9.4 Forms of Resistance

As we have seen, resistance takes on many forms. You need to recognize them before you can properly address resistance and have a successful work process change. Some forms of resistance are obvious and easy to recognize. Others are very subtle; if you are not paying attention, they will undermine or even destroy the change effort before you can react.

Resistance can be categorized in four forms, depending whether the resistance is active or passive and whether it is open or hidden. Figure 9-1 illustrates these four forms.

Figure 9-1 The Four Forms of Resistance

The y-axis measures the visibility of the resistance by those affected by the change. This action can be open; the resistance to the new process is obvious for all to see. The action can also be hid- den. In this case, the resistance is below the surface, not easily seen. If you are paying close enough attention, you may notice it, but it is more difficult to identify.  

The x-axis identifies the degree of resistance, whether it is active or passive. Active resistance is designed to stop or hamper the change process. It can be destructive to the organization because, as the resistance evolves, people may be forced to take sides, leading to substantial business problems. Passive resistance is more difficult to confront because it is generally less obvious. Rather than trying to actively block change, people engaged in passive resistance are not going along with the effort. They might continue to use the old system, ignoring change for as long as they can. They may work more slowly, take extra time off, and keep “forgetting” how to incorporate the change into the work process.

As Figure 9-1 illustrates, the resistance model has four quadrants.  Each is discussed below.

Quadrant 1—Active, Open Resistance—Struggle

(“I will not do it.”)

You begin to implement change when some of the employees openly tell you the change is wrong or, even worse, they won’t go along with it. A scenario like this one should never happen. Change should be discussed and buy-in achieved before you try to implement it. If you have planned the process change and the subsequent implementation, your organization should never have to be placed in this situation. Otherwise, you can expect active and open resistance. The one good aspect of open resistance is that it indicates that your employees feel comfortable enough with you as the manager to tell you openly how they feel about what you are doing. If they don’t trust you, the resistance will be hidden, leading to Quadrant 3 behavior.

Quadrant 2—Passive, Open Resistance—Submit

(“I’ll do it but poorly, hoping you will make it stop.”)

Passive resistance is quite different from active resistance. It involves people submitting to the new order of things, in a sense “going along.” Don’t mistake this submission for acceptance and open embrace of the change. Even though they do what’s necessary to make the change work, you lose their energy, enthusiasm, and loyalty. Unless you win them back, you may see a gradual downturn in productivity and increased turnover.

Quadrant 3—Active, Hidden Resistance—Sabotage

(“Work behind the scenes to destroy the effort.”)

If your employees do not trust you, resistance to change will take on a different form. In Quadrant 1, employees didn’t feel they were threatening their own security if they told you exactly how they felt about the changes you were making. In Quadrant 3, they do feel threatened. They will resist change as actively as the employees in Quadrant 1, but will try to hide their resistance, sabotaging your efforts. At least in Quadrant 1, you knew what resistance you faced and could respond to it. Not here. The problem often comes from management style. Employees want to be trust- ed. If, however, the management style at your company is that employees should simply do what they are told, then resistance will be hidden and you will face sabotage.

Quadrant 4—Passive, Hidden Resistance—Submerge

(“It looks like I am doing it, but I’m not.”)

Unlike Quadrant 2 resistance, Quadrant 4 resistance is hidden. Because resistance is passive, it frequently is not as severe as sabotage (Quadrant 3). Nevertheless, it is still dangerous. Your employees are indirectly saying that they will do what’s asked, but will undermine the effort at every opportunity. At least with active, hidden resistance you are aware of the resistance once it has occurred. With Quadrant 4, you can not see it; it is submerged. On the surface, everything may seem fine. Meanwhile, below the surface, you face severe problems. Quadrant 4 resistance is used to undermine change. Your process may fail and you may never know why. Nor will you have anyone specific to blame for the failure, except maybe yourself

9.5 Coping with Resistance

Once you know about resistance and can recognize it, the question becomes, “How can you address it and still have your initiative be successful?” Sometimes you simply can not, but these instances are in the minority. Most of the time when resistance is recognized, it can be addressed as part of the initiative. The fears and emotions that are causing it can then be accounted for in the development.  

All too often, the people who are part of the project team, as well as the internal consultants who are supporting the effort, view resistance as something that needs to be overcome. They view the resistance as a force threatening to ruin the work initiative, and those who are resisting as the enemy. Quite the contrary, resistance needs to be addressed head on. The issues that are causing the resistance, as well as what the people are feeling regarding the change, need to be addressed. Viewing resistance in whatever form it takes as an enemy of change is not the correct approach.  

Consider the quote from Machiavelli stating that those involved in the change have either “enemies in those who did well under the old process and at best lukewarm defenders in those who feel they may do well under the new.” These people are the resistors in whatever form they may take. Wouldn’t it be better to win over the enemies and convert the lukewarm defenders into staunch supporters? Addressing resistance as part of the change effort can make this happen.  

Let’s look from a business perspective at how resistance emerges. People generally resist when they move out of their comfort zone. The basic cause is often the lack of agreement between the goals that you are trying to achieve and the goals of the individual or group with whom you are trying to achieve them. If the goals, or change initiatives, are in agreement with the employees’ goals, you have no problem; the comfort zone is not being violated. The comfort zone is expanding with the agreement of the employees who have to adjust to its growth.  

The problems begin when your goals are not aligned with the employees’ goals. The key then is to put change initiatives into place in a way that allows the goals of the two forces (you and the employees) to be aligned. With alignment comes success. Your success is shaped by two important factors. The first factor measures how well the goals agree between those trying to implement them and those having to do the work. The second factor measures the balance of power between the groups. These factors dictate the approach you need to implement the change process successfully.

Figure 9-2 provides a four quadrant diagram that illustrates different ways change is implemented. In this figure, the x-axis measures how well your goals are in agreement with those of the employees who have to implement the change. The y-axis measures from low to high the balance of power between those who are trying to implement a change initiative and those who are responsible to make it work.  

Figure 9-2 Strategies for Implementing Change