Towards a Theory of Changing: A Means-Ends Model of the Organizational Improvement Process

Abstract

This study is based on a nationwide sample of top administrators in state government organizations. Using a critical incident approach, each administrator was asked to select the one change that he or she considered to be his or her most outstanding management improvement action. In describing the change the respondents were asked about their change strategies and resulting outcomes. Using a factor analysis and answers to open-ended questions, eight types of administrative change strategies (Work MethodsTechnology, Information Dissemination, Structural Reorganization, Retraining-Replacement, Authority System, Objective Setting-Measurement, Work Flow, Programs) and six types of outcomes (Improved Output Process, Motivational Climate, Resource Acquisition, Coordination, Savings, Equilibrium) were identified. Using a repeated multiple regression analysis, the relationships between the means and ends were explored. The findings illustrate the necessity for a precise definition of effectiveness and the need for a new and larger concept called organizational vitality. The implications for understanding and planning change are discussed at both the theoretical and applied level. It is pointed out that the means-ends model should serve as a useful framework for the planning of change.

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