Kurt Lewin

’s Change Model Essay, Research Paper

Kurt Lewin s Model for Organizational Change breaks down the change process into three distinct parts. Unfreezing occurs as the organization prepares for change; no changes have been implemented but people know about the change and preparations are being made to accommodate the new situation. Lewin describes Moving as the process when changes are implemented and the organization is experiencing the most upheaval. Managers must plan for a drop in productivity as workers become accustomed to the new work environment. Re-freezing describes the process of workers becoming comfortable with the new situation and accepting the new order as the way to do business. As the changes become established and processes normalize, productivity increases to a point beyond prior levels and eventually plateaus. Once productivity has reached its growth potential, the process begins over and the organization moves into the Unfreezing stage in preparation for a new change. While Lewin s model more broadly describes the change process, the Transitional Model of Organizational Change focuses clearly on the attitudes that pervade each phase of the change process.The Transition Change Model describes organizational change in four phases: Denial, Resistance, Exploration, and Commitment. An analysis of the four phases of the Transition Change Model demonstrates that each phase coincides with a stage in Lewin s change model. During the Denial phase of the Transition Change Model, workers focus on the way things are in the present and deny that any change is coming. This denial occurs early in the unfreezing stage of Lewin’s model, when the change is still on the drawing board and far from implementation. During the Unfreezing stage, workers will move from Denial to Resistance as they come to realize that change is on the horizon and is indeed going to occur. The worker s focus during the Resistance phase is on how each feels the change will affect them personally. As Lewin s model transitions from Unfreezing to Moving, the Transitional Change Model moves into the Exploration phase. The change that is implemented affects workers, and their focus now becomes how they can make the change work in their favor. Workers begin to accept the change and look to the future to see how the new order will benefit them and the organization. Once the workers begin to see the benefits of the change and accept the new order, the organization moves into the Commitment phase of the Transition Change Model. Like Lewin s Re-freezing stage, the Commitment phase is characterized by a ground swell of acceptance of the new order as the status quo. Productivity increases as workers embrace the new policies as standard operating procedure, until the organization reaches its potential under the given set of circumstances and a new cycle of change is initiated. The Marine Telecommunication Center s (MTCC) transition from the Automatic Digital Network (AUTODIN) to the Defense Messaging System (DMS) demonstrates how Lewin s Model of Organizational Change and the Transitional Model of Organizational Change relate to one another in a real world scenario.The present mission of the MTCC is to transmit, receive, record, and relay all General Service (GENSER) messages sent from or received by serviced commands (Marine Corps East) and Message Distribution Terminal (MDT) sites. The MTCC is linked to AUTODIN directly through an AUTODIN Switching Center (ASC) at the Naval Telecommunications Center (NAVCOMTELCENT), Jacksonville, FL and via a secure phone dial-in server connection with Naval Computer and Telecommunications Master Station Atlantic (NCTMSLANT), Norfolk, VA. The MTCC is responsible for actively routing all outgoing message traffic sent by II MEF, 2nd MarDiv, 2nd FSSG, MCB Camp Lejeune, and New River Air Station, as well as serving as the MDT Hub for MCRD Parris Island, MCAS Cherry Point, MCAS Beaufort, and MCB Albany, GA. The MTCC processed 4906 outgoing and 54880 incoming messages through the MDT Hub in November. MTCC personnel manually processed 2370 outgoing messages with an overall error rate of 1.13%. With all of its high tech communications equipment, the MTCC is still a very labor-intensive activity.The MTCC is staffed by 26 Marines and 11 civilians who are divided between three operational watches, a DMS section, a cryptologic/ security section, a traffic analysis section, and a headquarters element. Each watch is composed of a Chief Watch Supervisor (CWS), an Assistant Chief Watch Supervisor (ACWS), and five to seven Comm Center Operators. Each watch stands duty for eight hours, with the watches rotating through day, evening, and midnight watches on a two-week cycle. These watches, which operate and maintain the MDT Hub and manually route outgoing message traffic, have been the focus of MTCC operations. The DMS section was created two years ago when the Department of Defense announced that it would begin to phase out an antiquated AUTODIN system and begin to bring the new Defense Messaging System on line. The DMS section is comprised of a DMS Chief, a DMS system administrator, a Certification Authority Workstation (CAW) Operator and 5 small-computer system specialists. Until the DMS hardware was installed on site in February of 1999, the DMS section spent the majority of its time as technical hardware and software support for the watches and serviced commands. For one to understand how these two s