научная статья по теме THE PROBLEM OF RESISTANCE TO CHANGE IN A FRAMEWORK OF INNOVATION ENGINEERING Экономика и экономические науки

Текст научной статьи на тему «THE PROBLEM OF RESISTANCE TO CHANGE IN A FRAMEWORK OF INNOVATION ENGINEERING»

The problem of resistance to change in a framework of innovation engineering

A.M. Dibrov,

ассистент кафедры экономики, Национальный исследовательский Томский политехнический университет (634050, г. Томск, пр. Ленина, 30; e-mail: dibrov5@yandex.ru)

Аннотация. В статье рассмотрены особенности инновации и значимость организационной культуры в процессе проведения инновационного инжиниринга. В статье представлены возможные типы и уровни сопротивления инновационным изменениям. Определена роль инерции в инновационном процессе. Выработан общий подход к преодолению сопротивления инновационным изменениям.

Abstract. We consider the features of innovation and the importance of organizational culture in the application of innovation engineering. The paper shows the possible types and levels of resistance to innovation changes. The paper reflects a role of inertia in the innovation process. A general complex of approaches to overcoming resistance to innovation changes is described.

Ключевые слова: инновационный инжиниринг, изменение, организация, инерция, сопротивление.

Keywords: innovation engineering, change, organization, inertia, resistance.

The survival of organizations may occur in the process of adaptation to a changing environment in modern conditions. This strategic problem is solved in the design and development of innovation in the organization. The solution of this problem is called innovative engineering.

Innovative engineering is a complex of works on creation of an innovative project and implementation, promotion and distribution of a particular innovation.

Any organizational environment may resist to innovation process. Therefore innovation engineering must consist of the conditions and innovative methods for overcoming resistance to change.

It is worthy of note that a firm is able to conduct their own engineering activities or engage a stakeholder.

The innovation engineering has one of specific features such as creation of favorable conditions for transformation of innovation into a reliable and profitable system. In order to succeed in the innovative development should take into account as many as possible factors of resistance. It is important to keep in remember that every innovation generates a discord in an organization's institutional environment.

The scientific literature shows plenty of thoughts in the field of innovation and innovation processes. There are next features of innovation:

1) Innovation conforms to fundamental economic laws.

2) Innovation is a continuous cyclical process.

Экономика и предпринимательство, № 7, 2013 г.

3) There are some system problems of innovation process.

4) Innovation is a technological thing.

5) There are social and cultural aspects of innovation process.

There are basic and imitative innovations. The basic innovations consist of fundamental discoveries, serious technological improvements and a serious equipment upgrade. It should be realized that the basic innovations have a low efficiency in the short-term. The high efficiency of imitative and product innovations come out of a short payback period.

There is the correlation between a size of the system and type of innovation. The large firms introduce technological innovations. The small firms introduce imitative or product innovations. The large firms have a high potential for strong resistance.

The innovation process is a complex of interrelated phenomena that consists of birth and commercialization of a scientific idea. Innovation process as a control object is characterized by uncertainty and multi-variance.

The innovation process affects the dynamics of firm organization and requires systematic innovation changes. The firm organization such as a system is able to resist attempts of transformation. The resistance to innovation change in the context of an institutional approach is defined by the multiplicity of institutional relations. The innovation change is not just a technical or technological change but it is an institutional transformation. It means that there are changes in the institutional system of interaction between social groups and individuals in particular.

ПРЕДПРИНИМАТЕЛЬСТВО

The institutional relations arise between workers and firm are defined by formal and informal institutions. It is worthy of note that the evolutionary nature of informal institutions complicates a problem of innovation changes. The Informal institutions are included in the traditions and values of organization and affect the inertia of firm development. The majority of social groups are able to resist change due to an anti-innovation inertia. This is a natural response to the innovation changes.

Also the resistance may be due to transaction expenses.The transaction costs include the research and development costs, purchase of licenses and new equipment costs. In the process of innovation engineering may arise expenses are connected with a search for new ideas and patentee's assertion. The institutionalization costs are defined by costs of support and transformation of established norms of interaction between economic agents.

It is important to keep in remember that every enterprise has to carry out many processes besides innovation. After its introduction, the innovation must be made part of a permanent order and utilized economically in constantly recurring work processes. Suitable structures must even rely on a certain amount of inertia and, consequently, a resistance to innovation [1].

The equilibrium state of organization as part of the innovation process must be provided by the system's ability to actively vary in response to external factors and processes that lead to stability. The organization must provide stability, sensitivity to changes and volitional creativity.

Conflicts and contradictions are potentially incorporated in any coherent system.

The resistance to change can develop into potential conflicts between functions or departments, insofar as an innovation championed by one function inflicts some costs upon another function [2].

The innovative contradictions in the framework of organization are the factors of explicit and implicit worker resistance that ultimately affects on the active introduction of innovation. Workers are able to demonstrate low level of innovativeness.

Innovativeness is the degree to which an individual or different unit of adoption is relatively earlier in adopting new ideas than the other members of a system. There are five adopter categories [3]:

1. Innovators. These members are able to deal with higher levels of uncertainty about an innovation than are other adopter categories.

2. Early adopters. These members are able to decrease uncertainty about an innovation and convey a subjective evaluation of the innovation to other members by dint of interpersonal networks

Journal of Economy and entrepreneurship, Vol. 7, Nom. 7

3. Early majority. The early majority may discuss for some time before completely adopting an innovation and also provide interconnectedness in the system.

4. Late majority. The late majority may adopt an innovation just after the early majority or due to increasing network pressures.

5. Laggards. These members are conservative in habits. They may adopt an innovation only when it becomes a tradition.

The innovative inconsistency depends on disequilibrium of relations in the organization, environmental uncertainty, explicit and implicit resistance to change. Organizations are said to resist innovation because of inertia, sunk costs, scarce resources, threats to the power base of the old dominant coalition, values and beliefs, conformity to norms, and inability to perceive alternatives [4].

The resistance to innovation process means that stakeholders may action against creation, dissemination and use of innovations in order to maintain an existing system of institutional relations.

There are two types of resistance:

1) Explicit resistance is an open employee's denial of innovation and professional improvement.

2) Implicit resistance is a hidden employee's action in order to reduce effectiveness of innovation process.

An innovation is based on destruction of the old paradigm without compensatory abilities. Innovation causes spontaneous and stressful conditions according to psychology. Sources of employee's resistance are psychological systems that resist change, new knowledge and requirements. We classify the reasons of such resistance as high risks, inconsistency between employees and company goals, institutionalization of joint behavior patterns of employees, low moral and psychological working environment.

There are levels of resistance to innovation process:

1) Lack of resistance (a perfect condition for implementation of innovation process).

2) Distrust (ignorance of innovative technology).

3) Non-participation (misunderstanding and ignoring the effects of innovation).

4) Hostility (misunderstanding and ignoring innovation goals).

5) Sabotage (full denial of innovation).

The innovative enterprise system must cover all divisions, levels and units of management.

The resistance to innovation process may occur at any hierarchical level of management and it has a different intensity of exposure.

A special role belongs to the project team leader in the innovation process as a source of development or resistance. A weak project team lead-

er is an individual with relatively low technical, business, or social skills. Such a leader can slow down the innovation process. A strong leader directs and helps team members and assimilates and applies external information to development activities. A weak project leader cannot promote projects inside the organization and facilitate their movement through potentially delaying bureaucratic snags, which can hinder on-time innovation. Weakness in a leader may be the result of a relatively low standing in the organizational hierarchy, a relatively low education level, or a relatively sh

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