Support staff are critical to the success of the university's vision and mission, so their voices needed to be heard. The basis of the reorganization and restructuring of the Higher Education Model is summarized in the vision of the project: to simplify and rationalize for success".
Focus and purpose of study
From this background it is important to establish the different experiences that the different UKZN staff had during and after the reconfiguration of the University system. The purpose of the reconfiguration was to refine the organization by using its human resources more efficiently by understanding that people are its foundation (Yuguo, 2005).
Key research questions
Hay and Fourie (2002) argue that South African higher education systems cannot afford to sacrifice their valuable human resources during the reconfiguration process. Through the reconfiguration, which saw support staff deployed and redeployed, it can be assumed that the UKZN has attempted to make maximum use of its human resources.
Significance of the study
Previous literature also advocates that people are the greatest resource in any organization, as they can transform all other resources and are critical to the organization's performance (Barney & Wright, 1998). It cannot be assumed that everyone is necessarily a resource; people can sometimes become a liability in an organization.
Definitions of terms
- Support Staff
- School
- Change
- Organisational change
- Change management
- Organisational structure
- Organisational culture
- Resistance to change
- Organisational renewal
According to Jung, Scott, Davies, Bower, Whally, McNally & Mannion (2009), organizational culture is generally considered to be one of the most important factors in creating organizational change. Organizational renewal is a form of change and learning where improvement processes in the organization become part of the culture of the workforce and management (Sono & Nel, 2004).
Organisation of the study
Organizational renewal is about organizational change and progress and this requires the organization to invest in some resources that will improve the organization (Sono & Nel, 2004).
Introduction
Exploring key concepts
- Placement and redeployment in the organisation
- What is change?
- Organisational change
- How does change occur in the organisation?
- The human factor during organisational change
- Resistance to change
- Phases in resistance to change
- Change management
- Leadership during change management
- Communication and education during managing change
- Partcipation and involvement
- The role of organisational culture in organisational change
He further states that the role of management is very critical in ensuring proper change management. For change to be successful and lasting, the culture of the organization must change to be more open and receptive to change (Panozzo, 2007, Ramanujam, Keyser & Sirio, 2005).
Theoretical framework
- The change process: Unfreeze – change –refreeze model
- Planned change model
- Unfreeze
- Change
- Refreeze
The purpose of planned change is to preserve the organization and keep it stable (Robbins, 1987). The fusion stage is the first of three stages in the change process that deals with readiness and resistance to change (Ford & Ford, 2010).
Conclusion
At this stage, the changes are accepted and become the new norm (Davis & Newstrom, 1985). It is also the stage at which change is embedded as a culture and begins to deal with barriers and resistance to change (Ford & Ford, 2010).
Introduction
Research paradigm
Interpretivism is based on the belief that individuals seek to understand the world in which they live and work (Creswell, 2009). This study sought to understand support staff's experiences, beliefs, behaviors and attitudes towards placement and relocation.
Research design: Case study
As a researcher, I seek to understand the phenomena through the experiences of the participants; that is, understanding and exploring location and re-location through their lived realities: how they interpreted the events, their contexts and situations during and after the reconfiguration process at UKZN (Cohen et al., 2009). Case studies provide a unique example of real people in real situations that enable readers to understand ideas more clearly than simply presenting them with abstract theories or principles (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2009).
Qualitative research
Central to this case was the accommodation of support staff experience and redeployment of staff within UKZN. Therefore, a case study design is appropriate for this study as it is an in-depth research used to discover and capture the reality of participants' lived experiences and perceptions of placement and redeployment in this school at UKZN.
Description of the sample
Considering the responses of the participants, this level is influenced by the way the initial thawing phase is managed. Proposed reorganization of academic governance and support within the faculties of the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
Methods of data collection
Interviews
According to DeVos et al. 2010), interviews are used to gain a detailed view of participants' beliefs or perceptions on a particular topic and are useful for obtaining information about participants' personal feelings and perceptions. Mertens (1998) argues that interviews enable intimate, repeated and long-term engagement between the researcher and participants, allowing the researcher to get to the heart of what is being researched.
Focus group interviews
Members of the group should feel more comfortable with each other to engage in conversation. In this study, the focus group discussions were conducted with a group of support staff who were considered redundant during the reconfiguration of the college model and therefore had to apply again for new positions in one school at UKZN.
Document analysis
According to Rabiee (2004), the unique characteristic of a focus group interview is its group dynamics, so the various data obtained through the social interaction of the group are often deeper and richer than those obtained in one-on-one interviews. Focus group participants were interviewed once, and the interview lasted one hour and 30 minutes.
