The Need for Change Management in Coca Cola Essay Example

concept, others believe that the administration is managing these significant changes effectively. Greenwood & Hinings (1988) suggest that in order for organizations to survive, they must anticipate and adapt to these changes through strategies such as organizational redesign. The implementation of these strategies will result in a shift in the administration's culture. Schroeder and Self (2008, as cited by Collins, 2001) assert that organizations that fail to adapt or don't respond promptly to the required changes are at risk of losing their market share to competitors. Additionally, they may experience negative consequences such as losing key employees or losing support from stakeholders, and in severe cases, even facing total demise.

Organizations must embrace strategic change. In the current globalized business landscape, numerous companies are adopting innovative approaches to their products in order to reach a larger target market and thrive amidst intense competition. The Coco-cola Company, a well-known manufacturer and distributor of non-alcoholic beverages operating across multiple regions and serving diverse customers, also acknowledges the necessity for change. They have identified two key challenges faced by administrations - recognizing the need for change and effectively implementing devised strategies to bring about desired transformations. The company understands that thorough planning and execution of change implementation can significantly reduce the chances of failure and prevent negative consequences such as decreased employee morale or diminished commitment. Consequently, they need to create a new change process to sustain themselves in the global market and competently rival their counterparts.

The Coca Cola stores in Hong Kong are currently experiencing success and remain one of the leading sellers of soft drinks in the city. However, their sales, inventory management, and workforce performance do

not meet the expectations established by other Coca Cola convenience stores around the world. Consequently, the company has chosen to initiate change management initiatives aimed at enhancing sales efficiency, inventory management, and workforce productivity. The objective is to uphold their standing in the global market and maintain high standards. By integrating these changes into their management strategy, the company foresees a boost in overall output going forward.

Factors driving the alteration: Coca-Cola's primary goal is to fulfill customer needs and satisfy them by manufacturing and distributing excellent products. The company acknowledges potential marketing challenges in the future and understands the importance of identifying these issues for adaptation. While implementing significant changes will affect employees and stakeholders, the focus of change lies in developing the workforce rather than services since Coca-Cola already has a reputation for providing quality services. Furthermore, this change also addresses potential future financial problems. The force-field analysis below outlines the proposed change management process for implementing alterations within Coca-Cola.

Force-Field Analysis This analysis shows that the driving forces for change are greater than restraining forces. Force-field analysis plays a vital role in change management (Bass, I).

According to Kotter and Schlesinger (1979), alteration direction can be described as a logical and methodical process of preparing and integrating change. The ultimate goal of this process is to introduce new systems into the work administration, making it a common practice in companies engaged in alteration management.

Similarly, the acceptance of new selling schemes can be compared to the need for alteration in businesses like Coca-Cola Company. This alteration is necessary in order for the company to evolve and achieve a higher degree of stability, management, or production. Coca-Cola

Company always desired for an extreme development. The Chief Executive Officer of Coca-Cola may implement changes to the company's mission, revamp business operations, adopt new technologies, promote major group efforts, or embrace new plans. Typically, the organization is motivated to pursue change management as a result of external influences, often referred to as the environment (Nickols, 2004).

Therefore, change direction can be defined as the response of different concern to alterations brought about by environmental influences in which administrations have minimum or no control over. The connection between the new administration design and implementing it into the world encompasses the entire coverage of administration alteration and development. However, certain accomplishments must be present from the instigators of alteration in order to successfully implement their undertaking. Therefore, directors need to possess the necessary abilities not only in observing what needs to be changed but also in effectively presenting the alteration.

System to engage interest holders

The alteration procedure relies on the entire administration, which means various parties may be affected by alteration involving the increase in efficiency of marketing and inventory, as well as the effective workforce of employees.

Stakeholders are parties connected to the concern house who will benefit or experience negative effects from the planned alteration (Friedmand, 2007, p.172). Identifying these stakeholders and their interests is important in developing strategies to gain their support and ensure the success of the planned change. It is also crucial to prioritize stakeholder interests and address any issues they may face as a result of the change (French & Delahaye, 1996, p.22). Involving stakeholders in change management strategies is essential.

- There are various stakeholders involved in

the planned change, both internal and external.
- The organization's top management is responsible for deciding on the change, directing its implementation, and being accountable for its outcomes.
- Middle managers are less affected by the change and are responsible for implementing the change projects.
- Employees are also affected by the change and play a role in the process of change.
- These three stakeholders are considered internal stakeholders as they are part of the organization and directly experience and participate in the change process.

• Fourth are the company's bottler's associates who may be impacted by changes in the merchandise.
• Fifth are the investors and investment firms providing capital for the alteration process.
• Sixth are the customers for whom the alteration is intended and whose reaction to the changes is evaluated.

These last three stakeholders are external to the organization.

These stakeholders have an indirect influence on the alteration but can impact the success of the alteration direction activity. The most important analytical tool is the resource dependance theory (Frooman, 1999, p. 191) which classifies the relationship between the firm and stakeholders into four types: house power, high mutuality, low mutuality, and stakeholder power.

