Change management: the role of internal communication and employee development

Introducing change into an organisation usually raises resistance from those who have the most to lose because of the introduction of the envisaged change. This article looks at the introduction of change in the management structure produced in a large public organisation. The key to successful introduction of the change was seen to lie in effective communication. The customary cascading down of information from the top of the organisation to the rank and file managers was found to be ineffective when a large‐scale structural reorganisation programme was being introduced and this led to a search for more effective ways of communication. The partial answer appeared to lie in providing information from the top directly to all employees through the means of new technology – an intranet and extensive use of e‐mail. While this provided a substantial solution to the problem, it still left some questions better answered by management training initiatives.