Data analysis
Testing of emergent meanings was part of this phase in evaluating the data for its usefulness and consistency. This was done by determining how useful the data were in uncovering answers to the questions being explored and how central they were to the unfolding story around the phenomenon being studied.
Trustworthiness
Credibility: Credibility of the study depends on the data rather than on the researcher's own subjective opinion, although a certain amount of the researcher's subjectivity is allowed (Maree 2007; Cohen et al., 2009). Trochim and Donnelly (2006) say credibility involves establishing that the results of research are credible from the perspective of the participants.
Ethical issues
University management had to consult with university employees and involve them in the change process. Regarding the application and placement process, participants felt that it was flawed as there was no plan and strategy.
Conclusion
Introduction
This chapter presents and discusses the data obtained through a focus group interview with a group of five deployed support staff members and a documented analysis of the data obtained on the UKZN reorganisation. This was followed by a presentation and discussion of individual topics that emerged from the qualitative data analysis.
Biographical data
Background information about participants
Communication about placement
According to UKZN, Interchange International's Change Management document entitled "The Change Cycle Company" on Faculty Reorganization available on our University website, the first stage of dealing with change is losing one's comfort zone and this can be illustrated by the centipede (ishongololo ), who is afraid and acts paralyzed. The participants also felt that they were not against the reconfiguration of the faculty model, but that the implementation of the practice was to some extent problematic.
Support staff participation and involvement in decision making about placement
Shock, fear and confusion
The expectation was when we looked at the emails that came out; things looked like we were safe. Then the big bombshell, we're not, we're all not well, we were shocked.
Experiences during application and placement process
I went through the entire process of applying for 15 to 16 positions when I was told that my position did not exist in the new structure. Mina (Me), I went through the application and interview process, but I'm still in the same position and they've added more work without a raise.”.
Handing over process, timing of placement and induction
It's not very easy to transfer a person who is in the middle of exams to another school, that's why I said the whole process was bad." Support is really important here and can be in the form of coaching and expecting mistakes as part of the process (Change-Management-Coach, 2008).
New organisational structure and reporting line
Like when we are processing reservations she is the only person who can authorize. The reason why the line manager finds it difficult to help everyone when they need help is because she is the only person who has the authority to help them in the new structure.
Work load, job description and clarification of role
We don't have our proper job descriptions, we are not sure what is expected of us because sometimes the college staff will tell you this is your portfolio you have to do this and we also tell the college staff this is your wallet but now nobody wants to take more responsibility. With me the work is not more, only there is uncertainty, I am not sure what I should do, I do not know if I have received more or less, because it is coming.
Before the reconfiguration versus after the reconfiguration
These above findings from previous research support these study results where the participants are willing to identify with the new system and recognize the positive things that have come with it. Although the general feeling of the participants was negative, there were other staff members who felt that they were happy to be in their new positions.
Emerging issues
How did support staff experience placement?
Executive Management Committee (2010) Proposed reorganization of academic management and support within the colleges of the University of KwaZulu-Natal. First mergers: a case study of the Boland College of Education and the Cape Technikon libraries.
What can we learn from support staff ‟ s experience of placement in both
Conclusion
The themes show that there was a lack of proper planning around the hiring process and staff were not sufficiently informed about their dismissal. What further emerged is that the support staff had no problem when it came to the reconfiguration of the college model, but had a problem with the way the placement process was rolled out.
Introduction
Summary of the research
Ethical issues were considered by seeking permission to conduct a study at UKZN in order to meet all legal requirements, and the names of the participants were kept anonymous. What can we learn from the support staff's experiences of placement both the School and the University.
Conclusions
- Communication
- Participation and involvement
- Shock, fear and confusion
- Application, placement, handing over, induction and reporting lines
- Timing
- Workload and clarification of roles
Timing of the change is very important as it determines whether the change is successful or not. Based on the conclusions above, the next section focuses on some recommendations.
Recommendations
The participants admit that their workload has increased due to unclear roles and additional requirements because some employees have left and not been replaced, which made it difficult for them to cope. Most of the participants in this study were not completely against the installation, but they were not satisfied with the timing because they were not yet ready to face the change process.
Final remark
Communiqué from the Office of the Executive Director: Reorganization of the Human Resources College: “Simplify and Streamline for Success.” Overcoming resistance to change: Top ten reasons for change. http://www.schulersolutions.com/resistancetochange.html.
Appendices
