Topic: Organizational Change Management

The purpose of the Final Paper is for you to culminate the learning achieved in the course by demonstrating your knowledge of organizational management by synthesizing the information from class into work and life experience.

Focus of the Final Paper
Think of an organization with which you are very familiar. Diagnose the need for change and present a plan to transform the organization, utilizing Kotter’s 8-Step Approach.

Include the following sections headings and additional sections as needed:

Introduction
Company Overview
Diagnosis
Kotter’s 8-Step Approach
Conclusion

Hewitt Associates
Name
Course

Date
Abstract
A lot has been said and written concerning the type of change and the best methods to manage an organization. Based on various researches, it is now possible to understand various steps that can be implemented within an organization to ensure that change is achieved. Such changes should be significant and have a positive lasting impact. This paper will explore various reasons why an organization needs management change. The paper will also present plans that Aon-Hewitt needs to incorporate to bring the necessary change. It will also analyze various measures that can enable Aon-Hewitt, previously called Hewitt Associates to continue with its business as usual. The paper will discuss how these changes are supposed to be assigned in terms of top-down management process and arrangements. These structures instigate the application of the firm’s outsourcing and consulting group. The paper will discuss how Hewitt Associates can utilize Kotter’s 8-step approach and the perspective of the change strategies.

Hewitt Associates
Organizations functions have witnessed rapid changes in the business environments. In the previous years, many organizations have faced changes in environments in which they operate and have managed to be steady. In the recent times, these changes have influenced the entire operation of these businesses and their activities (Harigopal, 2006). Competitive force caused by deregulation, irregular technological changes and globalization appear to have obligated many organizations to reflect on various strategies of radical changes as a means of growing and surviving. The first change that organizations need to put into focus is the environment in which it operates. Many actions can happen resulting to a complete change in the way organizations manages business affairs.
Some of the events that bring impacts to the organization include big catastrophes like earthquake, changes in the political governments in power, civil wars and other events. Market economic indicators shows changes in a positive or negative way, resulting to an organizational restructure. For instance, the rapid increase or decrease in currency rate can influence the organization to result into implementation of change in the way it manages its activities. Organizations find it exceedingly difficult to forecast the movements in the stock markets. Some changes also affect businesses like the increase of industries in the markets and the kind of capital that flows into them (Stamm, 2012). It is significant for an organization to keep track of opportunities in the market environment in which it could penetrate and establish newer markets and outsmart possible competitors.
All the discussed factors make many organizations to be influenced by the change. When it comes to matters such as organizational change management, there is no substantial difference in company’s roles in various sectors of the financial system. Different companies irrespective of whether they belong in the financial field or not, should adopt new guidelines and principles in an efficient way of change management (Harigopal, 2006).
Company Overview
For a period of 70 years, Hewitt Associates have established measures that seek to provide new solutions to other companies. The organizations are looking to find a resolution of their challenging maintenance for their employee compensation. Hewitt Associates have estimated 23000 employees across the globe, and this corporation operates in 30 countries. The company’s headquarter is situated in Lincolnshire Illinois, normally referred to as the Northern Suburbs of Chicago (Hewitt Associates LLC, 2010). The firm is proud of structuring efficient expansive values to its customers. The company also organizes talents of a collection of various associates to accommodate their customer’s business environments requirement and offering reliable quality reasons for better operations. The company ensures that it operates under principles such as integrity and honesty, for its staff and clients.
The company focuses on keeping the clients as the first priority and offers the best environment for their employees to carry out duties that meet quality. Additionally, Hewitt Associates also accentuate on team work. Being a fortune 500 organization, Hewitt Associates has blended the intricacy of their global and domestic organizational standards to conform to their staff and clients. The firms focuses on the importance of maintaining the top position in the market segment for retirement restructure, executives and health reform compensation packages for their customers. Hewitt Associations offers software to their customers with the objective of alleviating the dissatisfaction of engaging in problematical circumstances for the employees (Hewitt Associates LLC, 2010).
The HR consulting is viewed as the main section for Hewitt Associates to ensure that the relationship with their customers is formed in the basis of reliability. This strategy ensures that all data forwarded to clients on a daily basis for the operational standards is accurate. Hewitt Associates have ensured that they comply with all the government regulations to guarantee proper structuring of their HR consulting principles that are based on safety of clients (Hewitt Associates LLC, 2010). This organization structure is made as one with two different types of HR resolutions, which join forces of client’s needs for them to be considered a successful entity in the market segment. For instance, they have implemented the HR outsourcing and HR consulting sections.
Diagnosis
The Cause of Implementing Change at Hewitt
Employees at Hewitt Associates feel that they work for long hours but everything can’t be accomplished. There is a lot of stress and work load during working days. Employees believe that they are being overworked and there has been arising issue of low morale. Most employees have been experiencing physical and psychological problems leading to absenteeism form duty hence reduction of productivity. The company is facing problems where many employees are planning to quit their jobs. The company might witness a major turnover costs and extra cost to hire and train new employees (Hewitt Associates LLC, 2010).
The firm has witnessed tremendous growth in sales but not performed well in terms of profits. The sales department has recorded an increase in sales, but there is no indication of profit gains. This scenario where the sales increases and the profits remain flat is likely to increase work load for sales employees. The company is loosing money without having an idea where the underlying problem is arising from and try to rectify.
Employees at Hewitt lack proper understanding on issues that pertains the organization’s direction. Employees have raised concern about the company’s identity and blame the upper management for sitting on very vital information about the company. Generally there is communication breakdown in the company. When there is inadequate information, employees are likely to become anxious. The responses from employees are characterized by anxiety resulting from tactics that are implemented by the management in the name of change. Hewitt Associates has developed new ideas that could enable their business operations to run smoothly with billion dollar customers at its disposal (Stamm, 2012). These changes are to be executed to the whole company from the Client Support, HR outsourcing and HR Consulting. Additionally changes are also implemented in the Executive Management teams and Business technology.
