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Project Management: Changes and Innovation at Transdev Auckland

Paper Type: Free Assignment Study Level: University / Undergraduate
Wordcount: 5409 words Published: 21st Oct 2020

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Introduction

Changes and Innovations are important for a business enterprise for ensuring the organizational effectiveness and operational efficiency by improving the service operations and organizational business performance. Transdev Auckland is a mobility transportation company that puts innovation at the heart of the organizational strategy by developing incremental innovations aiming to improve the operational performance and quality of its service operations. This report aims to improve the service operations of Transdev Auckland through successful strategic innovation changes and organizational changes by implementing the project management process (Transdev Auckland, 2019). The implementation of the staff development program and problem-solving approach can support in executing the successful organizational changes by resolving challenges.  

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Two types of Innovation Changes at Strategic level for Transdev Auckland with Justification

Proactive strategy with the high level of product differentiation for changes and innovation (Transformational)

The proactive strategy will support appropriate strategic changes at TA organization, like leadership strategy through the supportive/democratic leadership, development strategy though a learning culture and technical training. It will also include the performance management strategy to monitor and evaluation the staffs’ performance by setting the standard performance criteria/ standards and comparing the actual/ original performance outcomes against the benchmarks in order to achieve the expected/ standard performance outcomes and productivity from the poor performance staffs at TA. The proactive strategy will drive for the incremental changes to enable and support the constant technological and process changes and innovations that will assist in the improved product performance with the aim of sustainable business developed from the improved performance. This strategic innovation will ensure the quality service operations of Transdev Auckland by improving the firm infrastructure, enhancing capabilities to technology-driven innovative performance, enhancing product performance through the technological advancements (Ikinchi, 2014). By using this kind of strategic innovations, the firm Transdev Auckland will be able to get the technological advantage from the constant technological innovations, accessing knowledge from a wide range of resources, enhancing mobility of the transportation service from the improved infrastructure. E.g. Singapore Airlines, Dupont, and Apple Inc. use this kind of strategic innovations. For example, Apple Inc. uses this innovation changes is to improve the product positioning of Apple iPhones and manufacturing operations by allowing the technological breakthroughs and incremental innovation for ensuring the high level of differentiation and rapid incremental innovations to cope with the external changes in the smartphone markets.

Reactive strategic changes (Incremental innovations) through sustainable ideas and innovative efforts

The main reason for using this level of strategic innovation is to strengthen the organizational strategy to adapt in different organizational situations created from the fluctuating environmental conditions, competitive environment, and the speed of the technological innovations. For instance, reactive strategy will align the organizational resources, operations, departments, and technologies with the organizational mission statement, goals, objectives, and vision for directing toward the sustainability of the transport operations of Transdev Auckland by addressing the current organizational issues and facing future challenges. This level of strategic innovations will enable the changes and innovations for the next generation by aligning the organizational strategy will the sustaining ideas and innovations for directing the organization toward sustainable business development. This strategic innovation will encourage for enhancing the resource strengths and strategic capabilities, better management of resources and their utilization, product line expansions/ proliferation, cost reductions, or improvement of the infrastructure for enhancing the sustainable business performance (Merkert, Mulley, & Hakim, 2018). For example, Coca Cola uses the sustainable strategic innovations to maximize the value proposition and quality of the customer service performance by reducing unnecessary costs as well as sustaining efforts to reduce the risks level for the sustainable business performance for Transdev Auckland.  

Four Elements of Organizational Changes for improving the Service Operations and their Justification

Change in Leadership Style for enabling the staffs to changes by encouraging effective communication

The leadership change, like following democratic leadership style (from the autocratic leadership in the current time at Transdev Auckland) will be effective in supporting the changes and innovations by allowing and supporting the participation of the organizational individuals or staffs in the organizational decision-making and change management process. For example, an effective leadership, like democratic managerial style, will empower the staffs to execute changes, create new ideas, and innovative efforts, and moreover, implementing a new system for improving the staffs’ performances within TA organization. It will also support the important organizational changes and innovations by the supporting the working staffs through communicating the organizational vision and goals with the subordinates, providing a learning culture, and senior’s support (rather than bureaucracy) to the executives to assist them in implementing their tasks and projects effectively. The democratic leadership will also enable to lead better organizational productivity, improved performance levels, and quality service delivery to the customers through the operational efficiency. Democratic leadership will lead to management support to the working staffs for enhancing their job confidence, morale, and high commitment toward delivering quality service delivery through their best skills and high-performance efforts. 

