Your team is resistant to change. How can you get them on board?

As change leader, never take resistance as a roadblock or negative unless you really understand it. Every resistance is an opportunity to relook into the change or to validate it. You might have missed something during change planning and resistance will bring it to the surface to review and correct your change plan if needed. Understanding resistance through open and honest dialogue is the key to overcome it. Purpose of a change management is not changing something but to bring a better tomorrow for people, team, business or organization.

Begin by practicing empathy. Empathy has many definitions. If you think of empathy as the ability to not only stand in the shoes of another, see the world from their point of view, and then with that input, use that to inform your decisions and choices, you now can build trust because they feel seen, heard and acknowledged.

By nature organisational change can create uncertainty and even resistance. This triggers fear and anxiety of change causing employees to become stressed, depressed and anxious. It relates to the common fear of unknown or metathesiophobia i.e. fear of change, a human desire to keep life in a comfortable and consistent place. Active listening and open, honest communication will help to create trust and sense of togetherness when employees are unsure about their and organization’s future. Empathy and transparency will foster collaboration and enhance the effectiveness of leadership in the change process.

Transparency and feedback. You can't forcefeed change, it has to be introduced. To introduce it, you need to provide information and share the "when, where, why and how." Then open a feedback loop and allow those affected to share thoughts, opinions, and even opposition and be empathetic, responsive and accepting. It's very much like a sales pitch, you need buying and to get it, your audience needs to understand and see value.

I would say, before even starting analysing what makes your team reluctant to change, you should make sure you really are trying to understand the reasons behind said reluctance. In other words, do not start this process with your expected final result in mind i.e your team ready and willing (both aspects matter) to embrace change. Doing so would make you miss how important this phase is not only for the change you try to implement but for your relationship with your fellow team members.

I agree and believe that vision needs to start as early as possible. Many leaders wait too long, maybe until the solution partner is in place or the way forward signed off by steering committee. If people impacted don’t feel engaged they can start to get resistant or worried about their job security. By sharing what you can through storytelling you start building trust and understanding, which in turns gets others engaged on the change journey. This approach ensures people get insights and are involved too.

Tell them what you can, when you can and as honestly as you can. Don't try to convince them of anything. Let them derive their own conclusions. Invite them to meet with you one to one to discuss their concerns. Follow up the invitation more than once. Listen. Listen some more. Don't wait for a spot in the conversation to explain management's view. Ask instead, is there more you can tell me to help me understand your concerns? Change is about people.

Focus on the end in mind. Translate that to the positive benefits & advantages to be reaped when the change is successfully implemented. It is always helpful to use storytelling as a persuasion technique to transfer positive emotions. Share real stories of how others (other departments, other organizations, other countries/locations) have adopted the change. Be honest and transparent about the journey these other teams experienced with their share of ups and downs. Emphasise to the team that there will be no gain without pain. But all the gains are worth all the pains experienced.

Change equals opportunity No one likes change be clear and simplify the changes as early as possible have one on ones to make sure everyone understands the new process or the changes coming

1. Resistance often stems from fear of the unknown. It’s like when your GPS takes you on a new route - it’s unsettling. Have 1:1 to understand individual concerns. If a team member is worried about job security due to a new technology, explain how it could actually enhance their role. 2. People need to see the bigger picture, much like understanding the reason for a traffic detour. Clearly articulate why change is necessary - not just for the company, but for them. 3.Involve the team in planning and decision-making. It's like deciding on a family vacation spot together rather than just announcing it. If a new process is being introduced, let them suggest how to implement it. This gives them a sense of ownership over the change.

There is no question that involvement breeds commitment. By weaving your team's insights and strengths into the fabric of change, you enrich the process and elevate their sense of ownership. Empowerment goes beyond mere participation; it's about enabling your team to lead initiatives, make decisions, and drive innovations within the change framework. This empowerment fosters a culture of accountability and excellence. Celebrating milestones and recognizing individual contributions further solidifies this culture, turning change into a collective triumph.

Involvement of others is important in creating credibility in the change, and getting honest feedback from others. Choosing the right subject matter experts for input is important. You want enough voices to give comprehensive and diverse insight, but not so many that things get slowed down by the sheer volume of feedback. Including the right selection of employees to be involved on a deeper level will allow others, who are farther removed from the change, to view it as valid and trustworthy.

