manager's job

   Organizational change occurs in every organization that deals

 

with growth and transition. Discipline is essential to the

 

development of a leader influencing organizational change.

 

Leaders create psychological contracts with employees to build

 

trust, confidence, and business relationships. Psychological

 

contracts motivate employees in ways that go beyond the

 

confines of the physical contract signed between management

 

and employees. Organizational leaders drive organizational

​

change by demonstrating the characteristics of a lifelong

 

learner. Life-long learners develop a strategy or follow a model

 

that will guide an organization through change. There are three

 

levels of change: individual, group, and larger system change

 

levels.

​

    Leaders of an organization must remain relevant to their

 

colleagues and followers. Leaders must be willing to take risks,

 

to humbly self-reflect on experiences and solicit opinions from

 

their followers. Leaders that continue to grow and learn gain the

 

respect and loyalty of their followers and build a culture that

 

encourages growth. Mistakes do not signify failure, but mistakes

 

signify leaders are making decisions to move the organization

 

forward. Leaders that are learners can advance because they are

 

more apt to be ready and prepared due to their constant

 

willingness to grow. An organization that does not have a

 

lifelong learner is less likely to advance. Lifelong learners are

 

leaders who have increased their personal value by continuing

 

their education. Leaders should be committed to developing a

 

culture of growth and learning. Organizations should offer

 

opportunities for employees to develop the necessary skills

 

needed or offer incentives for workers to develop skills and

 

talents.

​

​

    Strategic leadership is another component of organizational

 

change that can influence the positive and negative direction an

 

organization may take. Leaders have the difficult task of

​

combining the talents of people with a variety of backgrounds

 

into a functioning team. By developing a strategy for leading

 

change in an organization, leaders can avoid succumbing to

 

trivial day-to-day managerial duties. Changes that need to occur

 

should be well communicated and implemented at a time that

 

offers the organization and advantage rather than a setback.

 

Clarity about upcoming changes establishes transparent

 

communication between employees and new leadership. An

 

organization will have a difficult time making changes if there is

 

friction between the new leader and employees.

​

​

   Psychological contracts motivate employees in ways that go

 

beyond the confines of the paper contract signed between

 

employees and management. Organizational leadership must

 

honor psychological contracts to take full advantage of talented

 

employees that can benefit the organization. Employees of an

 

organization that has broken psychological contracts no longer

 

trust the leadership to fulfill previously made promises. Leaders

 

who are committed to organizational change intentionally

 

develop a sense of security with their employees by meeting

 

their needs as they drive the company towards change.

​

​

   Leaders must avoid risking conflict with employees by placing

 

the interest of the employees as a priority, and part of the

 

organization's strategic plan. Lifelong learners embrace change

 

in their professional lives on a continuous basis and incorporate

 

these principles in their leadership. Organizational leaders

 

develop strategies to make changes that would benefit an

 

organization at the individual, group, and larger system level.

 

Strategies developed by the organizational leader create

 

opportunities for the organization to change by transitioning the

 

leader's vision to reality.

 

 

Team 4: Topic 12 – Career Development

Work Cited

Caves, Lonzo. “Lifelong Learners Influencing Organizational Change.” Studies in Business & Economics, vol. 13, no. 1, Jan. 2018, pp. 21–28. EBSCOhost, doi:10.2478/sbe-2018-0002.