Organizational Change-Gillman

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1 FINAL PAPER Final Paper: Change in the Military- Kotter 8 Step Change Model Ashawnta Gillman MGT 435: Organizational Change Professor Rob Shah October 31, 2022

2 FINAL PAPER Introduction Every organization, whether big or small, will eventually come face to face with organizational change. Change is inevitable, and it is crucial for companies to expand and to remain competitive in their respective market. An organization that resists change is essentially setting itself up for failure by not staying up to date. However, implementing change within an organization is an extremely important but complex process that can be a difficult task for any company. There are many different change theories that aid by providing step by step guidance on how to effectively establish successful change ideas. In this paper I will be focusing on changes needing to happen in the military while coming up with resolutions to the issues using Kotter’s 8 Step Change Model. By following each step of Kotter’s 8 Step approach, an organization can increase the possibility of successful change and can create a positive work environment while doing so. Organization Overview The United States Air Force is one of the many sister branches that U.S. citizens can volunteer to join. Each branch consists of service members within three different service categories, which include Active Duty, Guard, and Reserves. An Active-Duty member is essentially a full-time worker. Their job consists of what their respective AFSC is at that time and although it may be their day off, they are required to report to duty at any time they are called to do so. Guard and Reserve members would be considered your part-time employees. They are required to attend drill for one weekend out of the month to remain qualified for their

3 FINAL PAPER jobs as well as training or appointments. Although there are differences between the different components and the different branches, they all work together to accomplish the same end goal or mission. Now to dive into my AFSC specifically, I am an Aircraft Mechanic. I currently belong to a maintenance squadron that falls under a maintenance group. Next in line is the Airlift Wing, which typically is formed of higher ranking Officers. Within my squadron we are broken down into different sections. My section specifically would be Instruments and Flight Control Systems. A normal day of work for me would start with a roll call and then I would proceed to go over our priority jobs for the day. On a normal day we are not very busy and I am typically doing some training, then we have our super busy days and we are swamped with work. I can be on the flight line working anywhere from one till two hours or a full eight hour shift. Issues With My AFSC One main problem area would be the technical training that is provided is not adequate and is not beneficial to the majority of the trainees. The technical training is typically six months long broken into two portions. Most trainees that go into my career field, much like myself, come in right out of high school and have little to no mechanical experience.The aircraft that we used for training was heavily outdated and most of the course text did not pertain to my aircraft specifically. When I arrived at my first duty location, I had no idea how anything on the C17 worked. The purpose of technical training is to prepare us so when we move onto the operational side of the Air Force. As well as providing us with a general idea of what we are doing and what we can accomplish. Instead, the training is accomplished by PowerPoint with an overwhelming amount of information that will be forgotten as soon as you take the test and move on to the next block. Essentially, the form of technical training provided is useless and needs change

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4 FINAL PAPER drastically. After being in for five years, I see these new Airmen come into my office and struggle with the same issues I did when I first came in. Instead of getting the proper training on what it really is like working on the C-17, I have to begin by getting them started on more boring PowerPoint training. This is a waste of our time and resources and it is setting our new Airmen up for failure when they come to work for the first time. In order to make the training more effective, I advocate that the course is revamped to focus less on basic knowledge that is not being retained, and more on-the-job training. Kotter’s Eight Step Approach Step one of Kotter's approach is to establish a sense of urgency. "Kotter (2008) argued that significant change generally fails if a sense of urgency is not first created and realized." (Weiss,2016). Although the proposed change is not a matter of the entire Air Force failing if it is not achieved in a timely manner, it is critical that the current form of training is revamped. The military retention rate is decreasing and not at a gradual pace. “Retaining motivated and technically adept enlisted men and women is becoming more and more difficult for Air Force personnel officials(Grier, 2008).” Budget restraints have forced major cuts in the Air Force, to include our manning. The former Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson and Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein has referred to the branch as a rubber band that has been stretched too far and may possibly break very soon (McCullough, 2018). These manning cuts have negatively impacted the force as we are expected to do more with less people. Due to this, the career field needs better equipped airmen right out of training. Training is one of the crucial aspects to the military, and when new airmen arrive to your section, the main goal is to get them trained and up to speed as soon as possible so they can start assisting in the workload. Yet, it is extremely challenging training new Airmen because you have to not only train them on their job, but also

