Annexure-I

Summer Training Report

on
Employees’ Resistance to Change in Organization 

Of

SHIVAS DEPARTMENTAL PRIVATE LIMITED 

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

for the award of the degree of

Master of Business Administration (MBA)

To
Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi

               Submitted by: Divya   ga ur 

                                                                                              Guide Name: Ms.Madhavi singh

                                                                                                               Enrolment  No.:

                                                                                                              Batch:201 7­2019  

BPIT
Nurturing Excellence
BHAGWAN PARSHURAM INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

New Delhi – 110089

2017­18
Contents

Summer Training Report........................................................................................................1

on..........................................................................................................................................1
Acknowledgement..........................................................4

Abstract..........................................................................5

1. Background...............................................................7

1.3. Problem Discussion................................................13

1. Research questions...........................................14

CHAPTER 2: ..................................................................15

LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORY...............................15

2.1 Changes in HR.........................................................17

2.1.1 HR transformation......................................................................................................17
2.1.2 The Ulrich Model........................................................................................................18
2.2 Employee resistance to change..............................19

2.3 Communication......................................................20

2.3.1 Organizational communication...................................................................................20

2.3.2 Communicating change..............................................................................................20
CHAPTER 3....................................................................22

METHOD AND DATA.....................................................22

3.1 Research approach.................................................22

3.2 Data collection and analysis....................................22

3.3 Questionnaire.........................................................25

3.4 Reliability and validity.............................................25

3.5 Ethical consideration...............................................26

CHAPTER 4....................................................................27

EMPIRICAL FINDINGS....................................................27
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4.1 Findings & Analysis.................................................27

CHAPTER 5....................................................................37

CONCLUSION................................................................37

5.1 Recap of the research.............................................37

5.1.1 Employee reaction and resistance to change.......37

5.1.2 Solutions to prevent resistance to change...........40

5.2 Managerial implications..........................................42

REFERENCES.................................................................44

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Support to changes........................................................................................................ 26

Figure 2 Impact of changes......................................................................................................... 27
Figure 3 Resistance Observed...................................................................................................... 27
Figure 4 Improvement in Employees' Productivity after implementing change ..........................28
Figure 5 Participation Of employees........................................................................................... 28
Figure 6 Cope with the changes.................................................................................................. 29
Figure 7 Employees' opinion...................................................................................................... 29
Figure 8 Causes OF Resistance to Change in MMTC.................................................................... 30

2
 Annexure-II

Certificate

I, Ms DIVYA GAUR_, Roll No. 168740824 certify that the Summer Training Report

(MS-201) entitled “Employees’ Resistance to Change in Organization_” is done by me

and it is an authentic work carried out by me at Bhagwan parshuram institute of

technology. The matter embodied in this report has not been submitted earlier for the

award of any degree or diploma to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Signature of the Student

                                                                        Date:           

Certified that the Summer Training Report/ (MS-201) entitled “Employees’ Resistance to
Change in Organization_” Done by Ms DIVYA GAUR, Roll No. is completed under my
guidance.

Signature of the Guide

Date:

Name of the Guide:

Ms.Madhavi singh

3
 Designation: Faculty Member

Address: BPIT ROHINI

New Delhi-110089

                                        Countersigned

                              Programme Director/HOD

Acknowledgement

I would like to express my gratitude to Mr. Mahesh sharma , my supervisor at SHIVAS

Departmental, Delhi and Ms Madhavi singh, my supervisor at bhagwan parshuram
institute of technology at Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU), who
have provided me with various inspirations and support which made this research study
possible. I would also like to express my gratitude to Mr. karan upadhaya, who
provided the contact information of all the participants.

I would like to thank all the employees who participated at various departments for their
support and devoted time. Your help and kindness are so much appreciated.

My gratitude too, to my family members who have always be there in encouragement.

Without all your help, I would not finish the study on time.

DIVYA GAUR

4
Abstract

The purpose of this study is to describe and analyse the consequences of Human
Resource (HR) transformation from an individual perspective. With the theory brought
up by Ulrich, transformation is a process and means for organizations to restructure in
order to deliver the right support in the HR area to be more global and competitive. This
study investigates how employees react to change and resistance. What kinds of
resistance they have may determine the success of the implemented change. It’s common
that employee resistance comes along with change process and it is interesting to

5
investigate how transformation has influenced individual’s work and attitude. The
research was conducted at Shivas departmental primate limited in Delhi by collecting
data from several semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. The researcher has
identified the factors related to employee resistance to change and suggest some
solutions to prevent resistance to change. On one hand, this paper will be of interest to
the organizational managers and the future researchers in a related area of study. On the
other hand, the article points out some avenues for further research on this topic.

