Factors contributing to organizational change success or failure: a qualitative meta-analysis of 200 reflective case studies.

Jones, Jenni; Firth, Janet; Hannibal, Claire; Ogunseyin, Michael

Abstract

Change, and changing, exercise the minds of most managers most of the time. In consequence, leadership development and change management tend to be top priorities for many human resource development (HRD) professionals today. Despite this, much academic and practitioner literature suggests that 70% of all change programs fail. Through analyzing 200 organizational change case studies, this chapter examines this high failure rate, investigates leadership styles and their relationship to change, and explores the key factors that either enable or hinder successful change. The key findings of this examination were that the majority of the 200 studied change initiatives were considered successful and that using Kotter's change model, which has been long established, does not necessarily mean success; nor does the use of a democratic/participative leadership style. The most significant hindering factors and the key critical success factors are also acknowledged.

Citation

JONES, J., FIRTH, J., HANNIBAL, C. and OGUNSEYIN, M. 2019. Factors contributing to organizational change success or failure: a qualitative meta-analysis of 200 reflective case studies. In Hamlin, R.G., ELLINGER, A.D. and Jones, J. (eds.) Evidence-based initiatives for organizational change and development. Hershey, PA: IGI Global [online], pages 155-178. Available from: https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-6155-2.ch008

• Online Publication Date: Dec 31, 2018
• Publication Date: Dec 31, 2019
• Deposit Date: Nov 20, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 5, 2023
• Publisher: IGI Global
• Pages: 155-178
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-6155-2.ch008
• Keywords: Changes; Globalisation; Leadership development; Change management
• Public URL: https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/2015716
• Related Public URLs: https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/2015753 (book chapter reused in "Research anthology on digital transformation, organizational change, and the impact of remote work" )
• Additional Information: This book chapter was also later published as: JONES, J., FIRTH, J., HANNIBAL, C. and OGUNSEYIN, M. 2021. Factors contributing to organizational change success or failure: a qualitative meta-analysis of 200 reflective case studies. In Information Resources Management Association (eds.). Research anthology on digital transformation, organizational change, and the impact of remote work. Hershey, PA: IGI Global [online], chapter 71, pages 1427-1450. Available from: https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-7297-9.ch071