RESISTANCE TO CHANGE

CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Explain why employees often resist change when it is introduced in a workplace and recommend ways in which managers can reduce the extent of such resistance and its effectiveness.

All organizations, size, are constantly faced by the need to change their structures, processes, and approach in response to environmental factors. Operating in dynamic environments characterized by rapid innovation, competition and technological advancements (Khan, Raza & George, 2017 p.16), organizations must devise and implement innovative strategies in a bid to enhance competitiveness as well as profitability (Grama & Todericiu 2016 p.48). In other words, organizations have no option but to embrace change, which is universally viewed as an inevitable phenomena that is occasioned by environmental dynamics, and which is vital for organizational growth and success (Agboola & Salawu, 2011 p.235). Unfortunately, not many employees have a positive view of change processes; the simplest explanation for this is that change involves doing things differently, which often creates uncertainty and fear (Agboola & Salawu, 2011 p.235). In light of this, the topic of resistance to change in organizations has widely been studied.

There are several reasons why employees often resist change when it is introduced in the workplace. To begin, most employees perceive organizational change as a big threat to existing structures and the prevailing order. By definition, change refers to observable transformations that occur during a given period and which temporarily affect an entity’s social organization in terms of structure together with functionality (Grama & Todericiu, 2016 p.48). Going by this definition, resistance to change is understandable given that no matter how small the change may be, it implies new expectations and behaviors and could also destroy the structures as well as relationships with which employees have become familiar (Agboola & Sawalu, 2011 p.235). When these happen, employees will most likely feel like they are in a new place altogether. At the same time, the perception that employees are facing new challenges also sets in.

Secondly, employees resist change when they are not involved in planning for the change. In the words of Grama and Todericiu (2016, p.48), “employees are not passive to change, but hold an active role in creating and supplying an answer to change”. What this means is that failing to engage employees in planning change processes is likely to trigger negative emotions and resistance to change efforts.

Uncertainty and opinion differences are another reason for resistance to change. According to the psychological theory of resistance, human beings are naturally rebellious and tend to challenge any kind of change (Agboola & Salawu, 2011 p.237). More precisely, human beings have an innate tendency of feeling scared when faced with change. The widespread perception is that change is automatically scary and should therefore naturally be resisted. For employees, the uncertainty associated with change is a major cause of resistance. This can be explained using the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory, which postulates that human beings have different needs, one of them being safety needs. According to this theory, individuals are looking for an environment in which they feel secure, both psychologically and physically, and where they are free from harm or threats (Self & Schraeder, 2009 p.170). As such, if employees perceive that a proposed change could threaten their job security, for example, they will most likely resist it.

Resistance to change could also be caused by poor leadership. It goes without saying that if employees do not trust that the person who initiates change or the one entrusted with the responsibility of implementing change is capable of doing so, they will resist change efforts. In the same way, employees tend to resist change if the company’s history shows that past change initiatives have been unsuccessful (Self & Schraeder, 2009 p.170). On a different note, lack of clarity about the change process also triggers resistance among employees. As stated earlier, it is crucial to invoked employees in planning for change because in so doing, employees get to understand the purpose of the change and how it will be implemented. When this engagement is lacking, employees may disregard the change; others may not understand what the change is all about.

Having outlined the major causes of employee resistance to change, it is important to outline different strategies that managers can use to minimize resistance among employees. To begin with, proper communication throughout the organization should be maintained. From the foregoing discussion, it is very clear that employees need to be provided with all the information about change before managers attempt to introduce it. This will give clarity and increase buy-in among employees. In short, resistance can be reduced when managers persuasively communicate to employees why change is necessary. As stated by Simoes and Esposito (2014, p.3), communication enhances effectiveness of change by reducing uncertainty, gaining commitment, and building readiness. According to Fernandez and (2017, p.8), effective communication in the context of introducing change means crafting a vision that is compelling, and using a combination of oral and written forms to communicate this to all employees. This is what the Lewin’s change management model refers to as unfreezing (Pawar, 2017 p.82); any questions that employees may have concerning the suggested change should be answered satisfactorily to get rid of any speculations, rumors, and misperceptions.

Managers must ensure participation together with involvement of all members of the organization. This kind of engagement is very helpful in gaining buy-in from employees, the rationale being that individuals who take part in planning change demonstrate commitment to its successful implementation (Agboola & Salawu, 2011 p.238). When employees participate in the planning phase, they will most likely support the implementation as they would not want their ideas and input to go to waste.

Thirdly, managers and leaders must work on their approach, abilities, and skills and create trust among employees. Considering that lack of trust and poor leadership are some causes of resistance among employees, it follows that resistance will be minimized where a managerial/leadership approach that is oriented towards subordinates/followers is adopted. Precisely, the manager or leader must acknowledge that the fears or uncertainties that employees feel are valid concerns; they must help employees to overcome these fears. Self and Schraeder (2009, p.175) advise managers to always be available and willing to provide this much-needed help to employees. Similarly, managers should strive to be better listeners and provide necessary support to employees.

Lastly, managers must ensure that justice prevails at all times. Research has shown that if employees perceive managers to be fair in terms of resource allocation, dispute resolution, and decision making, they are more committed and willing to embrace change (Lizar et al., 2019 p.2). Going by this finding, managers should be very keen on how they make decisions and handle issues, especially those revolving around the planned change.

References List

Agboola, A. A., & Salawu, R. O. 2011, Managing deviant behavior and resistance to change. International Journal of Business and Management, 6(1), pp.235-242.

Fernandez, S., & Rainey, H. G. 2017, Managing successful organizational change in the public sector. Routledge.

Grama, B., & Todericiu, R. 2016, Change, Resistance to Change and Organizational Cynicism. Studies in Business & Economics, 11(3).

Khan, S. T., Raza, S. S., & George, S. 2017, Resistance to Change in Organizations: A Case of General Motors and Nokia. International Journal of Research in Management, Economics and Commerce, 7(1), pp.16-25.

Lizar, A. A., Chrisanty, F. N., Novita, P. A., & Endaryono, S. S. D. T. 2019, Minimizing Resistance to Change: The Role of Communication and Perceived Organizational Justice. In SU-AFBE 2018: Proceedings of the 1st Sampoerna University-AFBE International Conference, SU-AFBE 2018, 6-7 December 2018, Jakarta Indonesia. European Alliance for Innovation.

Pawar, A. & Charak, K. 2017, Study on adaptability of change management: review of Kurt Lewins and Kotter model of change. Research Revolution International Journal of Social Science and Management, 5(4), pp.79-83.

Self, D. & Schraeder, M. 2009, Enhancing the success of organizational change: matching readiness strategies with sources of resistance. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 30(2), pp.167-182.

Simoes, P. M. M., & Esposito, M. 2014, Improving change management: How communication nature influences resistance to change. Journal of Management Development, pp.1-28.