Organizational Change and Development:
MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
I. Introduction
Change is the only constant thing in the world. Due to the rapid changes in our
environment, we as individuals are forced to change to adapt to the emerging new conditions. It
is also the same idea used in evolution and in Darwin’s natural selection wherein people change
to adapt to the changing environment to subsist. Just like us, organizations must change and
generate fast responses to the changing environment in order to survive and prosper. Change
implies a situation. It might be in a form of a new boss, new site, new team roles, new policy,
structure or system.
Organization change is triggered by a relevant environmental shift that once sensed by
the organization and act upon leads to an intentionally generated response by the organization to
address the situation. This intentional response is called “planned organizational change.” It has
four interrelated components (1) a change intervention that alters (2) key organizational target
variables that then impact (3) individual organizational members & their on-the-job behaviors
resulting in changes in (4) organizational outcomes. (Porras & Silvers: P81)
This planned change interventions can be divided into two general types (1) organization
development and (2) organization transformation. This paper however will focus on organization
change and development with reference to management of change in particular.
II. Organizational Change and Development
Managers, at one point or another, will have to make changes in some, if not all aspects
of their workplace. These changes refer to organizational change, which is any alteration of
people, structure, or technology. Most often, changes are initiated and coordinated by a manager
within the organization. However, the change agent could be a non-manager – for example – a
change specialist from the HR department or even an outside consultant whose expertise is in
change implementation.
For major system-wide changes, an organization often hires outside consultants to
provide advice and assistance. Because they are from the outside, they offer an objective
perspective that insiders may lack. However, outside consultants are usually at a disadvantage
because they have a limited understanding of the organization’s history, culture, operating
procedures, and people. Outside consultants also are likely to initiate more drastic change than
insiders would (which can be either a benefit or a disadvantage) because they don’t have to live
with the repercussions after the change is implemented. In contrast, internal managers who act as
change agents may be more thoughtful, but possibly overcautious, because they must live with
the consequences of their decisions.
When changes are introduced and are managed effectively, this may often lead to
organizational development. Beckhard (1969) defines OD as an effort [that is] (1) planned, (2)
organization-wide, and (3) managed from the top, to (4) increase organization effectiveness and
health through (5) planned interventions in the organization’s processes, using behavioral science

knowledge. Similarly, Cummings and Worley (1997) view organization development as a
system-wide application of behavioral science knowledge to the planned development and
reinforcement of organizational strategies, structures, and processes for improving an
organization’s effectiveness.
French, et al. (2000) reiterate the importance of studying Organization Development.
1) OD works and its programs can improve individual performance, create better morale,
and increase organizational profitability. OD techniques have the ability to solve many
organizational problems;
2) The use of OD is growing and is applied throughout the gamut of today’s
organizations and industries;
3) It is now recognized that human assets are the most important and OD offers a variety
of methods to strengthen the human side of organizations that is beneficial to both the individual
and the organization; and
4) OD is a critical management tool especially in relation to change. Its concepts and
techniques will soon be an essential part of a well-trained manager’s repertoire. A good
understanding of OD has great practical value for present and future managers and leaders.
Indeed, organizations today do not exist in an environment characterized by stability and
status quo. As Prahalad (1998) stated, the future belongs to the imaginative and to those who
have the courage to overcome the discontinuities and reshape their organizations to meet the
challenges of the so-called new economy.
III. Forces for Change
An organization is subject to pressure for change from too many sources. Moreover, it is
difficult to predict what types of pressures for change will be most significant in the next decade
because the complexity of events and the rapidity of change are increasing. However, it is
possible – and important – to discuss the broad categories of pressures that probably will have
major effects on organizations.
Category Examples Type of Pressure for Change
People Generation X, Y, Z
Twixters
Global Labor Supplies
Senior Citizens
Workforce Diversity
Demands for different training, benefits,
workplace arrangements, and compensation
systems
Technology Manufacturing in Space
Internet
Global Design Teams
More education and training for workers at all
levels, more new products, products move
faster to market
Information
Processing and
Communication
Computer-Satellite
Communications
Global Sourcing
Videoconferencing
Faster reaction times, immediate responses to
questions, new products, different office
arrangements, telecommuting
Globalization
and
Competition
Global Markets
International Trade
Agreements
Global competition, more competing products
with more features and options, lower costs,
higher quality

