Why do people

resist change?

And some ideas of

what to do about it.

Reason # 1
The person may be afraid
of losing his or her job

When people feel that a business change is

a threat to their job security, that
the change will eliminate the need for their
job, they will resist change.
http://www.uthscsa.edu/gme/documents/chiefres/Change%20Leadership/Top%20reasons%20for%20change%20resistance.pdf
http://www.change-management.com/Top-5-reasons-employees-resist%20v9.pdf

People are more

concerned about
the risk of loss than they are excited by
the prospect of gain.
https://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Hidden_flaws_in_strategy_1288

Change is resisted because it can

hurt.
When new technologies displace
old ones, jobs can be lost, prices
can be cut, investments can be
wiped out.
https://hbr.org/2012/09/ten-reasons-people-resist-chang.html

Rosabeth Moth Kanter

Reason # 2
The person may be
afraid of losing power

There is considerable revenue

associated with the current
successful model. Careers have
been built on its growth.
Any change to a new model
threatens those revenues and
those reputations.

Paul Sloane

http://www.business2community.com/strategy/success-enemy-innovation-0978796#rowpvQP5GZUisLWO.97

The # 1 reason why managers resist change is

the fear of losing power.

Hayes, John: The theory and practice of change management, p. 130.

http://www.uthscsa.edu/gme/documents/chiefres/Change%20Leadership/Top%20reasons%20for%20change%20resistance.pdf

On a scale from 1 to 100, how important is

it for you to have power over something
and/or someone? Why?

Further inspiration
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/What-is-good-leadership-1489536

Reason # 3
The values of the person
go against change

Fact is, most businesses were never built

to change - they were built to do one thing
exceedingly well and highly efficiently forever.
Thats why entire industries can get caught
out by change - industries like big pharma,
publishing, recorded music and the major
U.S. airlines.
http://blogs.wsj.com/management/2009/06/01/why-companies-fail-part-i/

Gary Hamel

https://twitter.com/tonyvincent/status/570795160302276609

Creativity
Curiosity

Try ideas out

Tradition
Efficiency
Stability

Further inspiration
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Questions-to-discover-your-values-1329394

Reason # 4
The person may be
afraid of more stress

When people feel that a certain change

requires that they work more than they do
now and already now work under
high pressure they will resist change.
http://www.uthscsa.edu/gme/documents/chiefres/Change%20Leadership/Top%20reasons%20for%20change%20resistance.pdf

Its too much!

https://openclipart.org/detail/185097/too-many-boxes-for-a-man-by-j4p4n-185097

Further inspiration
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/How-do-you-handle-stress-1496360

Reason # 5
The person may be
afraid of failing

Fear of failure is one of the root

causes of organizations inability to adapt.
Sources
http://www.mixhackathon.org/hackathon/contribution/fear-failure-hrs-role
http://www.mixhackathon.org/hackathon/contribution/12-enemies-organizational-adaptability

If what they did in the past worked well

for them, they may resist changing their
behaviour out of fear that they will not
achieve as much in the future.
http://blog.globalblackswan.com/2010/07/5-of-5-why-we-resist-change.html

Reason # 6
The person may not see
the need for change

When people are not aware of the

need for change, they will resist change.
http://www.change-management.com/Top-5-reasons-employees-resist%20v9.pdf

Reason # 7
The rewards of changing
things are seen as
being too low

What do I get
from this change?

https://openclipart.org/detail/190631/face-of-an-angry-man-by-knollbaco-190631

When people do not have the answer

to the question Whats in it for me?,
they will resist change.
http://www.uthscsa.edu/gme/documents/chiefres/Change%20Leadership/Top%20reasons%20for%20change%20resistance.pdf
http://www.changedesigns.net/public/team/leading_teams/Why-people-resist-change.html

People will resist change when the rewards for

making the change are seen as too low

compared to the trouble / stress / extra work involved.

http://www.torbenrick.eu/blog/change-management/12-reasons-why-people-resist-change/
http://managementisajourney.com/organizational-change-8-reasons-why-people-resist-change/

Further inspiration
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/How-should-people-be-paid-1374105

Reason # 8
Belief / trust is lacking

People resist change when they do not

feel that a particular solution is the
best approach to fix the problem.
http://www.uthscsa.edu/gme/documents/chiefres/Change%20Leadership/Top%20reasons%20for%20change%20resistance.pdf

Misunderstandings are most likely to arise

when trust is lacking between the person
initiating the change and the stakeholders
who feel that they will be affected by it.
Hayes, John: The Theory and Practice of Change Management, p. 130.
http://www.destination-innovation.com/articles/why-do-people-resist-change/

On a scale from 1 100, how much do you trust?

http://www.imagebase.net/People/IMG_2030

Further inspiration
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Trust-1957173

Reason # 9
The person may feel
too little involved

People are more resistant to change if they

are not

part of the change.

http://www.torbenrick.eu/blog/change-management/12-reasons-why-people-resist-change/

To what extent do you involve your

girlfriend / boyfriend / spouse when you want
to buy a product for your house / apartment?

Reason # 10
The person may think that
nothing can be changed

The most frozen layer in any

organization, I think, is the
people with experience who
think they know best, who

believe that nothing

can be changed.

Ravi Kant

http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/organization/leading_change_an_interview_with_the_managing_director_of_tata_motors

Followers
People who
fight change

People who
work to make
change happen

Reason # 11
The person may not want
to learn something new

Some people, hesitant to try new things, express

an unwillingness to learn something new. They
may say, I already know what I need to
know.
http://blog.globalblackswan.com/2010/07/5-of-5-why-we-resist-change.html
http://www.peterstark.com/2010/why-employees-resist-change/

http://www.c4lpt.co.uk/blog/2015/10/26/who-wants-change-who-wants-to-change/

Further inspiration
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Learning-strategies-1487708