Essay Example about Leading Change: Why Transformation Effort Fail

Transformation is key in any business is the business is to become successful regarding competition. According to the article, company both big and small have come competitive in their sectors after transformation. The author provides examples like big companies such as Ford, small ones such as Landmark Communications, and others like General Motors that are found in the United States; all of which have managed to compete with large companies like British Airways and Eastern Airlines that were making a lot of money as well as bringing them to their knees.

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Such success is attributed to the power of transformation. These companies have managed to come up with new and better efforts that have seen them achieve this kind of success. Such efforts include reengineering, restructuring, total quality management, rightsizing, turnaround, and a change in culture. Regardless of the strategy used, the fundamental goal has been the same for all of them; ensuring that the manner in which business was conducted in the past is transformed to deal with new and modern challenges in their respective industries.

Nevertheless, there are those that have tried to transform their businesses but failed. Therefore, the article takes a look at why these companies failed to achieve success even after transforming the manner in which they conduct business. The article is also well researched as it highlights and explains errors that have been made by many companies in the past leading to hindrance in their success.

Decentralization Is the New Center of Command

The article focuses on the future of large multinational corporations that have dominated the business world over the century. In the 21st century, such corporations may not dominate the business world as the business world continues to embrace decentralization. According to the author, many of the future successful firms will adopt the decentralized method of business management. In this style of management, workers are provided with more freedom which consequently comes with a lot of responsibility. As such they have the will to decide for themselves on what needs to be done.

In the past businesses have been run under the traditional command-and-control form of management. This model mainly focuses on coordination from a central point to achieve success. Business managers did less of oversight and more of coordination. Nevertheless, over time, this has changed. Those that stand to benefit the most include large companies as they have the human benefit regarding skills knowledge, motivation, flexibility, and creativity as compared to smaller businesses.

The author is a supporter of decentralization in the business world owing to the benefits these firms stand to gain. The article, therefore, focuses on some of the firms that are greatly benefiting from harnessing the collective power intelligence (Thomas). According to the article, the current economic crisis may benefit from this form of management. This is because firms that want to grow in the present age need to embrace change to be successful.

What You Don't Know About Making Decision

According to the article, leaders are defined in many ways. Some are known from setting plans as well as motivating people among other this leaders do. Nevertheless, leaders are determined by the decisions they make. In the past, leaders have failed to make the right choices because of their decision-making methods. This decision-making methods lead them to make the wrong choices because they didn't have enough options for them to choose from or these methods did not provide enough room for effective evaluation for them to make the right decision. Therefore, the article suggests that leaders are getting 'decision-making' the wrong way which leads them to make all the wrong choices.

The author indicates that one of the main reasons why leaders get decision making wrong is because most of them treat it as an event. This means that the action should take place at a particular point in time. Such activities are owed to the leader's research, gut, and experience. However, the author suggests that leaders should dismiss treating decision making as an event and preferably as a process that accounts for the broader social and organizational context (Garvin & Roberto). The article provides more information on several approaches to making while advocating for an inquiry mode of decision making. Through it, leaders can evaluate the situation and environment, critically view the problem at hand and provide a solution while ensuring collective ownership.

Teamwork On the Fly

The article mainly focuses on showing the benefits of collaboration. It takes a step back and focuses on the Water Cube that was built during the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. The magnificent site was formally the Beijing National Aquatic Centre which hosted a ton of events during that period. However, the structure was not a single corporation effort but the effort of several companies, several contractors as well as consultants. This team had a single goal: to build an iconic structure that would feature the country's culture while integrating it with the site. The team also focused on maximizing on energy consumption under a strict timeline and within the budget. However, achieving this would not be easy, and the solution was not clear (Edmondson).

As such, the developers came up with a team that would solve this problem. The strategy that was employed was called teaming drawn from the pickup basketball game unlike having a team that had played and trained as a unit. In other words, different experts were brought temporarily together to solve a problem. In doing so, the team was able to accomplish something that had not been done before. The author advocates for this kind of business teamwork where people from different disciplines are brought together. Over the recent past, businesses are embracing the use of multiple teams in their operations. However, the article also points out the challenges that come with using this technique while outlining the benefits of using this strategy regarding developing new opportunities.

The Power of Small Wins

Innovative work inside organizations is an essential aspect in any business. For one to get clues on how to drive innovative work, the article suggests focusing on world-renowned creators who are compared to ordinary people. The report took a look at some ordinary people whose jobs required creative productivity on a day-to-day basis and compared them to famous innovators; something many managers should consider. One of the critical things focused in the article includes the workday events that motivate such extraordinary people as well as triggering their perceptions which is also essential.

The article suggests that some managers fail to understand the power of progress and the role it plays in the human nature. At the same time, some of these managers do not know how to leverage progress as a way of boosting motivation. In the past businesses have debated on long-term ways of providing work motivation. In the past, managers have emphasized the importance of good work as others continue to stock tangible incentives that are meant to motivate (Amablle & Steven). The article also mentions the use of interpersonal support and coming up with well-thought-out goals have been thought to be good ways of providing motivation. However, the authors completely disagree with such mangers and offers other principles suggest better ways of motivating employees, improving their well-being and consequently, advocating for creative output (Amablle & Steven).

Works Cited

Amabile, Teresa M., and Steven J. Kramer. "The Power Of Small Wins". Harvard Business Review, 2004, https://hbr.org/2011/05/the-power-of-small-wins. Accessed 6 Oct 2018.

Edmondson, Amy. Teamwork On the Fly. Harvard Business Review, 2011, https://hbr.org/2012/04/teamwork-on-the-fly-2. Accessed 6 Oct 2018.

Garvin, David A., & Roberto, Michael A. What You Don't Know About Decision Making. Harvard Business Review, 2010, https://hbr.org/product/decentralization-is-the-new-center-of-command/IIR022-PDF-ENG. Accessed 6 Oct 2018

Kotter, John P. Why Transformation Efforts Fail. Harvard Business Review, 2007, https://hbr.org/2007/01/leading-change-why-transformation-efforts-fail. Accessed 6 Oct 2018

Malone, Thomas W. Decentralization Is the New Center of Command. Harvard Business Review, 2007, https://hbr.org/2007/01/leading-change-why-transformation-efforts-fail. Accessed 6 Oct 2018