Change management in the asset creation department of Eskom Northern Cape operating unit

Abstract

The objective of the study was to explore the impact of change management within the Eskom Northern Cape Operating Unit (NCOU) in the Asset Creation Department and develop recommendations to the organisation on how best to implement change management in future. Despite changes in its external and internal environment, Eskom’s founding values have remained the same, which include supplying constant electricity without interruption across the country. The company’s inability to supply electricity has led to various challenges, including high debt ratio, low staff morale, corruption, unsustainable business methods, poor operational performance, overstaffing in certain areas, deteriorating reputation, poor financial management, as well as declining customer satisfaction.

The study found that change management has placed pressure on the current employees who have to work with limited resources, affecting their morale, productivity, and workload. If these challenges are not addressed effectively, they would have a direct negative impact on Eskom’s NCOU operational targets, namely to supply constant electricity and maintain the existing electrical infrastructure.

A quantitative research methodology was adopted in this study. A questionnaire was developed for the NCOU employees which covered a range of aspects concerning change management. Various sets of questions dealt with the uncertainty during the change management process, for example, whether the employees had been offered early retirement packages, whether they had been retrenched, and whether new or existing vacancies had been filled on time or not.

The study also investigated the impact of change management with regard to its time frames, employees’ responsibilities, skills and educational level, principles and methods of communication, the transparency of the process and whether employees were engaged on the changes or not. The findings showed that, at an organisational level, change management might have led to loss of productivity, loss of experienced employees, reduced performance, and increased workload among the remaining employees and a loss of confidence in management. On an individual level, the impact was found to be low morale, uncertainty about the future of the organisation, increased anxiety and stress, and other health and awareness issues. On the opposite side, some participants agreed that there was clear and effective communication, the company followed the relevant policies and procedures, and employees were engaged on the outcomes of the process.

The overall assessment revealed that the change management process was not managed properly and there is a room for improvement as highlighted in the recommendations.

Although many employees had clarity about their roles and responsibilities, they felt discouraged and were unsure about their future with Eskom. This, in turn, led to a loss of productivity. Therefore, Eskom should put measures into place that can provide more certainty to employees and limit potential loss of production.

As a result of the duration of the change management process, employees began to lose confidence in management, which may lead to many unintended consequences, such as a loss of control over the process by the management. Again, reasonable and realistic time frames would strengthen the trust in the employee–employer relationship, as well as having clear goals and direction.