6
 CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1. Background

In today’s complicated environment, change is common in every company and is needed

for an organization in order to remain competitive. It doesn’t matter if the company is
small, large, local or international; the process of organizational change is just as
important. Human Resource Management (HRM) is at the heart of the organization in
order for it to reach its goals (Nilsson et al, 2011). It plays a crucial role in the success of
the organization. Constant change is considered as an important factor that can affect the
organization and it is necessary to adapt to fulfil the requirements of the society. There
are numerous challenges that organizations need to face in order to be competitive in the
market. In HRM research, transformation in the organization as a field of study has
popular focus due to how it affects organizational processes. Organizations can
restructure the whole organization, or specific departments, such as the HR department
to achieve their goals.
Some common topics within the HR department are how the organization needs to be
aligned with its business strategies, be centralized and globalized and at the same time be
cost efficient. A result of the ongoing globalization in the world is organizational
reconstructions, which is called HR transformation (Ulrich et al, 2009). The organization
wants to make sure that employees are working as they are expected to and employees
should be encouraged and motivated to reach better results. As a result, the organization
has put an emphasis on dividing the working tasks into strategic and operational within
HR staff, they have begun to remap the HR structure by doing reconstruction of HR, and
such HR reconstruction is introduced by professor Ulrich called HR transformation
(Economist, 2009). Some obstacles that could negatively influence HR transformation
are poor planning, lack of direction or simply poor implementation, which may lead to
employee resistance. Resistance to change is inherent in every kind of change process. It
is the nature of humans to react negatively when they experience the threat of insecurity
and change. There are many organizations that have done Transformations; however

7
there seem to be a lack of communicating the processes during and after the HR
transformation period within the organization.

8
1.2 Introduction to the case company

Shivas Departmental Stores Private Limited's Annual General Meeting (AGM) was last
held on 30 September 2017 and as per records from Ministry of Corporate Affairs
(MCA), its balance sheet was last filed on 31 March 2017.

Directors of Shivas Departmental Stores Private Limited are Om Prakash Sharma, Vikas
Sharma, .

Shivas Departmental Stores Private Limited's Corporate Identification Number is (CIN)

U51909DL2003PTC119536 and its registration number is 119536.Its Email address is
rks_ssv@yahoo.com and its registered address is 25DEFENCE ENCLAVE VIKAS
MARG NEW DELHI DL 110092 IN , - , .

Current status of Shivas Departmental Stores Private Limited is - Active.

The need of the project is to study and analyses certain issues in Shivas Departmental
Store Pvt. Ltd.which need further attention. And some suggestions have been given to
make the Shivas Departmental Store Pvt. Ltd.and Marketing Strategy industry more
9
effective in order to utilize its full potential and serve the objective of an event and be
mutually beneficial for the agency, the Corporate and the customer..
SHIVAS DEPARTMENTAL has a Systems & ERP Division comprising a highly
professional team to cope with the highly competitive environment. SHIVAS operational
offices are all equipped with modern computing tools. ERP has been implemented. A
user friendly intranet based Knowledge Management Solution has been made available
to its officials.

Recognition
Shivas Departmental Store Pvt. Ltd.operates. Important factors include not only
the legal,
cultural, political, and economic environments of the overall society but also the
company’
s corporate environment and the financial constraints in which it operates.
Marketing
research is the phase of Marketing concerned with obtaining usable information, to
make
it more effective it is necessary to define carefully what information is required to
make a
better decision. After defining the problem, the marketers specify the source of
information to be collected and analyzed. Consumer research is another important
aspect
of Marketing research, concentrates on buyer behaviour. Segmentation is also an
important aspect of Marketing. The consumers who need product category are
diverse;
not everybody will want the same thing from the product category, will want to buy
it in
the same place, is interested in the same kinds of features or services. On the other
hand it
10
is not realistic to offer a unique product for each customer. There are group of
customers
with similar sets of needs, and the market can be divided into such groups. This
concept
is known as Market Segmentation.
Once the needs of the market are understood, the marketer considers the details of
what
the Shivas Departmental Store Pvt. Ltd.might offer. It should try to develop the
product
that will satisfy the needs of the consumer in the market segment that had been
identified
and selected; provide the product at a price customers are willing to pay; create a
distribution system that makes the product available to the customer in the place
where it
can be purchased; and communicate the appropriate information to promote the
product,
making customers aware of and interested in the product, helping them understand
what
the product offers, and reminding them that the product is available. These four
elements:
- product, price, promotion and place constitute the marketing mix. They are
sometimes
referred to as the “four P’s of Marketing”

CORPORATE MISSION OF SHIVAS DEPARTMENTAL PVT. LTD.

SHIVAS LTD. aims at improving its position further by achieving sustainable and viable
growth rate through excellence in all its activities, generating optimum profits through
total satisfaction of shareholders, customers, suppliers, employees and society.
CORPORATE OBJECTIVES OF SHIVAS LTD.
1. To be a leading International Trading House in India operating in the competitive
global trading environment, with focus on “bulk” as core competency and to improve
returns on capital employed.
11
2. To retain the position of huge multi store brand under one umbrella
3. To promote development of variety and variation.
4. To provide support services to the medium and small scale sectors.
5. To render high quality of service to all categories of customers with
professionalism and efficiency.
6. To streamline system within the company for settlement of commercial disputes.
7. To upgrade employee skills for achieving higher productivity.
SHIVAS.’s tagline is “Touching Lives, Adding Value”. The Company has put a lot of
emphasis on acting in a nimble way and valuing people. With the People Strategy, the
company tries to build efficient and engaging working environment with passionate
people to align with business strategy. Since the acquisition of the company, the
structure, leadership, technology and the concept of the company has been an ongoing
change.
The HR Transformation is all about building HR capability to deliver the People
Strategy. HR needs to become thought leaders in people areas, real change agents, true
business partners, people specialists and efficient. HR also needs to become more
customer focused, faster, more flexible and global (Carlsson, 2013). It is vital that, as a
company, it succeeds in reaching a prioritized and mutual global HR agenda. As a result,
SHIVAS LTD. developed a new HR service delivery model trying to standardize the way
of work to improve the quality and quantity of HR’s deliveries.

