One common
problem associated with accepting change is the feeling that there is blame attached.
The
thinking can often go like this: “If I had been doing things right in the first
place, there would be no need for me to change. So, I must have been doing something
wrong. They must think the problem is my fault.”
The
ability and willingness to change is often a function of organizational culture. The more
bureaucratic and rigid the organizational culture, the harder it is for employees either to
change themselves, or accept change around them. Those in more relaxed and fluid organizational
structures, where change is an accepted as part of life, can normally adapt to it more
quickly and with less “blame.”
A key
element, of course, is how the change is presented. That will often determine if the
solution becomes a separate problem.
If the
problem being solved is considered the result of one or more people not doing things the
way “they should have done them”—if part of the solution process was
finding someone to blame—then the solution can be seen as a public scolding, and
employees will resists it.
If however
the problem was treated as just one of those things—like bad weather, flat tires, or
traffic jams—something that everyone had to deal with, and to work on to fix,
then the solution can be seen as proof that everyone involved is doing their job by
finding it. In that case, employees are proud of the solution. It is an accomplishment.