Don't let resistance to change drag your organization’s restructuring efforts. Whether it's good times or bad times, learn how to manage organizational change, and especially its culture. So, ready to take on the challenge of behavior change?

Let’s start with understanding what is behind resistance and then how to deal with it rather than fight it.

Change Management & culture

In the world of business, there is an old saying that goes,

“the only constant is change”

— Unknown

It's a phrase that rings truer now more than ever, as companies face an ever-increasing pace of change driven by technology, competition, and shifting consumer expectations.

But even when change is necessary for an organization's survival, it can still be met with resistance. This is especially true when it comes to corporate culture transformation and interventions.

Resistance to change management

Dealing with resistance in this context is no easy task. It requires an understanding of the organization's identity during culture transformation, the very humane behaviors when haunted by fear and loss of control, the root causes of fragmented corporate culture, and the characteristics of a productive, positive corporate culture.

Human behvior under immense pressure and stress tends to degrade our responses into survival modes of fight, flight, or freeze reactions.

This is especially the case in times of restructuring when the organization and its people suffer fear of job loss, uncertainty, and a general sense of failure. Allowing the reactive human responses to take over leads to the detrimental outcomes of destroyed cultures we all have seen before.

The other big challenge is the potential for fragmentation. When a company has multiple divisions, teams, and locations, it's easy for each group to develop its own unique culture and silo thinking.

Over time, this can lead to a fragmented corporate culture where each group operates independently, with its own set of norms and values.

fight flight freeze reaction — This and the reactive mode mentioned above, can make it difficult to implement changes that require a contemplated and unified approach, leading to resistance and which in turn translates into reduced productivity or complete failure.

After all, a productive and positive corporate culture is one where there is mutual understanding and support for change, a sense of “we are all in this together”.

The key is to identify and address the root causes of resistance, which can vary depending on the context. For example, individual resistance may be driven by fear of job loss, while organizational resistance may stem from conflicting priorities and a lack of support from leadership.

Cultural resistance may be rooted in deeply ingrained beliefs and practices in an organization's culture, one of the reasons that people resist cultural change. This is in some ways good news as well because cultural intervention in organizational transformation can help to address these issues.

By taking a proactive approach to change, companies can use effective interventions to overcome resistance and create a more cohesive and productive corporate culture.

This might involve employee culture training, team culture training, or other strategies designed to help individuals and groups acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to adapt to change.

Understanding Resistance to Change & Consequences

Organizational culture and its environment are dramatically influenced by the resistance of its individuals to change. Aversion to change is also human and a common phenomenon in organizations.

Resistance radically jeopardizes an organization’s transformation process and is most commonly defined as the unwillingness to adapt to new situations or processes. This collectively manifests from bottom up, i.e. at the employee level, all the way up to the organizational level.

Reasons for resistance to change include fear of the unknown, loss of control, and personal comfort with the status quo. Common reactions to change are denial, anger, and fear.

Often these reactions in turn are misinterpreted as a lack of skills or capacity whereas they are an expression of employee’s resistance subsequent to the mentioned fears. Let’s have a closer look at the types of resistance.

Effective Behavior Change Interventions

Dealing with resistance means embracing it, acknowledging that it exists, and openly addressing it. Here are five ways to approach it and how to measure progress.

Go where the energy is

Identify early adopters who are excited about the change and involve them in the change process. This will create momentum and gradually attract others too.

By focusing on the positive energy of the early adopters you don’t have to spend much time on those who are still resisting. This creates a natural pull in the organization and increases the chance of a successful change.

In the case of ‘bad times’, this principle applies likewise. However, the energy here needs to be released into the shaken system upfront by a strong leadership that is willing to make it happen in the most humane way.

This means, for example, that lay-offs are not by definition viewed as the only cost-reduction solution but that they will be explored in the canon of many combined possibilities for the longevity of the company.

There are many examples where short-time work or salary reductions have ultimately not only saved but also made organizations stronger for the future.

Consistent Communication

Consistent communication which is clear, honest, and open, delivered timely and through different channels helps to build trust and reduces fear of the unknown. This includes listening to concerns, providing information about the change, and addressing feedback.

Education and training

Education and training can help individuals and groups to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to adapt to the change. There are examples of companies that gave employees different jobs or positions instead of firing them, which subsequently led to their development and growth.

Providing opportunities for education and training shows that the organization values its employees and is committed to their success.

Participation and involvement

Involving employees early on in the change process helps to reduce resistance and build support for the change. When employees are involved, they feel empowered and are more likely to embrace the change.

Incentives, rewards, and progress measurement

Incentives and rewards can motivate employees to embrace change. They can be in the form of recognition, promotions, or simply in keeping one’s employment in case of a successful change result.

Incentives and rewards should be tied to specific progress measurements that support the change and are connected with the overall business goal.

Companies with change resistant cultures are dead

There have been a great number of casualties of companies with change-resistant cultures which, not surprisingly, have ceased to exist.

A case in point is Kodak, once a dominant player in the photography industry.

Despite being the inventor of the digital camera, Kodak failed to embrace the new technology and instead focused on traditional film products. As a result, Kodak struggled to remain competitive and ultimately filed for bankruptcy.

Nokia is another example of a company that failed to adapt to changing technology. Once a leader in the mobile phone industry, Nokia struggled to keep pace with the rise of smartphones and ultimately sold its mobile phone business to Microsoft.

Then there has been the archaic retail industry which was hit hard by the rise of e-commerce. Companies like Sears, Toys "R" Us, and RadioShack have all struggled to compete with online retailers like Amazon and ultimately filed for bankruptcy.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it's important for organizations undergoing transformations or not, to understand how to effectively transmit their culture to employees and manage cultural shifts while ensuring it doesn’t give rise to resistance.

Resistance to behavior change interventions is common, but strategies such as instituting an organizational change management governance to establish leadership over the process can help address this resistance. Doing this during good times enormously helps to weather the storms in bad times.

Finally, communication, transparency and honesty, education and training, participation and involvement, and incentives and rewards have all proven effective strategies for overcoming resistance to change.

By adopting these strategies, organizations can create a more positive environment for cultural change and improve their chances of success.

Change Management & Organizational Restructuring