"Leadership is about change, but what is a leader to do when faced with ubiquitous resistance? Resistance to change manifests itself in many ways, from foot-dragging and inertia to petty sabotage to outright rebellions. The best tool for leaders of change is to understand the predictable, universal sources of resistance in each situation and then strategize around them. Here are the ten I’ve found to be the most common." Rosabeth Moss Kanter, “10 Reasons People Resist Change. Which ones are hurting your company?” Harvard Business Review (25/9/2012)

1. Overcoming the Resistance to Change
Source of resistance Strategy
Loss of control Involve those most affected to change in make choices, in the
planning, giving them ownership
Excess uncertainty Create certainty of the process, with clear and simple steps,
and timetable
Surprise (no time to prepare for consequences) Avoid to keep change in secrets and then announce them all
at once; it’s better to seek inputs and feedback..
Everything seems different To minimize the number of unrelated differences by a central
change, to remain focused on the important things
Loss of face (for people associated with the past, with
what did not work)
Celebrate those elements of the past which are worth
honouring, the world is changed
Concern about competence Over invest in information, training, support, systems…
More work Reward and recognize participants
Ripple effects, interferences to distant activities which
are not directly related to the change itself
Considered all affected parties, however distants
Past resentments Heal the past before sailing into the future
(I’d say also to gather information about the pre, before to
treat it..)
Sometimes the threat is real Be honest, transparent, fast and fair
Adapted from: Rosabeth Moss Kanter, “10 Reasons People Resist Change. Which ones are hurting your company?”
Harvard Business Review (25/9/2012)