Change and the Organisation
What candidates must understand
Organisational change is shaped by culture, structure, systems, rewards and power. Schein's culture model has three levels: artefacts (visible behaviour and symbols), espoused values (what people say matters), and basic assumptions (what people actually believe). Culture is slow-moving; changing logos and values statements changes artefacts, not assumptions.
Learn the main diagnostic models. McKinsey 7S (strategy, structure, systems, staff, style, skills, shared values) is a test of alignment, not a checklist. Burke-Litwin separates transformational factors driven by the external environment (strategy, leadership, culture) from transactional factors that shape climate (structure, systems, task requirements). Nadler and Tushman's congruence model treats the organisation as interacting components whose fit determines performance.
Know Lewin's unfreeze, change, refreeze as a lens on readiness and sustainability, and Kotter's eight steps as a sequenced change approach. Understand change roles: sponsor, change agent, advocate and target. Distinguish planned from emergent change; the informal organisation often determines whether the formal design works.
Traps
- Using 7S as a tick-box list instead of testing misalignment.
- Assuming culture can be changed quickly by decree.
- Confusing Burke-Litwin's transformational and transactional factors.
- Overlooking informal networks, incentives and capability.
Worked example
A firm adopts a new customer strategy but keeps rewarding sales volume, retains generalist skills and leaves silos intact. A congruence diagnosis predicts friction: strategy is misaligned with rewards, skills and structure. Rule of thumb: change one element and ask what else must move with it.