Resistance to Organizational Change

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Recommended: Literature review on employee resistance to change

Individuals when faced with any major change will be inevitably resistant and will want to preserve the status quo, especially if they think their status or security within the organization is in danger (Bolognese, 2010). Folger and Skarlicki believe that organizational change produces skepticism in employees which make it problematic and possibly even impossible to contrive improvements within the organization (as cited in Bolognese, 2010) Therefore, management must understand, accept and make an effort to work with resistance, since it can undermine even the most well-conceived change efforts (Bolognese, 2010). Furthermore, Coetsee states for organizations to achieve the maximum benefits from change they must effectively create and maintain a climate and culture that does not support resistance and rewards acceptance and support ( as cited in Bolognese, 2010).

Therefore, it is important to understand what resistance is and how to reduce the affects from resistance. Bolognese (2010) looked at several examples of different definitions for resistance and one example by Alvin Zander explained resistance as behaviors that are intended to protect an individual from the negative effects of change which could be either real or imagined. Another definition of resistance by Zaltman and Duncan is any behavior that serves to maintain the status quo even in the face of server pressure to change. Finally, in the view of Folger and Skarlicki resistance is any behavior that seeks to challenge, disrupt, or invert prevailing culture of assumptions, discourses, and power relations (as sited in Bolognese, 2010). Although there are several different definitions for resistance to change, it is clear that resistance is an effort to avoid chang...

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...nce is coming from, facilitates listening and respect while focusing on the objectives of the change (Palmer, Dunford, & Akin, 2009).

Conclusion

Managing resistance starts with dialogue that engages and reveals the underlying reasons for resistance (A. Gilley, J. Gilley, & Godek, & 2009). Resistance to change is a complex issue and managers and leaders need to take the time to understand why and where the resistance is coming from if they have any chance of being successful. There are numerous reasons why an employee might be resisting the change and there are lots of approaches to address resistance, but without understanding why there is resistance, leaders are unprepared to deal with the issue. Therefore, leaders need to make the time to involve employees in the process, understand and respect their concerns, and work towards clear and focused goals.

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