This study is an evaluation of the implementation of change processes in the Lesotho Civil Service, Ministry of the Public Service (MPS). A qualitative method was used where an exploratory study was conducted by drawing a case study to evaluate the change implementation process in the organisation. In enabling the researcher to conduct a more focussed study, only five factors that have an impact on the successful implementation of change were considered. The factors were namely: forces for change; managing and leading change; building the desired culture; resistance to change and errors common to organisational change. The relevant information for the case study was obtained mainly from interviews and questionnaires. The pattern matching technique was performed on the case study, whereby the way change was implemented in the Lesotho Civil service was compared to that suggested by the literature. Fifty questionnaires were administered to fifty employees in the Ministry of the Public Service. Finally an evaluation based on the responses of the respondents, what actually happened and that which the literature suggests were evaluated interdependently. Based on this evaluation, it was found that, there were forces for change in the organisation, but management did not communicate with the employees as to the need for change and how it was to be implemented. Employees were never involved or asked to participate in the planning process of the change. Management in the organisation did not take all aspects into account when planning for change as suggested by the literature and all these aspects need to be improved upon by the leaders in the organisation. / Thesis (MBA)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.

Formal project management methodologies and processes play a vital role in organisations that run large complex projects and programmes. Is it possible that these methodologies and processes can end up defeating the purpose for which they are introduced? Can these methodologies actually cause projects to fail by becoming the focus of attention? If so, what can be done to reverse this bizarre situation? This study intends to give some insights into these complex questions. Methodologies that are not usually used in such environments are applied to a particular messy situation on a project in an attempt to bring about some relief. The events took place in a conservative, rapidly changing and highly politicised organisation that had embarked on a programme comprising many large interdependent projects that needed to be implemented in an aggressive time frame. A particular large and complex project was running into trouble due to, in no small measure, the strict enforcement of onerous project management procedures. The project team was becoming demoralised and very stressed, which aggravated the situation further. Project managers usually adopt a "hard" approach to making changes. The aim of this research is to see whether using a "softer" approach in the environment described above could alleviate the situation. In this study, systems thinking and action research form the core of the multi-methodological approach to understanding the problem situation and identifying appropriate interventions to bring about improvements. Given the culture of the organisation concerned, will the application of these methodologies improve the situation by bringing the project back on track and improve staff morale? Other concepts that play a role in this study include complexity theory and the learning organisation that are deemed essential to the understanding of the holistic picture. 111 "This we know. The earth does not belong to us; we belong to the earth. This we know. All things are connected like the blood that unites one family. All things are connected. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons and the daughters of the earth. We did not weave the web of life; we are merely a strand in it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves." (Chief Seattle) / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2004.

This research is an experiential learning history of a change management process that occurred within the local government Development Management Department of the Ethekwini Municipality in the South African province of KwaZulu Natal. The department is the gatekeeper of development for Ethekwini and offers the plans approval service in the municipal area. The department underwent an internal change management process in 2000, which aimed to streamline the plans approval process and minimize the approval timeframe. The Municipality’s decision to change the existing system was motivated by the lack of foreign direct investment into the city due to the bureaucratic plans approval process. This research used the qualitative framework and case study approach to understand the context of the requirement for the change, the implemented changes and the aftermath of the changes. A sample group of 38% (from the department) was interviewed, their responses consolidated, grouped and graphically represented, enabling the unpacking of the change management experience. The author then analyses the data against systems theory and change management theory to enable a greater appreciation of the complexity of the process and the high impacts of specific choices in the change management process. The findings of the research indicate a high degree of unresolved stress relating to the imposition of the process of change management on employees. The author draws the conclusion from the evidence presented that the inclusion of the recipients of change, in the process of change will mitigate against these stresses. This research documents the experience of the change management process by the recipients of change. In so doing it offers a greater level of insight of the way in which change is experienced, thereby promoting better choices by practitioners in the field of change management. / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2009.

