GSGM 7324 Organizational Development and Change Management May 2025 Final Assessment

INSTRUCTIONS:

The subjective questions are specifically designed to meet the following CLO’s.

• CLO1: Describe the field of study in OD and its processes.
• CLO2: Distinguish between planned and unplanned change and the models of change.
• CLO3: Apply the diagnostic tools and the methodologies used by OD consultants.
• CLO4: Suggest application of OD concepts and their applications in diverse background.

Prepare a REPORT for the CASE STUDY within the stipulated time of 1 week from the issue date.

Use either Times New Roman or Arial with font size 12 and 1.5 spacing.

Maximum Word Count Limit is 2000 words. You must support your discussion with adequate literature.

Use APA format for in-text citations as well as for your final reference list.

All answers will need to be converted to PDF. Save the document with your FULL NAME_Matrix Number before submission.

Submit the softcopy of your answers in ONE (1) file to your Final Assessment folder in the CN.

Case Study: Organizational Development & Change Management at Telekom Malaysia Berhad

Introduction & Company Background

Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), Malaysia’s national telecom operator, underwent major transformation in the 2000s. Under CEO Abdul Wahid Omar appointed in July 2004, TM was tasked with turning around its business, repositioning from a government-controlled fixed-line firm into a regional ICT and broadband champion.

By 2008, TM leadership completed a strategic demerger: TM International (later Axiata Group) was spun off to manage mobile operations including Celcom, while TM refocused on broadband and fixed services in line with its national high-speed broadband (HSBB) mandate. This shift required a complete overhaul of culture, structure, and strategic focus.

The Change Drivers & Context

• Political & policy mandate to create a nimble, competitive telecom national champion.
• Industry disruption: mobile, broadband, and convergence technologies evolving rapidly.
• Internal imperatives: inefficient legacy processes, blur between mobile/fixed divisions.
• Need to reduce resistance and foster agility in a large GLC environment.

Change Strategy & Organizational Development Process

1. Vision, leadership, and communication
   Abdul Wahid and senior leadership articulated a clear vision—TM as Malaysia’s broadband champion—and held town hall sessions to cascade the new direction. This aligned staff understanding and built commitment.
2. Structural restructuring
   The demerger separated mobile operations, enabling TM to reorganize into business units (e.g. Unifi broadband, TM One enterprise services), enabling faster decision-making and customer focus.
3. Culture & systems redesign
   New strategy emphasized service excellence, customer orientation, and innovation. Employee surveys and internal studies noted flexible job design and work flexibility initiatives, especially in consumer sales teams, to boost motivation and adaptability.
4. Change management and resistance mitigation
   TM deployed open communication forums, clear disclosures of changes, retraining, voluntary separation schemes, and incremental pilots to reduce fear and staff uncertainty.

Challenges & Resistance

Despite top-down vision, TM faced resistance:

• Fear of job loss due to demerger and restructuring.
• Loss of identity for legacy employees in fixed/mobile overlap.
• Technology adoption anxiety, with staff wary of new systems and processes.

To mitigate, TM used employee forums, explanations on strategic rationale, and offered support programs (VSS for older staff, training for redeployment).

Outcomes & Impact

• The demerger succeeded: TM International (Axiata) listed separately by April 2008, enabling TM to focus on broadband expansion.
• Productivity in international divisions and overall effectiveness improved as the structural alignment sharpened purpose and efficiency.
• Work flexibility was linked to higher staff satisfaction and performance in sales teams.
• TM transitioned into its High-Speed Broadband (HSBB) role and subsequently consolidated its key brands—Unifi, TM One, and TM Global—under the unified TM Tech umbrella, further streamlining operations and enhancing the overall customer experience.

Questions

Question 1 (40 Marks)
What were the key success factors in TM’s change strategy that enabled the de-merger and repositioning to succeed?

Question 2 (30 Marks)
Identify and analyze the main sources of resistance that TM faced during its transformation. How were they addressed?

Question 3 (30 Marks)
From an Organizational Development perspective, evaluate whether TM’s approach balanced both systems/design and human aspects of change sufficiently. What could have been improved?

End of Question Paper

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