LEADERSHIP AND CHANGE COMMUNICATION

Report by: Michaella Louise E. Pallasigue

Introduction: Change is constant within many organizations. It may trigger controversy and confusion
with employees and almost always presents a justification problem. It may also lead to resistance,
particularly when managers do not sufficiently communicate about the change. Managers need to
demonstrate leadership skills and communicate effectively with stakeholders and employees during
major organizational changes.

Leadership Styles:

a. Transactional leadership style – where the leader is concerned with the maintaining and ensuring
the completion of a specific set of tasks. These leaders use their designated authority and the
range of incentives to motivate employees to perform to the best of their abilities in completing a
set of tasks.
b. Transformational leadership style – where the leaders are not focused on specific operational set of
goals or tasks per se, but instead are primarily aiming to empower employees and to support their
growth and development, which in turn may translate into new strategic opportunities for an
organization or a strengthening of its capabilities.

One particularly helpful way to think about changes is in terms of ‘additive’ versus ‘substitutive’. Putting
change in perspective:

 Substitutive change – is a major strategic change that often involves a redefinition of the
organization’s mission and purpose or a substantial restructuring of the organization; are
obviously more difficult to sell to employees and also more difficult to get support for Table 12.1.

 Additive change – are less drastic and may involve, for example, improvements to ways of
working.
 MANAGING CHANGE:

 Step 1 need to have a firm grasp of the reasons behind the organizations need to change are.
Ex. Competitive or productivity-related

 Step 2 involves leaders continuing to

promote the change

 Step 3 involves articulating a dear

aspiration or vision around the
change which can be easily
communicated and understood by
employees.

 Step 4 change agents and the

coalition openly communicate the
vision via channels to employees.

 Step 5 the focus in on empowering

others to act on the vision and to
change their behaviors.

 Step 6 “quick wins” are

communicated to everyone else in
the organization. The purpose of
doing so is that everyone is able to
see the value of the change and that it
is already happening.

 Step 7 & 8 involve the management and institutionalization of the change of the organization, so
that, in effect, it becomes the new status quo.