ACTION PLAN FOR CHANGE IN PUBLIC ORGANIZATIONS 2

Action Plan for Change in Public Organizations

Contents of change in an organization mean little if they are not implemented. An action
plan helps an organization to effectively implement the desired changes. Here is a look at my
action plan for implementation of conflict management policy change in an the police
department.
Details of the action plan
The desired changes seek to make conflict management less formal and more timely. The
action plan speeds up the implementation and makes sure that it is communicated appropriately
to all stakeholders.
Given the high centralization and bureaucracy of public organizations, the contents of the
changes and the action plan will first be approved by senior management. Once the approval is
made the changes will be communicated to members by placing them on registers. This process
will take place on the same day that the plan is approved. In addition to the registers, contents of
the plan can be posted on intranet by the communication managers. Once this posting is done,
the plans can be reviewed and all staff informed about them.
The contents of change will include conflict management procedures, a review of key
principles regarding conflicts such as their nature, causes, and signs. It will also include
appropriate communication in conflict situations and methods of de-escalating conflicts. As
explained earlier, the planned changes will emphasize timely solution of conflicts between
conflicting parties without having to take their issues to managers or human resources personnel.

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The changes will also seek to promote compromise as a strategy of conflict resolution.
Compromise is my personal strategy for conflict management that I use both in my personal and
professional life. It encourages parties in a conflict to give up some elements of their position
with the goal of establishing a solution that is acceptable to all the parties involved in the conflict
(Folger et al., 2017). At a personal level I have found the strategy to be highly effective. It is not
only timely but also fosters mutual respect.
I believe that it can also be effective at an organizational level. Given that the
organization being considered is a police department where most of its work occurs at team
level, compromise is likely to be effective because it is suitable for persons with relatively same
amount of power (Folger et al., 2017). Most police teams are made up of individuals whose
powers vary only slightly. Often a team may have members of the same rank led by either one of
them or an officer with just one rank above them. Thus, compromise is likely to work for such
teams.
Priorities for public managers and employees during change process
During the change process there are a number of priorities that both employees and
public managers should posses. One of them is adherence to the law (Carnevale, 2018). The
changes made to the organization have to be legal both in their content and in their
implementation. Any change that goes against the law is unlikely to last long as it will only be a
matter of time before it is struck down. In addition to adherence to the law, both employees and
public managers have to be ethically minded (Carnevale, 2018). For instance, the changes should
not be seen to be imposing values of one person on others. Neither should they limit anyone’s
freedom.

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Relationship between the policy changes and theory
The policy change proposed is based on systems theory of conflict. This theory provides
a method of conflict analysis that focuses more on patterns of interactions in a system rather than
isolating individual behaviors (Hayes, 2018). It also looks at how the roles of individuals in a
system affect their behaviors. For instance, in the case of a police department, systems theory
will seek to understand how police culture and roles of individuals in the departments affects
their behaviors towards their peers, seniors, and juniors (Denhardt et al., 2018). According to this
theory, conflict management policy can only be effective if it addresses it as an organization-
wide problem, created or fostered by the organization’s culture rather than as an individual
problem.
Methods for effective change implementation
No matter how good changes are, they can still cause significant disruptions to normal
working if they are not implemented well. Good implementation is one that is done in a smooth
and seamless manner so that it has no effect on morale, productivity, and effectiveness of
employees (Streiss, 2019).
There are a number of things that can be done to make sure that there is such transition.
One of them is to involve employees both in the formulation and implementation of the change.
Resistance to change or little buy-in is usually a reflection of minimal or non-existent
involvement of people affected by given changes.
Another way of encouraging quick buy-in to change and, therefore, smooth
implementation of the changes is to sell the changes not just logically but also emotionally
(Fernandez & Rainey, 2017). For instance, you could provide examples of employees who

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suffered depression due to constant conflicts with their colleagues and/or superiors and which
remained unresolved. When employees are convinced at an emotional level that proposed
changes are needed they will gladly partake in their implementation and, therefore, make the
process smooth and seamless.
In conclusion, an action plan puts proposed changes into practice. One of its goals is to
make sure that changes are effectively communicated and, therefore, get the maximum buy-in
possible. When changes are widely accepted, it is easier to have a seamless and smooth
implementation.

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References

Carnevale, D. (2018). Organizational development in the public sector. Routledge.
Denhardt, R. B., Denhardt, J. V., Aristigueta, M. P., & Rawlings, K. C. (2018). Managing human
behavior in public and nonprofit organizations. CQ Press.
Fernandez, S., & Rainey, H. G. (2017). Managing successful organizational change in the public
sector. In Debating Public Administration (pp. 7-26). Routledge.
Folger, J., Poole, M. S., & Stutman, R. K. (2017). Working through conflict: Strategies for
relationships, groups, and organizations. Routledge.
Hayes, J. (2018). The theory and practice of change management. Palgrave.
Steiss, A. W. (2019). Strategic management for public and nonprofit organizations. Routledge.