change.” Although this technique is applicable to all spheres of life, change management is particularly relevant and necessary in the corporate environment especially during times of drastic changes such as in mergers and acquisitions. Rather than