Reasons for resistance to change
According to Kotter and Schlesinger (1979), there are four reasons or causes that people are resisting change:
- Parochial self-interest. Some people are more worried with the effect of the change for themselves and how it may affect their personal interests, rather than consider the effects for the victory of the business.
- Misunderstanding. Communication troubles or insufficient information.
- Low tolerance of change. Some people are very intense on feeling secure and want stability in their work.
- Different assessments of the situation. A few employees may oppose the reasons for the change and with the merits and demerits of the change process.
Six approaches to deal with resistance to change
Kotter and Schlesinger have provided with the six (6) change approaches to handle with change resistance:
1. Education and Communication. To update and educate people about the change effort in advance. Preceding communication and knowledge helps employees observe the logic in the change attempt.
2. Participation and Involvement. When employees are included in the change effort they are more apt to want change rather than resist it.
3. Facilitation and Support. Managerial assistance helps employees to deal with their fear and nervousness during a change period.
4. Negotiation and Agreement. Managers can fight resistance by providing incentives to employees not to oppose change. This can be done by permitting people who are resisting the change.
5. Manipulation and Co-optation. Where other strategies will not work or are too expensive. Kotter and Schlesinger recommend that an efficient manipulation technique is: to co-opt with people who are opposing the change.
6. Explicit and Implicit Coercion. Where quick effort is essential. And to be used only as final option. Managers can explicitly or implicitly force employees for accepting change by dismissals, jobs losses, employee transfers, or not promoting employees.