Planning and Management of Change and Theories of Leadership for Atterley-JLP Merger

Leadership and Change
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Abstract
The Atterley-JLP merger will require strategic inputs to be concluded successfully. The primary challenge for the merger is the cultural differences between the organizations. While JLP is an established organization whose operations are affected by the regulations to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, Atterley is an emerging organization in an online niche that is not exhausted. While the merger will likely benefit both organizations, they must forge a change management plan that works for both. The plan should focus on key factors that include CAB functionality analysis, data access, process automation, and a smooth approval process. The leaders will also need to choose new styles for the implementation of the merger. The key characteristics of the management theory and the contingency theory of leadership make them ideal for this merger. Ultimately, the ADKAR tool should guide the merger process as it defines the stakeholder inputs and their roles in the merger process. Bearing the value of emotional stability in the change process, the leaders should also consider the inputs of the Kubler-Ross change curve.
Leadership and Change
Implementing mergers is one of the biggest challenges that business leaders can face in the current operational settings. At least 70% of mergers and acquisitions fail within their first year of operation. Such a high possibility for failure demands a strategic approach to any attempt towards a merger. The planned merger between Atterley and John Lewis Partnership (JLP) should bear a glimpse of the challenges that mergers can trigger. The proposed merger stands at the brink of failure if proper strategies are not included to circumvent the problems. From the case, it is notable that the two companies do not have many similarities in their operations and cultures. Atterley stands in the right position to succeed as a stand-alone entity. However, with the competitiveness of the industry, it needs the size and ability to keep its growth. A merger between the two organizations will be successful after a proper analysis of its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats and employing the right resources and leadership strategies to accompany the changes.
Planning and Management of Change
Planning and managing the possible outcomes of a merger begins with the identification of the possible outcomes. Such an analysis comes with the assessment of factors that can fuel or impede the implementation of the change. In the Atterley-JLP case, planning and management for change should emphasize five key factors. Primary among the factors is the approval process. The approval status for both companies plays a primary role in ensuring smooth changes in operations. In this case, both organizations bear significant differences in their value chains. While JLP has operated majorly through physical customer interactions, Atterley emphasizes online activities. While analyzing the approval process, the stakeholders must understand the scope of the operational differences before planning synchrony. Planning synchrony in a change process accommodates strategic analysis of the organization and structuring how each organization can complement the other.
Process automation and analyses of governance tools are the other elements of the change planning process stakeholders from both organizations must emphasize. Process automation implies the easy movement of processes from one user to another with little confusion, disruption, or delay upon implementation of the change. JLP will bear much of the challenges considering the nature of the change in which they intend to revitalize their operations to focus on new customer interaction platforms. An ideal change management strategy should feature built-in checks and balances for both parties in analyzing the governance tools. That can help users to understand what they need to do and how they should execute their tasks. For instance, managers can create reminders to help employees to adjust to the new cultures.
Data access and CAB functionality are the last prospects that managers must emphasize in planning a change. In implementing mergers, managers tend to avoid the vitality of data access in their operations. Both organizations must operate impartially to allow for effective outcomes. Users can handle change operations efficiently and intelligently if they employ the right data handling tools. Ultimately, the CAB operations help with functionality integrations between organizations. With their motivation to employ the emerging technological tools in advancing their market share, Atterley and JLP must consider the inputs of CAB functionality in the change. CAB functionality should help users prioritize tasks, optimize value, respond quickly to unexpected change requests, and ensure the collective development of long-term and short-term change strategies. Focusing on the above prospects in planning a merger should trigger fluency in operations upon completion of the changes.
Theories of Leadership
Leaders play a vital role in executing change anchored on the above prospects of change management. In the JLP- Atterley merger, leaders from both factions of the merger must understand their roles in the execution of the strategy. The role of leaders in executing a merger strategy stems from ironing the challenges that the two organizations in the process of the merger. Principle among the challenges that the JLP- Atterley merger will face is differences in cultures. Atterley is an emerging organization whose success is anchored on the identification of a unique operational niche. Atterley bases its operations on the online fashion sector. Atterley has also been strategic in its resource management, bearing the investments by organizations such as PDS that have the global appeal that Atterley requires for its international presence. The management at Atterley employed their success at the newly-found operational environment to segment and opened more outlets for their customers who are more oriented to the traditional shopping methods. At a glance, Atterley is culturally structured to adapt to the changes in the operational environment. The employees at Atterley understand the trajectory of their organization as one that is primarily based on operational changes. The same cultural structure cannot be said of JLP. Partly, JLP intends the implementation at a losing point. They operate primarily from their outlets. JLP intends to use the merger as a platform for Atterley's niche. Unlike Atterley that has been market share-oriented, JLP is struggling to survive the impacts of low sales. Both organizations are coming into the merger from opposing cultural perspectives, which would require strategic leadership inputs to succeed.
Two theories of leadership would be vital for the success of the JLP- Atterley merger in as far as addressing the cultural differences is concerned. The first theory that must be considered in the case is the contingency theory. Contingency or situational theory focuses on the impacts of the settings on organizations' performance (Kalafatis, 2017). The contingency theory explores the situational effects of success or failure. For instance, change is a situational factor that affects the operations of an organization (Andrews, McConnell, & Wescott, 2010). The situational theory of leadership insists that an ideal leader should adapt his/her styles according to changes in his/her settings. Using situational leadership theories, JLP leaders must understand the inclusion of a new cultural stream in their organization.
Addressing the cultural challenges using situational leadership bears two solutions. The first solution should be the CEO of JLP absorbing Atterley and revitalizing the cultural structure at Atterley to conform to the parent organization's culture. That first strategy is challenging as it can cause an abrupt resistance from the absorbed Atterley employees. A more appropriate strategy would be the absorption of Atterley's employees and their culture while operating under the umbrella of JLP. The second strategy can be effective in the short-term. Employees from Atterle...