Essay About Theories Of Change And Theory E

Beer and Nohria
[pic 1]Coversheet for Course Work Highlighted fields must be filled in! Surname of studentHouriganFirst name of studentMatthewID number15510103Module codeMG206Module nameManagement of Organisational ChangeAssignment2LecturerMaureen MaloneyDue date16 March 2017Date submitted15 March 2017Exact word count (excluding cover page and references)499I declare that this work is entirely my own and that I have acknowledged the writings, ideas and work of others.  Furthermore, I have not knowingly allowed another to copy my work.Signature:___________________________________Date:__________15/03/17__________

Beer and Nohria are professors of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and their research suggests there are two theories of change whereby combining these approaches can radically transform the ways in which a business can change (Beer and Nohria, 2000, p.133). There are three approaches to change, Theory E, Theory O and Theory E and O combined which I will describe and evaluate in relation to employee participation in the change process. Theory E“Theory E is change based on economic value” (Beer and Nohria, 2000, p.134) and is described as the “hard” approach as its strategies are more drastic as it involves use of economic incentives and is said that “shareholder value is the only legitimate measure of success” (Beer and Nohria, 2000, p.134). Theory OTheory O is described as the “soft” approach to change where “strategies focus on creating the capabilities required to sustain high performance and competitive advantage” (Hayes, 2014). There is an emphasis on starting from the bottom-up with a high level of involvement instead of using finical incentives like in the Theory E approach. The benefit of this approach is that it can improve shareholder value.Theory E and O combined While both strategies can produce improvements, most companies use a combination of both. Although both theories are so diverse it becomes hard to manage both in co-ordination with one another. “Companies that effectively combine the hard and soft approaches however, can reap big payoffs in profitability and productivity” (Beer and Nohria, 2000, p.134).