Identifying the Reducing Resistance to Change Phase in an Organizational Change Model

In this article we examine where in an organizational change process it is better to place the reducing resistance to change phase, so that employees would accept the new changes easier and not manifest too much resistance. After analyzing twelve organizational change models we have concluded that the place of the reducing resistance to change phase in an organizational change process is not the same, it being modified according to the type of change. The results of this study are helpful for researchers, but especially for organizational change leaders. As change leaders are usually the ones confronted with resistance from their subordinates, they must know exactly how to deal with it and when is the best moment to reduce it, depending on the type of change that is desired to be implemented. The key contribution to this paper is that the best way to gain employee’s support and change attachment is to try and reduce resistance to change before the actual implementation. Only when an immediate or imposed change is required to be implemented, the methods and ways for overcoming resistance should be applied during and after the implementation stage, to ensure a successful implementation of the change.