Leadership and Change Management

Question: Write about Australian leader for Sony Corporation. Answer: Introduction The leadership function for a change management process is extremely important. The modern day organizations rely heavily on innovative practices and continuous upgradation of their existing systems (Senge, 2014). The organization selected for the purpose of study is Sony Corporation, which is a Japanese multinational entity (Sony.com.au, 2016). In this report, a Gap Analysis is performed. The Gap Analysis measures the degree of difference between the best practices and the present practices of change management as well as leadership, in the selected organization. A revised change management and leadership plan is prepared, which is made on the basis of the identified gaps in the organization. The last part of the report deals with the various limitations of the study and a consolidation of the key findings of the study. The report would create an in depth understanding of the various implications of the change management and leadership in Sony Corporation. It would also help in unde rstanding the methods by which the leadership in the organization can be enhanced. Discussion Gap Analysis Step 1- Creation of strategic objective The first step of performing a Gap Analysis is to understand the goals of the concerned organization and its implications (Van Ittersum et al., 2013). Sony is a reputed corporate organization with its worldwide popularity. The vision of the company is to achieve the position of global leader in consumer electronics, services and entertainment (Sony.com.au, 2016). The company has announced a new objective of safeguarding the natural environment, known as Environmental Vision Towards Sustainibility (Sony.com.au, 2016). The reason behind the adoption of the strategy is the increased concern for environmental issues of the customers and the stakeholders. The companies are given ratings on the basis of Socially Responsible Investments and various environmental measures (Sony.com.au, 2016). Sony strives to achieve the objectives by improving several operational processes like Corporate Citizenship, Research and Development, Business Planning, Product Design and the Manufacturing Process as well as Site Management (Sony.com.au, 2016). The leadership of the company should be excellent for the achievement of the business objectives. The company strives to attain new heights under the leadership of Denis Handlin (Sony.com.au, 2016). Step 2- Identification of deficiencies in the current scenario The second step revolves around the detection of deficiencies in the current operating scenario (Austin et al., 2015). The Chief Executive Officer of Sony, Kazuo Hirai, has taken several faulty decisions, as a result of which the company has suffered considerable financial as well as operational losses. The company is facing stiff competition from the market leaders in the electronics sector. The company is reportedly running at losses for the past four years and it has only 15% of its capital remaining as equity (Forbes.com, 2016). The founder of the company, Akio Morita Sony, demonstrated exceptional leadership and devoted countless hours to gathering innovative ideas in technology (Shavinina, 2012). The company was once a market creator and leader of consumer electronics (Shavinina, 2012). The situations started deteriorating when the company over focussed on the production of electronic goods in a faster and cheaper way (misleading guidance from the existing leaders) (Cojocaru Cojocaru, 2014). This has affected the performance of the company, which makes the company run at losses, till today. The company focuses on the development aspects of the manufacturing process rather than venturing into new markets (Nishimura, 2014). Sony failed to produce any new technological advancement, which demonstrates clearly, a lack of leadership in the R D areas (Forbes.com, 2016). The company failed to make superior mobile phones (due to lack of leadership) and hence the competitors like Apple, Samsung, won the battle (Forbes.com, 2016). The leaders of the organization are supposed to implement suitable changes in the organization so that it fulfills the vision of the company (Alvesson Sveningsson, 2015). In Sony, the leadership failed to identify the potential paths to success. The vision of the company outlines the dream of global leadership; however, the company has not taken any significant pathways to fulfil it (Alvesson Sveningsson, 2015). Sony operates in several countries of the world, which underlines the role of efficient cross cultural management. The leaders should encourage the managers to adopt a global mindset (Cullen Parboteeah, 2013). The company has no written policies of global management of the teams and fail to clearly address the cross cultural issues. The successful policies in one country may not be the same success in another country. The productivity of the employees dropped enormously (White, 2013). They were not ready to listen to their managers and were fighting for their rights. This affected the productivity of the company. The transformational leadership resulted in unhealthy competition among the companys manpower (White, 2013). The employee engagement practices were not up to the mark and hence the model of leadership and change management cannot be considered as the best practice. Step 3- Creation of Action Plan The above deficiencies are evident in the organization, which has led to a decreased revenue generation of the company. It is important to create an action plan, which addresses the identified gaps in the system (Grimshaw et al., 2012). The revised Leadership and Change Management Plan is developed, which is discussed in the subsequent sections of the report. Step 4- Evaluation of Action Plan The creation of the change management and leadership plan