Running Head: Action Plan – Organizational Dynamics

ACTION PLAN –
ORGANIZATIONAL
DYNAMICS

RON JOHNSON
Caliifornia Department of Education
Action Plan – Organizational Dynamics 1

Ron Johnson

Action Plan - Organizational Dynamics

EAD 801 – Michigan State University - Arnold

Action Plan – Organizational Dynamics 2

Statement:
My adaptive challenge is assisting in connecting dysfunctional funding unit staff to
departmental mission through internal management training designed to impact staff in a
transformational manner and adaptively change organizational dynamic within the unit and
department as a whole.

The adaptive challenge originally identified related to a new manager tasked with

increasing the performance of an underachieving unit within the division. Assumptions theorized

included a culture of mediocrity and laziness, however after lengthy discussion with colleagues

and thorough internalization of the adaptive challenge, it is clear the issue that plagues the

funding unit is less of incompetence and lack of desire and rather a need for personal

empowerment and ownership of position.

Arriving at this framework occurred after speaking with various staff members in unit,

the consensus reporting feeling marginalized and unable to connect with purpose to experience a

sense of ownership that ultimately will lead to adaptive change in terms of job satisfaction and

appropriating funding accurately. State-contracted agencies are responsible for submitting

funding applications, but a systemic issue yielded undesired results; many did not get

submitted/scored due to protocol not being properly communicated. Applications were denied

post-deadline with no recourse for resubmission to meet state regulations. A proactive approach

was needed by engaged, dedicated staff to ensure this issue occurred at a lower rate to avoid

agencies not receiving additional funding for quality childcare programs. As Heifitz states, it is

important when framing the challenge to, “connect your language to the group’s espoused values

and purpose”. (Heifitz, 2009) The vast majority of staff I’ve spoken with hold a progressive

mindset; their reason for applying to work at the department due to a desire to be part of an

organization that assists disadvantaged children in reaching their full potential. These discussions

of espoused values and purpose proved essential to framing an action plan to improve not only
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the unit, but also the dynamic department-wide through enhancing positive vital forces amongst

staff.

Technical elements involved in this challenge include updating desk manuals for each

unit position to ensure current regulations are updated and common issues related to funding

denials are noted by incumbents for incoming analysts to learn from. There is also a need for

technical assistance training on regulations, specifically continuing education so everyone is up

to date on funding regulations and training on advanced software programs to ensure data reports

are accurate, efficient and aesthetically pleasing to promote effective communication. Finally, we

put too much responsibility on contractors – there is a need to shore up internal protocol whereas

staff is required to proactively contact agencies early in the funding process to discuss any issues

that may lead to a funding denial.

Adaptive elements include inducing staff to take ownership of their position. This is

advanced by connecting staff to the departmental mission and includes engaging staff more

effectively to increase work aptitude through motivation of potential promotional opportunities

within the organization. It includes promoting more internal candidates – currently the

department prefers to hire external candidates rather than develop from within – and increasing

staff’s technical skillset and raising personal empowerment via leadership training courses

designed to encourage sharing of ideas with management. This can be accomplished by training

management to meet with staff regularly to identify career goals and tie-in to personally identify

with the organization’s mission in order to help them contribute passionately in the field of

education. Additionally staff can visually identify with their position in greater scope when

shown a video presentation of children and the potential negative outcomes of being denied
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access to quality care, such as data correlating increased crime to children not involved in a

quality child care program at an early age.

I originally figured taking on a role of an internal auditor would be the best bet – to come

in after funding denials and punitively assess staff work to assist in transformative change. After

further diagnosis, management training is better suited for Manager I to understand the

importance of connecting staff to division objectives, specifically the significance of quality

childcare to socio-emotional development and school readiness of young kids in low-income,

uneducated families. So instead of advocating for a position of internal auditor for the division,

my diagnosis has led to an understanding I would better serve my division by taking on a lead

role in management training.

Speaking with frontline managers, it is clear that governmental management training

programs consist of mostly transactional skills. These concepts include avoiding legal issues

such as grievances against the state, punitive actions taken against employees, alternative work

schedules, bargaining unit regulations, etc. There is very little training offered in terms of

connecting staff to work and increasing vital forces within the workplace; the idea being these

are common sense issues rather than training opportunities. This is an area I can affect change.

Below I have listed my goal and action timeline to implement changes.

