AET/560 Organizational Change Process Communication Plan

1. ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
PROCESS
COMMUNICATION PLAN:
HEWLETT-PACKARD
ERIKA HINDS
AET/560
DR. NORTZ
DECEMBER 7, 2015

2. MEETING AGENDA 12.7.15
• HP’s history and reasoning for change implementation
• Launching the communication plan for the change
• Technology and resource needs
• Testing the plan’s effectiveness
• Feedback for continuous improvement
• Addressing negative responses to change plan
• Impact on organizational change

3. HEWLETT-PACKARD PAST AND PRESENT
• Hewlett-Packard started its computer domination back in 1939 working out
of a garage in Palo Alto. The technological industry calls for organizations to
continue to change and grow to the demanding need for “Smart” technology.
HP made the decision to split its one giant organization and produce two full
size companies.
• HP Inc. will distribute PC’s (Personal Computers) where HPE (Hewlett-
Packard Enterprise) will market servers, storage, and networking. Many
individuals question HP’s need for this type of organizational split. This
PowerPoint will examine the need for change, how the changes are
implemented, and some preliminary results of the change. Hewlett-Packard
has withstood the test of time regarding technological changes by taking
risks and reaping rewards.
(Learning Team B AET/560)

4. PROBLEM
All change efforts require a critical event that indicates to the leaders of an
organization that there is the need for change. For Hewlett Packard, the loss
of market value may have been that critical event. According to Jon Swartz of
USA Today, HP’s shares declined twenty four percent over the last year (2015).
Meg Whitman, the CEO and the Hewlett Packard’s board of directors
recognized that the market has changed and that HP needs to change too.
Whitman believes that they need to get back to the HP “principles that defined
the 76-year-old company as a beacon of innovation, community service and
progressive workplace” (Swartz, 2015). Many recognize that HP had become
so large that it was unable to change quickly enough to keep up with
competitors. Bob Dutkowsky, CEO of Tech Data said, “The old HP got very big
and moved slowly. Two companies make it more nimble, responsive,
competitive and innovative” (Swartz, 2015).
(Learning Team B AET/560)

5. LAUNCHING THE PLAN
• To mitigate the damage that can be caused by misinformation and
rumors a communication plan is being implemented. Transparency
surrounding the reasons for change and the impact on employees is
held in high regard. It is better to control the message than to allow
versions of the message to be exaggerated both positively and
negatively and in turn have a negative impact on the organization’s
morale and performance. In all organizations, the challenge is to
persuade employees to move in a common direction. Good
communication programs are essential to minimize the effects of
rumors, to mobilize support for the change, and to sustain
enthusiasm and commitment (Cawsey, 2012 p. 319).

6. I: PREAPPROVAL PHASE
• Change agents will present verifiable evidence to top management
and HP’s CEO, Meg Whitman, to support the need for change.
• Change agents will then explain to employees the urgency and the
reasoning behind the proposed change plan for HP’s split.
• Sales are slowing and margins are in decline
• PC business is acting as a drag on the valuation of the rest of the
corporation
• Customers complain that HP is at least two years behind many of its rivals
when it comes to launching new services (Rushton, 2014)
• Precedence has been set and HP would not be the first major technology
company to split

7. II: DEVELOPING THE NEED FOR
CHANGE PHASE
• Change agents will provide clear and compelling rationale for the change:
• HP will split in order to be more nimble and remain relevant in its market. The
split will provide Whitman and Weisler (CEO of the new 2nd arm of the
company) more time to focus - so they can return to driving growth for both
HPE and HP, Inc., instead of just cutting back (Clark, 2015).
• The reduction in workforce to implement the split is a strategic move that will
affect fewer individuals than if the company did nothing and suffered greater
capital losses, thereby affecting more employees.
• Recent investments in research and development have given Hewlett-Packard
the strongest portfolio they’ve had in a decade. The change will create more
opportunity for this type of growth (Clark, 2015).
• Team meetings and 1-1 meetings are being held to address employee
concerns, to field questions and to assist with personal planning.