This thesis explores two problems: (1) how early childhood teachers can manage professional development and change in their own settings, and (2) how to create a thesis. Both facets of the thesis emerge from the professional development in Active Movement that the teachers and I co-constructed at our early childhood centre between April 2005 and June 2006. This thesis sets out to test the main idea that having a theory of change for teachers' professional development can help teachers negotiate complex change and craft their own professional development solutions. It uses stories as a key facet of its methodology and presents stories of professional development and change related to five inter-weaving learning journeys. The learning journeys relate to (1) my learning journeys as a professional development coordinator and (2) as a researcher, (3) the overall learning journeys and (4) & (5) teachers' collective learning journeys to implement two different but related practices in Active Movement. The stories provide a range of professional development solutions and change at individual and collective levels from which different theories of change can be derived. From these stories, I identify three theories of change as well as the complex changes we negotiated and the professional development solutions we crafted. In identifying the theories of change, the complex changes and the professional development solutions, this thesis supports the main idea and argues that teachers can develop a theory of change to manage professional development and change in their own settings. This thesis argues that a theory of change is a set of strategies that address the local conditions. It suggests that the process of developing a theory of change can include articulating local conditions and creating strategies that support and guide the change in ways that address these local conditions. It also suggests that recognising what counts as local conditions and strategies can help teachers develop their own theories of change. In creating the strategies to support the change effort, it is important to identify the purpose of the strategies, their underlying values and relationships, and the day-to-day realities that constrain the change effort. At the same time, it is important to identify how different strategies inter-relate to help us manage the tensions that can arise from these relationships. This thesis argues that theories of change can include multiple and embedded theories of change, that we can create theories of change as plans or explanations of change or as dynamic theories of change that emerge from the inter-play between plans and explanations. This thesis also argues that there are different ways to articulate our theories of change and that there are limits to the extent to which we can or should articulate them. It also argues that the theories of change we create and use for our change efforts depend on the nature of the change. A theory of change that embodies the process of emergence is useful for managing professional development and change efforts that have a high degree of complexity and uncertainty and whose end goals are initially unknown. This thesis also suggests that creating the role of a professional development or change coordinator can help centres manage the knowledge used and created in the professional development or change effort in ways that benefit individuals, groups and the centre. This thesis also argues that (1) the thesis investigation is my personal professional development and represents my learning journeys to create a thesis, (2) the thesis report constitutes a theory of change for the thesis investigation, and (3) the thesis is experimental in the way that it is reported. This thesis proposes other possible investigations related to the idea of theories of change; (1) to develop an Active Movement community of practice within the wider early childhood sector, and (2) to investigate the role of theories of change in everyday teaching and learning. Finally, it uses the notion of value creation to suggest ways to create added value for the teachers and the Centre, for Sport and Recreation New Zealand and for myself.

The study deals with the extent to which change should be implemented by institutions. It is of paramount importance that staff be at the centre of the change throughout the entire process. It is worth noting that in the absence of this serious phenomenon, there seems to be little hope of raising employee confidence, as is notable from the responses of the employees of MNet and SABC. The sociopolitical history of South Africa has played a major role in language used in the country's media: television, newspapers and radio. English is by far the most widely used language in the media, followed by Afrikaans and the African languages in that order. Except for multilingual programmes, it was relatively easy to determine the amount of airtime allocated to each individual language. A previous study shows that the distribution of airtime on South African television is strikingly uneven, with English taking up 91,95% of the total weekly airtime, Afrikaans 5,66% and all nine African languages sharing a mere 2.39% of airtime collectively. The study further deals with the origin and development of the Afrikaans language in South Africa. For many years Afrikaans took centre stage in South Africa. Especially during the apartheid years the use and power of Afrikaans increased dramatically on the SABC. Since 1994 English has gained more territorial political clout than Afrikaans in virtually all the country's institutions, including the media. The SABC took a political decision to cut vigorously on Afrikaans programming. That triggered MNet's decision to embark on a business decision to establish a dedicated Afrikaans channel. This study shows that employees at the SABC are generally unsatisfied with the broadcaster's decision and staff at MNet are in agreement with the fact that Afrikaans has lost most of its privileges and political prestige it had during the apartheid era, it could still present a challenge to the hegemony of English in all the higher domains, except diplomacy. / Thesis (M. Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

