Organizational Change Assignment: Understanding Reframing Dynamics Within Organisation

Question

Task:
The organizational change assignment is designed as assessing you understanding of the concepts of Reframing dynamics in an organisation.

Write an easy to Identify and describe a variety of examples of Reframing as a Strategy for Improving Organizations that are known, drawn from your experience working in your respective organizations.

1. What Is a Frame? Explain the example of how Mental map is used to read and negotiate a “territory” map, (a map of Beijing won’t help in Chicago)
2. Explain the difference between the two main types of motivation theories — content and process, while Outline the major theoretical contributions from the content theories of motivation of Maslow, Alderfer, McClelland and Herzberg

Answer

Introduction
As discussed herein organizational change assignment, it is important for a leader of an organization as well as the managers of the organization to create innovative as well as creative mediation to solve problems. Reframing is mainly used as an essential tool to convert negative challenges to positive opportunities for the betterment of the organization. According to Warrick, (2017), there shouldn’t be any communication gap between employee and the employer which would help to understand the needs of the employee while executing a project. Initially the Amazon focused on its mission as per consumers’ demand and all the policies were mostly customer centric and less employee centric which results in huge employee turnover after 2017,Hence, Amazon reframed organizational structure and policy considering employees benefits. This is the reason that Amazon is now a global companywhichunderstands employees' challenges and needs directly whichimproves the quality of the service and production of the organization (Anning-Dorson, 2018). Organizational changes are mainly two types, planned change and unplanned change. Planned changes are generally developed to enhance the skill, quality of the employees by recognising consumer demand and for the growth of the organization. On the other hand planned changes also take place for external forces such as technological changes, recession, political and sociological changes (Warrick, 2017).

Frame
Objective:
The main objective of understanding the four types of frame models and mental mapping types to evaluate the impact of reframing of an organization and its impact among the employees and organization’s growth.

Methodology:
This study is based on secondary data collection from various reliable sources such as articles, e-books and newspapers relatable to frame models and mental mapping types and their impact on organization growth.

Scenario:
According to (BBC News, 2021), Amazon initially started their journey from bookselling and then gradually uprise by fulfilling consumer’s demands but after few years faced huge employee turnover for consumer-centric policies.However, in employee-centric organizations like Amazon, the policies used are mostly benefiting their employees which substantially reduce the rate of employee turnover in their organization.

According to Bajis et al., (2018), to deliver better amongst the employees who generates better services and revenue for the organizations are being attained through four frame model.According to Bajis et al., (2018),organizations generally have four frames such as, structural frame, political frame, Human resource frame and symbolic frame.

Structural frame:
According to Bajis et al., (2018), structural frame is used to evaluate how an organization works in terms of its physical and systemic structure. This frame is the most important among all the frames because this helps to improve the quality of the service or product organization made to sustain in the market. It is important for a leader to recruit skilled and qualified employees in an organization to satisfy consumer demand, and train technically the employee as per organizations goal. It is also essential to solve the challenges as soon as possible by the leader to minimise employees' new challenges and work stress.

Political frame:
As stated by Bajis et al., (2018), political frame is directly connected with the work culture of an organization. Although politics always has a negative approach, it is important for the management of an organization to divert the negative politics into productive politics which enhance the productivity of an employee. Imposing diversity in work culture and opportunity for all actually helps to convert the negative work culture of an organization into a healthy work culture.

Human resource frame:
To achieve the mission organization, have to pay extra attention to the human side of an organization. It does not matter if the mission of an organization is long term or short term but it is essential to understand the employee’s mental health. Employees are the crucial part of an organization and if they are happy and motivated by the HR manager then it also reflects on the growth of an organization (Sahni, 2019). Employee turnover can be reduced by motivating and recognizing their extensive hard work.

Symbolic frame:
According to Banerjee et al., (2021), it is the most challenging frame of an average organization. Symbolic frame of an organization is to analyse the work culture it provides to its employee as well as the stakeholders. However, the symbolic frame is mainly focused on the individual growth and organizational growth by achieving the long term and short-term mission. Here in this frame organization refers to a drama and an individual of that organization plays an individual actor's role. This frame is focused on the individual's role in an organization and how the organization affected both positively or negatively by that particular individual.