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Goal: Management Training Program – Transformational Leadership

Actions, Tasks Require Time Key Persons Indicators of Success Lookouts, Concerns
Horizon Responsible (about readiness,
conflicts, capacity,
etc.)
Objective/Step 1
Authorize inception Concerns of
Politics – Gain Allies transformational transactional
Administrators, Managers, Key 3 months Me management managers feeling
Staff with Influence training program marginalized,
becoming toxic

Objective/Step 2 Managers open to, Concerns of

Administrators and excited about, to transactional
Managers Meeting 1 day Director participating in managers feeling
program marginalized,
becoming toxic
Objective/Step 3
Burden to education
Research and compile 1 week Me N/A research analysts on
qualitative/quantitative data Research additional report
Analysts requests

Objective/Step 4 Am I incorporating
all pertinent data to
Create Management Training Me Completed program, affect change? Need
Program 1 month Administrators Director approval to properly identify
resources/subject
matter experts
Objective/Step 5 Request for Concerns of
4 meetings, Application funding transactional
Train Managers held bi- Me applications managers feeling
weekly (2 completed marginalized,
months total) accurately at higher becoming toxic
percentage rate

The logic of this plan is that it addresses cultural elements missing from the current

workforce, including a lack of dedication to the mission of the organization. The specific focus

in the funding unit’s division is early education and support, with the stated goal to: Provide

leadership and support to contractors and the child development community, ensuring high

quality early education programs are provided to children ages birth to 13 years. The attempt to
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connect this focus to collective funding staff values is politically tricky, as Manager I has a clear

mental model of how a manager should lead. This model limits her impact as it contains “deeply

held internal images of how the world works, images that limit us to familiar ways of thinking or

acting” (Senge, 1992) . The ideas of governance and individualized consideration of staff

ambitions and values don’t have a place currently in her model. She espouses a value of strength,

believing a leader dictates all functions of the unit without discussion. However, through probing

I have come to realize she and her supervisor, Manager II, share values of workplace synergy,

specifically the increasing of vital forces throughout the division to create a more relaxed,

harmonious workplace. A connection could be made by tying in personal empowerment with a

more relaxed state in the office.

Gaining political support in advance of pitching the idea of an internal management

trainer is crucial to selling the idea. Analyzing the organizational chart and closely observing

office dynamics illustrates how to proceed to gain allies. Manager II has power and influence, as

the direct liaison to the Division Director and oversight for the manager of the funding unit.

Heifitz notes that one way to lead adaptive change is to “score early wins” so I would use my

position as Budget Analyst to authorize certain state operations cuts to allow flexible spending in

other areas of concern for Manager II, such as in-state travel authority for much needed parent

appeals trainings in the northern region of California, an area badly in need of technical

assistance in those areas. (Heifitz, 2009) These small victories that matter to Manager II help

expand informal authority through competence and catering to Manager IIs espoused values as a

former appeals analyst and advocate for parent rights. Fiscal conservatism is an espoused value

of the Director, who has a background in private industry where internal profits/bottom line are

correlated with success. An understanding of the relationship between Manager II and the
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Director helps to weight the importance of connecting fiscal savings to increased appeals

trainings and will increase my informal authority. Over-delivering on commitments during these

small victories help in the attempt to politically align with those allies who will support a

management trainer position and training program plan.

Part of ensuring an effective management training program is openly received is being

mindful that espoused values from organizational leaders are often referred to in departmental

meetings, with a firm understanding that “consistency and continuous reinforcement are

necessary for it to evolve to a systemic cultural level” (Avolio, 2011). I would not consider the

ripeness/readiness of this issue to be urgent, as the cultural toxicity is not generalized

systemically, however the lack of quality work and dedication to local agency funding reflected

by this unit makes this an adaptive challenge that needs to be cultivated on the ground level as

soon as possible. Allaying fears from Manager I who possesses a traditional transactional base

focusing on work products and less on people, will be a challenge. This individual needs to be

dispensable, encouraging independent judgment to create adaptive change. Management training

meetings will have to be designed to show leaders that humility and more of a governance

approach will strengthen relationships, establish credibility/trust and ultimately provide

beneficial in increased funding of agencies with families in need.

Conflict must be orchestrated strategically to spark a paradigm shift of Manager I’s

ideology and assist in acceptance of less bullish outward power and influence over staff.

Management training must be designed with the idea of giving the work back, and delegating

more important work to promote better work efficiency. I would incorporate a leadership

credibility poll indicating the four most common elements willing followers look for: Honesty,

Forward-Looking, Competent, Inspiring. (Kouzes, 2003) Advocating self-reflection into

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management technique is crucial to adaptive change. It is imperative to gain Manager I as an ally

by privately meeting and giving examples of adaptive change occurring when giving more

freedom to staff, demonstrating that disseminating work more appropriately ultimately lead to

strengthening competencies by allowing adaptive change to occur organically by lessening the

dependency on management. I expect initial resistance to this intervention due to fear of loss,

and anticipate potentially a work avoidance approach by Manager I who may feel her position is

being marginalized. It’s important throughout this transition process to keep work at the center

by indicating how much additional time she could spend focusing on tightening up regulatory

standards, which are more high-profile issues that fall in line with her espoused values of making

a greater programmatic impact.

An integral piece to this action plan is the use of data, and its relevance strategically for

ownership in each individual, creating a sense of pride in the work force towards a shared

mission. Seeking out subject matter experts to connect the work we do in education to real life

outcomes is key. Specifically, enlisting education research analysts in our division to produce

qualitative data correlating the significance of quality childcare to socio-emotional development

and school readiness of young kids, specifically in low-income, uneducated families. This

quantitative data would be incorporated in management meetings for context, and then

disseminated out in staff meetings in a trickle down methodology served to promote personal

purpose within each member of the unit.