Resistance to change is the action taken by individuals and groups when they perceive that a change that is occurring as a threat to them. Key words here are 'perceive' and 'threat'. The threat need not be real or large for resistance to occur. In its usual description it refers to change within organizations, although it also is found elsewhere in other forms. Resistance is the equivalent of objections in sales and disagreement in general discussions. Resistance may take many forms, including active or passive, overt or covert, individual or organized, aggressive or timid.
No matter whether a change is of major proportions or is objectively rather small, the change manager must anticipate that people in the organization are going to find reasons to resist changes. It is a basic tenet of human behavior that any belief or value that has been previously successful in meeting needs will resist change. This applies even if there are better more successful alternatives to meet those needs.
Resistance to change takes many forms. The more obvious forms consist of active resistance, where people will object, or refuse to cooperate with the change. Other, more subtle forms of resistance, however, are more difficult to deal with. Some examples of "resistive symptoms" include:
1. At a staff meeting everyone agrees to utilize a new procedure, but several weeks later you discover that the procedure has not been implemented.
2. New computers are introduced into the workplace. While all staff insisted that they have their own machines, virtually nobody is using them for the purpose for which they were intended.
3. A change in job responsibilities takes place for an employee. The employee consents to the change by saying: "You're the boss, and if that's what you want..." Later the employee only changes what he is doing enough to appear cooperative, but is in fact doing most things the way he was before the change.
It is very important that the change manager anticipate, and plan strategies for dealing with resistance. This applies not only at the introduction of the change, but there must be follow-through, so that the change manager monitors the change over the long-term, being alert for difficulties as the appear.
It is helpful to have an understanding of why people resist change, because understanding this allows us to plan strategies to reduce resistance from the beginning. Also, some of the reasons that people resist change do not seem to make sense to the casual observer. At times they can seem nonsensical and illogical. They are, nonetheless, important.
SOME REASONS WHY PEOPLE RESENT OR RESIST CHANGE: 1
1. One major reason why people resist change is the potential for loss on a personal level. Note that objectively there may be little threat, but people may act as if there is one.
Some of the things people feel are at risk during change processes are:
SECURITY
FRIENDS AND CONTACTS
MONEY
FREEDOM
PRIDE AND SATISFACTION
RESPONSIBILITY
AUTHORITY
GOOD WORKING CONDITIONS
STATUS
You probably will have noted that many of the above bear a very close resemblance to the model of human needs discussed earlier. The general principle is that whenever a change is perceived as creating some threat to the employee having his/her needs met the more likely resistance will occur.
2. OTHER REASONS FOR RESISTING CHANGE:
While a feeling of threat is a primary reason why people resist change, there are other factors that can mobilize people into resisting any changes from a status quo. These include:
CHANGE NOT NEEDED - STATUS QUO IS WORKING FINE
PROPOSED CHANGE DOES MORE HARM THAN GOOD
LACK OF RESPECT FOR PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CHANGE OBJECTIONABLE WAY OF IMPLEMENTING THE CHANGE
NEGATIVE ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE ORGANIZATION BEFORE THE CHANGE NO OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE INPUT INTO CHANGE PERCEIVED AS IMPLYING PERSONAL CRITICISM CHANGE SIMPLY ADDS MORE WORK AND CONFUSION. CHANGE REQUIRES MORE EFFORT THAN TO KEEP STATUS QUO BAD TIMING OF THE CHANGE
A DESIRE TO CHALLENGE AUTHORITY HEARING ABOUT THE CHANGE SECONDHAND
3. THE UNCERTAINTY PRINCIPLE
The Uncertainty principle states that when people are faced with ambiguous or uncertain situations, where they feel they do not know what to expect, they will resist moving into those situations. In other words, if people don't know what is to come, they get antsy, and resistive.
SUMMARY:
If you have read the above, and feel a bit overwhelmed by the many reasons people resist change, keep in mind that most if not all of these issues can be resolved for people through an effective change implementation strategy... Lest we become too negative let's take a quick look at the kinds of factors that help people accept or welcome change.
WHY PEOPLE ACCEPT OR WELCOME CHANGE
While you are likely to encounter people who resist change for the previously stated reasons, you will also encounter people who accept or welcome change. By knowing why people might accept or welcome change you will be better able to formulate a communication plan to foster acceptance.