Old habits die hard. That’s why It is important to pave way for the employees to understand their role in the changing landscape. There should be clarity of goals, their roles and what your expectations on them in the transition phase. Provide training to upskill them with the right tools and mindset needed for the change. Most importantly, listen to their inputs and try to incorporate in the change process to show your trust in them and their capabilities. When they deliver, focus on the positives and be sure to reward and recognize so other employees will follow suit.

There are 2 other methods to train & coach your team in managing team resistance. When executed regularly in a structured & disciplined manner, they have proven to be effective: (1) ROLE PLAY - Take the team through various scenarios & give them the opportunity to play various roles. They become more familiar & less fearful of the unfamiliar, the unknown, & anything that is different & new. (2) STORYTELLING - When real stories are shared about real people who have experienced change, the teams will find the stories to be believable. It's important to be honest & transparent to them. Be pragmatic & realistic about the journey. Share with them stories of failures & challenges before they can taste positive benefits of change.

Ordinarily, the main root cause of change resistance is fear of the unknown, the unexpected & anything that's new & different from what they have been used to. Some ideas on how overcome their fears: (1) share with them real stories of how others have faced change. Talk about circumstances where they experienced failures & problems, and how they managed to overcome these challenges through time. (2) emphasize that Rome was not built in a day, so baby steps are required, one at a time. Explain why sometimes we may take 2 steps back in order to gain 3 steps forward. That it's a journey, a marathon, not a sprint. (3) let the team know that you understand their fears well, and that you are here for them, that you've got their backs covered.

On a major transformational effort I learned so much and really admired a colleague who advocated for a huge focus on OCM and engaging those impacted to bring them on the journey. Feedback along the way was crucial. A key learning I took away is you obviously can't act on every bit of feedback, but you can make sure people feel heard. The program may not change a policy or system just because someone doesn't like it, but it can highlight that you may need more training, explanation of why, or to make the process more intuitive. And when you do act on the feedback, it's important to tell the story that the feedback is what drove a change!

In my experience, if your team is resistant to change and you are struggling to get them on board, here's a simple approach to prepare in advance. Ask yourself the following 9 critical questions about the change to mitigate the resistance... - What changes in process/behavior/attitudes will your initiative require in order to succeed? - What group(s) of people will need to change? - How well do they understand the change? - How well do they understand the need for the change? - What are the intended business outcomes/benefits? - Why does the change need to take place now? (Urgency) - How do they feel about the changes? - Who needs to sponsor these changes? How committed are they? - What is your role in making the change happen?

1.Lead by example: Demonstrate openness, flexibility, and positivity towards the change to inspire confidence and trust in the team. 2.Foster open dialogue: Create a safe space for team members to voice concerns and provide feedback. Enable feedback mechanism which helps in course correction. 3.Provide clear rationale: Explain the reasons behind the change and how it benefits both individuals and the team. 4.Encourage involvement: Involve team members in decision-making processes to increase ownership and commitment. 5.Offer support and training: Provide resources and training to help team members adapt to the change effectively. 6.Celebrate milestones: Recognize and celebrate progress to maintain motivation and momentum.

1. Nobody likes feeling lost. If you hand someone a new smartphone without any instructions, frustration will ensue. Offer training sessions, resources, and support for new tools or processes. If your team is transitioning to a new CRM system, a hands-on workshop can help ease the anxiety of using it. 2. Recognize and reward steps in the right direction. It’s like cheering for every mile run during marathon training. If a team member successfully completes a task using a new methodology, acknowledge it. This reinforces positive behavior and shows progress. 3. If you’re moving to an open-office plan to encourage collaboration, be the first to set up your desk in the new space. Demonstrate the change you want to see.

Change does not happen by obedience. If it looks like it does, be sure it will generate stress, unhappiness, ineffectiveness. Consider starting the change process by using appropriate language. In most business languages and cultures, the word “change” generates fear (of losing what’s already there and is known) more than curiosity; whereas the word “evolution” (a different way of denominating change) suggests a kind of progressive approach. As a leader and as an executive and team coach, I have experienced this to be a likely generator of consensus. Ask the team to express their feelings, their views and concerns, offer them the opportunity to “build” their own commitment to the evolution. Most likely it will work.