This work is an examination of contemporary public policy implementation. It seeks to isolate those features which need to be incorporated into implementation theory to assist in the analysis of the implementation of public policy The "new right" ideology requires that a particular organisational form be adopted by public implementing agencies. This form must reflect the need to introduce competition, the precepts of the "new managerialism" and to view the user of the public services as a "customer". These three elements will have a bearing on the process of the implementation. In particular, the need to regard the user of the services as a consumer implies that these users have an active part to play in the implementation process. The primary aim of the dissertation is to examine the nature and extent of the users involvement. A secondary aim seeks to develop and test a model of policy implementation which can incorporate the so called "top down" and "bottom up" perspectives of policy implementation. The model incorporates features which facilitate the analysis of contemporary policy implementation. These features include: the need to recognise the large amount of conflict and bargaining which is characteristic of multi - agency implementations, the dynamic and interactive nature of the process and the inclusion of the consumer as part of the process. The research uses the implementation of N.H.S. and Community Care Act (1990) in a shire county in order to examine these issues.

ABB Corporation is a swedish-swiss international company, specializing in power and automation technologies. The company is a joint-venture between ASEA and Brown Bouveri, merging into one company in 1988. ABB has five business unit, where the products and services mainly comes from research and development work within the company. Each business unit performs R&D initiatives and investments within respective area of reach, in order to achieve competitive products and services. ABB Corporate Research is responsible for research and development within the company where R&D initiative takes place. During autumn 2013 ABB Corporate Research will launch an improvement study, which will be the basis for subsequent major project. Information is a key factor within ABB Corporate Research, where each stakeholder in a specific project has access for specific information. The question is, how accessible/searchable is the information, and also how user-friendly is the current information system within the unit.   The mission of the conducted study is to examine what the employees of ABB Corporate Research think about the existing information distribution system for technical reports and publications, also propose overview improvements within the particular area. Delimitation has been established to conduct the study within the department of Software Architecture & Usability (SARU) in Västerås, which is a part of Automation Technology (AT) department, in order to deliver on the required time frame.   Theories regarding Innovation management, Lean thinking, Change management, Information distribution, Integration of information system and Ishikawa was studied thoroughly within the project. A qualitative research methodology was used, based on performing interviews with key personnel within SARU. The interviews converted into key factors (findings), which resulted into correlations to all key factors. A root cause analysis (Ishikawa) was performed, in order to examine and visualize which challenges appear within the current information system.   The result from the conducted analysis and correlations indicates that: the database is not user-friendly enough, it is difficult to acquire correct information, information is not in detail level due to limitation of information, it is time consuming to search in the databases in order to acquire correct information, Usually rely on internal networking instead of searching into the information system, restricted internal security and person based information dependence.   With the help of theories within the project, in combination with the conducted results from the analysis and correlations, improvements have been proposed. Due to the time frame of the project, further analysis should be performed for respective improvement proposals. The improvement proposals could be a starting point for the upcoming project. The improvements proposals are:   RSS Feeds solution for usability efficiency Standardized Work Methodology Integrated Database Interface Internal Information Transparency   The authors recommend implementing all improvement proposals, in order to further achieve productivity and efficiency within the organization.

Objectives: The concept of clinical champions has been widely promoted, yet empirically underdeveloped in health services literature. The objectives of this study are to investigate the role of the clinical champion and how it contributes to effective patient safety change. Methods: Case study design was used to examine the role of champions in the implementation of rapid response teams in two hospitals. Central themes were derived through qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with key informants. Results: Analysis revealed a typology of champions: clinical, managerial, and executive. Champions engaged in five core activities: disseminating knowledge, advocating, building relationships, navigating boundaries, and facilitating consensus. Individuals became champions by informal emergence or by formal appointment combined with informal emergence. Conclusions: This study furthered understanding of patient safety champions by revealing types, activities, and modes of emergence. Findings will allow health care professionals to use an evidence-based approach to identifying and supporting champions.