is not sufficient. There should be an adequate evaluation of the implemented plan (Patton, Sawicki Clark, 2015). This would help to determine the accuracy of the plan. It also helps in determining whether the plan fulfills the organizational mission. Revised Leadership and Change Management Plan The process of change management should be structured and planned, which would help the organization achieve the broad objectives of the organization (Davenport, 2013). There should be certain behavioral and organizational adjustments that need to be undertaken, which would result in successful change management. There are certain parameters that need to be managed in the process of change management (Cummings Worley, 2014). They are strong governance, steering committee, change agent work stream owners and others. The role of leadership is immense in a change management process (Cummings Worley, 2014). The leaders of the organization represent visionaries and role models for initiating change (Cummings Worley, 2014). The change management should be supported by the organizational leaders at all levels. The first stage in the preparation of revised change management and leadership plan is to thoroughly understand the operational gaps in the organization (Pfeffer Sutton, 2013). The first component of the plan is to develop an excellent human resource team, which is the greatest contributor to the success of an organization. Sony has undertaken initiatives for the recruitment of experienced cross-border leaders to handle the market variations prevalent in the digital industry. There is a need to improve the employee engagement activities in the organization. Sony should strive to create an organizational culture based on trust, harmony and cordial relations among the fellow employees (Pfeffer Sutton, 2013). The human resources of Sony should function as one single team competing against the major rival companies, rather than competing against each other (Pfeffer Sutton, 2013). The second component should focus on the mission and the vision of the company (Hujala, 2013). The leaders should undertake policies for the fulfillment of the objectives. The leaders should guide his team so that there is optimum performance of the employees, leading the achievement of the organizational objectives (Hujala, 2013). The leaders should encourage a learning atmosphere within the premises of the organization (Hujala, 2013). The employees should be allowed to participate in the decision making process, which would lead to free flowing ideas, which in turn would enable leaders to take the right decision (Hujala, 2013). The third component deals with the better management of the cross cultural management issues (Spencer Oatey Franklin, 2014). The company has demonstrated sufficient cross border leadership, by the recruitment of Mr Howard Stringer, who is an American (Sony.com.au, 2016). The company, however, needs to manage the cross border managerial issues, which demands enhanced leadership guidance. There are many cross border barriers and issues, which needs to be carefully managed (Spencer Oatey Franklin, 2014). The prosperity of Sony Corporation, in individual locations all across the world, would certainly lead to an increased prosperity of the company as a whole. The fourth component of the plan focuses on the induction of technology in the products of the company (Davenport, 2013). The electronics products are facing stiff competition regarding the development of new features, which fascinate the target customers. The products are undergoing constant changes and improved user interfaces (Davenport, 2013). The company should incorporate user friendly features in their products and gain competitive advantage (Davenport, 2013). In such a competitive market, the senior leadership of the company should strive for the development of innovative and technologically upgraded products, which meets the changing customer requirements (Davenport, 2013). Limitations of the Research This report describes the change management and leadership in Sony Corporations. It is very helpful in the identification of the various operational flaws in the company. There are certain limitations associated with the study. The study is limited to the Australian market only, despite the fact that Sony Corporation, is a multinational organization. It operates in several other countries of the world. There can be different leadership styles in different countries. The gap analysis done in this study, is primarily based on the demonstrated leadership and change management in one single location (Australia), with a consideration of the global leadership patterns. The leadership and change management of Sony in various geographical locations are outside the scope of the study. The study is based on the collection, assimilation, analysis and representation of the secondary data. The various sources of the secondary data sources include the website of the company and several international journals and magazines. There is no utilization of the primary data sources. The secondary sources of information are varied and provide rich sources of information. The overall leadership and change management practices of the organization are discussed in detail. There are several leaders in an organization, ranging from the top management to the middle management. The topmost leadership of the company is discussed in this report. The leadership style of Denis Handlin is discussed in detail. The leadership traits of the leaders at junior management levels, are outside the scope of this study. The limitations do not dilute the purpose of the study. The leadership style of the Sony Corporation, in Australia, is a reflection of the leadership of the overall organization. The operational deficiencies observed hold true for the global operations of the company. The senior