Scientist and novelist C.P. Snow wrote that social change was "so slow that it would pass unnoticed in one person's lifetime. That is no longer so. The rate of change has increased so much that our imagination can't keep up." Two of the most critical elements of leadership are the introduction and management of change. Most organizations rise or fall based on how well they manage the introduction of change and the control of uninvited changes in their environment.

1. Overcoming Resistance to Change
John C. Bruckman, Ph.D.
Managing Director, Change Management Group
Scientist and novelist C.P. Snow wrote that social change was "so slow that it would
pass unnoticed in one person's lifetime. That is no longer so. The rate of change has
increased so much that our imagination can't keep up."1
Two of the most critical
elements of leadership are the introduction and management of change. Most
organizations rise or fall based on how well they manage the introduction of change
and the control of uninvited changes in their environment.
Leaders must fully understand the change process to successfully move their
organizations through the turmoil of today's economic environment into the future.
Many governmental and non-profit organizations faced with a lack of or diminishing
resources, find increasing pressure exerted on their leadership to proactively respond
to unplanned changes. A primary determinate of the future success of any organization
is the leadership’s ability to assimilate change, then formulate and articulate a clear
vision, accompanied by implementation of succinct strategic goals and objectives.
Many leaders come to rely on instinct and experience rather than a full understanding
of the change process. Some out of fear of change resist the inevitable transformation
of their organization. This tends to put the organization at risk when facing
unanticipated as well as planned change. Garfield argued in his book, Peak
Performers: "The peak performers in our study do not regard change as something to
resist, or even to understand fully. They see it, rather, as a source of opportunity they
can guide. The key difference here is between people being change managers or
change resisters." 2
Change is the primary cause of personal and organizational stress. There is a direct
relation from the amount of change in an organization and physiological changes in the
people who work there. The more changes introduced into a shorter period of time, the
more stress people and the organization experience.
Organizational stressors which surface during a major change process have been
found to cause chronic health conditions in people, and negatively affect perceived
work effectiveness, satisfactions, and growth.
1© 2016: John C. Bruckman, Ph.D.
Garfield, Charles, Peak Performers - The New Heroes of American Business, New York: Avon Books,
1986, p.235. C.P. Snow was quoted in Alvin Toffler, Future Shock, New York: Random House, 1970, p.
23. This quotation was excerpted from Peak Performers.
2 Ibid. pp.236 -237
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2. Among these stressors are:
• Unilateral announcements of major decisions and changes
• Authoritarian, workaholic, competitive norms
• Transfers and new work assignments
• Major reorganization or change in position
• New bosses, employees, co-workers
• Changes in work load or schedule
• Changes of procedure, technology
• Changes in status, recognition, appreciation
• Feedback only when performance is unsatisfactory
• Unclear standards and responsibilities
• Job overload
• Task interruption
• Lack of participation in decision making process
• Lack of supportive relationships
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED:
From our 40 years of observations of the change processes in governmental and non-
profit organizations, a number of important lessons have emerged. To be a change
manager, not a change resister, successful leaders commit to being open to new
approaches. They study the ways of their organization and continue to explore new
ideas on how to meet their organizational objectives.
Work With the Group
A manager has to work with the "natural ingredients" at hand, which requires careful
study of the history of the group, and gives many clues to members' current behavior.
How have they reacted to significant change in the past? How have they evolved and
matured? A clear understanding of "what drives the group" must be achieved, before a
manager can introduce new elements into the mix. Basically you need to fully
understand what turns them on to work and what turns them off?
Confront Fear of Change
Asking people to make significant behavioral changes is the most frightening request
managers can make of them. Stress levels in organizations and people are directly
linked to the level of change experienced. Underestimating their "fear response" and
potential resistance is the most consistent mistake made by managers when
introducing change.
Consider the Group's Perspective
When attempting to gain a group's support for needed change, the greatest leverage
lies in discovering what self-interest they have in maintaining the status quo and what
self-interest they have in making changes. A leader must walk in their shoes and
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3. appeal to their self-interest, if it supports the overall organizational plan. If management
approaches the group or organization from the members' perspectives and
understands what they have to lose, they will be able to design interventions that don't
immediately trigger individual defense mechanisms.
Build Trust
If the doors to change are not open, then interventions must concentrate on
teambuilding, trust building, and open/honest communications prior to the introduction
of change. If the manager can lower the work group's fear levels, he/she can open the
doors to change. If the doors to change are open, or even partially open, then the
strategy should concentrate on what will keep them open. Authentic participation in the
change process, with many opportunities to raise issues of concern, will help keep a
group open to the possibility of significant change.