Emerging Nations
Government Stringent Regulations
New Restrictions
Tariffs and Higher Taxes
Customer satisfaction despite increased prices
IV. Resistance to Change
Change is inevitable; so is resistance to change. Paradoxically, organizations both
promote and resist change. As an agent for change, the organization asks prospective customers
or clients to change their current purchasing habits by switching to the company’s product or
service, asks current customers to change by increasing their purchases, and asks suppliers to
reduce the costs of raw materials. The organization resists change in that its structure and control
systems protect the daily tasks of producing a product or service from uncertainties in the
environment. The organization must have some elements of permanence to avoid mirroring the
instability of the environment, yet it must also react to external shifts with internal change to
maintain currency and relevance in the marketplace.
A commonly held view is that all resistance to change needs to be overcome, but that is
not always the case. Resistance to change can be used for the benefit of the organization and
need not be eliminated entirely. By revealing a legitimate concern that a proposed change may
harm the organization or that other alternatives might be better, resistance may alert the
organization to reexamine the change. For example, an organization may be considering
acquiring a company in a completely different industry. Resistance to such a proposal may cause
the organization to examine the advantages and disadvantages of the move more carefully.
Without resistance, the decision might be made before the pros and cons have been sufficiently
explored.
Resistance may come from the organization, the individual, or both. Determining the
ultimate source is often difficult, however, because organizations are composed of individuals.
A. Individual Sources of Resistance
Individual sources of resistance to change are rooted in basic human characteristics such
as needs and perceptions. Researchers have identified six reasons for individual resistance to
change: habit, security, economic factors, fear of the unknown, lack of awareness, and social
factors.
1. Habit. It is easier to do a job the same way every day if the steps in the job are repeated
over and over. Learning an entirely new set of steps makes the job more difficult. For the same
amount of return (pay), most people prefer to do easier rather than harder work.
Individual Sources of Resistance Examples
1. Habit Altered tasks
2. Security Altered tasks or reporting relationships
3. Economic Factors Changed pay and benefits
4. Fear of the Unknown New job, new boss
5. Lack of Awareness Isolated groups not heeding notices
6. Social Factors Group norms

2. Security. Some employees like the comfort and security of doing things the same old
way. They gain a feeling of constancy and safety from knowing that some things stay the same
despite all the change going on around them. People who believe their security is threatened by a
change are likely to resist the change.
3. Economic Factors. Change may threaten employee’s steady paychecks. Workers may
fear that change will make their jobs obsolete or reduce their opportunities for future pay
increases.
4. Fear of the Unknown. Some people fear anything unfamiliar. Changes in reporting
relationships and job duties create anxiety for such employees. Employees become familiar with
their bosses and their jobs and develop relationships with others within the organization, such as
contact people for various situations. These relationships and contacts help facilitate their work.
Any disruption of familiar patterns may create fear because it can cause delays and foster the
belief that nothing is getting accomplished.
5. Lack of Awareness. Because of perceptual limitations such as lack of attention or
selective attention, a person may not recognize a change in a rule or procedure and thus may not
alter his or her behavior. People may pay attention only to things that support their point of view.
As an example, employees in an isolated regional sales office may not notice – or may ignore –
directives from headquarters regarding a change in reporting procedures for expense accounts.
They may therefore continue the current practice as long as possible.
6. Social Factors. People may resist change for fear of what others will think. The group
can be a powerful motivator of behavior. Employees may believe change will hurt their image,
result in ostracism from the group, or simply make them “different.” For example, an employee
who agrees to conform to work rules established by management may be ridiculed by others who
openly disobey the rules.
B. Organizational Sources of Resistance
Daniel Kratz and Robert Kahn have identified six major organizational sources of
resistance: overdetermination, narrow focus of change, group inertia, threatened expertise,
threatened power, and changes in resource allocation. Of course, not every organization or every
change situation displays all six sources.
Organizational Sources of
Resistance
Examples
1. Overdetermination
Employment system, job descriptions, evaluation
and reward system, organization culture
2. Narrow Focus of Change
Structure changed with no concern given to other
issues, e.g. jobs, people
3. Group Inertia Group norms
4. Threatened Expertise People move out of area of expertise
5. Threatened Power Decentralized decision-making
6. Resource Allocation Increased use of part-time help

