Improvisational Change:

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Improvisational Change:

Managing Change in Uncertain Times

“Making Digital Business Pay”

“Making Digital Business Pay” November 2002

Wanda J. Orlikowski

Sloan School of Management Sloan School of Management

Massachusetts Institute of Technology Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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© Wanda J. Orlikowski

•

Why a new approach to managing

change?

– planned vs. improvisational

•

Improvisational change in practice

– case study: virtual community @ Sloan

•

Implications of a new change approach

Outline

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Why a New Change Approach?

In the networked economy, planned change approaches are less effective, given:

– nature of new technologies:

• web-based, networked, emerging • unprecedented capabilities

• unknown organizational effects

– current and future business environment:

• global and diverse • complex and digital

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Imagine you are milling about in

a large casino with the top figures in

high

high--tech tech —— the Gates, the Gates, GerstnersGerstners, and , and Groves of their industries. Over at

Groves of their industries. Over at

one table, a game is starting called

Multi

Multi--media. At another table is a media. At another table is a game called Web Services. In the

game called Web Services. In the

corner is Electronic Banking. There

are many such tables. You sit at one.

…

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“How much to play?” you ask.

“Three billion” the croupier replies. “Three billion” the croupier replies. “Who will be playing?”

“Who will be playing?”

“We won’t know until they show up.” “We won’t know until they show up.” “What are the rules?”

“What are the rules?”

“Those will emerge as the game “Those will emerge as the game unfolds.”

unfolds.”

“What are my odds of winning?”

“We can’t say. Do you still want to “We can’t say. Do you still want to play?”

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A traditional plannedplanned change approach:

– manages change as a discrete event

unfreeze

unfreeze——changechange——refreezerefreeze

– assumes most of the changes can be

anticipated and implemented upfront

– dedicates most of the resources early, to planning, design,

implementation

Planned

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Planned

Process of Change

Acquisition

of

Technology

Technology _{Implementation}_{Implementation}

of Technology and of Technology and new Business new Business Processes Processes

Expected Stable Use

of Technology with new

Business Processes Business Processes Maintenance or Maintenance or Adjustment of Adjustment of Technology and Technology and Business Business Processes Processes Change of Technology Change of Technology and Business and Business Processes Processes

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An improvisationalimprovisational change approach may be more useful for managing change given today’s environment and today’s technologies:

– manages change as a process not an event

– assumes changes are ongoing and will be both anticipated and unanticipated

– distributes resources throughout period of technology use, facilitating adaptation, experimentation, and learning in context

Improvisational

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© Wanda J. Orlikowski Emergent Change Opportunistic Change Emergent Change Planned Change Planned Change

Improvisational

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Case Study:

Sloan

Class of 2001

• Decision in late 1997 to shift from traditional to web-based MBA application process

• Motivation for change:

– cost savings in publications – more efficient data handling

– enhanced image of technical leadership

• Partnership with GradAdvantage to create eAdmissions process

[research with JoAnne Yates and Nils Fonstad]

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Development of

2001

eCommunity

• Emergence of eCommunity at chat session

• “Guerilla marketing”

• Link on Sloan admissions site

– request from students

– Sloan decision to include link

• Electronic Newsletter

– admissions staff and students generate idea – students create first newsletter within a week

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Improvisational

Process of

_{Process of}

Change

A few students chat on Sloan website and develop idea of launching a club on Yahoo Admissions staff launch web-based application system Admission s staff launch Sloan admissions website Students market the Yahoo club Admissions staff put link to club on Sloan website Students dramatically increase their participation in Yahoo club Admissions staff encourage students to create an electronic newsletter International students increase their participation in club Admissions staff send email

notification of newsletter to all students Students create Sloan Yahoo Club

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• Planned changePlanned change

– implementation of online Sloan applications – creation of Sloan admissions website

•

• Emergent changeEmergent change

– developing idea to start Yahoo! Club

– increasing student participation in Yahoo! Club

•

• Opportunistic changeOpportunistic change

– creating Yahoo! Club for Sloan Class of 2001 – adding Yahoo! Club link to Sloan website

Different Types of Change

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Lessons for Managing

Improvisational Change

• Planned change may be a limited process of organizational change in uncertain times

• Unanticipated emergent changes can be both positive as well as negative

• Positive emergent changes can be amplified through reinforcing opportunistic changes

• Opportunistic changes can build on emergent changes, if participants:

– are aware of, and encourage emergent changes

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• Need to reframe assumptions and

expectations about type and pace of change

• Need to redefine evaluation criteria and metrics • Need to create enabling conditions for

emergent and opportunistic changes:

– distribution of organizational, technical, and financial resources over time

– ongoing attention to experimentation, learning, and change by all participants

Implications of

Improvisational Change

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When the games themselves are

not even fully defined, you cannot plan,

control, or optimize. What you can do

is adapt. Adaptation, in the proactive

sense, means watching for the next

wave that is coming, figuring out what

shape it will take, and positioning the

company to take advantage of it.

[W. Brian Arthur, 1996]