leadership paves the way for the junior leaders. The study of the leadership pattern of Denis Handlin gives critical information regarding the change management approach followed by the leaders. Team Reflections The change is inevitable in any organization. The responses to the change can make a huge difference in the survival of a business entity. Change is important for a dynamic and huge organizations like Sony. The change can originate from internal sources or external sources like social, economic or political pressures. There can be technological advancements, which can lead to changes in the organization. In all the cases, it is vital for a company to manage the change in an effective manner. The authorized person to deal with change management is the leader. Sony has demonstrated exceptional leadership qualities, with a special mention of Denis Handlin, who is the Leader of the Australian division of Sony Corporation. In the past 30 years, he has demonstrated exceptional leadership capabilities. He has received numerous prestigious awards and accolades. He has successfully implemented the Kubler-Ross model, consisting of five stages, for dealing with the external challenges effectively. The transactional leadership has already been implemented in the organization, which has proved to be successful. There are several issues that were identified by the model, like behavior of the employees, unhealthy competition, inappropriate organizational culture and others. Another model, Kart Lewins Force Field Analysis Change Model, is used for addressing the low productivity issue in the organization. The current leadership and change management practices in the organization are identified. The best practices in this domain are also identified. A Ga p Analysis is performed, measuring the deficiencies between the current practices and the best regarding, from the perspective of leadership and change management. A revised plan is prepared, with its primary focus on the change management and leadership of Sony Corporation. The objective of this plan is to improve the role of leadership in the change management function of the organization. Conclusion Sony is a global organization with excellent products and exceptional management leadership. It was one of the pioneers of the electronic products. It was once known for breathtaking technologies. The things started changing thereafter, due to certain faults in the leadership process. The time has arrived, when there is need for reviewing the change management process in the organization. The change management process would not be complete without the participation of the organizations leaders. There should be participation from all the levels of the organization. There should be involvement of not only the top management, but from the operational level and middle management level too. The combined efforts of the leaders in the organization would foster an environment of change within the organization, which is the need of the hour. There should be proper implementation of the change management and leadership plan. This would certainly lead to growth and prosperity of the organizatio n. References Alvesson, M., Sveningsson, S. (2015).Changing organizational culture: Cultural change work in progress. Routledge. Austin, C., Brown, S., Fong, N., Humphrey, C., Leahey, A., Webster, P. (2015). Research Data Repositories: Review of current features, gap analysis, and recommendations for minimum requirements. InIASSIST Annual Conference, Minneapolis MN, June(pp. 2-5). Cojocaru, C., Cojocaru, S. (2014). Sony vs. Apple-iPod launching, a case study of leadership and innovation.Manager, (20), 115. Cullen, J., Parboteeah, K. P. (2013).Multinational management. Cengage Learning. Cummings, T., Worley, C. (2014).Organization development and change. Cengage learning. Davenport, T. H. (2013).Process innovation: reengineering work through information technology. Harvard Business Press. Forbes Welcome. (2016).Forbes.com. Retrieved 19 May 2016. Grimshaw, J. M., Eccles, M. P., Lavis, J. N., Hill, S. J., Squires, J. E. (2012). Knowledge translation of research findings.Implementation Science,7(1), 50. Hujala, E. (2013). Contextually defined leadership.Researching Leadership in Early Childhood Education. Nishimura, A. (2014). Transforming cost design into environmentally conscious cost design in Japan: likelihood and problems for further development.Journal of Management Control,25(1), 55-75. Patton, C., Sawicki, D., Clark, J. (2015).Basic methods of policy analysis and planning. Routledge. Pfeffer, J., Sutton, R. I. (2013).The knowing-doing gap: How smart companies turn knowledge into action. Harvard Business Press. Senge, P. M. (2014).The dance of change: The challenges to sustaining momentum in a learning organization. Crown Business. Shavinina, L. V. (2012). The Impact of the Apollo Project on Creativity and Innovation Management at Sony: The Implications for Project Management.Journal of Global Business Administration,4(1). Sony Australia | Latest Technology News | Electronics | Entertainment | Sony AU. (2016).Sony.com.au. Spencer Oatey, H., Franklin, P. (2014).Intercultural interaction. John Wiley Sons, Inc.. Van Ittersum, M. K., Cassman, K. G., Grassini, P., Wolf, J., Tittonell, P., Hochman, Z. (2013). Yield gap analysis with local to global relevancea review.Field Crops Research,143, 4-17. White, M. (2013). Building a Resilient Organizational Culture.UNC Executive Development. Leadership and Change Management Question: Discuss about the Leadership and Change Management. Answer: Overview of the case study In the present age of competition, leadership is crucial in terms of maintaining the market position. This is applicable for every company and organizations, including Woolworths in Australian threshold. Herein, the role of CEO attains prime importance, as he is the agent, whose