8. III: MIDSTREAM CHANGE PHASE
• Change agents will provide the employee team with updates and
feedback regarding the progress made in the change program:
• To date, HP is 80% done with job cuts, the restructuring of both companies
has been completed and new roles filled. Employee realignment trainings
will commence on January 5, 2016.
• There will be a weekly 1-hour Progress Report session and a 30-minute Q&A
with HR and the director team via WebEx to maintain open communication
about the change plan, what has been accomplished, what the next phases
are, who will be affected and how
• Emails will be sent weekly after each session with a transcript of the
presentation and the transcript of the Q&A session
• Managers will review current and upcoming change elements in team
meetings
• Concurrent updates will be going out to the media

9. IV: CELEBRATING THE SUCCESSFUL
CHANGE PHASE
• Change agents will give the employee team permission to celebrate
the progress that has been made at integral parts of the change
process.
• With the stress of watching coworkers leave through job loss and attrition,
role realignment, and shifts in responsibility; employees need to be able to
celebrate the positives along the path to change
• Employees need to be reminded that there is always more change ahead in
order for there to be continuous improvement within the company, which
will provide more opportunity for more successes and more celebrations
• Employees are acknowledged for their hard work throughout the process
• Employees provide feedback to the change leaders and the leadership team
about what worked best, what caused resistance and how the process can be
improved upon in the future

10. TECHNOLOGY NEEDED
TO ACCOMPLISH THE PLAN
• Internal email
• SharePoint site
• WebEx meetings
• Face-to-face meetings
• Breakroom television streaming video
• Television, radio and social media

11. TESTING THE PLAN’S EFFECTIVENESS &
IMPACT OF MANAGEMENT’S RESPONSE
• The effectiveness of the plan is a straightforward relationship that
can be drawn between the desired outcomes and the actual results.
For this to happen, clear objectives and goals that were identified in
the beginning of the change process would be objectively compared
to the plan’s results.
• Management’s response has a great impact on the continued
effectiveness of the plan and on the employee team’s ability to
engage in a change process continuous improvement plan.
Management has to toe the line between positive feedback for morale
best efforts and constructive criticism for necessary advancements.

12. GENERATING FEEDBACK FOR
CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT
• Mixed Approach
• Qualitative
• Quantitative
• Interviews (Follow up meetings)
• Surveys
• Focus Groups
(Learning Team B AET/560)

13. ADDRESSING NEGATIVE RESPONSES
ABOUT THE CHANGE
• Change leaders must understand that negative feedback can
yield positive results
• The feedback could reveal areas of opportunity for future changes
• The feedback could create new dialogue around the current change
process and ways to correct it
• The feedback could identify areas of confusion that can be clarified or
reiterated for better understanding
• Be grateful for negative feedback because it is still better than no
feedback which would be indicative of apathy within the team

14. AFFECTING ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
WITH THE HP COMMUNICATION PLAN
• This communication plan positively affects the organizational change
at Hewlett-Packard by ensuring that important information regarding
the changes is transmitted throughout the company on all levels.
• Transparency in a change process is very significant as it can be the
difference between a committed employee and a resistant employee.
• With this communication plan in place, employees know what to
expect, they know where to go for clarification when they are
uncertain and they can be confident that they are a valuable part of
the change process because of the effort made to keep them
informed. This will improve compliance, morale and performance.

15. CONCLUSION
• Hewlett-Packard’s communication plan is three-pronged:
• It provides top-down information from the leadership to the employees
• It provides bottom-up feedback from the employees to the leadership
team
• It also provides relevant information to the stakeholder/consumer as it is
publicly-traded
• This plan is designed to provide and support transparency as
far as possible through the major changes HP, Inc. and HPE will
be facing. It promises to lead to a smoother transition both
internally and publicly.

16. RESOURCES
Cawsey, T. F., Deszca, G., & Ingols, C. (2012). Organizational change: An action-
oriented toolkit (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Inc.
Clark, J. (2015, March 15). Hewlett-Packard is on track to separate businesses in
November. Bloomberg Business. Retrieved from
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-18/hewlett-packard-is-on-
track-to-separate-businesses-in-november
HP Image. (2015). Adiaki Consultants. Retrieved from
http://www.adiaki.com/clients.php?id=5
Rushton, K. (2014, October 6). The five reasons Hewlett-Packard split. The Telegraph.
Retrieved from
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/elec
tronics/11143807/The-five-reasons-Hewlett-Packard-split.html
Swartz, J. (2015, November 2). Meg Whitman's hardest act in tech: Splitting HP. USA
Today. Retrieved from http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/11/01/meg-