1.3. Problem Discussion

HR transformation is seen as one of the most important restructuring processes of HR

department in the organization, but there are not too many HR transformation models to
follow (Thilander, 2013). The lack of models can be attributed to the limited research
conducted in this area. The biggest challenges for HR are to help the business achieve its
strategic objectives, sourcing and simply deliver what the organization needs. Businesses
can restructure their organizations and make significant changes to their HR area – and
this is what HR transformation is all about (Ulrich et al, 2009). There are many
12
organizations that have done Transformations, like the case organization SHIVAS LTD.;
they followed the self-made structure where the organization is divided into department,
department into sections and sections into further sub-sections, to divide the HR tasks
into operational and strategic level in order to deliver the right support in the business
area, by developing their own model in which there are four Service Centres. The reason
for developing their own model is that there are not so many HR transformation models
to follow. Existing models might have disadvantages when implementing the change
process, such as employee resistance.

Albert (2002) concluded in his paper that organizational change can cause scepticism
and resistance to happen to employees and it can make it difficult or impossible to
implement organizational change. It is important for managers to realize the
phenomenon and try to make an effort to overcome resistance. Otherwise, it may cause
unexpected problems and even undermine the effort that the company has made for the
change process. A lack of understanding of the underlying reasons for change in relation
to the context of other organizational factors is one of the most important factors for
resistance to change (Judge and Douglas, 2009). Communication and communicative
processes, defined as how messages are produced, transferred/ delivered, shared and
decoded/understood by the receiver, is a crucial factor that might aid in the lowering of
barriers to resistance to organizational change. Employees may communicate positive or
negative information depending on the perception of the organizational performance and
if the company lost the faith and ambitions in their employees, it will face a battle to
rebuild their credit (Finbarr et al, 2003). Organizational change should be well
structured, planned; communicated and implemented to make sure that the changes can
lead to an expected result (Ulrich et al, 2009).

New roles and responsibilities make employees fearful of losing their current jobs. The
lack of information why this happens leads to some employees not trusting the company
anymore and develop a negative attitude. According to a pilot study with employees at
SHIVAS LTD., they always feel confused why the organization changes all the time,
what is the purpose of that? They feel scared and think it is unnecessary to change and
want to be better informed. It is interesting to get an understanding of how the
organization looked like before and after they implemented the HR transformation and
13
how individuals that got influenced by the transformation process react due to their own
feelings.

1. Research questions
The thesis investigates what consequences and changes follows after the implementation
of HR transformation in Shivas departmental pot ltd, Delhi. The roles of the different
employees are investigated and studied. The study may be of practical value for
organizations that are planning to implement an HR transformation, and to use the
findings to prepare themselves. The contribution of this study is that it allows for a better
understanding of HR transformation and its processes. It is also interesting to examine
how employees have been responding to the organizational change at shivas LTD.,
Delhi.

The goal of this study is to collect information about the process of change, its
consequences and effects for a real world organization by studying primary sources from
said organization. Consequences in this context include how HR work is affected by an
HR transformation. The study also put an emphasis on employee’s perspective, how do
they react to change, how the transformed department affect individuals emotions? In
order to find the answer to the problems, some questions will be investigated:

1. What are the main objectives of the transformation?

2. What are the consequences observed in the organization after the transformation as
reflected by employees?

3. How do employees react to transformation?

4. What kind of knowledge did they get from the transformation?

CHAPTER 2:

LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORY

14
The study investigates the consequences of organizational transformation in SHIVAS
LTD., Delhi - reflected by employees and the use of communication from the HR
transformation. Organizational transformation can be defined as: ”an integrated, aligned,
innovative and business focused approach to redefining how organization work is done
within an organization so that it helps the organization to deliver on promises made to
customers, investors and other stakeholder” (Ulrich et al, 2009). In order to analyze and
explain the reflections of employees about transformation, it is crucial to find theories
that can explain it. This chapter starts with giving various definitions about HR
transformation, the change process, followed by the effects resulting from HR
transformation. The theory and model of this study is the Ulrich model and employees’
resistance to change also referred to by Lawrence (1969).

HRM in organizations have made significant progress over the years in reducing costs,
improving operating effectiveness through HRM systems, outsourcing, employee self-
service and shared services. Apart from these services, the next big step for HR is to aid
their businesses in achieving their strategic objectives for growth and performance.

The problem of resistance was brought up by Lawrence (1969), he argued that resistance
to change is one of the most baffling and recalcitrant of the problems which business
executives face. Researchers have studied the reasons of employee resistance by using a
normative approach focusing on what is resistance to change, the reasons for it and how
to overcome it. The reasons why employees resist change can be various from fear of the
unknown, lack of trust, failed change before can be important factors. Employees always
feel anxiety and are worried that change will influence their current job, performance,
working environment, relations among colleagues and other factors. As a result, it is
crucial for managers to choose the right channels to communicate with employees
regarding the uncertainty of change process and the influence on the individual.
Effective communication between employees is the key elements in implementing a
change process as it can reduce resistance by providing a sense of community and
belonging to the company. Communication has been considered a key factor in the
process of implementing change. Communication in organizations represents the
interactions between the employees and members of an organization. Deetz defines
communication as a “Phenomenon that exists in organizations” (Jablin& Putnam, 2001).
15
In his view, this means that the organization is a container in which communication takes
place. Deetz also defines communication as “a way to describe and explain
organizations” (Jablin& Putnam, 2001). If we consider this definition, this means that
communication is the central process through which employees exchange information,
create relationships, and build meanings, values, and an organizational culture. Managers
use communication as a tool to advertise, announce, explain and inform people to be
prepared for the change process and the effects it brings (Spike & Lesser, 1995). The use
of communication can motivate employee commitment to change and reduce the
confusion and resistance (Lippitt, 1997).

