Change Management

Posted by Nico Viljoen on 29 November 2017.



Nico Viljoen

MBA, Hons BCompt, HDip Tax (Jefferson School of Law USA), HED, AGA(SA) DBA Graduate Student, Business School Netherlands

The Tax Shop Head Office

More about Nico Viljoen

Nico obtained qualifications from various academic institutions and currently studies towards the DBA at the Business School Netherlands. He is an associate member of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants. After completion of his articles with PWC, he lectured in the fields of taxation, accounting and auditing at the Vaal University of Technology. Thereafter, he occupied financial executive positions in the heavy engineering, chemical, transport and automotive industry. Nico has owned and managed various successful businesses over the 20 years. Nico has been a business mentor for various organisation and serves as an external moderator for taxation and internal auditing.
Let’s look at these stages in more detail:
  1. Unfreeze: The first stage of the process of change per Lewin’s method involves the preparation for the change. This means that at this step, the organization must get prepared for the change and for the fact that change is crucial and needed. This phase is important because most people around the world try to resist change, and it is important to break this status quo. The key here is to explain to people why the existing way needs to be changed and how change can bring about profit. This step also involves an organization considering its core and re-examining it.
  2. Change: This is the stage where the real transition or change takes place. The process may take time to happen as people usually spend time to embrace new happenings, developments, and changes. At this stage, good leadership and reassurance is important because these aspects not only lead to steer forward in the right direction but also make the process easier for staff or individuals who are involved in the process. Communication and time thus are the keys for this stage to take place successfully.
  3. Refreeze: Now that the change has been accepted, embraced, and implemented by people, the company or organization begins to become stable again. Therefore, the stage is referred to as refreeze. This is the time when the staff and processes begin to refreeze, and things start going back to their normal pace and routine. This step requires the help of the people to make sure changes are used all the time and implemented even after the objective has been achieved. Now with a sense of stability, employees get comfortable and confident of the acquired changes.ther