Change & the Organisation

In Lewin's three-step model of organisational change, what is the purpose of the 'unfreeze' stage?

• ATo measure the financial cost of change
• BTo create readiness and motivation to move away from the current state✓
• CTo celebrate the success of the change
• DTo lock in the new behaviours permanently once they have been fully adopted

Answer: Lewin's 'unfreeze' stage reduces the forces maintaining the status quo and builds the motivation and readiness needed before change can begin.

A change is highly uncertain: cause and effect can only be understood in hindsight, and experts disagree about what will work. In the simple/complicated/complex/chaotic framing of change situations, how should it be approached?

• AAs a simple situation: apply the organisation's established best practice and follow it step by step
• BAs a complicated situation: commission expert analysis first, then implement the single best answer
• CAs a complex situation: run small experiments, learn from the results and let the approach emerge✓
• DAs a chaotic situation: take no action until the uncertainty clears and cause and effect are obvious

Answer: Where cause and effect are only clear in hindsight, the situation is complex, so change is best approached through safe-to-fail experiments, learning and an emergent approach. Simple situations suit established best practice, complicated ones suit expert analysis to find a good answer, and chaotic situations call for immediate action to stabilise things rather than waiting.

In Kotter's approach to leading change (the eight steps, later the eight accelerators), what comes first?

• ACreate a sense of urgency✓
• BGenerate short-term wins
• CAnchor new approaches in the culture
• DEmpower broad-based action

Answer: Both Kotter's original eight steps and his later eight accelerators begin with creating a sense of urgency, around a big opportunity in the later version, to overcome complacency and build momentum. Short-term wins, anchoring or institutionalising the change, and enabling broad action all come later.

Which of the following is an example of an EXTERNAL driver of organisational change?

• ANew government legislation affecting the industry✓
• BA change to the company's internal reporting lines
• CA decision to restructure an internal department
• DAn internal process improvement initiative

Answer: New legislation originates outside the organisation and is therefore an external driver, unlike internal restructuring or process decisions.