The effect of mental models on creating organizational alignment around a change vision

215 Pages·2015·1.02 MB·English

by  William A. Brantley

Walden University
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1-1-2009
The effect of mental models on creating
organizational alignment around a change vision
William A. Brantley
Walden University
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Walden University

COLLEGE OF SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES

This is to certify that the doctoral dissertation by

William Brantley

has been found to be complete and satisfactory in all respects,
and that any and all revisions required by
the review committee have been made.

Review Committee
Dr. Dale P. Swoboda, Committee Chairperson,
Public Policy and Administrations Faculty

Dr. Jason Lum, Committee Member,
Public Policy and Administrations Faculty

Dr. Gary Kelsey, Committee Member,
Public Policy and Administrations Faculty

Chief Academic Officer

Denise DeZolt, Ph.D.

Walden University
2009
ABSTRACT

The Effect of Mental Models On
Creating Organizational Alignment
Around A Change Vision

by

William A. Brantley

M.B.A., Jones International University, 2002
M.A., George Washington University, 1996
B.A., Eastern Kentucky University, 1990

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
Public Policy and Management

Walden University
August 2009
ABSTRACT

The communication of an organizational change vision is a key to the success of
organizational transformation. Theorists have prescribed models of how to make change
vision communication successful but these models have no empirical data to support
them. The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy of change agents in
communicating a change vision that compels employees to accept a perception of reality
(mental model) that aligned with the change agents’ vision. A case study of the merger of
two metropolitan agencies was conducted to examine the relationship between the
communication of a change vision and its effect on organizational change. The primary
change agent and several organizational members affected by the transformation were
interviewed. Primary and secondary organizational documents concerning the merger
were collected. Mental models from organizational members were compared for
similarity to the change agent’s vision. Written and oral materials communicating the
change vision were analyzed using Automap text analysis software as a measure of
effectiveness and to determine which type of communication was most effective.
Findings suggest that the change agent’s vision was poorly defined and communicated
yet the transformation succeeded because organizational members created their own
compensating change vision. Social change implications of this study may include
challenging unproductive methods of organizational change that have wasted resources
and led to organizational misalignment. A better understanding of the communication of
change visions will lead to cost savings and more effective and efficient change efforts
that benefit managers, employees and the customers of public agency services.

The Effect of Mental Models On
Creating Organizational Alignment
Around A Change Vision

by

William A. Brantley

M.B.A. Jones International University, 2002
M.A. George Washington University, 1996
B.A. Eastern Kentucky University, 1990

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
Public Policy and Management

Walden University
August 2009
UMI Number: 3369651

Copyright 2009 by
Brantley, William A.

All rights reserved

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES ...............................................................................................................v
LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... vi
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY ...........................................................1
Introduction ....................................................................................................................1
Statement of the Problem ...............................................................................................2
Background ....................................................................................................................3
Purpose of the Study ......................................................................................................7
Significance of the Study ...............................................................................................8
Nature of the Study ......................................................................................................11
Research Questions ......................................................................................................13
Conceptual Framework ................................................................................................13
Definitions....................................................................................................................16
Assumptions .................................................................................................................17
Scope and Limitations of the Study .............................................................................19
Why Public Agencies Were Chosen for This Study ....................................... 19
The Public Agency Chosen for this Study ...................................................... 20
Limitations of the Study...............................................................................................21
Summary ......................................................................................................................22
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ...........................................................................24
Organization of Literature Review ..............................................................................24
Relation of the Literature Review to the Problem Statement ......................................24
Part 1: Brief Survey of the Major Themes in Organizational Change .........................25
Theme One: Organizational Change ............................................................... 25
Theme Two: Change Process.......................................................................... 29
Theme Three: Change Leadership .................................................................. 33
Theme Four: Resistance to Change ................................................................ 36
Theme Five: Change in Government .............................................................. 39
Part Two: Theoretical Concepts Relevant to the Theoretical Basis for the Case
Study ................................................................................................................43
Concept One: Vision ....................................................................................... 44
Concept Two: Communication ....................................................................... 49
Concept Three: Mental Models ...................................................................... 55
Concept Four: Team Cognition ...................................................................... 59
Summary ......................................................................................................................67
CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY ......................................69
Method of Inquiry ........................................................................................................69
Selection of the Case Study .........................................................................................71
ii
Data Collection ............................................................................................................71
Data Analysis ...............................................................................................................74
Establishing Validity ....................................................................................................77
Internal Validity .............................................................................................. 78
External Validity ............................................................................................. 79
Summary ......................................................................................................................80
CHAPTER 4: DATA ANALYSIS ....................................................................................81
Introduction ..................................................................................................................81
The Data Gathering Process .........................................................................................82
Research Question One—Mental Model Alignment ...................................................83
External Change Vision .................................................................................. 84
Internal Change Vision ................................................................................... 85
Third Party Change Vision ............................................................................. 87
Communication Methods ................................................................................ 88
Automap Analysis ........................................................................................... 89
Research Question Two—Message Design Logic Analysis .....................................100
Message Design Logic Communication Analysis ........................................ 100
Communication Analysis .............................................................................. 101
Persuasiveness of Communication ............................................................... 104
Research Question Three—Change Vision Alignment .............................................105
Does the Effective Communication of the Change Vision Lead To Alignment?......106
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...................................108
Overview ....................................................................................................................108
Findings......................................................................................................................109
Organization Alignment Occurred ................................................................ 109
Poor Internal Vision and Poor Communication ............................................ 110
Compensating Change Vision ....................................................................... 114
Tangible Social Change .............................................................................................115
Recommendations for Further Study .........................................................................117
Recommendations for Actions ...................................................................................119
Reflections by the Researcher ....................................................................................120
Conclusion .................................................................................................................122
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................124
APPENDIX A: Mental Model Interview Questions ........................................................132
APPENDIX B: Interview 46 ............................................................................................135
APPENDIX C: Interview 47 ............................................................................................136
APPENDIX D: Interview 49 ..........................................................................................141
iii
APPENDIX E: Interview 50 ............................................................................................143
APPENDIX F: Interview 51 ............................................................................................148
APPENDIX G: Interview 52 ...........................................................................................151
APPENDIX H: Interview 53 ...........................................................................................154
APPENDIX I: Interview 54 .............................................................................................159
APPENDIX J: Interview 55 .............................................................................................160
APPENDIX K: Automap Preprocessing Delete List .......................................................163
APPENDIX L: Mental Model 0 ......................................................................................164
APPENDIX M: Mental Model 1 .....................................................................................168
APPENDIX N: Mental Model 2 ......................................................................................173
APPENDIX O: Mental Model 3 ......................................................................................174
APPENDIX P: Mental Model 4 .......................................................................................181
APPENDIX Q: Email from Mayor’s Office Concerning the Merger .............................183
APPENDIX R: Merger FAQ (Retrieved off the intranet) ...............................................185
APPENDIX S: Meeting Document from Forum on Metro Archives Merger held
by Third-Party Stakeholders ................................................................................189
Curriculum Vitae .............................................................................................................194

iv