You may have tried to initiate change in your team, seen the benefits of the change and even communicated it well to every team member. Then you may have been puzzled by certain people’s reactions where they resisted the changes and wondered why they put up such a defense of the current position.

Well, you’re not alone. Many managers have hit the wall of resistance and created real challenges by not approaching the situation in the right way.

Here are four reasons why the resistance to change may be quite large:

The need for security and stability: some people rely heavily on the current status quo for their self-worth. Changing something may affect their secure position and all they associate with change is pain.

They fear the results of the change: personal effects for themselves may outweigh the benefits they see happening.

A misunderstanding of the reasons for change: the person may lack information as to the reasons for change, or it hasn’t been communicated properly with them.

Disagreement as to the reasons for change: they assess the situation differently or may disagree that change is needed at all.

Any of these reasons may produce obstacles to the changes you are attempting to put forward.

There are many ways that these obstacles can be overcome, though they seem to boil down to specific methods that lay the foundations for change.

They include;

• Communicating an effective message using the correct medium
• Involving the people concerned in the change process instead of insisting they follow directions
• Support the change mechanism and help people adjust to it
• Agree what will happen to those who may lose out in the change
• Work with people to create a team consensus where they play a major role in the development of the change
• As a last resort, managers can use force by making clear what the end results of not changing would be.

It’s important to ascertain the reasons for the resistance before prescribing the way forward, as using the incorrect means may crank up the resistance levels and you’re left with even more obstacles than before.

Thanks again

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

Sometimes you wonder whether change is necessary within your department, and the factors driving change may be counteracted by factors resisting it. How do you work out the results before taking the action? Kurt Lewin may have the answer for you.

Lewin was an American social psychologist perhaps best-known for developing Force Field Analysis, an analysis that determined if change was necessary within a company.

According to Lewin “An issue is held in balance by the interaction of two opposing sets of forces – those seeking to promote change (driving forces) and those attempting to maintain the status quo (restraining forces)”.

Lewin viewed organisations as systems in which the present situation was not a static pattern, but a dynamic balance (“equilibrium”) of forces working in opposite directions. In order for any change to occur, the driving forces must exceed the restraining forces, thus shifting the equilibrium.

How do you conduct a Force Field Analysis?

Here’s some suggestions:

1. Describe the current situation

2. Describe the desired situation

3. Identify where the current situation will go if no action is taken

4. List all the forces driving change toward the desired situation

5. List all the forces resisting change toward the desired situation

6. Discuss and interrogate all of the forces: are they valid? can they be changed? which are the critical ones?

7. Allocate a score to each of the forces using a numerical scale e.g. 1=extremely weak and 10=extremely strong

8. Chart the forces by listing (to strength scale) the driving forces on the left and restraining forces on the right.

9. Determine whether change is viable and progress can occur

10. Discuss how the change can be affected by decreasing the strength of the restraining forces or by increasing the strength of driving forces.

11. Keep in mind that increasing the driving forces or decreasing the restraining forces may increase or decrease other forces or even create new ones.

Thanks again,

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

Today’s ever changing economy means one thing – lots of change in the workplace. As a manager, you’ll be responsible for communicating changes within your organisation to your employees but you have a problem. The rumor mill is already running and most of your employees have already gotten themselves caught up in the buzz and may be worried about their jobs. So what can you do to help them stay calm and deal with change on a daily basis?

Explain Why the Organisation is Changing

Employees who understand why things are changing are more likely to accept change without high levels of anxiety. It doesn’t matter if you’re making a small change in procedure, if you plan to move your office location, or if you’re going to be part of a merger. Change is inevitable and the more we know and understand the easier it is to handle – regardless of where we are on the management food chain.

Remain Positive

No matter what type of news you deliver, remain as positive as possible. If you are a lower or mid-level manager you should never, under any circumstances, criticize upper management. The more respect you show for upper management the more respect your employees will show.

Remain Available

Make sure you stay available to your employees as much as possible, adopting an open door policy that will allow them to come to you with their questions or concerns. If your policy suddenly shifts from open-door to closed-door your employees will become nervous and upset and their work patterns will become disruptive.

Communicate with your employees as much as possible. The more information you can give, the better. The more secretive you are, the higher your odds of losing employees as they “jump ship” to find a more stable environment.

Thanks again,

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Leadership

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

Matthew Campling, a prominent psychotherapist, once completed a case study after which he created what is now known as Campling’s Age/Work Arc Theory (or CAWA). The theory was developed after Campling asked a simple question – can a job in today’s work environment be held for life or will you have to move on as your career goals change?

The first question we really must ask ourselves is whether or not we are talking about our jobs in terms of our lifetime or in terms of careers. In today’s day and age, it is less common to find a person who sticks with the same career for an entire lifetime. Many people change careers completely at least once and some will change three or more times.

There are two facts to consider when we think about our ages in relationship to our work are a) what will make us happiest longest and b) how long we will live. We already know that people are living longer lives, so will the same jobs our parents kept from their teenage years through retirement keep us happy just as long? Whereas people were once afraid of change, change in life (and career) is now almost guaranteed.

Here are a few questions you’re eventually going to have to sit back and ask yourself:

• Do you have consistent levels of talent or will you be considered a “one hit wonder” in your career field?
• Can you ensure that your career will never be sidelined?
• Why are some people very happy with their career choices while others seem to have a tough time finding one that works for them?

There are dozens of other questions but, in short, they look to bring an understanding to the realization that many people will have a low point, high point, and then a low point (forming an arc) in their career patterns. People tend to reach a “high point” and after that seem to spiral downwards as their career cycles end.

If you are “happy” at work you may be at the peak of your career and in a few months or years may suddenly feel as though you’ve lost track of your goals, sidelining yourself.

The real question is this: what can you do as you build your career, or before you get to that pivotal high point, that will ensure you’re always happy.

Do you think it’s even possible to remain truly happy at work – forever? Think on it and let me know your thoughts.

Thanks again,

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Courses

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

Times are definitely changing. As the economy shifts corporations are finding it necessary to either downsize or reevaluate their structures. In other cases the situation may be a bit more simplistic – maybe you need to upsize or move into a larger office. In the end, the reality is that no matter how “hush-hush” you try to keep your organisations sensitive information, something always gets leaked. When information gets leaked, rumours begin and as these pieces of misinformation spread people begin to get nervous.

Alright, so things are changing within your organisation. Does that fact really need to be kept a secret? Sometimes, especially if you are in a managerial position, you have to take a step back and determine whether or not it is more beneficial to share as much information as possible with your team or keep things under wraps.

Most people, when faced with change, need to feel three distinct things:

• They need to feel as though they are in control of their lives;
• They need to feel included in the process; and
• They need to feel as though you’re being open and honest.

If your employees feel included (or at least informed) when it comes to change they are more likely to work with you during the process – and, at the same time, continue doing their regular work at the same quality level. Those who feel nervous, uninformed, and out of control are likely to spend more time gossiping and less time focusing on their day to day tasks.

In the end, effective change management means it’s up to you to determine whether or not your employees will benefit from being informed of upcoming changes. It’s also up to you to determine whether or not keeping those changes a secret will have a negative impact on your department.

Thanks again,

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Courses

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”