‘The only thing that is constant in life is change itself’ said a famous Greek philosopher. However organizations are dogged with problems of having to manage change as, more often than not, change is met with resistance.

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The adage, ‘Change is the only constant’ is true since most people resist change. They prefer to live their lives, professional or personal, dictated by a routine. Even a slight change in their routines is not appreciated. Similarly, if changes for betterment of a company are proposed, many employees resent those changes. This holds true especially with long term employees of an organization. It is human nature to choose a stable and predictable environment where all change seems unnatural. Though change is inevitable, people fear it because of:

• Their incapability to understand change and its implications
• Their belief that change is irrelevant and inappropriate
• Their difficulty in coping with the level and pace of work after the change
• Their unfounded notion that change is a temporary phase
• Their perspective that their superiors regard them as incompetent, hence instituting change
• A lack of authority or control
• A lack of faith in their ability to learn new skills
• The feeling of too much happening too soon
• The staff’s aversion to some managers/superiors and total distrust in them
• Job insecurity
• A compromise on their salary
• The feeling that this would impinge on their family time
• The belief that the organization does not require the much-needed extra effort
• The fear that in accepting change one may prove to be unfaithful to the traditional way of working
• The fear that any change would highlight the weakness of employees in the new environment
• Being burdened with more responsibilities, irrespective of the current workload
• The ill-feeling which would result from a senior staff member reporting to managers or superiors younger to them
• Mistrust amongst managers and employees
• Reluctance to use new technology to simplify work processes
• Resistance from unions who harbor ulterior motives
• A lack of proper communication channels between the management and employees

Sometimes it makes me wonder whether it is possible to overcome resistance to organizational change. I think that proper and effective communication with employees will definitely help them transition to new changes. Other factors which drive change are:

• Strong support to employees from top level management
• Monetary or incentive programs for work performance
• Open door policy between brass level management and employees
• Encourage meetings between managers and employees involved in the power game to discuss goals and tactics.

There is no doubt that change is important for today’s business. As new facets of economy evolve, organizations have to keep themselves a step ahead of the curve or suffer and crash.

On a subjective note, I end this blog. Please do share your thoughts on this.