1. PERSONAL GAIN
People will be more likely to accept change when they see the possibility that they will gain in some of the following areas:
INCREASED SECURITY
MONEY
MORE AUTHORITY
STATUS/PRESTIGE
BETTER WORKING CONDITIONS
SELF-SATISFACTION
BETTER PERSONAL CONTACTS
LESS TIME AND EFFORT
2. OTHER FACTORS:
PROVIDES A NEW CHALLENGE
LIKES/RESPECTS THE SOURCE
LIKES THE WAY CHANGE IS BEING COMMUNICATED REDUCES BOREDOM
PROVIDES
PERCEPTION THAT THE CHANGE IS NECESSARY
To conclude, the main role of the change manager is to work towards reducing the resistance towards change, and increasing the enthusiasm and level of commitment for the change. In general, most people will have mixed reactions towards proposed change, so the change agent can be helpful in highlighting the positive aspects in a realistic manner.
3. OPENING MINDS, WINNING HEARTS.
Too often what you hear from the leaders is quite different from the real thing. Likewise, what you read in management literature and corporate journals are often "publicity stunts" to depict a good image of organizations. The problem of listening to leaders and reading about what they say about successful change is that many do not practice what they preach.
However, there is a small group of leaders who practice what they preach and have truly achieved success in the change that they have embarked on in their organizations. I know them and believe what they say because I see what they are saying being put to action when I visit their organizations.
After discussing with these leaders and having worked in many organizations both as a practitioner as well as a consultant, I am more convinced now than ever that the new role of leaders today is to open minds and win the hearts of people in order to achieve successful change.
The fact that many face tremendous difficulties in implementing change in their organizations is a clear indication that leaders are still very much in the dark about the right way to win over people in accepting change.
The following model developed by KL Strategic Change Consulting (KLSCC) has proven effective in the implementation of change in organizations.
OPENING MINDS
Too often, leaders try to change the minds of others through a forceful approach. They attempt to get people to change by talking at people and, some, barking at people. They focus more on getting people to near what they are saying. However, people can hear what they say but are not listening as long as their minds remain closed. The critical task of the leader is to first open the minds of people before he sell his massage of change. To open the minds of people, the leader must first break down their complacency levels. To reduce the complacency level of people, leaders need to communicate a compelling message for change.
They can do this through benchmarking and by comparing their level of achievements with competition. Leaders can highlight the weakness within organizations and the threats they face in the industry. A leader can reduce the complacency level of individuals by getting them to look outward instead inward. By this, I mean assessing changes in the environment such as the increasing intensity of competition, more demanding customers, deregulation and globalization, and by highlighting the impact of these changes on the future of the companies. Independent studies or survey by external parties will be good source of material to get the attention of people within organization to see the urgency for change.
Another way to open the minds of people is to develop a conductive environment in organization whereby people are allowed to question past assumptions. There may be assumptions which are no longer valid which leaders should take steps to abandon. By getting people to have an open mind is a good way to prevent them from developing blind spots.
Leaders need to help people become aware of the reality of situations to breakdown rigid attitudes and old habit which are hampering change. Keeping people's minds open requires constant assessment of the need for change and communicating this need in a convincing and acceptable manner to those who need to implement the necessary changes to improve performance in the workplace.
WINNING HEARTS
While opening minds is about appealing to sound reasons, wining hearts is appealing to emotions. The famous Professor William James said: "The deepest principle of human nature is the craving to be appreciated." Everywhere in organizations, I run into this unarticulated and unfulfilled need. The need of people to be appreciated serves as one powerful motivation for change. One powerful way we can start to appreciating people is by recognizing the importance of their knowing what is going on around them. By genuinely communicating early to them about the rationale and the purpose of the change we will win more hearts than by justifying why change was not communicated.
This process of creating awareness of change should therefore rightfully begin by emphasizing the importance people place on the need to know and understand why change is being undertaken. Having done that, leaders must "sell" the benefits of the change to the people. People who do not "buy" the change are the ones who will resist it. Selling the change is about getting people excited about wanting to change.
Leaders who want to implement successful change must learn the skills of presenting change in an interesting and positive manner. Too often leaders themselves look at the negative side of change themselves and are overwhelmed by the difficulties. People will change when they see the change as positive and beneficial. The role of the leaders is to make change attractive, interesting, meaningful, friendly and beneficial.
Similarly a salesman who wants to sell his products or services will make the sales transaction pleasant. He will convince you of the attractive feature of his products and his benefits it will bring you. He will get you excited, willing to buy and hence put in your money.
Likewise getting people to change is getting people wanting and accepting it through your influencing power of selling. Winning hearts is also about establishing credibility. No one will be won over when leaders are not viewed as being credible. Leadership credibility calls for consistency, fairness, transparency and competency.
To win people's hearts, leaders must be sincere in their efforts they take towards change. They need to practice what they preach and deliver what they promise. They need to respect individuals and at the same time build teams which are committed to common goals and purpose. And winning commitment is the ultimate fruit of winning the hearts of people.
ENABLING ACTIONS
There are four key reasons why people do not change. First, they do not know what they are supposed to do. Second, they do not know how to do it. Third, they do not know why they should do it. Fourth, there are obstacles beyond their control.