Previous studies have strengthened the links between communication and successful
change management in two perspectives: theoretical and practical (Finbarr et al, 2003).
Communication has an impact from the commonality of factors on both sides, such as,
organizational structure and culture, business environment and leadership styles (Finbarr
et al, 2003). Researchers who are working independently in both areas identified the
factors from a theoretical perspective and established it. De Nisi (1991) studied the link
between communication and change management from an academic perspective by a
study of employee communication during a merger process. He found when managers
are honest regarding the information and communication process, the employees turn out
to have high levels of productivity, lower levels of turnover compared with lack of
communication. According to Lawrence (1969), managers should have a better
communication strategy to deal with employees’ attitude by encouraging a broader
perspective and facilitating creative thinking. According to Baker (1989), managers
should have correct action by providing proper information about change and consider
employees’ fear when they announce the information. They should also try to convince
employees with real reasons for change to ease the transition process and reduce
employees’ frustration. What is more, managers have to create an encouraged work
atmosphere to motivate employees try out new ideas related to change and these actions
are connected to an effective communication.

16
2.1 Changes in HR

2.1.1 HR transformation
In the perspective of HRM, HR transformation is an extra need for organizations to
manage the complexity from outer changes (Ulrich et al, 2009). A stronger connection
could be created to organizations stakeholders by transforming the HR department. Such
a transformation could occur when an organization is restructuring itself or when internal
and external conditions need to be better reflected by the HR practices. A key difference
between HR transformation and HR change is that HR transformation is a fundamental
reconstruction of the HR (Ulrich et al, 2009).

HR transformation aims to change the structure of the HR department by doing less

operation tasks and more focusing on strategies, so that to make HRM practices more
efficient and flexible. This trend as such began in 1995 (The Economist, 2009).

2.1.2 The Ulrich Model

There are several discussions about what HR should do in order to deliver the right
support to business during the past years and it has been found that there are several
ways that HR could be organized (Taylor &Woodhams, 2012). The HR transformation
requires building a structure that can link business organization and HR strategies
together. Many organizations follow the Ulrich Model to go through HR transformation
and it has been more and more popular (Economist, 2009). The model has an emphasis
on how to design the newly transformed HR department; there are three components in
his model: business partners, shared services and a centre of expertise.

The business partner works close to business unit and line managers, they have the
responsibilities to develop strategies. They are always working in the business unit
where they have a chance to implement strategies and deliver the support to management
teams. The role of responsibilities varies in different organizations, size, culture and HR
structure, etc. (Ulrich et al, 2009). The shared service center works with salary review,
administrations, recruitment, training and development, etc. The shared service center
aims to create values for its stakeholder deliver the right support in operational tasks. It
is a good back up for people in the company when they seek for help (Granberg, 2011).
17
The center of expertise works with talent management, organizational change
management, employee relations, compensation and benefits, etc. They are expected to
deliver high quality HR services. The employees in the center of expertise have the
knowledge to deliver services in the area of learning, training and such (Ulrich et al,
2009).

2.2 Employee resistance to change

The restructuring of the HR department can be one of biggest changes in HR employees

when one move to more strategic work from operational one and such changes could
cause employee resistance.

Employee resistance is common existing topic in psychology literature and management

books and the focus was out on employees (Ackar, 2013). It is important to cooperate
with employees if an organization wants to successfully implement the change (Piderit,
2000). What resistance consist of is hard to define but it is certain that it can stop the
implementation of change. Thomas and Hardly (2011) divided people into two groups
when they react to change: for and against. The kind of people that react negatively, or
the ones who do not accept change can be divided in the group with “resistant to
change”. People react differently with their emotional feelings with aggression, fear,
happiness and excitement; these feelings can be seen as resistance (Piderit, 2000). Both
positive and negative sides of the resistance have been argued to affect individual’s
behavior. Researchers argued multi-dimensional aspects of employee resistance to
change, when an individual respond to change, it is their behavior, feelings and thoughts
that are involved (Erwin & Garman, 2010).

There are various reasons why employees resist change. First of all, the involvement in
the change process is argued as one of the sources that can cause resistance
(Giangreco&Peccei, 2005). Secondly, employee attitude, behaviors and emotions is
another factor in how they react to change (Thomas & Hardy, 2011; Piderit, 2000). Coch
and French (1948) concluded that motivations are the causes of employee resistance
during change process. Moreover, it is l inked to psychological mechanisms according to
Folger&Skarlieki (1999). The cause of employee resistance to change can be

18
summarized as misunderstandings, lack of information, different individual
characteristics, emotional effects, etc. Most of the literatures agreed that the job
insecurity is the cause of resistance to change (Dent & Goldberg, 1999).