• Firm-Stakeholder Relationship: Stakeholders determine the issues that need to be resolved to effectively manage stakeholders.
• Stakeholders: Customers, top management, investors and investment parties, middle managers, employees, and suppliers.
• Firm Power: Middle managers and employees.

Stakeholder Power: Customers and top management.

that may resist the proposed change. Employees worry about their job security in the event of any alterations. Consequently, their initial response will be to oppose the change as a means of safeguarding their current roles. However, conversely, the new change can also cultivate a positive mindset among employees since it will ultimately secure their positions after implementation.

Enhancing skills and knowledge can help employees improve their safety, enabling them to effectively complete their work. Additionally, differences in views between managers and employees on the purpose and impact of planned changes may lead to divisions in support for the change. Lastly, a lack of communication contributes to the unfavorable perception of the change.

The execution of alteration without sufficient audience, based on the position of directors and employees, could develop negative respect towards the alteration. Kotter's theoretical account of alteration provides eight grounds why the procedure of alteration in an organization fails. If these eight grounds for failure are removed or their impact is minimized, a successful alteration procedure is possible. These eight steps can be loosely divided into three categories: preparation (steps 1-4), action (steps 5-7), and anchoring (step 8). Thus, Kotter's theoretical model can be used to evaluate the alteration procedure in the Coco-cola Company.
Establish a sense of urgency: The senior management of Coco-cola realized that a change in their system of operations was necessary for business growth.

The Coco-Cola Hong Kong house recognized the need for technological innovation and new marketing strategies after reviewing the financial report of the convenience shops. This internal factor prompted the company to address the issue and establish a sense of urgency. To further drive the change process, the

management of Coco-Cola formed a team of experts to create a powerful guiding alliance.

Creating a Vision:

The management's expert team put forth a new vision to promote the success and growth of the organization. Additionally, they proposed strategies to achieve this vision within a short timeframe.

Communicating the Vision:

The management developed a vision for the company's transformation, emphasizing the importance of effectively conveying it to employees. The company aimed to enhance workforce productivity.

So, there may be difficulties or misunderstandings between the company's direction and employees when it comes to communicating the vision. The top management needs to provide proper guidance to the employees on how to deal with and respond to that change.

Empowering others to act on the vision:

In this aspect, the Coco-cola management completely failed as they did not give authority to employees to implement the vision. Employees were not given any encouragement to take risks without management's approval and were prohibited from making their own decisions.

Even during branch meetings, direction never used to welcome any new ideas from the employees. Planing for and achieving short term goals was an important aspect that required the direction to motivate its staff members by setting achievable targets with a low risk of failure. However, this was not the case. The management did not plan any short-term victory strategy and was more focused on meeting annual profit goals. As a result, employees were completely ignored in the change process and no efforts were made to motivate them, such as increasing salaries or providing bonuses.

Consolidating improvements and generating further change is crucial for implementing the new vision. However, the top

management needs to change the systems and policies of coco-cola as they do not support this desired change.

But this was not done. The employees who were more responsible to implement alteration were neither promoted nor did the company engage any extra people for carrying on the vision. Coco-cola attempted to execute alteration with the help of the existing employees.

Committing new approaches:

Coco-cola had recognized the need for new strategies to implement alteration and also introduced incentives for the employees who would successfully implement the alteration. The company also ensured effective communication of their expectations to the employees through conferences, emails, and meetings.

Overcoming Resistance to Change It is common for employees to resist change in an organization. However, overcoming this resistance is crucial in order to implement necessary management strategies. According to Kotter and Schlesinger (1979), there are six approaches that an organization can use to deal with employee resistance:

• Education and Communication: In order to overcome resistance at Coca-Cola, employees need to be educated and informed about the changes within the company before implementation. This will prevent misinformation from circulating in the workplace.
• Engagement and Involvement: Employees should be involved in the planned changes in management programs at the company. When employees are involved, they are less likely to resist and more likely to participate in the changes being made.
• Facilitation and Support: Some employees may resist changes because they struggle to adapt to new programs implemented by management. To prevent resistance, management must provide support to such employees. Establishing a support system will help them adjust quickly.

1. Negotiation and Agreement- Coca-Cola

should engage in negotiations with employees, discussing the incentives they will receive once they accept the changes in management schemes.

Decision Change management involves systematically preparing and integrating changes in an organization. The main objective is to introduce innovative methods and systems into the workplace. This can be compared to the implementation of information technologies or the adoption of new marketing strategies. Businesses need to undergo change in order to evolve and achieve higher levels of stability, management, or production.

Appointing a new leader, for example, can greatly improve the performance of his subordinates based on his leadership style and personality. From these discussions, it can be concluded that change management is a process that all companies go through. This process is important because it allows the organization to make decisions that will benefit the company. In addition, organizations that are open to change are generally more successful compared to companies that resist it.

In a globalized market, companies must be willing to adapt to management changes in order to keep up with the rapid emergence of new technologies and processes. Both the international and local markets are highly competitive, so utilizing change management is crucial for a company to stay ahead. Coca-Cola is a prime example of a company that effectively utilized change management and achieved positive results. This

is evident in Coca-Cola's dominance in the soft drink industry, not just in Asia, but worldwide.