Faculty Experiences of Merger and Organizational Change in a Social Work Program.
Social work programs are experiencing unprecedented organizational changes due to budget cuts, dwindling resources, global, and technological challenges. However, there is limited information in the literature about the merger experiences of faculty in social work programs. On one hand undergoing merger and reorganization provides the opportunity to reorganize, reprioritize, re-assess, develop strategies, and explore previously untapped opportunities for social work programs. Conversely, merger experiences have caused frustration, intention to quit, confusion, and loss of professional identity for social work faculty. In this article the authors utilize a journaling method and sense-making approach of the merger experiences of some of the faculty members of a social work program in the United States. The authors suggest a framework to understand how the faculty confronted the challenges, overcame the pitfalls, and maximized the opportunities offered during the merger and organizational change process.
a Department of Social Work, College of Health Sciences, Samford University , Birmingham , Alabama , USA.
A Christson
AC
Adedoyin
b School of Social Work, College of Health and Human Performance, East Carolina University , Greenville , North Carolina , USA.
Monte
M
Miller
b School of Social Work, College of Health and Human Performance, East Carolina University , Greenville , North Carolina , USA.
Mary S
MS
Jackson
c Child Development & Family Relations, College of Health and Human Performance , East Carolina University , Greenville, North Carolina , USA.
Bernice
B
Dodor
b School of Social Work, College of Health and Human Performance, East Carolina University , Greenville , North Carolina , USA.
Kristen
K
Hall
D003142:Communication; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D004777:Environment; D005178:Faculty / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D015279:Organizational Culture; D009936:Organizational Innovation; D012931:Social Environment; D012947:Social Work / Q000193:education*; D018511:Systems Integration; D035501:Uncertainty; D014481:United States; D014495:Universities / Q000458:organization & administration*
Merger; faculty; organizational change; organizational culture; restructuring