The Idea in Brief
Faced with stiffer competition and dizzying technological advances, companies often must change course to stay competitive. But most change initiatives backfire. That’s because many managers take a one-size-fits-all approach to change. They assume they can combat resistance, a notorious obstacle, by involving employees in the design of the initiative. But that works only when employees have the information they need to provide useful input. It’s disastrous when they don’t. Also, managers often don’t tailor the speed of their change strategy to the situation. For instance, they may apply a go-slow approach even when an impending crisis calls for rapid change.
To lead change successfully, Kotter and Schlesinger recommend:
- Diagnosing the types of resistance you’ll encounter—and tailoring your countermeasures accordingly. To illustrate, with employees who fear the adjustments the change will require, provide training in new skills.
- Adapting your change strategy to the situation. For example, if your company must transform to avert an imminent crisis, accelerate your initiative—even if that risks greater resistance.
The Idea in Practice
The authors suggest these steps for managing change successfully:
1. Analyze Situational Factors
Ask yourself:
- “How much and what kind of resistance do we anticipate?”
- “What’s my position relative to resisters—in terms of my power and the level of trust between us?”
- “Who—me or others—has the most accurate information about what changes are needed?”
- “How urgent is our situation?”
2. Determine the Optimal Speed of Change
Use your analysis of situational factors to decide how quickly or slowly your change should proceed. Move quickly if the organization risks plummeting performance or death if the present situation isn’t changed. But proceed slowly if:
- Resistance will be intense and extensive
- You anticipate needing information and commitment from others to help design and implement the change
- You have less organizational power than those who may resist the change
3. Consider Methods for Managing Resistance
Method#How to Use#When to Use#Advantages#DrawbacksEducation #Communicate the desired changes and reasons for them#Employees lack information about the change’s implications#Once persuaded, people often help implement the change#Time consuming if lots of people are involvedParticipation #Involve potential resisters in designing and implementing the change#Change initiators lack sufficient information to design the change#People feel more committed to making the change happen#Time consuming, and employees may design inappropriate changeFacilitation #Provide skills training and emotional support#People are resisting because they fear they can’t make the needed adjustments#No other approach works as well with adjustment problems#Can be time consuming and expensive; can still failNegotiation #Offer incentives for making the change#People will lose out in the change and have considerable power to resist#It’s a relatively easy way to defuse major resistance#Can be expensive and open managers to the possibility of blackmailCoercion#Threaten loss of jobs or promotion opportunities; fire or transfer those who can’t or won’t change#Speed is essential and change initiators possess considerable power#It works quickly and can overcome any kind of resistance#Can spark intense resentment toward change initiators
“It must be considered that there is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things.”1