1. Overdetermination. Organizations have several systems designed to maintain stability.
For example, consider how organizations control employees’ performance. Job candidates must
have certain specific skills so that they can do the job the organization needs them to do. A new
employee is given a job description, and the supervisor trains, coaches, and counsels the
employee in job tasks. The new employee usually serves some type of probationary period that
culminates in a performance review; thereafter, the employee’s performance is regularly
evaluated. Finally, rewards, punishment, and discipline are administered, depending on the level
of performance. Such as system is said to be characterized by overdetermination, or structural
inertia, in that one could probably have the same effect on employee performance with fewer
procedures and safeguards. In other words, the structure of the organization produces resistance
to change because it was designed to maintain stability. Another important source of
overdetemination is the culture of the organization. The culture of an organization can have
powerful and long-lasting effects on the behavior of its employees.
2. Narrow Focus of Change. Many efforts to create change in organizations adopt too
narrow a focus. Any effort to force change in the tasks of individuals or groups must take into
account the interdependence among organizational elements such as people, structure, tasks, and
the information system. For example, some attempts at redesigning jobs fail because the
organization structure within which the jobs must function is inappropriate for the redesigned
jobs.
3. Group Inertia. When an employee attempts to change his or her work behavior, the
group may resist by refusing to change other behaviors that are necessary complements to the
individual’s altered behavior. In other words, group norms may act as a brake on individual
attempts at behavior change.
4. Threatened Expertise. A change in the organization may threaten the specialized
expertise that individuals and groups have developed over the years. A job redesign or a
structural change may transfer responsibility for a specialized task from the current expert to
someone else, threatening the specialist’s expertise and building his or her resistance to the
change.
5. Threatened Power. Any redistribution of decision-making authority, such as with
reengineering or team-based management, may threaten an individual’s power relationships with
others. If an organization is decentralizing its decision making, managers who wielded their
decision-making powers in return for special favors from others may resist the change because
they do not want to lose their power base.
6. Resource Allocation. Groups that are satisfied with current resource allocation methods
may resist any change they believe will threaten future allocations. Resources in this context can
mean anything from monetary rewards and equipment to additional seasonal help to more
computer time.
These six sources explain most types of organization-based resistance to change. All are
based on people and social relationships. Many of these sources of resistance can be traced to

groups or individuals who are afraid of losing something – resources, power, or comfort in a
routine.
V. Processes for Planned Organization Change
External forces may impose change on an organization. Ideally, however, the
organization will not only respond to change but will also anticipate it, prepare for it through
planning, and incorporate it in the organization strategy. Organization change can be viewed
from a static point of view, such as that of Lewin, or from a dynamic perspective.
A. Lewin’s Process Model
Planned organization change requires a systematic process of movement from one
condition to another. Kurt Lewin suggested that efforts to bring about planned change in
organizations should approach change as a multistage process. His model of planned change is
made up of three steps – unfreezing, change, and refreezing.
Unfreezing is the process by which people become aware of the need for change. If
people are satisfied with current practices and procedures, they may have little or no interest in
making changes. The key factor in unfreezing is making employees understand the importance of
a change and how their jobs will be affected by it. The employees who will be most affected by
the change must be made aware of why it is needed, which in effect makes them dissatisfied
enough with current operations to be motivated to change. Creating in employees the awareness
of the need for change is the responsibility of the leadership of the organization.
Change itself is the movement from the old way of doing things to a new way. Change
may entail installing new equipment, restructuring the organization, implementing a new
performance appraisal system – anything that alters existing relationships or activities.
Refreezing makes new behaviors relatively permanent and resistant to further change.
Examples of refreezing techniques include repeating newly learned skills in a training session
and role playing to teach how the new skill can be used in a real-life work situation. Refreezing
is necessary because, without it, the old ways of doing things might soon reassert themselves
while the new ways are forgotten. For example, many employees who attend special training
sessions apply themselves diligently and resolve to change things in their organizations. But
when they return to the workplace, they find it easier to conform to the old ways than to make
new waves. There usually are few, if any, rewards for trying to change the organizational status
quo. In fact, the personal sanctions against doing so may be difficult to tolerate. Learning theory
and reinforcement theory can play important roles in the refreezing phase.

