Communication and Resistance to Change
Reasons for resistance to change
It is challenging for Toyota Corporation to avoid change because new ideas promote growth for the organization and its members. There are various reasons for the suggested changes like the acquisition of new technology, decreases or increases in funding, new staff roles new goals, vision or missions and to reach new clients. Though changes could create new opportunities, they are often met with criticism from resistant employees within the organization. Various factors are associated with resistance in an organization chief among them poor communication, the existing support systems, and low tolerance for others (Mattiske, 2012).
Poor communication contributes a lot to employees' tendency to resist change. At Toyota, changes start with key decision makers. They must pass the details to other staff members and ensure all complaints and questions are dealt with before changes go into effect. Sadly, as news about a change spreads across the hierarchy, sometimes details are skewed, and workers end up getting inaccurate second-hand details. Therefore, poor communication could trigger resistance to the change initiative (Letavec, 2014).
Concern about support systems also influences employees' acceptance to change. Introducing the change could shake employees' confidence in the organization's support system. They could be concerned about working under a new manager, working on familiar projects or working with new employees because they might fear that if they try and fail, no one will be available to support them. Simply, employees could resist the change initiative because it is something that is unfamiliar to them. Lack of knowledge about why the change is special, these employees might imagine the worst case scenarios that could be so scary. The workers would recognize that a problem exists and affirm that the change might improve the situation. On the contrary, they could be...
Such fear reasons could make them place roadblocks in the shift towards the change (Anderson & Anderson, 2010).
Low tolerance and inertia. Some workers are likely to see the change as a threat rather than a potential advantage. This is expected to be the case when these employees feel that the change will make it harder for them to meet their needs and when they believe that are already fulfilled. Unless these employees see the need for a change, they will not support it. In some cases, employees can resist change even if they recognize that it is a good thing because they worry that they may be unable to develop the new behaviors and skills required. Another rationale for employee resistance is that they could feel that accepting the change would mean that their previous beliefs and decisions were wrong (Mattiske, 2012).
Resistance to Change vs. Communication
When enacting a change, there must be a communication strategy because uncertainty is much stressful compared to the practical elements of the change initiative. Feelings of uncertainty are common among people especially when their future is threatened. Hence, furnishing workers with appropriate information about the change help to minimize uncertainty and anxiety about expected results. The relationship has been well documented in existing literature. Scholars cite that when workers report receiving useful information regarding a change initiative in a timely fashion, they tend to be positive towards the change and are more open to cooperate. Moreover, when change announcements are communicated, those communications that are useful, timely and address workers' concerns are more expected to help workers feel ready for a change. These arguments highlight the significance of communication in change. It is said that good communication alleys employees' fears, conveys a message that promotes employee self-efficacy for performing…