Mental map used to read and negotiate a territory map
Mental map refers to individuals' perception towards the world and how they see their known world. However, in this study the mental map of the leader of an organization is used to evaluate the process or the pathway to achieve the destination which is achieving the mission or target of an organization. According to Banerjee et al., (2021), there are three scientifically approached mental maps used to read and negotiate a territory map such as cognitive map, concept map and mind map.

Cognitive map:
According to Letenyei and Dobák, (2020), cognitive mapping is the powerful tool that the leaders use in an organization to plan a path for the mission or target.Communication is essential for cognitive mapping because employees' challenges need to be identified as soon as possible by the leader to minimise work stress. Externalized knowledge is also helpful for cognitive mapping as it enhances incorporation of innovative ideas from employee’s end.

Concept map:
According to Letenyei and Dobák, (2020), concept mapping is referred to as a complex variant of mental map.Concept mapping mainly focused on training knowledge and making a relationship with the challenges. Knowledge retained by the leader from past challenges or from others experiences but incorporating that knowledge with new challenges actually improve the product quality and minimise market competition.

Difference between two main motivational theory
Objective
The objective of differentiating between the two theories which are content-wise quite different is to show how the organisations need to follow different processes for motivating the employees while following the two different theories.

Methodology
The study is based on secondary data. Few reliable literary sources have been reviewed for developing a better understanding of the theories, their content and processes.

Scenarios
Maslow’s theory of motivation:
As per Dweck (2017), Maslow’s theory of motivation is a very useful theory which can be applied to real life settings for motivating the workforce. The organisations try to motivate their employees by aiming at fulfilling their needs as per the hierarchy of needs outlined by Abraham Maslow. According to the theory of motivation by Maslow, the needs which lie lower in the hierarchy must be met first before satisfying the needs higher up in the hierarchy. The needs that have been identified by Maslow are physiological needs, safety needs, love and belongingness, self-esteem and self-actualisation (Goede and Boshuizen‐van Burken, 2019). For an individual to be motivated to put in more efforts at work, these needs must be fulfilled.

(Source: Ryan and Deci, 2020)

For instance, an employee working in a company like Toyota will be satisfied with only the salary when he/she is a fresher. This is the basic need which will fulfil the physiological requirements of food, clothing, shelter. However, as the employee gains experience and spends sometime at the company, the expectations and needs will change. The employee will look for job security and safety at workplace. Lack of job security or safety could demotivate the employee and affect their performance. Moving up the hierarchy, at the next level the employee will need love, belongingness and sense of association. Unless the employee feels connected with their organisation, they will not put their heart and soul into their work. The employees need to be made a part of the organisation’s decision making process, which will make them feel important and valued. This will boost the morale of the employees and motivate them to be more productive. The next level is that of self-esteem. After an employee has spent many years working at Toyota, he/she will expect the respect from the management and other employees. This enhances their self-esteem or self-worth. At the highest level of the hierarchy, there lies self-actualisation. Once the employee has got the expected salary, perks and incentives, they need to realise and show their potential. They expect autonomy at work, challenging projects, etc. which will bring out their capability and potential. This is when their need of self-actualisation is satisfied. The employees are motivated to work better when all their needs are fulfilled at their workplace (Gopalan et al, 2017). The motivation helps in reducing turnover rate, absent rate, improves productivity and efficiency, enhancing the overall organisational performance. The approach of Toyota while following Maslow’s theory of motivation must be as per the different levels of needs of the employees. The five levels of need should be satisfied for the employees to remain motivated at work.

McClelland’s theory of motivation:
As per Rybnicek, Bergner and Gutschelhofer(2019), the theory of motivation of McClelland is based on three core motivators. McClelland believed that irrespective of the culture, gender or age, these three motivators work for every situation and organisation. These three motivators include need for achievement, need for affiliation and need for power. The characteristics of people, their expectations and needs depend on their dominant motivator. Some will be attracted by power, others expect recognition and few are driven by achievement. The motivator which will be dominant is dependent on the life experience of a person and their surroundings and culture.

(Source: Andersen, 2017)

According to KHURANA and JOSHI(2017), few employees in the organisation will be motivated to work for achievement that their effort will bring them. For instance, the employees in Microsoft, who are driven by achievement will like to accept challenges, set goals which they target to achieve and prefer getting regular feedback from management on their performance. The appraisals and rewards attract such employees and act as motivators. On the other hand, few employees are driven by affiliation. They get motivated when they are made a part of some specific team. They want to be appreciated and liked by colleagues. These employees do not take interest in competition but collaboration. The ones attracted by affiliation try to evade risk and uncertainty. These employees are motivated only by what their group or team members approve of. The third type of people involve those who are attracted by power. These employees work hard and are motivated when they get the power to control the actions of others. They often win arguments and enjoy competitive environment. They desire and need victory, power and recognition. As stated by Güss, Burger and Dörner(2017), the employees need to be motivated by considering their motivating factor.

