Change Management or Change Leadership Which is more important Discuss Essay

Change Management or Change Leadership Which is more important Discuss - Essay Example This paper will particularly examine the two terms ‘change management’ and ‘change leadership’ and suggest which is more important in today’s highly competitive business environment. Change management Vs change leadership John Kotter (2011), the chief innovation officer of the Kotter International, has deeply researched into the difference between change management and change leadership. The author strongly says that these two terms are not interchangeable under any circumstance. According to Kotter, change management â€Å"refers to a set of basic tools or structures intended to keep any change effort under control† whereas the change leadership â€Å"concerns the driving forces, visions and processes that fuel large-scale transformation† (Kotter 2011). The major goal of the change management is to reduce the distractions and effects of the change maximum while the main objective of change leadership is to identify and promote various c hange driving factors that would fuel the planned change. Change management encompasses areas like planning, organising, and project management (Davis 2012). Change leadership tries to communicate the vision and the nature of the change process (ibid). Active participation of staff and other stakeholders is necessary to make the change leadership effective. ... Similarly, effective employee involvement is necessary to ensure greater commitment and support from their part.. Definition, explanation, and progression are crucial prerequisites to a successful change management program (ibid, pp. 209-210). It is identified that change management is a loosely defined term and hence different authors present different views to address this concept. Under the change management process, a range of ideas from areas like business, engineering, and psychology are applied to achieve desired outcomes (Hiatt & Creasey 2003, p. 11). In today’s business environment, many organisations fail to adapt to various changes properly because of various reasons. Change leadership is a primary solution to make the change management effective and to adapt to different organisational changes quickly and efficiently (Daft 2008, p. 454). Leaders have an inevitable role to play in promoting the change because they are the persons responsible for providing motivation and communication essential to keep the change efforts in the apt track; hence, strong and proactive leadership is a major factor determining the success of the change (ibid). A better change management model itself would not guarantee a successful change; instead, better supervision of the change management programme by an efficient and committed leader is vital to achieve expected goals (Orridge 2009, p.19). It is clear that a leader often needs to go beyond written check lists and fundamental operational models to understand his/her followers and their concerns and the feelings of the change. Therefore, under any circumstance, change leadership is the key to get the