ABP is an organisation that knows its people that make the difference between a good Company and a great one, so we make sure that we invest in the ABP people of the present, as well as those of the future.We have clear training, mentoring and development programmes in place for all our staff and we are proud to say that our senior management team is nearly entirely formed by those who have progressed up through the business.An explanation of why your organisation needs to change identifying at least 6 internal and external factors that drive or influence the changeAn organisation needs to constantly change both internally and externally to make sure there is continuous improvement within the business. If you are not open to change then how can you ever make things better? There are many internal and external factors that drive these changes and I have listed some below –Technology – An organisation has to keep itself abreast with all technological changes; this is an important aspect as it shapes the business operations in the long run. Within our organisation we are always looking at new advances in technology for machinery as this can change our entire production process and keep us one step ahead of our competitors. Organisational Culture – An organisations culture is probably one of the most difficult changes to undertake but a business that listens to its employees and communicates their goals and visions clearly will always be successful.

Within our organisation we use our employee forum and focus groups to discuss our mission, vision and values. These meetings give our employees a chance to give positive and negative feedback and then together we strive to come up with solutions.Economy – There is an intimate relationship between business and the economic environment.

Any significant changes to the economy will have an impact on our business. As the ABP group has sites in the UK, Europe and China import and export can leave us vulnerable to sudden changes in politics, economics and legislation.Competition – This can have a huge impact on why an organisation would need to change. Within ABP we always need to be one step ahead of our competition with new product development as we can’t afford to be left behind when in today’s society shoppers are always looking for the best quality products.

Industry Regulations – New laws and legislations can dramatically change operations. Companies that effect the environment must constantly strive to adapt to cleaner and more socially responsible operating methods. Within ABP we believe it is our duty to do everything we can to ensure that our growth is not at the expense of our natural environment. The ABP Food Group are implementing major sustainability initiatives at every level of our business to ensure we meet all the food industry regulations.

Catastrophic Events – A catastrophic event can wipe out a business immediately, but if that business can continue to work in the wake of a disaster it will need to make radical changes. ABP were hit with such an event in 2013 when the horse meat scandal broke. This revealed a major breakdown in the traceability of the food supply chain. As Silvercrest, a subsidiary of ABP was named and shamed in the scandal we were obviously thrown into the spotlight. We had to deal with the backlash and turn to our loyal customers to trust us whilst we underwent rigorous audits to prove we were not involved.Explain at least 3 ways change affects organisationsAs we know changes can happen for a large number of reasons so it is imperative that an organisation deals with any changes in a positive and fully communicated way.Employee engagement –Any change no matter how small impacts everyone within an organisation.

You will always find that some employees will find the positive in change and approach it with enthusiasm whilst others will struggle and react negatively. When change happens it evokes emotions in employees such as uncertainty and anxiety. This can affect the employer’s psychological contract and leave the work force feeling demotivated. We have recently gone through a redundancy process at site where the cold sampling department was no longer required due to new technology being installed. We made sure that communication was the key factor in putting our employees at ease during the whole process so they could understand why it was happening and how we had other roles within the business where they could be redeployed so there would be no job losses.Reputation – The reputation of an organisation is essential to its survival and growth and if this changes then a business can be left in a very difficult position.

We at ABP are only to aware of how quickly this can happen when we were thrown into turmoil overnight as the horse gate scandal broke. It was only down to the trust and confidence of Asda and the longevity of our relationship that meant they gave us the time to prove ourselves with all the necessary audits to show that our site was not involved.