ABSTRACT
The third function of an effective MUL, alongside the intertwined activities of generating commitment and ensuring control, is implementing change. As previously stated, disruptive forces faced by the multi-unit enterprise have accelerated the nature and pace of change in many firms and sectors in recent times. At a strategic level, policy makers have had to react to the challenges wrought by economic instability, technological innovation and altered consumer behaviour by attempting to adjust many facets of their business model and value chain to new environmental paradigms. These policy makers have, in turn, been reliant on the operational line to enact and implement transformational changes, with MULS – positioned between the Centre and unit – being charged with efficient and effective execution of a plethora of centrally-driven initiatives at unit level. To a certain extent, the calamitous economic environment has provided a ‘burning platform’ creating organisational climates that are receptive and conducive to change, assisting the role of the MUL in this process. However, as the organisational behaviour literature relating to change elucidates, the function of creating, implementing and sustaining both transformational and incremental forms of change is a complex process that requires a highly sophisticated and sensitive approach.