Objectives: The concept of clinical champions has been widely promoted, yet empirically underdeveloped in health services literature. The objectives of this study are to investigate the role of the clinical champion and how it contributes to effective patient safety change. Methods: Case study design was used to examine the role of champions in the implementation of rapid response teams in two hospitals. Central themes were derived through qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with key informants. Results: Analysis revealed a typology of champions: clinical, managerial, and executive. Champions engaged in five core activities: disseminating knowledge, advocating, building relationships, navigating boundaries, and facilitating consensus. Individuals became champions by informal emergence or by formal appointment combined with informal emergence. Conclusions: This study furthered understanding of patient safety champions by revealing types, activities, and modes of emergence. Findings will allow health care professionals to use an evidence-based approach to identifying and supporting champions.

This thesis drew upon the resources of philosophical hermeneutics to construct a conceptual framework for understanding the process of educational change. The experience of a particular case of change was then analysed from the perspective of the hermeneutic change agency framework. The conceptual framework for the thesis was developed from the writings of Hans-Georg Gadamer and also from writers who engaged with Gadamer, most notably, Paul Ricoeur and Jurgen Habermas. The retrieval orientation in Gadamer's hermeneutics was balanced by the critical analyses of Ricoeur and Habermas. Gadamer's notion of the 'fusion of horizons' was presented as the culmination of the change process: a fusion between the horizon of the change text, and the horizons of the change process participants. The thesis explored the potential of hermeneutic strategies such as play and conversation as a means to animate a hermeneutic form of change agentry. The case investigated in this thesis was a change process comprised of four strategies conducted over the years 1980 to 1996 at a Jesuit school located on the east coast of Australia. The change strategies aimed to promote the Jesuit ethos of the school and hence have been described in this thesis as 'ethos strategies'. The purpose of the thesis was not to evaluate the success of the ethos strategies, it was to explore how insights derived from philosophical hermeneutics could illuminate an analysis of the lived experience of a particular case of change. The subject matter of this thesis is timely because many Catholic schools are currently in a period of transition from a leadership exercised by Religious (nuns, brothers or priests) to a leadership exercised by lay people. The thesis situated the ethos programs in their theological and demographic contexts by presenting relevant theological developments from the Second Vatican Council and by describing the sharp decrease in the numbers of Religious personnel available to work in the schools. The teacher response to the ethos programs was considered in the context of the many practical difficulties associated with the scheduling of teacher development programs in fast-moving and busy schools. Although this thesis was particularly focused on change strategies that were conducted in the context of Jesuit education, the thesis is more generally situated in the research literature on educational change. The hermeneutic orientation of this thesis highlighted the elements of understanding, interpretation and meaning, and these elements are given some prominence in the more recent research literature on the change process. The complexity of change and the cultural dimension of the change process has been emphasised in the most recent educational change research literature and these themes have also found expression in this thesis. Participant observation, document analysis and qualitative interviews were used as data collection strategies for the case study in this thesis. The researcher was actively involved in the events investigated in the case study, and a case narrative was developed from the researcher's experience as a change agent responsible for implementing one of the change strategies at the case site. The case narrative was written in the first person and from the perspective of the researcher as a change manager. The methodology of the research was grounded in the hermeneutic insight that understanding and tact lies at the heart of the research process, rather than procedure and method. Hermeneutic research relies upon a capacity to identify and respond to the question that is presented by the expression of life being understood. Change agentry was presented in this thesis as unfolding in a middle space between the familiarity of current practice and the unfamiliarity of the new world that a change process seeks to open up. Hermeneutics has long understood that that interpretation would be impossible if the expressions of life were totally alien and unnecessary if there was nothing alien in them. A hermeneutic approach to change agentry seeks to discover points of commonality and points of challenge between the world of current practice and the world that the change process would open up. This thesis points to the tactful and dialogical dimensions of change agency when it is considered from the vantage point of philosophical hermeneutics.