EFFECT OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT PRACTICE ON CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT AT AWASH BANK

Abstract

This research was made to examine effect of change management practice on continuous improvement at Awash Bank in light of change readiness, sustaining change and change resistance functions. The general objective of the study was to determine the individual and aggregate impacts of these factors on continuous improvement of the bank. The study design chosen to perform this study was descriptive design and the sample size taken using Solving formula was 141 of which 132 respondents appropriately responded it which result a response rate of 93%. The data was collected using a questionnaire designed in five points Likert scale. The information collected was analyzed using SPSS version 20 and the result shows that change readiness has a positive and significant effect on continuous improvement of Awash Bank with a ß= .384: p< .001. In line with Sustaining change on continuous improvement of Awash international bank, the beta value (standardized coefficient of regression) of Sustaining change has a positive and significant effect on continuous improvement of the bank with a ß= .212, p< .001 and Resistance to Change has a positive and significant effect on continuous improvement of Awash Bank with a ß= .203, p< .001. In aggregate the effect of Change Management on Continuous Improvement is positive and significant with 95% confidence interval, the sum of squares of multiple correlation coefficients between predictor and outcome, with a value of 0.684 which implies 68.4% of the variance in the dependent variable can be predicted from independent variables. Accordingly it was concluded that change management has considerable impact on continuous improvement in Awash international bank. Though the bank’s change management was found to be good overall the study recommends the bank was more benefited from its change management practices by giving due attention on to enhance the capabilities of change management sponsors in building awareness of need for change in its change readiness activities, making actions on integrating the change into its operation, involvement of community leaders and having public support activities to enhance effectiveness of its sustaining change function and improving the way it made organization’s members knowledgeable to cope up with change and dealing with uncertainties of these members in its change resistance function