2.3 Communication

Many researchers have discussed the importance of communication during the change
process. To inform the involved person beforehand is one of the most efficient ways to
overcome employee resistance (Raluca, 2010). They have the right to know when the
change happen and how it will be implemented, what is expected from them, how it will
influence their jobs and what kind of support they can get in order to be motivated and
engaged to change (Kottor& Schlesinger, 1979). The early information can effectively
decrease employee resistance, confusion, and anxiety before rumors spread out in the
whole organization.

People have a wish to have their working environment predictable and this is the reason
why managers should be well prepared with the outcome from change and give
employees reasonable information about why, how and what is implemented in the near
future (Cilgeous& Chambers, 1999).

2.3.1 Organizational communication

Organizational communication can be defined as “process whereby members gather
pertinent information about their organization and the changes occurring within it”
(Kreps, 1990). It is crucial to use communication within organizational members to
discuss their personal experiences and pertinent information. It also enables individuals
to reach their goals by understanding organizational change and coordinate their
personal needs with the responsibilities of their involvement. Moreover, communication
can be seen as a data-collecting usage for individuals to gather information that makes
sense.

2.3.2 Communicating change

Communication commonly exists in daily life at work. Managers and employees use
communication to collaborate, exchange knowledge, information and get people
motivated (Deresky, 2000). Communication includes different aspects, such as: timing,
19
communication approach, the content of the message, etc. It is crucial for managers to be
aware of is that it is impossible to successfully implement change process without an
effective communication. Barrett argues that “without credible communication, and a lot
of it, the hearts and minds of the troops are never captured” (Barrett, 2002).

How effective the communication is can determine the level of employee resistance
during change process, also can encourage employee to be engaged to it, accept and
support, maximum the extent of outcome from change. Organizational performance is
also influenced by one of the key factors –the communication between employees and
employers (Harshman&Harshman, 1999).

20
 CHAPTER 3

METHOD AND DATA

3.1 Research approach

There are three kinds of research methods: exploratory, descriptive and explanatory
(Saunders et al, 2003). The study aims to analyse and describe changes at Shivas
Departmental pet ltd Delhi ,. Emphasis is made to evaluate the change, which is
transformation from the employees’ perspective. In order to know what kind of
consequences and reflections from employees can be obtained from such a process of
transformation, a combination of exploratory, descriptive and explanatory approach will
be adopted. Qualitative methods will be conducted in my study. A more personal opinion
from employees will give a better understanding of the actual situations. Semi-structured
interviews were conducted with some of the employees’ process in order to get more
direct reflections about their feelings. The qualitative approach gives the advantage of
having a closer relationship and relaxed atmosphere, plus a more open discussion
(Raluca, 2010). By conducting interviews, it is possible to get an overall picture of the
organization about the organizational change and its actual influences on the HR work.

A survey was also conducted and has been useful in this study since it is a great way of
collecting data from a larger sample. However, this study focuses on the individual
reflections from specific changes, which is hard to gather data and find right persons.

A meeting was set up with the HR manager. He introduced the change situations these
help me to formulate research questions as well. He settled possible contact persons that
would be suitable for the interview during the preparation phase.

3.2 Data collection and analysis

21
There are two sorts of data that can be collected in a research: primary data and
secondary data. Saunder et.al. (2003) State that whatever sources the research choose,
they have to be aware of their weaknesses and strengths. Weidersheim-Paul and Eriksson
(1997) define primary data as “data that a person gathers on his/her own with a specific
purpose in mind” and secondary data as “data that has already been gathered by other
researchers with different purposes in mind”.

In my paper, I used both primary data and secondary data. The primary data consists of
interviews and questionnaires. The secondary data consists of the company’s internal
sources of communication and published articles, such as, intranet, company newspaper
and meeting materials, presentations, annual reports, etc. I collected the secondary data
first to analyze the company’s situation, understand the problem such as, HR
transformation process, consequences, employees’ resistance to change, how do they
deal with these factors, did they just let it go or try to communicate, what kind of
communication has been used during HR transformation. Additional information was
collected from articles, scholars or other database in order to get as much information to
conduct the study.

The data was then analysed via discourse analysis, which is a close and systematic
reading of how the participants use language when talking about organizational change
and management (Mumby 1988; Cordeiro-Nilsson 2009). In this case, the word
’discourse’ not only refers to the language in use, but it is also seen as a process, which is
socially situated. As Candlin (1997:ix) said, ”However...we may go on to discuss the
constructive and dynamic role of either spoken or written discourse in structuring areas
of knowledge and the social and institutional practices which are associated with them.
In this sense, discourse is a means of talking and writing about and acting upon worlds, a
means which both constructs and is constructed by a set of social practices within these
worlds, and in so doing both reproduces and constructs afresh particular social-
discursive practices, constrained or encouraged by more macro movements in the over-
arching social formation.” With the case study, the data analysis based on interviews
among HR employees and the author analysed it from an objective point of view, since
different respondents have various opinions and perceptions of the phenomenon. As for
the questionnaire, this method acts as a great source or a facility for the collection of the
22
data from the diverse and scattered group of people. A questionnaire consists of a variety
of the questions printed or typed in a definite order on a form – which are mailed further
to the respondents. The respondent has to answer these questions on his own. The main
function or the objective of the questionnaire is to collect data from the respondents, who
are generally scattered in a vast diverse area. This method also helps in the collection of
reliable and dependable data. According to Bogardus, “a questionnaire is a list of the
questions sent to a number of persons to answer. It secures the standardized results that
can be tabulated and also treated statistically.”

