Preventing Resistance
- Preventing Resistance
Listed below are a number of reasons why people may be resistant to a change. For each of the reasons, identify at least one action that could be taken by management to reduce the prospect that it will be a significant source of resistance (Exercise 6.2 from your text). Respond to at least two of your classmates’ postings.
Reason for Resistance Proposed Action
Dislike of change
Discomfort with uncertainty
Perceived negative effects on interests
Attachment to established culture/ways of doing things
Perceived breach of psychological contract
Lack of conviction that change is needed
Lack of clarity as to what is expected
Belief that the specific change being proposed is inappropriate
Belief that the timing is wrong
“Excessive change”
Cumulative effect of other changes in one’s life
Perceived clash with ethics
Reaction to the experience of previous changes
Disagreement with the way the change is being managed
2. Change Intervention
Complete the following exercise (Exercise 7.2 in your text): Choose a current issue in your local neighborhood. You will figure out how you would
design a large-scale change intervention program in relation to this issue. Answer the following questions and respond to at least two of your
classmates’ postings.
a. How many people would it make sense to involve?
b. Where and when would you hold it?
c. How would you ensure that you have a representative cross sample of relevant people in the room at the same time? What
data sources would you need to achieve this?
d. Who are the key decision makers in relation to this issue? What arguments will you use to get them to attend the meeting?
e. How will you structure the agenda of the meeting? What would be the best way of doing this so that people who attend on that day have
appropriate buy-in to it?
f. How would you run the actual meeting?
g. What technology would you need to make it work well?
h. What would you like people to take away from the meeting?
i. What follow-up actions would you plan to ensure that actions and decisions flowed from it?
j. What possible funding sources might you draw on to finance the meeting?
k. As a result of considering such questions, what new issues emerge for you, as a large-scale change intervention agent, to consider? What
specific skills would you need to make such an event work well? Which of these skills would you need to develop more?
