1. Reorganization: Braving the Organizational Change
Jennifer Keffer, Bookstore Manager JCCC May 25, 2016

2. Reorganization: Braving the Organizational Change
We will cover the following today:
Definition of Reorganization
The Stigma of Reorganization
What does a Reorganization look like?
Why would you consider Reorganizing?
What is the Goal of Reorganizing?
Resistance to Reorganization
Pitfalls and Swells of Reorganization

3. One of the most frequent questions/statements I hear at work is “why do we have to change that? We’ve always done it this way with this many people.” Change is hard and as the adage goes, is the only constant, right? As John Kotter, who wrote Leading Change says, “The rate of change is not going to slow down anytime soon. If anything, competition in most industries will probably speed up even more in the next few decades.” Working in the textbook industry and the trade book industry before that, I have seen my fair share of shake ups in the marketplace and it was never more apparent to me that change was going to happen whether or not I was on board with it than in the last 10 years of my working life.

4. Reorganization
What is Reorganization? According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, reorganization is: the act or process of reorganizing: the state of being reorganized; especially: the financial reconstruction of a business concern.
If you ask my daughter, reorganizing “is just putting stuff in order, right?”
Just putting stuff in order, if it was only that simple. Most of us when we hear the word “reorganization” do not hear anything positive. What are your first thoughts when you hear it? (write them down as they are said so you can refer back to them).
Wouldn’t it just be easier if it was just putting stuff in order?

5. Did you hear? They are Reorganizing.
The Stigma of Reorganization – What is reorganization and what it isn’t
Talk is cheap, but there is nothing better than front page news!
We have already looked at the definition of reorganization and what people think of when they hear the word, but the stigma of reorganization is bigger than just the definition. Cartoons like this one point to the reason there is such a negative connotation associated with reorganizations. It doesn’t have to be that way.
There are several things that can be done to stave off the negative when it comes to “putting stuff in the right place”:
Communication, communication, communication. There is a caveat to this: make sure you know what you can say and who you can say it to.
Having buy-in – do you have others in the organization who are working with you on this? Have you asked for the opinions of those in your work group about how to implement change? Do they feel like they are a part of any decision making done in the department/workgroup/organization.
Do you have a plan?
What are the goals you hope to accomplish?
Have you thought about how you will handle any resistance?

6. What is or isn’t Reorganization?
Reorganization is just that, a reorganization of the pieces and players within a business.
IT IS A BUSINESS DECISION. It isn’t PERSONAL.
It is something that is planned and that has been researched to ensure proper implementation.
It is traditionally used to help a business maintain viability or to become sustainable.
I think the point here is that this is not personal. One of the hardest things for anyone who has been involved in a reorganization, whether on the delivery team or the receiving end, is that it feels very personal. If nothing else sticks with you today, I think this is the BIG takeaway, there is nothing simple about a reorganization. It isn’t personal for the business, but it is personal for the people involved and the hard part is figuring out how to navigate those waters. It is a big puzzle and it is one that gets wet so the pieces swell and don’t fit like they should. So, what do we do? How do we start? What does it look like?

7. “Change is hard because people overestimate the value of what they have – and underestimate the value of what they may gain by giving that up.”
- James Belasco and Ralph Stayer
Flight of the Buffalo (1994)

8. Reorganization – what does it look like?
How does it start? Does it start small?
Is it right-sizing? Down-sizing?
Is it a complete overhaul?

9. Why would you consider Reorganizing?
Has something changed in your business?
Are you changing just to change?
Are there other factors driving the change?
Internal factors
External factors

10. “There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things.”
Niccolo Machiavelli
The Prince (1532)

11. What is the Goal of Reorganizing your Structure?
Things to think about:
Do you have a plan?
What positions will you need?
Have the job descriptions for those positions been updated to meet the needs of the organization?
How will you communicate the reorganization?
What will your training needs be after the reorganization?

12. What is the Goal of Reorganizing your Structure?
Do you have a support structure in place?
If not, who do you need support from?
Do you have buy-in?

13. “People don’t resist change. They resist being changed
“People don’t resist change. They resist being changed.” - Peter Senge “Everybody has accepted by now that change is unavoidable. But that still implies that change is like death and taxes – it should be postponed as long as possible and no change would be vastly preferable. But in a period of upheaval, such as the one we are living in, change is the norm.” - Peter Drucker Management Challenges for the 21st Century (1999)

14. Resistance is futile….
Resistance is inevitable in a reorganization, the question is where is it coming from?
Is it internal resistance (yes, I mean you)?
Is it from others outside of your organization?
Is it from others within your own organization?

15. Pitfalls and Swells
As with any organizational change there are peaks and valleys associated with the process – it is never as cut and dry as we believe it will be when we start down the path.

16. So, let’s wrap this up….