Lewin’s Process of Organization Change
B. The Continuous Change Process Model
Perhaps because Lewin’s model is very simple and straightforward, virtually all models
of organization change use his approach. However, it does not deal with several important issues,
hence the emergence of the continuous process model. This approach treats planned change from
the perspective of top management and indicates that change is continuous. It is important to
note that change becomes continuous in organizations, although different steps are probably
occurring simultaneously throughout the organization. The model below incorporates Lewin’s
concept into the implementation phase.
In this approach, top management perceives that certain forces or trends call for change,
and the issue is subjected to the organization’s usual problem-solving and decision-making
processes. Usually, top management defines its goals in terms of what the organization or certain
processes or outputs will be like after the change. Alternatives for change are generated and
evaluated, and an acceptable one is selected.
Early in the process, the organization may seek the assistance of a change agent – a
person who will be responsible for managing the change effort. The change agent may also help
management recognize and define the problem or the need for the change and may be involved
in generating and evaluating potential plans of action. The change agent may be a member of the
organization, an outsider such as a consultant, or even someone from headquarters whom
employees view as an outsider.
The final step is measurement, evaluation and control. The change agent and top-
management group assess the degree to which the change is having the desired effect; that is,
they measure progress toward the goals of the change and make appropriate changes if
necessary.
Old
State
Unfreezing Changing Refreezing
New
State
(Awareness of
Need for
Change)
(Movement from
Old State to New
State)
(Assurance of
Permanent Change)
Old ideas and practices
need to be cast aside so
that new ones can be
learned.
New ideas and
practices are
learned.
What has been learned is
integrated into actual practice
and are incorporated into the
employee’s routine behavior.

1. Forces
for Change
2. Recognize and
Define Problem
3. Problem-
Solving Process
Change
Agent
5. Measure,
Evaluate, Control
4. Implement
the Change
Transition
Management
Continuous Change Process Model of Organization Change
Transition management is the process of systematically planning, organizing, and
implementing change, from the disassembly of the current state to the realization of a fully
functional future state within an organization. No matter how management plan and implement
the change, there will always be unanticipated and unpredictable things that happen along the
way. One key role of transition management is to deal with these unintended consequences. It
also ensures that business continues while the change is occurring.
VI. Managing Successful Organization Change and Development
Change management is a structured approach to shifting/transitioning individuals, teams,
and organizations from a current state to a desired future state. It is an organizational process
aimed at helping employees to accept and embrace changes in their current business
environment. In project management, change management refers to a project management
process where changes to a project are formally introduced and approved.
Examples of organizational change include, but are not limited to (1) mission changes,
(2) strategic changes, (3) operational changes, including structural changes, (4) technological
changes, and (5) changing the attitudes and behaviors of personnel.
As a multidisciplinary practice that has evolved from scholarly research, organizational
change management should begin with a systematic diagnosis of the current situation in order to
determine both the need for change and the capability to change. The objectives, content, and
process of change should all be specified as part of a change management plan.
Change management processes may include creative marketing to enable communication
between change audiences, but also deep social understanding about leadership’s styles and
group dynamics. As a visible track on transformation projects, organizational change
management aligns groups’ expectations, communicates, integrates teams and manages people
training. It makes use of performance metrics, such as financial results, operational efficiency,
leadership commitment, communication effectiveness, and the perceived need for change to
design appropriate strategies, in order to avoid change failures or solve troubled change projects.
Successful change management is more likely to occur if the following are included.

1. Benefits management and realization to define measurable stakeholder aims, create a
business case for their achievement (which should be continuously updated), and monitor
assumptions, risks, dependencies, costs, return on investment, and cultural issues affecting the
progress of the associated work.
2. Effective Communications that informs various stakeholders of the reasons for the
change (why?), the benefits of successful implementation (what is in it for us, and you) as well
as the details of the change (when? where? who is involved? how much will it cost? etc.).
3. Devise an effective education, training and/or skills upgrading scheme for the
organization.
4. Counter resistance from the employees of companies and align them to overall
strategic direction of the organization.
5. Provide personal counseling (if required) to alleviate any change related fears.
Well-known business writers state that contemporary business organizations confront
changing circumstances that put bygone eras of change to shame by comparison. The
combination of global competition, computer-assisted manufacturing methods, the internet, and
instant communication has implication more far-reaching than anything since the beginning of
the industrial revolution. The future growth of an organization depends on their ability to master
change. Change is persistent and permanent condition for all organizations.
A. Managerial Actions to Reduce Resistance to Change
When managers see resistance to change as dysfunctional, they can used any of the seven
actions below to deal with the resistance. Depending on the type and source of resistance,
managers might choose to use any of these.
1. Education and Communication
- Communicate with employees to help them see the logic of change.
- Educate employees through one-on-one discussions, memos, group meetings, or reports.
- Appropriate if source of resistance is either poor communication or misinformation.
- Must be mutual trust and credibility between managers and employees.
2. Participation
- Allows those who oppose a change to participate in the decision.
- Assumes that they have expertise to make meaningful contributions.
- Involvement can reduce resistance, obtain commitment to seeing change succeed, and
increase quality of change decision.
3. Facilitation and Support
- Provide supportive efforts such as employee counseling or therapy, new skills training,
or short, paid leave of absence.
- Can be time-consuming and expensive.
4. Negotiation
- Exchange something of value to reduce resistance.
- May be necessary when resistance comes from a powerful source.

