What type of change is most likely to include major restructuring of departments or roles?

Transformational change refers to substantial and fundamental shifts within an organization, which often involve the complete redesign or restructuring of departments, roles, and processes. This type of change goes beyond surface-level adjustments and aims at altering the core workings of the organization to adapt to new business environments, market demands, or strategic visions.

With transformational change, leadership typically implements a vision that can reshape the organization’s structure and culture significantly. It frequently requires a re-evaluation of existing systems, processes, and resource allocations, which can lead to a redefinition of roles and responsibilities. This type of extensive change is often necessitated by factors such as mergers, acquisitions, or a need to significantly reposition the organization within the marketplace.

In contrast, incremental change focuses on small, gradual improvements rather than a complete overhaul, technological change pertains specifically to the adoption of new tools or technologies without necessarily altering the organizational structure, and cultural change involves shifts in the values or behaviors within an organization, which might not require major structural changes. Thus, transformational change is distinctly characterized by its impact on the organization's infrastructure and requires comprehensive planning and execution to be successful.