The main problem associated with this change has an impact on international business as well as domestic associates. The external factors such as clients and the press have forced Hewitt Associates to change the strategies within its operations.  Hewitt Associates uses HR and change management organization strategies (Hewitt Associates LLC, 2010). These plans will help the firm to bring the impact of change because they will be incorporated inside the company. After initiating the strategic changes, Hewitt Associates can call the entire employee population at the town hall and address the group seeking to know whether the changes will affect them. The Associates has also informed the employees about the need for change and the time the changes are to be implemented. Apparently, Hewitt Associates has assured its employees that they could get updates on a weekly basis and also ensured that employee’s could feel free to submit feedback.
The need for change will be the basis of an efficient and effective leadership to pursue the goals and targets. The associates will hire a new manager to ensure that the implementation of changes is remarkably effective at the on set.  The new manager will be assigned to be in charge of the Business Intelligence Processing Group. The manager will also be entitled to supervise the changes that the company indents to implement at a given period of time. The management will able to examine OPM as the problematic issue after they restructured the business Intelligence Processing Group (Hewitt Associates LLC, 2010). This strategy will enable the firm to receive feedback from various deportments without any complications. The appointed leader is given confidence to make maximum utilization of the “ten principles for ever admirable leader” designed by Hewitt Association.
Kotter’s 8-Step Approach
The management of Hewitt Associates wants to initiate plans about the organizational change. However, people who are affected to these changes seem to find it difficult to adopt. Apparently, the company will brake down the communications that result employees to witness different outcomes.  The theory about change in an organization was introduced by John Kotter which emphasized on change management and leadership (Stamm, 2012). Kotter come up with eight steps that can steer the organization to achieve the best outcome from changes in management. In the case of Hewitt Associates, Kotter’s model can be of great benefit for the company to avert any kind of resistance from employees and clients and go ahead to implement successful changes.
Creation of Urgency
This is an important approach in the Kotter’s model. When there is a need for a change in an institution, it is essential for all the institutions to know what the company need to achieve. For instance, in Hewitt Associations, creation of urgency will enable the management to let vital information reach employees and Associates concerning the situation in the company
Formation of a Powerful Guiding Coalition
Change has always started with one or two people then grow further to involve many people who intern believes that change is necessary. Hewitt Associates employees have different reputations and skills. Bringing them together will enable the organization to achieve more ideas from their respective sense of urgencies. The initiator of any given change should always be involved in a discussion that is aimed at bringing change to the organization (Stamm, 2012). Hewitt Associates can use this approach through the organization of meeting at the town hall and employees called in to attend. The meeting is likely to resolve issues like employee’s sacking.
Create Vision
Any successful changes depend on the future prospects that can easily be communicated to stockholders, customers and employees. Visions help the firm to elucidate proper direction to be followed. The company will focus on its vision, mission and mission as the first approach. It will also go ahead to implement its mission statement which will embrace new ideas for its customers. The mission statement states that. “Keep Clients First-Examining each of our business decisions to test how to protect and enhance the relationships we enjoy with our clients.” The firms should revisit their mission, vision, value statements and strategy which is aimed at encouraging employees (Hewitt Associates LLC, 2010).
Empowering Others to Act on the Vision
The company has to get rid of any obstacles that may hinder further progress. The company will change structures and systems that are likely to undermine the current vision. Also Hewitt will encourage non-traditional and risk taking ideas, actions, and activities (Harigopal, 2006)
.
Communicate the Vision
Use of the necessary means to pass information about new strategies and vision can be very important. Teaching newly found behaviors for instance the guiding coalition. This is the approach that applies to a group that is on the verge of loosing to change.  This approach is also considerable in cases where a group or individuals have enough powers to resist any particular change (Stamm, 2012).  A good example to be applied is when Hewitt Association’s employees who will find change unnecessary,
Creation and planning from short-term wins
Planning for improvement in terms of performance is more effective in any planned change. Creating of improvements and rewarding employees in terms of performances will enable the firm to adapt to changes without many difficulties. This will ensure that employees especially to those who actively participated in providing a room for a perfect change are given morale (Stamm, 2012).
Institutionalize New Approaches
This step defines inaccurate and insufficient information together with the required analysis that is transmitted to employee of a given organization (Stamm, 2012).  Development is required to ensure that means are acquired through succession and development. The newly acquired behaviors are linked to the organizational success.
Consolidate Improvements
This approach can be described as the changes that require complex skills and they are expensive to run. Hewitt Associates need to hire more employees and promote those that have shown exemplary performance. The process of change will be reinvigorated with the process of new change agents, themes and projects (Stamm, 2012).
Conclusion
The paper elaborated various organizational changes that are supposed to take place in Aon-Hewitt. The paper also discussed the reasons for change in Hewitt to ensure smooth operation that can avoid stressful working conditions within the company. The Organizational change management is important because there has been an advent of rapid deployment and internet for running businesses. The changes will help the organization to define the target markets and result into efficient ways of getting better results. The paper also discussed how the company has to embrace steps by Kotter’s 8-step approach which provides a good environment for the even change of the management process in Hewitt Associates.

References
Harigopal, K. (2006). Management of organizational change: Leveraging transformation. New
Delhi: SAGE.
Hewitt Associates LLC. (2010). About Hewitt. Retrieved August 8, 2012, from Hewitt
Associates: http://www.hewittassociates.com/Intl/NA/en-US/AboutHewitt/WhoWeAre
Stamm, P. (2010). Change Management: The Analysis of J.P. Kotter’s eight steps. Munchen:
Verlag.