Avoid Manipulating the Workgroup
The worst change strategy is for a leader to pretend to listen to the work group and
consider their concerns, having already decided what is appropriate in advance. This
type of approach will backfire, because people will quickly perceive that they are being
manipulated and conclude that the process is dishonest.
Another strategy that leads to failure is to only involve the work force in negative
changes. If the leadership of an organization jealously guards the decision-making
prerogatives of the organization during good times, it can't expect a very positive
reaction when it turns around and says: "We have to cut medical benefit costs by15%,"
or "We have to cut 20% of the work force and we want you to help us decide who
should go." Employees will get involved in these types of "invited" change processes
out of self-preservation, but this approach does not build the foundation of trust needed
for productive future change.
Be Willing to Compromise
If senior management focuses on predetermined outcomes and displays unwillingness
to compromise, the possibility of work group support is minimized. Involved employees
will suggest changes that greatly improve the original plan, because the people most
heavily affected by a plan will correct its obvious defects. Employees are much more
likely to support a new set of ideas which they have had a key role in shaping. When a
manager approaches the group or organization from the members' perspective, he or
she will be able to design interventions that don't immediately trigger defense
mechanisms.
Allow Group Ownership
Ownership of the proposal for change is instrumental to a successful change process.
If the leader generates the ideas, then the leader should construct a process that
allows the group members to take and make the ideas their own.
Actions vs. Words
People trust their leaders' actions, not their words. If words and actions are consistent,
then a manager's credibility will be high. The staff will take their cues from the
behaviors of senior staff members, despite all declarations of intent. Managers must
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4. productively follow up on the change process. Most employees quickly "burn out" on
changes that are announced on a regular basis, but are not consistently reinforced over
time. The fanfare and energy that upper management puts into new projects quickly
becomes the brunt of derision and double-faced behaviors by employees wanting to
signal that they are "on board" with the new set of ideas, but privately complain about
the "latest waste of energy."
Reward New Behaviors Early
A senior manager cannot wait for examples of completely changed behavior to surface
before rewarding the new behavior. Managers spend much more energy catching
employees doing something wrong, than recognizing what employees do right.
Reinforce any significant movement in the right direction.
Financial Rewards Rarely Reinforce Behavioral Change
A false assumption held by many leaders is that the only effective way to reward or
motivate their staff is by materialistic rewards. Most financial rewards are given on a
yearly basis and have little or no positive impact on daily behavior.
Manage the Myths and Realities
During each stage of this process, management needs to manage the myths and
realities of the organization. Most managers believe what they perceive are the facts
and therefore attention should be paid to their beliefs. They behave as if most other
sources of information are irrelevant. Employees on the other hand will pay equal or
greater attention to myths, rather than organizational realities, regardless of where they
got the information. The myths are the rumors that flow rapidly through an organization
and gain greater validity in employee's eyes as they are retold by greater numbers of
people. Managers must understand that myths become realities if they are believed
and acted upon.
Integrity - the Most Important Variable
The most critical variable in the change process is a leader's personal integrity: Does
the work group have good reason to trust the leader? Do the leader's actions and
words match? Is he/she sensitive to work group needs? Does he/she treat group
members, as they would like to be treated? Does the leader communicate with the work
group in an open and honest manner?
SUMMARY
Management must fully understand how change works in order to lead their
organizations successfully into the future. The introduction and management of change
are two of the most critical elements of leadership for the future. Many leaders, lacking
knowledge or training, fall back upon instinct and past experience. Some oppose
inevitable changes required by their organizations and become "change resistors"
instead of "change managers." In addition to facing more and faster changes,
managers are often confronted with too many new choices.
Myths, realities, and historical cultures need to be acknowledged and managed toward
a new set of priorities and values. Leaders who are change managers address and
reduce the fear of change that naturally exists in the work group. They build trust and
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5. confidence rather than attempting to manipulate the work group.
John C. Bruckman, Ph.D., is Managing Director of the Change Management Group,
based in Santa Cruz, California. Over the past 40 years, Dr. Bruckman has consulted
with over 400 organizations and governments in the United States, South America,
Europe, Asia and Africa. For further background information please visit:
www.linkedin.com/in/jbruckman. Contact: john@jbruckman.com.
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6. confidence rather than attempting to manipulate the work group.
John C. Bruckman, Ph.D., is Managing Director of the Change Management Group,
based in Santa Cruz, California. Over the past 40 years, Dr. Bruckman has consulted
with over 400 organizations and governments in the United States, South America,
Europe, Asia and Africa. For further background information please visit:
www.linkedin.com/in/jbruckman. Contact: john@jbruckman.com.
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