23
3.3 Questionnaire

The main method for the study is through questionnaires, where the questionnaire guide
is created beforehand. It is important to get a direct and personal contact working at
SHIVAS LTD., Delhi in order to get the right information. The questionnaire method
helps to know about the employees’ responses as it is impersonal and anonymity can be
maintained. It is easier for me to distribute the questionnaire amongst different people
and get to know what they think of the HR transformation, what consequences they
experienced from it, how they communicate and such.

I distributed forty questionnaires in the company in different departments and also

conducted interviews with five employees. The questionnaire were distributed amongst
different employees and their answers were sought. The interviews were conducted with
different personnel including canteen staff to get a better understanding of the whole HR
transformation process. The target group of participants was all effected by the
transformations. Thirty two out of forty responses were received in the headquarter
office in Delhi from June to July during a period of six weeks. All questionnaires were
distributed and all interviews have been recorded with the permission of the respondents.
Questionnaire was held in English whereas interview was held in English as well as in
Hindi. The participant’s anonymity was ensured.

3.4 Reliability and validity

The correlation of the results to the study depends much upon the manner in which the
data is obtained and analyzed. If most of the respondents have similar points from the
same question, then we can say the concluding result of the data is fairly reliable. Gender
issue was also considered when selecting participants. As what has been mentioned in
the previous part, I got replies from thirty two employees which would result in a fair
distribution of a sample. The validity of a study is whether the data collected has
correlation with the work gathered or not (Thurén, 2006).

24
The collection of the data has come from the case organization’s internal materials and
part of that are from secondary sources. The empirical findings also have primary data
collections from questionnaires. The results from empirical findings are after the case
organization implemented the HR transformation process, and it would be running after
the study finished, as a result, the content validity was identified.

3.5 Ethical consideration

Regarding the ethical consideration, I presented my research goals to the company and
how the thesis were be done. I had an agreement with the company regarding to the use
of confidential data that I collected during the questionnaire process. Before the
questionnaires were distributed, the goals and results of the research was informed to
every participants and I contacted my supervisor in the company to inform the person
that will be involved beforehand in order to have a consent answer to participate the
study. The participants had the right to refuse to take part in the study and the list of
participants was anonymous during the study.

25
 CHAPTER 4

EMPIRICAL FINDINGS

The empirical findings will be presented in this chapter, which will involve: the
organization of SHIVAS Ltd., transformation, consequences after the transformation,
employees’ reaction and the use of communication during the transformation process.
The secondary and primary data have been used in this chapter. It should be clarified that
the organizational change differs from organizational transformation. The previous one
focuses on the whole reconstruction of an organization like an HR department. HR
transformation emphasizes on a fundamental change of a specific HR practices by
adding new ideas, the ways of working, connections with different departments, etc. The
aim of this study is to get an understanding of how the implemented transformation
affected Shivas Ltd. as an organization and how the employees reacted to it. The
empirical data that has been collected is about the consequences and employees
resistance in HR staffs and HR managers.

4.1 Findings & Analysis

When employees were asked on the types of changes SHIVAS emphasis more on, 31%
of the employees think it’s Process oriented and 22% of them inclined towards the
change of policies and legal agreements and remaining changes like Mission and
strategical, Organizational, people oriented and technological changes has been shown
up with much lesser proportion which is 12.5%, 15.5%, 6% and 19% respectively.

Measuring the level of awareness employees have about the changes taking place in
SHIVAS, majority of the responses shown were in favour of the level of satisfaction with
53% in proportion.

While interpreting that the subsequent changes taking place in SHIVAS where
purposeful and necessary, the results (80% of the employees) proved that the employees

26
belief towards the nature of the effectiveness of the changes were in the favour of the
positive impact i.e., the changes were purposeful and necessary.

The employees
Figure 1 Support to changes were also asked
whether they are allowed provide feedback regarding any implemented change or not,
majority of the proportion i.e., 38% of the employees, showed that they provide it when
required.

While analyzing about the level of improvement in the employees' skills, the results
proved that the level had a neutral effect.

Interpreting and analyzing about the solution to prevent the harmful effect of resistance
to change, employees' prioritized ' Effective communication' and 'participation and
motivation' with the higher variance and 'Training' and 'positive motivation' with a bit
lower primacy. The 'other tools' were also specified and being mentioned particularly by
other employees.

5%

14%

36%

strongly support
support
neutral
against changes
does not support

45%

27
INTERPRETATION: When the employees were asked if they support changes taking
place in SHIVAS, majority of the employees gave a positive response that was 45% ( 15
employees out of 32) Support whereas 36% of the employees (12 out of 32) Strongly
Support the transformation. Rest 14% were neutral. Furthermore, remaining 5% were
against the changes.

10%
14%

strongly agree agree neutral disagree

strongly disagree
38%

38%

Figure 2 Impact of changes

28
INTERPRETATION: Employees were asked about the positive impact of the subsequent
changes on the organizational profitability, where 38% (13 out of 32) with majority has
shown 'agree' and 'neutral' opinion individually. 14% (3 out of 32) of the employees were
disagree and 10% (3 out of 32) in lesser proportion were strongly agree about the fact of
the positive impact. None of them were strongly disagree about the same.