Creating the necessity of Change in Organizational structure and Culture

The organization of TA who currently suffers from the centralized formal bureaucratic structure, rigid structure, and extensive hierarchy, can consider and focus on the significant changes in the organizational structure and culture. For example, TA can follow a corporate governance structure with the chain of command, hierarchical structure, decentralized decision-making, and clarification of the staff’s roles and responsibilities that might be effective in attaining better organization productivity and improvement of the operational efficiency for better and quality service delivery. The organizational cultural changes will lead to staff development, their job satisfaction, and change in commitment and attitudes for the positive change ideas and efforts to innovation. For instance, the organizational cultural changes, like leadership style change to transformation or democratic style, management support, teamwork, group performance efforts, effective communication staff development through training and development programs, and change management theories to support staff in executing their tasks and in the change efforts.  (Van Bommel, 2011).

Technological training and staff development programs and reward system to reinforce changes

Providing the staff development programs, like technological training, the support from seniors/ peers and managers, coaching and mentorship for the staff learning opportunities, and learning environment through the learning assessment and guides will be effective to enhance the skills, knowledge, and capabilities of staff at TA organization. For example, a learning organizational climate, senior management support, technological training, and reward system and monetary benefits at Transdev Auckland will enhance the skills competencies of the engineers, operational executives, their technological development, and capabilities to perform on new technologies as well as in different/complex situations/ for implementing the appropriate changes by participating in the change programs.

Evaluation of Changes/ Shift in the organizational policies and process changes

Significant changes in the organizational policies, processes, and infrastructures will be effective in the quality service delivery through timely departure and arrival of training, reducing the overwork and delays, and minimizing the possibility of accidents/ harms for the management of the customer service operations within TA organization (Weber & Rohracher, 2012).  For example, the senior management can focus on the organizational shift in the workplace policies, process changes, like change in architectural designs, improvement/maintenance of the infrastructure, change in mechanical projects, quality of personnel system, and reporting system will be effective for the improving the quality and efficiency of the service operations. 

One Significant Project Management Process for executing strategic level Innovation

One Project management process is implemented to execute the strategic level of innovation changes, like sustainable strategic innovation and proactive strategic innovation by using Agile project management methodology. The project is guided by this project method in which the software programmers, architectural designers, engineers, and developers can use interactive process for executing the change ideas, innovation efforts, and strategic initiatives for implementing the strategic changes and innovations required for ensuring the sustainability of the business operations of TA in New Zealand (Tahaa, Teja, & Sirkova, 2015). The project management process is a systematic process that includes the three steps including preparation for the changes, management of changes, and reinforcement for organizing and sustaining the organizational changes. The changes project will include initiation (determining the scope, project budget, valuation, and feasibility evaluation of the project), project planning (resource planning and management, staffs development, estimation of costs, tasks, and schedules), project execution and implementation, and finally, project control/ monitoring and evaluation.

Agile project management involves brainstorming and mapping of ideas, quality assurance and testing, demo and feedback, dynamic requirement and analysis, continuous reviewing and testing, interactive planning, teamwork and group performance, and increased communication for creating the high level of innovation by applying the project to the TA organization for addressing the current organizational issues and problems. The project management is an interactive process that includes the continuous deployment and continuous integration, technological development and automation that will assist to advance the transportation operations for improving the quality service operations in order to add value to the customers by reducing the costs/ expenses, service delays, and risks. This project management process is associated with the highly skilled and technical professionals that will guide the interactive process, coordination, communication, and interaction among the project team members. This process will allow the incremental changes and innovations through the continuous learning culture, user engagement, collaborative working, diversity of ideas, and continuous improvement. This process will assist to deliver the quality and timely transportation services by improving the transportation infrastructure through the technological advancements and breakthrough for ensuring greater customer service experiences by meeting their diverse needs and expectations(Marmol, 2016).

Figure 1: Agile Project management technique for Strategic Innovation

                                                   (Source: (Marmol, 2016)

One Project Management Process to execute the Organizational Changes

A Project Management Process is executed and implemented that is related to bringing the significant organizational changes by applying the Prosci’s three-step change process. This change management project is used to execute the proposed organizational changes in order to recover from the current organizational problems and however improve the organizational productivity, operational efficiency, and managerial effectiveness in the organization of Transdev Auckland. There are nine components to drive for changes including readiness of the change assessments, communication planning and communication, sponsorship activities and roadmap, coaching and manager training for changes, staff development and training programs, resistance management, feedback addressing, and taking corrective action, and celebration the project’s success after implementation of the project and review (Hmeidiyeen, 2015).

