Question

CASE STUDY

               

The recent outbreak of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has introduced new challenges to the business environment. It is also having an impact on the global economy with tourism, aviation, education and hospitality the initially hardest hit industries. Almost all global supply-chains are affected at some level. Realistically, many sectors will be affected to different degrees, with many organizations implementing policies to limit employee travel and to prepare employees to work from home if necessary and if possible, to ensure the safety of their employees. The outbreak is moving quickly, and most countries are trying to respond quickly to contain the impact. However, the spread of the virus may continue through 2020 and impact the operations of many industries for months to come.

Taking Arab Open University as an example,

Question 2 - Maximum 800 words (+/-10%).

Critically analyze the main paradoxes that could face the university in managing required organizational change? Then explain why might the university not change after such global crises?

Answer 1

The outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) and lockdown caused due to this has brought new challenges to the government,individuals and business environment. It is also having huge impact on the global economy.It is going to affect the tourism, education,business and industries. Due to the lockdown in all countries, people and institutions can not carry out their business or even go and work outside.This has huge impacts on the education system also.Not only the higher grade students but lower grade will be affected and mostly the university level students.

Arab Open University aims at providing higher educational facilities for students.The normal operations and schedule of the university would also be greatly affected.There are paradox that it could face in managing required organisational changes. the university wants to bring organisational change for its own and the students and faculties of the institution but the faculties and students would not be able to visit the university as social distancing is to be followed, there will be no presence of proper means and resources required for the institution.This means that all the resources might not be present at the time and even if they are present then the government would not allow or they themselves would not be prepared to manage.Process of carrying out organisational change is a complex process in itself which is because it has to be carefully planned and implemented.But in this global crisis , it is very difficult to do that.If everyone is set to manage the change, because of the lockdown in countries, it is diificult to manage any kind of change.Employees and faculties might work from home for bringing the organisational change but that could not be enough.On the condition of managing the change, they can visit and work in the university but that way the university would only be rising the lives of its management and faculties.So the conclusion comes out that no matter how acute or crucial the change is or how desperate the university wants the change, it is back-breaking for the university to plan and implement any kind of organisational change.

The spread of virus is expected to be continued through the whole year which might act as a constraint for the university to manage the change even after the lockdown ends in their place.This is because a larer part of the economy is still under the lockdown situation. The nature of the pandemic existing is that it can transmitted from one person to another easily and the university is a place where a large number of people are gathered and so a larger part of population or the resouces required for the university might not be ready to work to not risk their lives.The university should accept that the normal working that happened earlier would take a long time to come back and there's a long way to achieving the normal operation in the economy and institutions back.