Businesses transitioning to a new organizational structure often consult a strategic management specialist.
Transitioning your business from an old organizational structure to a new one, perhaps because of growth, downsizing, a merger or new corporate goals to improve efficiency, often involves the redefinition of responsibilities for upper management and the implementation of new processes, which can affect staff at multiple levels. Some departments within your business might be removed, while additional departments might be added. Inform staff of changes in company-wide and department meetings. Make them aware of what will be expected of them.
Instructions
Develop a Strategic Plan
1. Hire a strategic management consultant to help you, as upper management, to develop a strategic plan. Strategic managers often adopt a strategic process such as Six Sigma or Balanced Scorecard to provide an overall guide to the transitions your company is experiencing. A strategic plan removes some of the guesswork and guides you step by step.
2. Identify specific long-term and short-term goals for your company and steps to accomplish those goals. For example, you might identify that you can save money by making certain operation processes more efficient over time. Better efficiency could come by combining two steps or adding an additional step, which might make the process more effective.
3. Develop a budget for your company's transition, and determine which changes would provide the most benefit. Funds might be tight, but the budget is a one-time investment with a quantifiable risk and return. Look at changes that would not only improve efficiency but provide a return on investment within a realistic time frame.
Implement Plan
4. Train upper management, as well as middle management, to address challenges that transitioning to the new organizational structure might involve. For example, the transition might involve layoffs or changes in the tasks of staff members. Help management to better facilitate the transition as easily and effectively as possible. Focus on maintaining morale of staff, often your company's greatest asset.
Address the possibility of resistance from staff. Help management to identify whether resistance is authentic (directly focused on the change and seeking to stop or block the change) or "pseudo-resistance" (grounded in staff member's previous experience and attitudes). Tell management to focus on authentic resistance, and equip them with methods to handle such resistance.
5. Inform staff of the changes in a company-wide meeting, and follow up with individual department meetings. Inform staff of how the changes will affect them and what will be expected.
6. Provide training to staff who will be working with the new processes, and ask for input from staff where appropriate.
7. Quantify progress toward company goals, and award staff who contribute toward that progress.
Tags: your company, Inform staff, Inform staff changes, staff changes, upper management
