Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ Actually, People Love Change

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

How often have we heard that people resist change, or are afraid of change. Too often. But the evidence does not support the generalization. People embrace change all the time: they relocate, they get married, they have children, they take on new jobs, they buy new things, and so on. As Tim Kastelle says, "The kind of change that people resist is the kind that makes them worse off." Like changes that result in half the staff being laid off, for example. This suggests a natural route for change management: make changes only if they solve real problems, communicate how (and why) the problem is being solved, and (ideally) use solutions recommended by the people most directly impacted. If change originates on the shop floor, actually helps people, and isn't some hammer of God coming down from above, it is far more likely to be embraced.

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
stephen@downes.ca

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Last Updated: Dec 25, 2024 08:11 a.m.

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