- Potentially high costs and likelihood of having to negotiate with other resisters.
5. Manipulation and Co-optation
- Manipulation is covert attempts to influence such as twisting or distorting facts,
withholding damaging information, or creating false rumors.
- Co-optation is a form of manipulation and participation.
- Inexpensive and easy ways to gain support of resisters.
- Can fail miserably if targets feel they’ve been tricked.
6. Selecting People Who Accept Change
- Ability to easily accept and adapt to change is related to personality.
- Select people who are open to experience, take a positive attitude toward change, are
willing to take risks, and are flexible in their behavior.
7. Coercion
- Using direct threats or force.
- Inexpensive and easy way to get support.
- May be illegal. Even legal coercion can be perceived as bullying.
B. Management of Change Strategies
The seven keys to managing change in organizations relate directly to the problems
identified earlier and to the view that organizations are a comprehensive system. Each can
influence the elements of the social system and may help the organization avoid some of the
major problems in managing the change.
1. Consider International Issues
One factor to remember is how international environments dictate organization
change. The environment is a significant factor in bringing about organization change.
Given the additional environment complexities multinational organizations face, it
follows that organization change may be even more critical to them than it is to purely
domestic organization.
A second point to remember is that acceptance of change varies widely around the
globe. Change is a normal and accepted part of organization life in some cultures. In
other cultures, change causes many more problems. Managers should remember that
techniques for managing change that have worked routinely back home may not work at
all and may even trigger negative responses if used indiscriminately in other cultures.
2. Take a Holistic View
Managers must take a holistic view of the organization and the change project. A
limited view can endanger the change effort because the subsystems of the organization
are interdependent. A holistic view encompasses the culture and dominant coalition as
well as the people, tasks, structure, and information subsystems.
3. Start Small

According to Peter Senge as cited by Griffin, et al. (2010), every successful
system-wide change in large organizations starts small. He recommends that change
starts with one team, usually an executive team. One team can evaluate the change, make
appropriate adjustments along the way, and most importantly, show that the new system
works and gets desired results. If the change makes sense, it begins to spread to other
teams, groups, and divisions throughout the system. When others see the benefits, they
automatically drop their inherent resistance and join in. They can voluntarily join and be
committed to the success of the change effort.
4. Secure Top-Management Support
The support of top management is essential to the success of any change effort.
As the organization’s probable dominant coalition, it is a powerful element of the social
system, and its support is necessary to deal with control and power problems. For
example, a manager who plans a change in the ways in which tasks are assigned and
responsibility is delegated in his or her department must notify top management and gain
its support. Complications may arise if disgruntled employees complain to high-level
managers who have not been notified of the change or do not support it. The employees’
complaints may jeopardize the manager’s plan – and perhaps his or her job.
5. Encourage Participation
Problems related to resistance, control, and power can be overcome by broad
participation in planning the change. Allowing people a voice in designing the change
may give them a sense of power and control over their own destinies, which may help to
win their support during implementation.
6. Foster Open Communication
Open communication is an important factor in managing resistance to change and
overcoming information and control problems during transitions. Employees typically
recognize the uncertainties and ambiguities that arise during a transition and seek
information on the change and their place in the new system. In the absence of
information, the gap may be filled with inappropriate or false information, which may
endanger the change process. Rumors tend to spread through the grapevine faster than
accurate information can be disseminated through official channels. A manager should
always be sensitive to the effects of uncertainty on employees, especially during a period
of change; any news, even bad news, seems better than no news.
7. Reward Contributors
Although this last point is simple, it can easily be neglected. Employees who
contribute to the change in any way need to be rewarded. Too often, the only people
acknowledged after a change effort are those who tried to stop it. Those who quickly
grasp new work assignments, work harder to cover what otherwise might not get done
during the transition, or help others adjust to changes deserve special credit – perhaps a
mention in a news release or the internal company newspaper, special consideration in a
performance appraisal, a merit raise, or a promotion. From a behavior perspective,
individuals need to benefit in some way if they are to willingly help change something
that eliminates the old, comfortable way of doing the job.

In the current dynamic environment, managers must anticipate the need for
change and satisfy it with more responsive and competitive organization systems. These
seven keys to managing organization change may also serve as general guidelines for
managing organizational behavior because organizations must change or face
elimination.
References
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