Page 224 - DCOM102_DMGT101_PRINCIPLES_AND_PRACTICES_OF_MANAGEMENT

Principles and Practices of Management

Notes 2. Dis-identification: Dis-identification is a reaction to change in which employees reacting
feel that their identity has been threatened by change, and they feel very vulnerable. Dis-
identified employees often display sadness and worry. They often feel like victims in the
change process. Dis-identified employees need to see that work itself and emotion are
separable, i.e., they can let go of old ways and experience positive reactions to new ways
of performing their jobs. Managers explore their feelings and help them transfer their
positive feelings into the new situation.
3. Disenchantment: Disenchantment is usually expressed as negativity or anger. Disenchanted
employees may try to enlist the support of other employees by forming coalitions.
Destructive behaviours like sabotage and backstabbing may result. Typical verbal signs
of disenchantment are "this will never work" and "I'm getting out of this company as soon
as I can". One of the particular dangers of disenchantment is that it is quite contagious in
the work place. It is often difficult to reason with disenchanted employees. Thus, the first
step in managing this reaction is to shift these employees from their highly negative,
emotionally charged mental states; the opening strategy being to acknowledge that the
employees' anger is normal and that the manager does not hold it against them.
4. Disorientation: Disorientated employees are lost and confused, and often they are unsure
of their feelings. They ask a lot of questions and become very detail oriented. "Analysis
paralysis" is characteristic of disoriented employees. They ask questions like, "Now what
do I do?" or "What do I do first?" The managerial strategy for dealing with this reaction is
to explain the change in a way that minimizes the ambiguity that is present. Once the
disoriented employee sees the broader context of the change, the manager can plan a
series of steps to help the employee adjust. The employee needs a sense of priorities to
work on.
Managers need to be able to diagnose these four reactions to change. Because each reaction
brings with it significant and different concerns, no single universal strategy can help all
employees adjust.

Did u know? Why do some change programs succeed and others fail?
One major factor is change readiness. Research by Symmetrix, a Massachusetts consulting
firm, identified 17 key elements to successful change. The more affirmative answers you
get to the following questions, the greater the likelihood that change efforts will succeed.
1. Is the sponsor of change high up enough to have power to effectively deal with
resistance?

2. Is day-to-day leadership supportive of the change and committed to it?
3. Is there a strong sense of urgency from senior management about the need for
change and is it shared by the rest of the organisation?
4. Does management have a clear vision of how the future will look different from the
present?
5. Are there objective measures in place to evaluate the change effort, and are reward
systems explicitly designed to reinforce them?
6. Is the specific change effort consistent with other changes going on within the
organisation?
7. Are functional managers willing to sacrifice their personal self-interest for the good
of the organisation as a whole?

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