Teaching Change Management: A Mini-Case Simulation Approach

Major change, organizational reform, and a focus on efficiency and health outcomes are facts of life for today's healthcare leaders and health-care organizations. Although managing organizational change is one of health leaders most critical managerial competencies, for some the leadership skills required for minimizing resistance to change may only be learned through experience. As such, this makes simulations an ideal medium for teaching change management and providing “hands-on” experience for the participants. This paper describes the authors' experience in using a simulation exercise called Central-Valleyview with students in a school of public health.

Most change management models or theories describe a series of steps or phases that leaders must implement to ensure successful change for change at both the organizational and individual levels. Each of these stages requires careful attention and action for success. Leaders attempting to bring about change in their organizations are faced with the conflicting interest of many stakeholders, lack of clearly definable objectives, and a high level of uncertainty about key issues. Using a simulation, which is grounded both in the theory of change management and the application of these principles in the healthcare field, allowed students to enhance their leadership skills in the management of change by (1) identifying the forces for and against change, (2) understanding and balancing stakeholder interests, and (3) applying change leadership best practice.