We came across a 2023 Forbes article recently by Sherzod Odilov that addresses the resistance to change in the workplace. The author had worked with over 200 companies to help them manage change, and saw a common thread of employees hesitating over the uncertainty that comes with it.
Frequently Asked Questions That Arise During Change
The author suggested that when organizations are going through a period of change, they make sure to have clear answers to the most frequently asked questions about the change, including:
- Will this change create more work for me?
- Will I lose my job?
- Will I lose authority or control over my environment?
- Will this change negatively impact my work relationships?
- Is the change supported by my colleagues?
The article made us think about change that we have either experienced as an employee within a company, or change when working with a client. The author’s advice and questions really hit home — because people reacting to change is what can cause even more chaos than the change itself.
Consider the following real-life experience of reaction to change as a good example:
A technology company was going through a revitalization of their corporate office environment, after years of the office operating in slow decline and fewer employees. Sales and marketing departments were growing and going to be consolidated in the corporate office, along with other growing teams from finance and operations.
This growth was good news from an office space perspective. Instead of a headquarters location that was languishing, the office was set to double in size and end up occupying an entire floor of space (instead of renting out excess space to other companies). A plan was drafted up with how existing employees would be moved to have new team “hub” locations within the floor, and provide better interactions for core teams and their key teaming partners.
You would think that this change would be a big win, right?!!
Well…the reaction couldn’t have been any less positive. In communicating the move to employees, leadership did not highlight the advantages of the new space, or allay fears by sharing answers to the questions above.
Negative Perception Grows When Communication Is Lacking
- Some people thought that their new office size/location/view was significantly worse that what they currently had, making them think that they must not be valued any longer.
- Some people had envy that other employees were moving to a newly refurbished side of the building, when they had to stay on the side of the building with older carpet (the carpet was exactly the same on both sides, but the refurbished side of the building had newer “clean smelling” carpet.
- Some employees would now have to walk 60-80 feet down the hall to visit and socialize with employees that used to be only 2 feet away.
- Some employees felt like everything was happening so fast and the culture of the business would no longer be the same.
The bottom line is that the company thought of this change as a business event ONLY, and not a personal event.
It wasn’t until the uproar from employees just before the move, that leadership took time to spell out the rationale behind the changes, and then led small efforts to help employees take a preview tour of all of the spaces, and showcase how the move was going to improve employee interactions and team dynamics.
Once the employees became more comfortable with the change (and realized the carpet was really the same everywhere), they started to adapt to the new office environment and take advantage of the new team hubs, leaving behind (most of) their anxiety and personal grievances.
We think this quote from the Forbes article best captures the importance of dealing with change at work:
We ask all of our readers to think about change that is happening in your environment — or on the horizon to happen soon — and reflect on the five questions above that help employees deal with change. Can you answer these five questions now with ease? If not, how can you think carefully about the answers to these questions and how you want to deliver that information to all employees.
How We Can Help
Navigating change is one of the core workshop topics that we conduct with teams as part of our Optimizing Team Environments Program. For more information about these special topic workshops, please visit our program page, or contact us today.