5 FINAL PAPER prepare them for what it is really like being on the operational side of the maintenance world. This obstacle could be overcomed if they were able to get hands -on experience during their technical training prior to arriving at their first duty location. Step two is to form a powerful guiding coalition, which means organizing a group with enough vision and power to lead the change (Tanner, 2018). Since this change involves my career field, the first person I would go to is my Career Field Manager because unfortunately her rank would have more influence and pull than mine. Her role is to look into proposals such as new training proposals and determine what it would take to implement that change and if it is necessary or more efficient. For the revamping to be considered, I would also need to coordinate with the training leaders at the Air Education and Training Command, who manage the training curriculum for the maintenance course. Step three consists of creating the vision. With my team that I have formed in step two, I would need to sit down and determine what needs to change. From there I can find how to change it, and come up with a timeline for implementing the change. Each block would need to be restructured and new training material would need to be created.The first change I would want to take place is the location of the technical school. I think that they should relocate them to bases that have the respective aircrafts each airmen is assigned to. This would aid in allowing them more on-the-job training as well as eliminate training on outdated aircrafts. Block One would be based on basics of avionics . During this block, students will learn how to analyze malfunctions, inspect, remove, maintain, and install integrated avionics systems. This is where trainees will have the opportunity to hone the basic skills of being an Avionics Technician. Once every trainee has shown that they have an understanding of the basics they would move on to on the job training which would be covered in the remaining blocks. Block Two would focus on the

6 FINAL PAPER Flight Controls system. Trainees would use their knowledge to perform assigned tasks at the end of block. Students would be paired up and given a maintenance issue that they would have to troubleshoot and fix. Block Three would focus on wiring. Instructors would provide an in-depth lesson on all the need to know of wiring. They would explain how to order wire as well as building wire bundles. At the end of the block trainees would have a hands-on assignment of building a wire to show they retained the information taught. Block Four would focus on the fuel system.In this block instructors would go over common and uncommon fuel indication issues. Trainees will also be trained on how to troubleshoot and possible fixes for those issues. Block Six would focus on the air data system and navigation system. It would be structured the same as the previous block. Block Seven would focus on mission computing. The last block would be a study based section of training, preparing them for their final exam. In addition to creating an outline for the new curriculum, a timeline will need to be established to create new teaching material, get the proper approval, and to finalize the changes on paper. Step four requires the vision to now be communicated to those the change will immediately affect once the vision has been established. This is a crucial step in the process, because the instructors will need the time to become familiar with the new training curriculum. The instructors play a key role in the success of this change because they will be the one teaching the new information to the trainees. Instructors would need to monitor the change and provide feedback to their leaders on the progress of the new change. If they run into any issues forming in one of the blocks or if the new curriculum is not as effective, they should feel empowered to recommend that another change be implemented until we get it right. In order for the change to be effective, the Career Field Manager and the Training Leaders need to be open-minded and

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7 FINAL PAPER transparent with the instructors during this process and they need to make it clear that they play a vital role in its success. Step five consists of empowering others to act on the vision. "Communication alone, however, will not empower employees to adopt and adapt to the required changes. Assigning competent and willing individuals to enact change is important and is critical for success."(Weiss, 2016). In order for this training to be effective, the instructors will first have to learn the new material and feel comfortable teaching it to a class. A training course for the instructors will be provided to ensure all instructors have an understanding of the course as well as brainstorm and come up with the most effective ways to teach the material. This may make the process a little longer, but it is necessary for the training to work like it is designed to, so these students can retain more training during their technical training. Step Six involves planning and creating short term wins, which means identifying where improvements have been made and recognizing the efforts of those who helped to accomplish the improvement. An example of a small win would be the instructors completing the new training course and providing feedback that helps better the material. It will take a while for the changes to take effect in the operational Air Force, but the small wins eventually add up and bases will begin to notice a change with the new Airmen that come to their office. Instructors who contributed should be recognized as well for their hard efforts, cooperation and patience during this process. Step Seven requires the consolidation of improvements and the production of more change. By this time, the instructors would have completed their training on the new course curriculum and are teaching the material to students. Trainees and instructors would be encouraged to give feedback at the end of each course to identify any areas that could use some

