Lecture Notes 2

LEADING CHANGE IN SCHOOLS AND REGIONS CHANGE THEORY 2 Alfred J. Sant Fournier

Lubricants of change  proper selfishness  a way of reframing  negative capability Handy (1990) The Age of Unreason p 50 The Iceberg Theory Only the heads stick out nodding and talking politely and distanced tones. Below the water line[…] icebergs collide […] sometimes with serious consequences. For many of the staff […] the real business of relationships is below the surface.

Overcoming resistance to change!!! Attack the proposition … find as much fault with it as possible … • We’ve tried that once before & it didn’t work! • We don’t have the time • Let’s get back to reality • We don’t have the resources • You can’t teach an old dog new tricks • Not that again! • We’ve managed so far without it • Let’s form a working party • It won’t work here • Let’s wait until things settle down Newton & Tarrant (1992) p. 62 Reasons for organisational resistance to change – Plant (1987) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Fear of the unknown Lack of information Misinformation Historical factors Threat to core skills and competence Threat to status Threat to power base No perceived benefits Low trust organisational culture Poor relationships Fear of failure Fear of looking stupid Reluctance to experiment Custom bound Reluctance to let go Strong peer group norms

The less I know about the plans to change, the more I assume, the more suspicious I become, and the more I direct my energy into counter-productive ‘resister games’. Once I feel manipulated, or uninvolved, I will inevitably tend to veer towards a negative view of the change and its effect on me.

Plant (1987) Resistance to Change: Systemic resistance – lack of knowledge, information, skill and managerial capacity  Behavioural resistance – emotionally centred … derives from the reactions, perceptions and assumptions of individuals and groups in the organisation.

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“Change is a process, not an event…” Fullan (2001)p. 52 No one can resolve the crisis of reintegration on behalf of another. Every attempt to preempt conflict, argument, protect by rational planning, can only be abortive: however reasonable the proposed changes, the process of implementing them must still allow the impulse of rejection to play itself out. … If they deny others the chance to do the same, they treat them as puppets dangling by the threads of their own conceptions. Marris (1975) Why default strategies don’t work      

These often escalate and strengthen opposition to your goals They increase resistance The win might not be worth the cost They fail to create synergy They create fear and suspicion They separate us from others (Maurer 1996)

Making matters worse “When we face resistance to our ideas, most of us react with an assortment of ineffective approaches. These are our default positions.”     

Use power Manipulate those who oppose Apply force of reason Play off relationships Make deals

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Kill the messenger Give in too soon Maurer, R. (1996) Beyond the wall of resistance

Getting beyond the wall Five fundamental Touchstones  Maintain clear focus  Keep both long and short view  Persevere  Embrace resistance  Counterintuitive response  Understand the voice of resistance  Respect those who resist  Listen with interest  Tell the truth  Relax  Stay calm and stay engaged  Know their intention  Join with the resistance  Begin together  Change the game  Find themes and possibilities Consider strategies that incorporate most (or all) of the touchstones (Maurer 1996) Some guidance: Initiators of change must be aware that those involved will want to protect what they see themselves to be  People seek to satisfy work needs and expectations with minimum of uncertainty and anxiety. Pressure to change is a threat  Suggestions to change arouses the defense of the familiar and established  Heads & SMT see this defensive tendency as opposition to new ideas and see their task as one of overcoming the perceived resistance. The battle of wills is counter-productive to the change process and to relationships! 

Keep in mind  When people resist change they are not usually working against it as such but demonstrating that a threat to their personal and professional security has been experienced.

 Senior managers need to accept this response as natural and inevitable.  A key task is to listen to the experience of those involved and seek to understand what is felt to be threatened.  Managers need to be deeply caring and concerned about what it is that staff feel they are having to give up and are to be seen as an ally in this process, not an opponent.  Managers also need to help colleagues to protect what they perceive to be under threat while moving them towards new methods and strategies.  In the process of change it is vital to try and avoid undermining the individual’s sense of competence and professional well-being by appearing to reject or devalue their established practices. Stress is part of our life. When we’re stressed … We complicate

Implementation Dip Regardless of the thought, planning and hard work involved, it seems that every change eventually faces an Implementation Dip. If it doesn’t it probably means that no change is being effected! The key to success is to keep going by involving others in the process and continuously adding new elements and fresh ideas.

Real change, then, whether desired or not represents a serious personal and collective experience characterized by ambivalence and uncertainty; and if the change works out it can result in a sense of mastery, accomplishment, and personal growth. The anxieties of uncertainty and the joys of mastery are central to the subjective meaning of educational change, and to the success or failure hereof – facts that have not been recognized or appreciated in most attempts of reform. Fullan (2001)