Let us address the role of leaders in tackling each of these reasons to enable people to make change happen. For those who do not know what they are supposed to do, the leader’s role is to ensure communication is effective. Leaders need to communicate effectively what needs to be changed. The objectives, rationale and benefits of the change should be clearly and convincingly communicated. Should there be a breakdown in communication, leaders must identify the root cause and correct the situation right away. Sometimes information is communicated in bits and pieces and people down the line are confused. At other times, information may be stuck at certain levels and thus are not communicated downwards. Information that is not timely and accurately communicated will hinder change because people will not know what they are supposed to do.
For those who do not know how to change, leaders must provide the knowledge and skills to ensure that people have the confidence and competency to implement the change desired. The learning process can be done in a formal or informal process. Sharing information, knowledge and experience is an effective way to build competency in people. Coaching, formal training and team learning are also good way to increase the knowledge and skill levels of people. And of course, leaders should encourage staff to undertake self-learning, self-education and self-discovery on a continuous basis which I believe is still the most effective way to increase one’s knowledge and skills.
For those who do not know why they should change, leaders should start by opening minds and winning hearts towards change.
For those who face obstacles which are beyond their control, leaders must help to remove them.
Of course, there are some people who tend to perceive every challenge as an obstacle. Good leaders must know how to differentiate them. They must only help remove obstacles that are beyond their staff’s control. For those within their control, they must encourage their staff to remove them by themselves. For example, an obstacle such as frequent computer downtime which is due to the network system is not within the control of the frontline staff. The manager should address this issue with the Information Technology people in the regional office or head office and help solve this problem. While waiting for the head office to resolve the problem, the manager should in the meantime address the problems-created by the computer downtime to lessen the queue and discomfort at the branch. He should provide all the necessary support and encouragement to help smoothening things out until the computer is up again.
To enable change to happen, leaders must also mobilize the necessary resources and empower people to take action. The role of leaders is to negotiate and secure the necessary tools, equipment, manpower, materials and budget to enable the change to take place in their division or unit. Leaders must also ensure that people have the necessary authority to carry out their jobs effectively.
REWARDING ACHIEVEMENTS
It is the natural law of the universe that whatever we sow we will reap. Leaders in organizations must realize that they cannot violate this universal law for long. If people do not get recognized or rewarded for their achievements by their companies, some other organizations will reward them.
Valuing people and their contribution will go along way towards motivating people to want to change and achieve more for themselves as well as for their organizations. Leaders who care for people and show genuine concern for people will win their respect and commitment. People do not care how much a leader knows until they know how much he cares.
In total, achieving success in change is about opening minds, winning hearts, enabling people and rewarding them. Leaders who take the time and effort to develop these skills will be handsomely rewarded with positive and productive results. Those who do not will continue to be disappointed with the failure of their people to change and improve
Our Perception towards Change.
I wonder how many kind of perception towards change there are.
For one, I’m quite certain the kind of perception that our aunts and uncles have towards change.
“Wow! You’ve grown taller since the last I saw you”. Like duh. It’s not as if we would grow shorter right? But relatives embrace the change of their loved ones. Watching their nieces, nephews etc grow seems to get them all excited.
But what about us? The ones who are actually experiencing the growth. The change.
Remember the last time you saw your best friend or just one of your acquaintance. Were they the same as before? And how to do feel about that?
And can we really handle it? The change I mean.
Is it fear of the unknown that sometimes pull us back? The unfamiliar that seems to be casting a shadow of doubt around our confidence?
The future and its indefinable promises would sometimes make us think twice, thrice or even a thousand times over our decisions. Yet, time ticks on. And when the time comes, decision must be made. It is the first step to change.
But what if the decision we make brings us to a realization that we had made the wrong decision. The wrong step. Is it worth regretting for? Or is it fate that brings us to make that decision which we thought was a mistake but it turns out, it was not a mistake at all but, a lesson in life.
Truthfully, it is quite difficult to define change and establish some kind of law or rules on how to deal with it. Different people have different ways to deal with change because all of us have different perception towards it.
Some people are fearful to even be 20 yrs of age. But others cannot wait to reach 30. Get it?
Personally, for me, it takes time for me to embrace change. To leave my old habits and move on is one of the skills that I have not mastered yet. It breaks my heart to let go. And it scares me to move on. Simply said, it is fear of the unfamiliar. But in the end I know that I have to face and deal with it. One step at a time and I will learn to accept it eventually.
I guess we should try and view changes as challenges. Challenges to test out new found capabilities and abilities. Just like academic tests, there are, I guess, “Life Tests” as well. And when we have overcome that change, that challenge, it is just logical to anticipate another change, another challenge.
So yea, that’s what I think. What about you?
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