32%

45%

often not much never sometimes

18%

5%

Figure 3 Resistance Observed

INTERPRETATION: The employees were asked if they observed resistance to change in

organization the following responses were received : 45%(15 out of 32) of sometimes,
32%(11 out of 32) of often, 18%(5 out of 32) of not much, and 5%(1 out of 32) of never.

29
 9% 9%
5%

excellent above average average below average

unsatisfactory

32%
45%

Figure 4 Improvement in Employees' Productivity after implementing change

INTERPRETATION: When the employees were asked about the measure of their
improved productivity after any implemented change, most of them showed the 'above
average ' proportionality in the scale which is 45% ( 14 out of 32) of the employees and
then 32% (10 out of 32) of the employees with the 'average' proportion. 9% of the
employees also showed the 'excellent' measure of the improved productivity. Rest of the
employees had shown 'below average'& 'unsatisfactory' result.

30
 20%
25%

strongly agree agree neutral disagree

strongly disagree

20%

35%

Figure 5 Participation Of employees

INTERPRETATION: Employees were also asked about their Participation in

implementing changes taking place in MMTC to which the response received was
diversified. Where 35% of the employees (12 out of 32) were neutral.

23%

seek support avoid the change

acknowledge the change others

77%

Figure 6 Cope with the changes

31
INTERPRETATION: When employees were asked about how they cope with the certain
changes taking place in MMTC, 'Acknowledge the change and take actions' showed the
highest proportion with 77%, among the other given choices.

5%

9%

32%
27%

strongly agree
agree
neutral
disagree
strongly disagree

27%

Figure 7 Employees' opinion

INTERPRETATION: When employees were asked whether their opinion is sought or

not during any planned change, 32% (11 out of 32) with a bit higher proportion were
agree, than the 27% which has shown disagree and neutral outlook towards the same (16
out of 32 in total). Remaining 5% (2 out of 32) and 9 %( 3 out of 32) were interpreted
strongly agree and strongly disagree respectively.

32
 3%

11%
misunderstanding fear of the unknown 23% of competence
lack
poor communication not being consulted others

29%

26%

9%

Figure 8 Causes OF Resistance to Change in MMTC

INTERPRETATION: Analyzing on causes of the resistance to change, employees'

inclinations were not shown with higher deviations. 29% (10 out of 32) believed that due
to poor communication and 23% (7 out of 32) reflected that due to misunderstanding
they resist change, 26% (8 out of 32)of the employees possess resistance due to fear of
the unknown ,11% (4 out of 32)of the employees were not being consulted that's why
they possess resistance and remaining 8% (2 out of 32)and 3% (1 out of 32) had the
opinion that lack of competence and other signified factors makes the causes of
resistance to change respectively.

CHAPTER 5

CONCLUSION

33
5.1 Recap of the research

The study aimed to investigate the consequences of transformation and the impact on
individuals with a single case study at SHIVAS LTD., Delhi. The study was designed to
conduct questionnaire method as data collection method and empirical findings were
based on company’s material and the responses received from the questionnaires.

5.1.1 Employee reaction and resistance to change

The study confirms similar findings that employees have different levels of resistance
based on the information and education they get before change happens from
management team. It is common that different people have different opinions based on
their own values and personalities, but it is obvious that employee resistance can lead to
the failure of the change. Vital tools to lower employee resistance can be more employee
involvement and using effective communication. Negative feelings can be recognized
when the goal is not fulfilled, such as frustration and confusion. Whether employees
react to change negatively or positively depend on their own personality, perceptions as
the study shows, and to what extent it affects their daily work varies in each individual.
According to the employees, to cope with the changes that occurs in the organization
employees acknowledge the change, seek support and take actions accordingly. The
study also reflects that employee resistance has connections with motivational problems.
The management team should motive their employees alongside with the change
process, in case they become passive and not engaged with the active behavior. These
theories can have a good explanation about how employees’ daily work has been
affected by resistance to change. Employees at SHIVAS LTD., Delhi react to change
differently and resistance exists in the people that are not engaged with the change. They
did not get the clear view of why the change happens, but they spent time to understand
their new roles and the new structure. They want to have values in their work life and
have a contribution to the organization. If the change is too fast and they do not have
enough time to prepare for it, it would not turn into a good result. Employees at SHIVAS
Ltd. believed that resistance to change is caused by fear of the unknown, lack of

34
competence and poor communication. To overcome the resistance employees believed
that proper communication, training, positive motivation, and participation of the
employees as well as the managers should be there. The transformation at SHIVAS
LTD., Delhi got employees resistance from different perspectives but everyone in the
change process tried to let the negative emotions go and work in a new more efficient
and flexible way in order to reach the company’s goal, which is good for the company.

The use of communication is discussed in the study. There are problems with the
communication during the changes taking place and the influence on individuals.
Employees care about the involvement and information during the change process. The
implemented change could cause negative resistance and emotions, such as worries and
anxiety, insecurity about the job status among employees, which may create bad working
environmentand affect efficiency. The unclear information can also be the reason why
employees are dissatisfied with the ongoing change project and thus rumors and gossips
are spread among employees, which lead to a negative impact on each individual. It is
crucial for managers to step out of their offices and listen to their employees’ opinions in
order to nurture a better relationship and collaboration with them. Furthermore,
employees need information about changes at the earliest stage in order to prepare
themselves. By listening to employees’ opinions before a decision taken, employees will
feel more involved in the change process and commit to the implemented change
process.