performance and guidance paves the way of success for the company, Woolworths (Woolworths.com.au, 2017). The focus of this assessment is on the leadership qualities of the CEO of Woolworths, which altered its performance in the competitive ambience of Australian market. The earlier sentence brings the two variables, leadership and change in an equal alignment. Countering this, one variable leads to the other. As a matter of specification, exposure of appropriate leadership skills in accordance with the circumstances helps the personnel of Woolworth to adopt the proposed changes (Halkias et al., 2017). Justification of the selection of Woolworths Four things define the leadership qualities of the CEO of Woolworths. Dedication and clarity in the performance of the tasks bears correlation with the word justification in the heading of the assignment. Exposure of energetic approach in executing the tasks acts as an inspiration for the employees of Woolworths for displaying better performance. These attributes of the CEO contradicts the characteristic features of Coles CEO, who, even after encountering challenges did not seek out ways and means for amending the performance (Theaustralian.com.au, 2017). The approach towards the performance of basic marketing tasks acts as a common ground for speculation of the leadership qualities. Conscious attitude towards upgradation of the performance proved fortunate for the CEO of Woolworths (Balancedcurve.com, 2017). In contrast to this, exposure of negligence in terms of application of the leadership qualities aggravated the complexities of Coles. The major drive behind this is the provisio n of guidance and motivation to the employees by the CEO of Woolworths. This provision enabled Woolworths to enjoy a competitive advantage over contemporary brands, such as, Coles (Woolworths.com.au, 2017). Speculation of the performance of Coles in terms of leadership qualities broadens the scope and arena of the assessment. Along with this, the comparative study establishes relevancy with the requirements of the assessment. The action of assessing relates with the word justification. In-depth discussion about the leadership qualities of Woolworth CEO is itself an indication of the rationale behind the selection. Issues affecting the performance of Woolworths through leadership As per the propositions of Businessnews.com.au, (2017) recent performance of Woolworths projected noticeable decline in the market share. This decline has compelled the Australian retail company, Woolworths to witness crisis, such as, customer turnover. This situation has provided contemporary brands like Coles with the chance to enjoy competitive advantage. Herein, lays the drawback of the CEO in terms of exposing effective management skills to organize the business activities in an effective manner (Renz, 2016). This drawback contradicts the true essence of the aspect of leadership, which is crucial in terms of maintaining the hard-earned market position. These issues bears resemblance with the article entitled, Management mistake costs Woolworths (Businessnews.com.au, 2017). The term mistake relates to the failure of the CEO in terms of exposing appropriate leadership skills for maintaining the integrity of the organizational structure of Woolworths. Viewing it from other perspect ive, the term costs can be considered as a compensation that the CEO needs is entrusted to pay to the sufferers, that is, the customers. The placement of management at the first place can be accounted as putting the blame on the CEO for the degrading performance. The drawbacks highlighted in the previous paragraph necessitate the importance of theoretical framework, which proves helpful for the CEO of Woolworth in terms of overcoming the drawbacks. Rectification of the drawbacks is a gradual progression towards the upgradation of the personality (Beck Cowan, 2014). Theoretical framework to the case study Theoretical framework possesses flexibility to enliven the intensity of the subject matter. This is applicable for any and every kind of topic, including the current one on leadership and change management. Circumstances alter the characteristic traits of the individuals. Emerging successful, in effective handling of the circumstances, give rise to a leader out of an individual. This transformation bears resemblance with the propositions of Trait Theory (Halkias et al., 2017). Countering this, there are certain inbuilt traits within the individuals, which flows out as per the requirements. Exposure of dedication and commitment in the performance of the basic tasks itself brings noticeable changes in the performance of the individuals. These attributes bears resemblance with the characteristic traits of Woolworths CEO. As a matter of specification, exposure of dedication, passion and perseverance altered the behavioral conduct of the CEO of Woolworths (Hechanova Cementina, 2013). The earlier sentence conjoins both behavioral theory and trait theory on the grounds of leadership. Due to the transformation in the behavioral conduct of the individuals, the aspect of greatness in added to their personality. Viewing it from the perspective of this case, intellectual exposure of leadership skills proved beneficial for Woolworths in terms of escalating the market size, scope and arena. The major drive behind this is the hard work, dedication and commitment of the CEO towards preservation of the organizational values, which projects him as a great man. Herein, lays the symbolic significance of Great Man Theory (Beck Cowan, 2014). Selection of relevant theory Out of the diverse theories on leadership and change management, behavioral theory; trait theory and great man theory have seen selected. All these theories are interrelated with each other. At the first instance, undertaking daring and challenging tasks brings certain changes