This change management project will involve three steps for changes including preparing to change, managing changes, and reinforcing or fostering the changes. The first step will encourage the readiness/ prepared of the staffs or personnel for the changes by understanding the vision, goals, and objectives of the change management project. In this step, the management prepares the employees including architectural designers, engineers, mechanical workers, and support staffs for the significant changes by providing them training and development programs to enhance their contingent thinking, skills, working knowledge, and capabilities to enable the significant changes through the change ideas, initiatives, innovative thinking. The second step is related to managing changes by providing a reason for the organizational changes and will allow involving them in the change process for directing toward improving the service quality, operational efficiency, and organizational effectiveness (International Association of Organizational Innovation, 2015). This step will include preparing plans and taking actions for frequent changes in the organizational system, activities, working procedure, organizational structure and culture, management policies, business strategy, marketing mix concepts, and technological operations in order to deliver the quality transportation services to the customers by ensuring the timely and speed of the transportation services, quality transportation, safer journey, process delays, better signaling, process to reporting the harms/ hazards, and infrastructure maintenance for improving the transportation service delivery.

The organizational changes will be made as per the external requirements for changes, changing industry dynamics, increasing the competitiveness of the industry, and increasing expectations and changing preferences of the customers. The management support to the employees and their learning, change in their behaviors and mindsets, effective communication, and design thinking process could also support the employees at Transdev Auckland in implementing the organizational changes toward improving the organizational service efficiency. In the final step, the change team members are reinforced for implementing the changes in the organizational processes, structural and cultural changes, leadership changes, infrastructural changes, and change in service offerings and behaviors of the organizational individuals are accepted for expecting the positive and better outcomes. The feedback of the employees for the changes are collected, the performance gaps are diagnosed, and corrective actions are implemented  for enjoying the success of the project (Hmeidiyeen, 2015). This process also will encourage the individuals for the consistent change efforts until the achievement of the expected outcomes from the change project within the organization of Transdev Auckland.

Figure 2: Prosci’s Three-Step Change Process

(Source: (Ion, Doina, and Sebastian, 2012)

One Staff Development Programme to address the organizational changes and Innovation

this includes development of the staffs through the democratic leadership, great communication, teamwork and collaboration, and supportive culture for the skills development/ improvement, knowledge enhancement, and developing job competences by increasing the capabilities of the staffs. The staff development training will be based on three components including the customer service training, supervisor development program, and health and safety issues (like safety signals, working for hours, maintenance check, and other safety management issues). Additionally, conducting a scheduled training program will be effective for Transdev Auckland Firm in the developing new skills or improvement of the existing skills, and enhancing knowledge and capabilities of the project team members or employees to implement the successful organizational changes and innovation. The training programme is arranged by the project manager by hiring of an expert trainer to guide, educate, and teach the staff members for implementing the changes required for the attainment of the expected project outcomes. The Staff Development Program through training evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of the skills, knowledge, and abilities of the staffs and accordingly the training is provided for developing/improving the weak skills, knowledge, and poor capabilities(Hall-Ellis, 2015).

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The democratic leadership at TA organization will allow the staff participation in the team meetings and decision-making process that will assist in learning new things, developing or improving the creative thinking abilities, decision-making and problem-solving skills, communication development, technical knowledge, and innovation capabilities in order to make the staff capable to implement changes and innovations through their change efforts and creative ideas. Technological training is provided to educate and guide the staffs by enhancing their capabilities to work on the latest transportation technologies by having sufficient knowledge of automation and artificial intelligent as well as the design thinking process to assist them in creating new/ innovative product designs as well as developing new ideas for enhancing the innovative business performance (Bertram, Blase, & Fixsen , 2015).

The great communication and effective team work will assist the staffs in learning new things, enhancing capabilities to performance efficiently, and improve the way of working/ servicing the customers in the order of delivering the quality transportation services to the staffs by reducing delays, performance efforts, extra costs, and risks of failure. The learning culture will guide the staff for performing in different situations as well as prepare them to face new challenges while demand preferences and quality expectations of the customers increase (Bonete, Calero, & Fernández-Parra, 2015). So, the staff development program will assist in the staff development for improving the staff’s performance level, organizational productivity, and quality service delivery to the customers as expected. 

