This document discusses identifying and categorizing resistance to organizational change. It defines resistance as the emotional upheaval people experience in response to imposed changes. Resistance can take many forms, from explicit attempts to discredit the change to more subtle behaviors like evasion, deception, or denial. The document provides examples of different types of resisting behaviors and cautions that not all opposing views necessarily indicate resistance; some stakeholder positions may be legitimate. It emphasizes that the challenge for change leaders is to have authentic dialogues to understand resistance.

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Identifying Resistance
What is Resistance?
It is many things, in many forms. Here we choose to define it
as what we encounter when a person feels emotional
upheaval as a result of a change brought upon them. The
surface behaviour or the ‘presenting issue’ may seem
rational, yet beneath it and shaping it is an emotional
undercurrent. As such, resistance can be evident, or hidden,
and hence ‘explicit’ or ‘veiled’. Even when explicit it is often
ambiguous. Resistance may be a deliberate act or it may be
unconscious where the person is not fully aware of the
emotions driving their surface behaviour. All this makes it devilishly difficult to identify and read, and requires
sensory acuity on the part of the leader of the change.
What are we looking for?
Generally resistance comes in a blend of different forms, which can change during the stages of the change, or can
be mixed up within a single conversation. To help organise the many possible forms, here are five categories.
There might be an explicit attempt to discredit the change, such as ‘it won’t work’, or ‘it’s the wrong change’. This
may be seen as unacceptable and so a shrewder option could be to dilute its impact, for instance delaying it, or by
cherry picking the attractive parts only. In more subtle forms the person evades the change, such as just not
responding or being silent; or entangling the leader in long debates on methodology and detail. There are more
deceptive options too – saying yes when the truth is no, or simply riding the change project out with no intention
of making the change. Sometimes the resisting person may be unaware of their state of denial. Possibly the
person hopes the change will go away; possibly they will become disengaged and continue work as if it isn’t
happening.
Is it resistance?
Before ticking these off ‘yep, seen it’ there is one final crucial
judgement to make. Just about all of the examples above are
potentially quite legitimate positions for a stakeholder to take.
Their view may be accurate and the information very helpful to us.
They are being authentic, meaning that they are conscious of their
feelings and expressing this truthfully just as they see it. (Although
a semantic point) this is not ‘resistance’ at all as we mean it here.
The challenge for the change leader is to help the resisting person
in to an authentic dialogue. Not easy!

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Examples of resisting behaviour
Type Description Example
Examples of Rejection
Discredit Counter-position of suggesting it is not the right change. It could be cited as
the wrong thinking or not seeing the potential of the current state.
‘Hasn’t been thought through’
Personal attack If the case against is not strong, the defense can become attack on the
individual or ‘The centre’ or whoever is seen as the ignorant initiator.
‘What experience have you got of
this business?’
Invalidate Latest ‘best practice’ ideas are hard to shoot down, because they appear to
hold morality, so playing the ‘real world’ card is popular line of defense.
‘it may work there, but it can’t be
applied to this business’
Doubt Taking the position of being skeptical can be politically safer than rejection.
It implies being responsible, rather than negative
‘I’m not yet convinced; what is the
evidence…’
Examples of Diluting
Delay Waiting for less busy times, taking small steps or running a pilot can seem a
plausible strategy, and it can also be a neat way to slow the change down.
‘I think we should consider a pilot
first’
Minimise Focusing on quick wins, or what can be delivered in the short term is
eminently sensible, unless it is hoped that this will become as far as it goes.
‘Let’s focus on what is practical
and we can deliver now’
Distort A request for a degree of flexibility in the solution or implementation can be
a disguise for ‘I’m going to do just those things that I want to do’
‘yes, a common approach, but we
also need to adapt to each area’
Select A similar twist, where the scope is cherry-picked for those items that are
either acceptable, or already wanted.
‘Yes, that has merits, I think that’s
a good idea’
Examples of Evasion
Entanglement Debates are constructive and seemingly endless. We find ourselves in
intellectual cul-de-sacs, or debates on methodology, while the change stalls.
‘I don’t think we are asking the
right questions’
Silence This strategy is passive. The person may seem ok, but just not say anything.
By giving no clues, it keeps options open, because no position is declared.
‘…
Compliance The change is not criticised overtly and is apparently moving forwards. It’s
seductive, but watch out when it lands badly and there is low ownership.
‘Yes, fine, making good progress in
the circumstances’
Side-step What happened? It was all going ahead and then suddenly later (probably
quietly) the work stopped. Things got better. There’s a new priority.
‘People seem to have come
around on their own’
Examples of Deceive
Sabotage Briefing against the change is not just a tactic in Whitehall. Alliances are
built and provide a powerful resisting force
‘We should stand firm together on
this’
False Agree Saying ‘yes’ when meaning no, or sometimes meaning ‘not in the way that
you mean’ is a short-term dodge which can often work out in the long term
‘Of course, yes, there’s always
room for improvement’
Endure Especially when change has failed often before, ‘riding it out’ in anticipation
of it foundering for other reasons is a smart way of staying safe in change
‘Let’s just see what happens when
this settles down and they see…’
Blank It seems like an ugly game of not replying to emails and not showing up, yet
there always seems a plausible explanation
(in response to incoming email)
‘delete’
Examples of Denial
Hope Less conscious than blanking is just hoping it is not going to happen. The
more painful it looks, the more hopeful we become.
‘I doubt it will come to much’
Distance Talking about their situation, but in the third person, can be a subtle sign of
an individual seeking comfort in not personally being part of the problem.
‘The problem with these people is
… it’s the culture here’
Disengage When it’s all too much, the pain-free option may be to act as if it just wasn’t
happening. There is comfort in the here and now and the familiar.
(not spoken)
Delusion It often feels a better place to be ‘on board’ and capable, and so being off
the pace can be imagined to be presented as much more successful
‘Yep got it all in hand…’