Limitations also exist in the study due to the fact that this is a single case study with a
certain organization. It might be difficult to say the result can be applied to all
organizations in different places. The culture differences may also lead to different
results. Moreover, I did not have enough time to interview more people from the
management level in order to get a better view from a more strategic angle. Lastly, the
interview questions were based on researcher’s own interpretation where subjectivity
should be part of the things that should be aware of.

35
5.1.2 Solutions to prevent resistance to change

To prevent the harmful effects of resistance to change, we propose a model for leaders
with five pillars. Change team has several options to manage resistance to change in a
positive way.

Trainin
Particip g
Efficie
ation &
nt
Involve
Comm
ment of
unicati
Manag
on
ers
Particip
ation & Positiv
Involve e
ment of Motiva
Emplo tion
yees is the training of employees involved in making the employees familiar
The first solution
with the change. The goal is to educate people about the change before it is
implemented, and to help them understand the logic and necessity of the process of
change. This approach is most effective when implementing radical changes in the
organization, such as the introduction of the latest IT systems and organizational culture
change. The training should be conducted by external consultants, and courses must be
attended by both performers and organization managers. Basically, as you are running
more information about the change, you achieve a higher degree of awareness of it,
increases the understanding of the need to change, and through the support of the
organization (information meetings, training, coaching, mentoring, etc.), it can be
achieved greater employee involvement and acceptance of the implemented changes,
initially at the individual level, then across the whole organization.
36
The second solution is effective and active communication. Clear, transparent and honest
communication, regarding the need for change and its impact is essential to the success
of the initiative. Also, the manager responsible for communication must have sufficient
authority in the organization. It is advantageous that the communication process be
focused more on the need to change and less on the details of implementation, so that
people don’t lose sight of the main objective during the implementation of the process.
Once fear about what will follow is reduced, the change will be more easily accepted
within the organization. If the change adversely affects employees, this must be
communicated clearly and honestly from the beginning, thus avoiding rumors and
generating respect and trust towards leaders. Leaders must work to understand how the
changes will affect the roles of employees and communicate clearly. Clear planning is
essential for employee adoption and success of the implemented change.

Positive and negative motivation involves providing financial incentives to those who
have helped to achieve the goals of the transformation. Positive motivation, by many
satisfactions it generate, contribute to the establishment of a high moral and personal
development of employees, at shaping a good organizational climate for work and high
performance organization. In other cases, exist the situation in which managers’ offers
incentives to those who may oppose change. This compensations are managed to provide
special benefits in exchange for the safety of that changes will not be blocked. This
solution is good when we are dealing with a person or group of persons who lose
something valuable on change. Often, those who resist are threatened by a variety of
undesirable consequences if they not comply change. This situation (compensations)
appears in crisis situation, when speed is essential, as a last solution to manage the
severe consequences of failure to adapt.

The participation and involvement of employees is about obtaining employee support

and understanding the collective effort needed to make managerial reengineering. People
tend to support initiatives in which they are directly involved and have their own
contribution; their unique approaches from different angles, first-hand information and
professional experience add value to the strategic structure of the project and bring
things in concrete, feasible way. Thus, it succeeds a potential directions of strategic
action, with the advantage that there is already agreement to employees. This type of
37
involvement has a greater impact on change, resulting from the fact that employees
participate with proposals and implement effective solutions, which is an important
advantage because the process of change benefit from the experience, commitment and
creativity of the participants.

Typically, organizational change requires more resources (financial, human,

technological), time and leadership, which can only be achieved by involving the general
manager or some members of the Board of Directors. Leaders assume personal
responsibility for actions and circumstances that led to strained relations work, thus
gaining the respect of employees. Too many leaders focus too much on management and
too little on leadership.

5.2 Managerial implications

Companies should abandon the old stereotype when talking about changes. The changes
are not always negative, according to the findings of this study. Regarding the existing
implemented HR transformation project, a few implications on the project and
suggestions regarding HR transformation on how to close down this process and what
can be done will be given in this part.

This research study provides an understanding on sources of resistance to change in an

organization. During implementation of any change, employees of all types are likely
toresist change on some level. Everyone from front-line, entry-level employees to senior
managementhave their own motivations, fears and things that make them tick. By
identifying the sources ofresistance and building an organizational change management
plan, we can addresses the various human elements that contribute to resistance. Finding
solutions in terms of employee resistance to change is seen as an essential process for an
organization implementing transformations in order to achieve expected results, to meet
flexible business environments that are becoming increasingly more dynamic. The
change of mentality, attitude and behavior, to allow fundamental rethinking and
redesigning business activities, establishment of structures and new working
relationships in orderto maximize organizational efficiency, cannot be created without

38
the full involvement of employees. Throughout each phase of the change, leaders and
managers must communicate consistently to manage change and adjust expectations.

Analyzing the existent literature and the answers of 32 employees of MMTC Ltd., we
conclude that resistance to change is the greatest challenge of management. Trainingand
alongside communication are some of the top factors that have led to a successful
organizational transformation. It requires that all changes be clearly communicated to
anyone involved, no matter how unimportant it may seem position in the organization.
Thus, all will feel "part" component of change and will assume responsibilities more
active. While transformation, the focus should be on people and processes.

39
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