Introduction
Organizational change comprises actions in which a business or company alters major components of its operations, like the underlying infrastructure or technology it employs and its culture. In contrast, organizational change management refers to the successful resolution of organizational change achieved by guiding through preparation, implementation, and follow-through. At some point, virtually every organization encounters a change or transition to remain viable and competitive, but it is usually met with resistance. Excessive resistance to change can easily cause decreased productivity, increased stress, and organizational failure. As a result, organizations need to manage employee resistance to change to enhance success and increase productivity and the bottom line.
The Reasons Driving Employees to Resist Change
Employees oppose change for various reasons, such as loss of control. Change can easily mess up established working and routines, potentially leaving employees with a sense of loss of control over their work (Rehman et al., 2021). Moreover, resistance is accompanied by the fear of the unknown, where employees feel uncertain about the effect of change on their responsibilities, jobs, and roles. This is because they perceive that the proposed change could reduce compensation, demotions, and job losses (Darmawan & Azizah, 2020). Additionally, resistance to change is linked to a lack of understanding, where employees lack complete comprehension of the reasoning behind the change and the advantages it will bring.
The Models and Theories of Managing Employee Resistance to Change
Lewin’s Model
Organizations can use diverse theories and models of change management to reduce employee resistance to change, like Lewin’s Change Management Model and Kotter’s Eight-Step Model. Lewin’s Change Management Model entails three phases: unfreezing, changing, and freezing. The unfreezing stage requires organizations to establish a sense of motivation and urgency for change by engaging employees in the process, specifying the advantages of the change, and conveying the necessity for change. During the second phase, companies must enforce the change and offer training and support for their workers to ensure they possess the necessary resources and skills to embrace the change (Hussain et al., 2018). Finally, the refreezing phase calls for organizations to solidify the change by integrating it into their culture and recognizing and rewarding employees who adopt the proposed change.
Kotter’s Model
In contrast, Kotter’s eight-phase model involves an 8-step process including increasing urgency, creating a guiding team, establishing the vision, communicating for buy-in, encouraging action, designing short-term wins, sustaining acceleration, and instituting change. Every stage in the model calls for specific actions to help manage change. (Michalik, 2023; Robbins and Judge, 2023). The model emphasizes the significance of involving employees at every level of the organization in the entire change process while creating a shared vision for guiding change.
Conclusion
In conclusion, lessening employee resistance to change necessitates companies comprehending the causes of such opposition and employing efficient change management theories and models. Employee resistance is enhanced by loss of control, fear of the unknown, and lack of understanding. By using Lewin’s and Kotter’s models, companies can enhance the involvement of employees in the change process, provide training and support, communicate the advantages of the proposed change, and integrate the change into the company’s culture. This will help minimize resistance to change and boost the chances for successful outcomes.
Reference List
Darmawan, A. and Azizah, S. (2020) “Resistance to Change: Causes and Strategies as an Organizational Challenge,” Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research, 395, pp. 49–53. Web.
Hussain, S. et al. (2018) “Kurt Lewin’s change model: A critical review of the role of leadership and employee involvement in organizational change,” Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 3(3), pp. 123–127.
Michalik, G. (2023) Co-creation mindset: Eight steps towards the future of work. Springer.
Rehman, N. et al. (2021) “The psychology of resistance to change: The antidotal effect of organizational justice, support and leader-member exchange,” Frontiers in Psychology, 12, pp. 1–15.
Robbins, S. and Judge, T. (2023) Organizational behavior. Pearson.