Technological Advancement trends at a Global Level and advantages and disadvantages of these technological advancements for the firm

With the introduction of the fourth industrial revolution, the role of the automation, digitization (digital transformation), artificial intelligence, super speed trains, alternative energy sources, information and communication technologies, data analytics, IoT (for the technological transformation of trains by using the internet networks and other digital transformations has become important in shaping the technological advancements and innovations for the firm. The technological advancements in the urban rail transportation industry at the global level includefuel efficient-technologies, blockchain technology in the trains, electronic log devices, virtual ticketing agents, high-speed rail networks, and Li-Fi technology (Wi-Fi networks for trains for mobile internet, data transfers, and transit documentation). In addition to this, ticketless travel (travel by using bankcards), ergonomic station design (for operational effectiveness and environmental-efficiency), digital signage, rail loyalty schemes, 5G for creation of mobile internet functioning in trains (fourth generation of mobile communication technologies), Augmented reality and virtual reality, intelligent apps, and self-driving concept are such technological advancements in the urban train industry that can shape the future of the rail transportation industry of Transdev Auckland in order to attain the technological advantage over the competitors through the digitalization and automation of the trail transportation processes and operations(Kurwi, Demian, & Hassan, 2017). 

Advantages

  1. The technological advancements will influence the urban rail system of Transdev Auckland in New Zealand country as the typical technologies will improve the reliability, safety, quality, and capacity of the rail networks and service operations of Transdev. The automatic train technologies (e.g. ATMS, ECMS), linear motor technologies, and rail noise control will enhance the operational performance of Trandev Auckland electric trains.
  2. The technological advancements, like digital signage, virtual ticketing, data analytics, blockchain technology, electronic log devices, and li-fi system will assist in achieving the competitive for the firm at the domestic level in New Zealand country as well as improving the operational efficiency and high-speed railway networks through the digitalized processes, automated operations, and data analytics system(Cleophas, Cottrill, Ehmke, & Tierney ‘, 2018).

Disadvantages

  • The technological advancements in the transportation rail industry can also bring costs for the company because of huge investment into the digital infrastructure required while adopting the technological advancements and moreover setting of a new system for the technological transformation by replacing the existing technology. 
  •  The technological advancements in the rail transportation industry require skilled and technical competence workforce who have adequate knowledge and capabilities for working on new technologies in order to direct the transportation technologies and machines(Lee, 2015).

Four types of Problem-Solving Skills to execute the successful Organizational Changes, Two skills to resolve the challenge for the Effective Organizational Performance

The four problem-solving skills for executing and implementing the organizational changes and innovations successfully, are following as:-

Creativity skills- this type of skills are necessary to provide a creative solution to the problems or challenges that the organization of Transdev Auckland currently faces. The development of creative thinking skills will enhance the abilities of the staffs in creating new ideas or thinking the creative solutions to solve the problems intuitively.

Team working Skills- this kind of skills are needed to work in groups/ teams, communicate the problems with others, respond to the problems or customers’ feedback, and share new ideas, plans, or opinions with the project team members for implementing a solution to solve the problem(Hesse, Care, Buder, Sassenberg, & Griffin, 2015).

Decision-Making skills- such kind of skills are required to solve the problems and challenges by taking decisions appropriately. The development of the decision-making skills of the staff will enhance the abilities of the staff in a right or good taking decision that will assist the firm to recover from the current problems that Transdev Auckland currently faces.

Research and Analytical skills- this type of skills explore the research skills and analytical capabilities of the staff to solve the problems by analyzing the current situations. The development of research and analytical skills will assist the staff to research the problem, finding the cause of problems, collecting data and facts related to the problem, and finally, solving the problems that the organization of Transdev Auckland is currently facing by analyzing all situations, data, and facts(Neubert, Mainert, Kretzschmar, & Greiff , 2015).

Application of problem-solving skills to the case of Transdev Auckland

Research and analytical skills- the rationale for choosing this type of problem-solving skills is that it accounts the facts, data, organizational situations, and problem search for implementing the effective solution. Developing the research and analytical skills of the staff will assist to deliver an effective solution by collecting research data, facts, and concluding the research findings relevant to the case of Transdev Auckland. These skills might be effective for the staffs in researching problems, collecting data, analyzing the facts related to the issues, like high level of centralized formal bureaucracy, customer service quality issues, rigid organizational structure, operational problems, and problems with the staffs’ accountability of roles and responsibilities in the organization of Transdev Auckland and then generating an effective solution that might work at the best in the current problematic situation by thinking or keeping in mind all facts or situations(Hesse, Care, Buder, Sassenberg, & Griffin, 2015).