Therefore, Microsoft must adopt a very different approach from Toyota as the two theories are different in content and process. An employee who enjoys power cannot be motivated with affiliation. Similarly, those expecting affiliation cannot be put in a competitive environment to show their potential. This will not motivate them or get the better out of them. On the other hand, the hierarchy of needs will not work when the organisation is following McClelland’s theory. Each one is different and what drives them to be more productive is also different. Thus, the organisation and its leaders need to know how to motivate the employees.

Conclusion
It can be concluded that reframing an organisation could lead to a better organisational outcome. The organisation could use the mind maps, adopt various frames and strategies to change the structure of the organisation.

Findings
The structural, political, human resource and symbolic frames could be used by the organisation for bringing positive changes in the organisation. These would facilitate better analysis of situations, effective handling of human resources, etc. The concept, mind and cognitive maps would enable the organisation to negotiate the territory map. This would facilitate planning actions as per the environment or situation.

Recommendations
The leaders and managers need to consider reframing of organisation more seriously. The leaders need to know what will motivate the employees. Going by the Maslow’s or McClelland’s theory of motivation, the organisation’s leaders need to satisfy their employees’ needs so that they remain motivated and productive at work.

Reference list
Andersen, J.A., 2018. Managers’ motivation profiles: Measurement and application. Sage Open, 8(2), p.2158244018771732.

Anning-Dorson, T., 2018. Innovation and competitive advantage creation: The role of organisational leadership in service firms from emerging markets. International Marketing Review.

Bajis, D., Chaar, B., Basheti, I.A. and Moles, R., 2018. Identifying perceptions of academic reform in pharmacy using a four-frame organizational change model. Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy, 14(10), pp.921-930.

Banerjee, S.B., Jermier, J.M., Peredo, A.M., Perey, R. and Reichel, A., 2021. Theoretical perspectives on organizations and organizing in a post-growth era. Organization, 28(3), pp.337-357.

Dweck, C.S., 2017. From needs to goals and representations: Foundations for a unified theory of motivation, personality, and development. Psychological review, 124(6), p.689.

Goede, R. and Boshuizen‐van Burken, C., 2019. A critical systems thinking approach to empower refugees based on Maslow's theory of human motivation. Organizational change assignment Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 36(5), pp.715-726.

Gopalan, V., Bakar, J.A.A., Zulkifli, A.N., Alwi, A. and Mat, R.C., 2017, October. A review of the motivation theories in learning. In AIP Conference Proceedings (Vol. 1891, No. 1, p. 020043). AIP Publishing LLC.

Güss, C.D., Burger, M.L. and Dörner, D., 2017. The role of motivation in complex problem solving. Frontiers in psychology, 8, p.851.

KHURANA, H. and JOSHI, V., 2017. MOTIVATION AND ITS IMPACT ON INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE: A COMPARATIVE STUDY BASED ON MCCLELLAND'S THREE NEED MODEL. Clear International Journal of Research in Commerce & Management, 8(7).

Letenyei, L. and Dobák, J., 2020. Mental Mapping. The Science of Orientation. New Approaches to Location–Spatial Patterns of the Global Economy Conference. Budapest, 5–7 November 2019. Schenk Verlag.

Ryan, R.M. and Deci, E.L., 2020. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self-determination theory perspective: Definitions, theory, practices, and future directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 61, p.101860.

Rybnicek, R., Bergner, S. and Gutschelhofer, A., 2019. How individual needs influence motivation effects: a neuroscientific study on McClelland’s need theory. Review of Managerial Science, 13(2), pp.443-482.

Sahni, J., 2019. ROLE OF QUALITY OF WORK LIFE IN DETERMINING EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT IN TELECOM INDUSTRY. International Journal for Quality Research, 13(2).

Warrick, D.D., 2017. What leaders need to know about organizational culture. Business Horizons, 60(3), pp.395-404.

BBC News, 2021. Home - BBC News. [online] BBC News. Available at: [Accessed 10 August 2021].