I am keen to identify recent literature that sheds light on this question. Most of the relevant literature that I have been able to identify was written 20 or more years ago, and I am wondering why this would be the case.
Mr Shaw,
You have posed an interesting question. If in your literature search you have not come across anything recent, would it be that researchers think that there is no mileage left in the topic, that it is all settled?
I happen to come from industry and my observations seem to suggest that the old adage “new brooms sweep clean” may be applicable here. I have seen how new management teams tend to bring about the changes that were necessary and previously not pushed through hard enough, changes that were unthinkable, changes which would make a break with the past. New members in the management team have no previous connections with what had happened before or was the norm, and therefore can steer a new course. They have no debts to pay, no loyalties hold them back, no regard for past practices, and can question scared cows. Thus, the way forward is much easier particularly as there are no friends to please or foes to worry about and the new management team member can set about doing what is needed. i hasten to add that much of what I say above is based on my experiences whilst working outside academia, at several organizations in several countries, plus my own intuitive thinking.
If there has not been any research in the last five or ten years, as you seem to have discovered, the way forward is clear, and the opportunity available to bring back the issue under the microscope should be seized. I certainly would…
Best wishes to you if you do want to go forward on the topic.
Hi Shaw,
It is indeed a very interesting question. I do believe it is a factor that can have a big impact on the success/failure of organisational change but literature on the role of senior management turnover in organisational change has been sparse.
An interesting political issue with recruiting new members of the senior management team, taking an IT project based organisational change for example, is that the previous person in the role could likely leave problems to the incoming person, and even if some problems emerged other members in the team may wait until the new person to come to fix them, which would potentially lead to time and budget blowouts of the project.
The following references are relevant to the role of senior management in technology-based organisational changes (not necessarily on recruiting new members of senior management team though) - hope they are useful to you:
Boonstra, A. (2013). How Do Top Managers Support Strategic Information System Projects and Why Do They Sometimes Withhold This Support? International Journal of Project Management, 31, 498-512.
Dong, L. (2008). Exploring the impact of top management support of enterprise systems implementations outcomes: Two cases. Business Process Management Journal, 14, 204-218.
Vijayakumar, U. (2009). Top Management Control Functions for Information Systems in Small and Medium Enterprises. Informatica Economica, 13, 109-115.
Liu, L. & Yetton, P. (2009). Sponsorship and IT vendor management of projects. Journal of Information Technology, 24, 46-54.
Fuchs, S. (2011). The impact of manager and top management identification on the relationship between perceived organizational justice and change-oriented behavior. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 32, 555-583.
Lederer, A. L. & Mendelow, A. L. (1988). Convincing Top Management of the Strategic Potential of Information Systems. MIS Quarterly, 12, 525-534.
Finkelstein, S. (1992). Power in Top Management Teams: Dimensions, Measurement, and Validation. The Academy of Management Journal, 35, 505-538.
I am happy to discuss further with you if you wish to go forward on the topic.
Cheers,
Michelle.
This is indeed a very interesting question regarding the likely role to be played by newly recruited executive team in managing organizational change. Firstly, it must be recognized that old team members would tend to view the need for organizational change in their own myopic vision, thereby rendering the change ineffective. The new team members with new ideas and without any bias are likely to be more effective in implementing the change, as they would start with a clean slate. In their role as change agents , they are likely to view organizational change as strategic need, and are likely to act towards organizational flexibility and adaptability. In knowledge era of today, organizational changes are effected thorough empowerment, participation and inspirational leadership.
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