Decision-making skills- this type of skills are chosen because the decision-making skills provide a framework to take the right, reliable, and effective decision after analyzing the root causes of problems and then taking decisions to respond timely to the organizational operational problems/ quality service concerns of Transdev Auckland. The leader or project manager can involve the working staffs or subordinates by allowing them the flexibility to share their ideas, opinions, or suggestions in regarding to solve the current organizational problems. The decision-making abilities of the management and staffs will work in providing the making appropriate decision that can prove effective in enhancing the operational efficiency, reliability and quality of the service delivery by managing resources and their performances toward the attainment of the sustainability goals by ensuring the success of the quality programme within the TA organization(Bonete, Calero, & Fernández-Parra, 2015).

Feasibility of the Problem-Solving Project (in the term of economic, legal, marketability)and recommendations for three precautions

The feasibility of the problem-solving project in the term of economic, time, legal, operational, and marketability feasibility criteria will assist to determine whether this project is feasible to the case study of Transdev Auckland Case. From the feasibility evaluation in the term of economic from the cost-benefit analysis, it is evaluated that the problem-solving project is designed in the way that it will require less costs (cost-effective) and more give expected, positive, and reliable outcomes by delivering the optimum or effective solution to solve the current organizational problems. The feasibility in the term of legal aspects will determine whether project will target the problems and suggest effective solutions from a range of alternative solutions or ideas. From the feasibility evaluation, it is evaluated that the project follows the regulatory frameworks, standards, and strong corporate governance structure for the accountability of the staffs’ roles and responsibility, change in their behaviors, and the staff development through training and development programs. It will also address the problems and challenges that TA organization can face in the successful conduction of quality program that will assist further in enhancing the quality of the customer service delivery and operational efficiency through the infrastructure management. In the term of marketability aspect, from the feasibility evaluation, it is also evaluated that this project will explore the organizational problems in details by collecting the facts and data through the market statistics and customer surveys. This project will resolve the problems related to the organizational problems, prioritize the problems and thereby suggest the best solution to recover from the problems that will assist in delivering quality and reliable service delivery with adequate standards and without any delays or errors.

Precautions before the execution of the projects

The following precautions are taken into account before executing the project:-

  1. It is necessary to see that all project team members are ready for the project and moreover, important to determine the staffs’ roles, responsibilities, and their tasks in the problem-solving project before applying the project into the case.
  2. It is also essential to manage all resource, set deadlines, and the list of problems are prepared and documented before executing the problem-solving project in the case.
  3. It is also necessary to provide adequate training for giving them knowledge and understanding of the project and communicate them to aware the staffs toward the identification of problems and then follow the problem-solving approach to solve the identified problems. 

Six Steps of Problem-solving and Evaluation of Operational Feasibility of Each Step

From the case study, it is found that currently, the organization of TA faces problems like quality performance issues, delays in services, operational inefficiency, formal centralized bureaucracy, autocracy of management, improper accountability of the staffs’ roles, duties, and responsibilities of the departments, powerful functional hierarchies, and some other concerns. Problem-solving is an important organizational approach to solve the problems (above identified) by finding an optimum or the best solution from a range of alternative solutions. The six-step problem-solving model is used to address the workplace operational problems, performance and customer service issues, structural and leadership challenges that TA organization faces in the present times that affect the operational efficiency, quality service delivery, and staff performances and organizational productivity. This problem-solving requires consistency as everyone understands each step of the approach. It also encourages for collaborative working, shared practices, and decision-making by providing a justifiable solution to the problems that the organization of Transdev Auckland currently faces. The six steps of the problem-solving method and operational feasibility of each step are following as:-

Define or identify the organizational Problems

This step discovers the root causes, background, and facts behind the organizational problems. Regarding the case study of TA organization, Brainstorming method is used to explore the problems that TA organization currently faces. From the application of brainstorming method on the case study analysis, it is evaluated that the organization of Transdev Auckland suffers from the workplace problems, like the formal centralize bureaucracy issue, staff performance and quality service issues, operational problems, lack of accountability of staffs’ role, ineffective firm infrastructure, bureaucracy and autocracy of the management, the lack of the staffs’ participation in the decision-process and change

 

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