within the behavioral conduct of the individuals. These changes qualify the individuals as leaders, which enhances their personality. The earlier sentence places the trait theory in the first place. Next in sequence is the behavioral theory, which leads to the changes, that needs to be brought about for beautification of the personality (Renz, 2016). All these aspects prove true in case of Woolworth CEO. Attaching the concept of change in this context, application of effective management techniques helps the CEO of Woolworths to emerge successful in paving the way of success for the company. In respect to the change management, great man theory is selected. The action of optimizing inculcates self-organizationa l skills within the individuals, which is one of the other components of leadership qualities. Self-organizational skills can be linked with the aspect of change. As a matter of specification, evaluation of the exposed performance made the Woolworth CEO aware of the internal drawbacks and weakness, which needs to be changes for the betterment of the company (Hechanova Cementina, 2013). This evaluation acts as a cornerstone in terms of emerging as a successful leader. Justification behind the selection of Great Man Theory According to the arguments of Pugh, (2016), the vastness of the word, great relates to the effective and judicious utilization of the preconceived skills, expertise and knowledge by the individuals. Herein, lays the correlation with the aspect if change. Application of consciousness in this utilization helps the individuals in emerging as leaders. The word man is the advancement of the individuals towards the attainment of personal development. Viewing this from the perspective of the requirements of the assessment, dedication, commitment and hardworking nature of the CEO acted as an inspiration for the employees to expose better performance (Carter et al., 2013). Upgradation in the performance of the employees simultaneously enhances the status of the CEO. This enhancement brings personal as well as professional development for Woolworth CEO. This development bears correlation with the tag of great man, which enhances the individuality of the CEO. One of the other shades of this theory is the effective utilization of the achieved power. Misutilization of the possessed power stalls the development process. The case of Woolworth CEO nullifies the earlier sentence. The major drive behind this is the commitment exposed by the CEO towards the execution of the basic tasks (Goodwin, 2016). Viewing this from other perspectives, the crisis phase of Woolworth reflects the failure of CEO to maintain the brand image. Displaying negligence towards the restoration of normalcy would have made the situation of Woolworths similar to Coles. However, CEOs quest towards restoring the customer loyalty proved beneficial for Woolworths in terms of re-achieving the hard-earned place (Hornstein, 2015). Conclusion The assessment emerges successful in providing an insight into leadership and change management. An insight into the leadership qualities of Woolworth CEO makes the readers aware of the dynamics of marketing activities undertaken by the company to emerge successful in the competitive race. The application of theoretical framework enlivens its necessity for the outpour of appropriate leadership qualities. Reference to a number of theories enriches the knowledge of the readers on the theories, which aids in bringing noticeable changes within the personality traits of the individuals though leadership. Optimization of these theories reflects the individual capability in terms of selecting the most appropriate source that acts as an agent in the transformation from an ordinary individual to a leader. Taking the case study of Coles CEO into consideration broadens the scope and arena of the assessment. References Balancedcurve.com (2017). High performing teams-interview with Grant O Brien, CEO Woolworth. Retrieved 4 April 2017 from https://www.balancedcurve.com/high-performing-teams-interview-with-grant-obrien-ceo-woolworths/ Beck, D. E., Cowan, C. (2014).Spiral dynamics: Mastering values, leadership and change. John Wiley Sons. Businessnews.com.au (2017). Management mistakes cost Woolworth. Retrieved 5 April 2017, from https://www.businessnews.com.au/article/Management-mistakes-cost-Woolworths Carter, M. Z., Armenakis, A. A., Feild, H. S., Mossholder, K. W. (2013). Transformational leadership, relationship quality, and employee performance during continuous incremental organizational change.Journal of Organizational Behavior,34(7), 942-958. Goodwin, M. (2016). Change Management and Leadership. InWCOM (World Class Operations Management)(pp. 185-196). Springer International Publishing. Halkias, D., Santora, J. C., Harkiolakis, N., Thurman, P. W. (Eds.). (2017).Leadership and change management: A cross-cultural perspective. Routledge. Hechanova, R. M., Cementina-Olpoc, R. (2013). Transformational leadership, change management, and commitment to change: A comparison of academic and business organizations.The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher,22(1), 11-19. Hornstein, H. A. (2015). The integration of project management and organizational change management is now a necessity.International Journal of Project Management,33(2), 291-298. Pugh, L. (2016).Change management in information services. Routledge. Renz, D. O. (2016).The Jossey-Bass handbook of nonprofit leadership and management. John Wiley Sons. Theaustralian.com.au (2017). Coles is not changing despite Woolworths challenges. Retrieved 4 April 2017 from https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/companies/john-durkan-says-coles-is-not-changing-despite-woolworths-challenge/news-story/c6e3d8e362467ce375e45b35edbfd632 woolworths.com.au (2017). About Us. Retrieved 4 April 2017 from https://www.woolworths.com.au/