Organizational Change – Chapter 15
LEWIN’S FORCE FIELD ANALYSIS MODEL
model of systemwide change that helps change agent agents diagnose the forces that drive
and retrain proposed organizational change
driving forces restraining forces
pushing organizations toward a new state of affairs maintaining the status quo
e.g. new competitors or technologies, evolving workforce expectations
- effective change occurs by
1. unfreezing the current situation
producing disequilibrium between the driving and restraining forces
2. moving to a desired condition
3. refreezing the system so it remains in the desired state
when the organization’s systems and structures are aligned with
the desired behaviors
Understanding Resistance to Change
- resistance to change is a form of conflict and a form of voice
- danger: when manager interprets that disagreement as relationship conflict
Six reasons why employees resist change
1. Negative valence of change
when employees belief the new situation will have more negative than positive outcomes
2. Fear of unknown
employees tend to assume the worst when they are unsure
3. Not-invented-here syndrome
employees oppose or undermine organizational change initiatives that originate elsewhere
4. Breaking routines
resistance toward initiatives that require one to learn new role patterns
5. Incongruent team dynamics
conformity to existing team norms may discourage employees from accepting change
6. Incongruent organizational systems
LEWIN’S FORCE FIELD ANALYSIS MODEL
model of systemwide change that helps change agent agents diagnose the forces that drive
and retrain proposed organizational change
driving forces restraining forces
pushing organizations toward a new state of affairs maintaining the status quo
e.g. new competitors or technologies, evolving workforce expectations
- effective change occurs by
1. unfreezing the current situation
producing disequilibrium between the driving and restraining forces
2. moving to a desired condition
3. refreezing the system so it remains in the desired state
when the organization’s systems and structures are aligned with
the desired behaviors
Understanding Resistance to Change
- resistance to change is a form of conflict and a form of voice
- danger: when manager interprets that disagreement as relationship conflict
Six reasons why employees resist change
1. Negative valence of change
when employees belief the new situation will have more negative than positive outcomes
2. Fear of unknown
employees tend to assume the worst when they are unsure
3. Not-invented-here syndrome
employees oppose or undermine organizational change initiatives that originate elsewhere
4. Breaking routines
resistance toward initiatives that require one to learn new role patterns
5. Incongruent team dynamics
conformity to existing team norms may discourage employees from accepting change
6. Incongruent organizational systems
