Resistance to change: a literature review and empirical study

Abstract

others) stress that the reasons for the failure of many change initiatives can be found in resistance to change. Resistance to change introduces costs and delays into the change process (Ansoff, 1990) that are difficult to anticipate (Lorenzo, 2000) but must be taken into consideration. Resistance has also been considered as a source of information, being useful in learning how to develop a more successful change process (Beer and

“You Feel The Threat From Asia”. Onshore Experiences of IT Offshoring To India

“…I almost hung up and went home and cried [laughter]. (Software developer, Cindicom) This is a kind of personal experience that can be interpreted in line with previous research on how individual responses to organizational change projects depend on individual personality and, for example, dispositional inclination, personal resilience, and risk tolerance (Erwin and Garman 2010;Markov et al 2011;Pardo de Val and Martínez Fuentes 2003). Previous international experience, age, language skills, education, and position of the employee can either close the physical distance between the countries or increase it.…”

“…This type of organizational change has been described as presenting employees with 'a chaotic organizational reality' (Vaara and Tienari 2011, p. 372). Individual employees' responses to such fundamental organizational change can be expected to involve resistance and opposition (Pardo de Val and Martínez Fuentes 2003).…”

“…There are several influences on employees' responses to organizational change, which can either increase or decrease resistance: individual personality (dispositional inclination, personal resilience, risk tolerance); change process factors (such as consistency of management actions, participation, communication); and management interaction styles (producing confidence, trust, skepticism, cynicism, frustration, or enthusiasm in employees) (Erwin and Garman 2010;Pardo de Val and Martínez Fuentes 2003).…”

Is experience a useful resource for business model innovation?

“…In line with this theory (Rumelt 1995); (Pardo del Val and Martínez Fuertes 2003), poorer ability to generate good business models is seen as an undesired effect of experience, career path and other cultural factors. The culture of the organization is embedded in the minds of its staff, and when these people are invited to participate in a business model generation workshop or any other activity, this culture holds them back blocking their work and behaviour.…”

An innovation resistance factor model

“…As such, resistance often has negative, destructive and adversarial connotations. However, by observing the nature and presence of resistance, an organisation can better identify when and how an innovation has significant potential to fail (Davis, 2004;Hartmann and Fischer, 2009;Lapointe and Rivard, 2005;Martinko, Henry and Zmud, 1996;Val and Fuentes, 2003;Waddell and Sohal, 1998). From this stance, resistance offers a positive indication of potential to fail.…”