8 FINAL PAPER improvement or any systems that should be added to the course. After several months and even years, the training leaders should be able to gather information from the feedback provided to see if the new training is effective once the graduates get to their first duty location. The overall goal of this revamped course is to provide quality training to airmen so they are more equipped once they arrive at their new base. The best way to determine the effectiveness of the new training is to hear from the trainees themselves on whether they feel well knowledgeable and prepared to enter the operational world. Any and All recommendations should be considered and researched during this step. The final step of Kotter's change process is to institutionalize new approaches in the culture. In other words, one must make the change accepted within the organization's culture(Weiss, 2016). The best way to get acceptance to a change is communication. Leaders should explain why the change needs to happen. “People change faster when they have purpose. Explaining why your organization needs to change will engage people more quickly with the new ways of working. If we believe in the why, we can accept the smaller process changes as being justified(Armeson, 2018)” The first step would be getting the new proposal idea out and talked about. Taking the time to visit bases shows how important and necessary this revamp is. This will allow questions and concerns to be heard from by our leadership. Furthermore, guidance will be provided via various outlets including the official military website so those affected are able read and do their research on the changes being made. Once they do their research, I am confident that they will understand and agree that change is long overdue and the new curriculum will only benefit them.

9 FINAL PAPER Conclusion Implementing change within an organization is an extremely complex process that can also be difficult for any company, no matter the size. Change is inevitable, and eventually every organization will have to implement changes for the better of the organization, or will have to react to change that was not planned. By following each step of Kotter's 8 Step Change Model, an organization can increase the possibility of successful change and can create a positive work environment while doing so. The key to implementing successful change within an organization is to make a strong case, establish vision, sustain the changes, and anticipate maintenance (Blasingame, 2013).For change to be effective, the motivation must come from every individual at every level. Leaders cannot implement change on their own, they must rely on their employees to understand the vision and make it a reality. It is a team effort, and in order for the team to be successful, everyone must feel valued. If an organization follows the steps and keeps their team motivated, then they can conquer the complexity of change.

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10 FINAL PAPER References: 2A8X2 – MOBILITY AIR FORCES INTEGRATED INSTRUMENT AND FLIGHT CONTROL SYSTEMS AFSC. (2021, April 25). Forever Wingman. https://foreverwingman.com/career_fields/2a8x2-mobility-air-forces-integrated- instrument-and-flight-control-systems/ Armeson, R. (2018, March 21). Why having purpose behind change is fundamental to success. Thinking Focus. https://thinkingfocus.com/why-having-purpose-behind-change-is-fundamental-to- success/ Armeson, R. (2018, March 21). Why having purpose behind change is fundamental to success. Thinking Focus. https://thinkingfocus.com/why-having-purpose-behind-change-is- fundamental-to-success/ Blasingame, J. (2013, June 5). Are you managing change or leading it?Links to an external site. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimblasingame/2013/06/05/are-you- managing-change-or-leading-it Grier, P. (2008, July 15). The Retention Problem Spreads. Air & Space Forces Magazine. https://www.airandspaceforces.com/article/1098retention/ McCullough, Amy (February, 2018). USAF Has Too Many Missions and Not Enough Airmen.Retrieved from http://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArchive/Pages/2018/February%202018/ USAF-Has-Too-Many-Missions-and-Not-Enough-Airmen.aspx Tanner, Robert (2018) Kotter's 8 Step Leading Change Model. Retrieved from https://managementisajourney.com/summary-of-kotters-eight-step-leading-change-model Weiss, J. W. (2016). Organizational change (2nd ed.). Retrieved from https://content.uagc.edu/

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Organizational Change-Gillman

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