Managing Resistance to Change: Strategies for Turning Pushback into Progress
Duration: 60 Minutes
48 Days Left To REGISTER
Dr. William J. Rothwell
Resistance to change is a natural and predictable response to organizational transformation-but left unaddressed, it derails up to 70% of change initiatives.
Overview
Resistance to change is a natural and predictable response to organizational transformation-but left unaddressed, it derails up to 70% of change initiatives.
Research shows that 37% of employees actively resist change, driven by fear of the unknown (38%), lack of trust in leadership (41%), insufficient information (28%), or role changes (27%). Because change fatigue is real-leaders now manage an average of nine changes per year, compared to just two pre 2020, and 38% of senior managers would rather quit than lead another change program-the stakes have never been higher.
This one-hour webinar explores the root causes of resistance and equips participants with practical strategies to understand, engage, and constructively move through resistance. Drawing on key concepts from organizational psychology, change leadership, and communication theory, the session empowers managers and change agents to:
- Build trust through empathy and transparency
- Listen actively and validate concerns
- Cultivate stakeholder buy in and psychological safety
By proactively addressing resistance-as Prosci and others recommend-leaders convert obstacles into learning opportunities and significantly increase their odds of success.
- 60%-70% of organizational change efforts fail, often due to poor handling of the human side of change
- Only 1 in 3 major change initiatives fully meet their goals, and half of senior leaders cannot even assess whether recent changes were successful
- Employees are more likely to resist if they feel excluded from decision making-as seen in the 23% who feel sidelined, fueling opposition
- Although roughly 74% of employees once indicated willingness to support change, that figure dropped to just 38% by 2022, highlighting eroding engagement and rising fatigue with change demands
All combined, these numbers make a clear case: Resistance must be managed-not ignored-if change efforts are to succeed.
Why you should Attend
- Operational Risk: A project with strong strategic logic may still fail if the people side is overlooked
- Cultural Health: Unmanaged resistance erodes trust, morale, and retention
- Business Agility: In fast changing environments, organizations need change ready cultures, not reactive firefighting
- Sustainable Leadership: Leaders risking burnout are far less effective-especially when 38% would opt out rather than lead again
By treating resistance not as a roadblock but as an opportunity to learn, build empathy, and co create the future, change agents become catalysts rather than crisis managers.
Areas Covered in the Session
- Identify common sources and types of resistance to change
- Distinguish between functional and dysfunctional resistance
- Apply practical techniques to diagnose and manage resistance constructively
- Practice communication approaches that reduce fear and foster trust
- Support individuals and teams through change-related uncertainty and disruption
Who Will Benefit
- All
Speaker Profile
As a Distinguished Professor at Penn State University, University Park, where he has taught for 30 years, he is co-Professor-in-Charge of an online and onsite academic program that offers a Master degree in Organization Development and a Ph.D. in Workforce Education and Development with an emphasis in Talent Development/Organization Development. Before joining Penn State in 1993, he had over 15 years of experience in HR, Talent Development, and Organization Development leadership at the executive level in government (Illinois Office of the Auditor General) and in a wholly-owned subsidiary of a multinational company, #48 on the Fortune 500 list (American Brands, owners of Jim Beam, American Tobacco, and others). With 50 years of work experience in HR, OD and Talent Development, he is known widely for his practical approach. Having published 159 books in the Human Resources field, he was awarded Penn State University’s Graduate Faculty Teaching Award in 2004 (only one given per year on Penn State’s 24 campuses), the Association for Talent Development’s (ATD) Distinguished Contribution to Workplace Learning and Performance Award in 2011, was given the Walter Zeller Award for Service by UNICEF and Kiwanis in 2013, was awarded the Organization Development Network’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022, was awarded Penn State University’s highest award for international work in 2022, and was inducted into the International Adult and Continuing Education Hall of Fame in 2023. He has conducted training and taught in universities globally-including 83 trips to China and 32 trips to Singapore.
His recent books since 2020 include Mastering the Art of Process Consultation and Virtual Group Coaching Simulation (2023); Successful Supervisory Leadership: Exerting Positive Influence While Leading People (2023); Transformational Coaching (2023); Succession Planning for Small and Family Businesses (2022); High-Performance Coaching for Managers (2022); Rethinking Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (2022); Organization Development (OD) Interventions: Executing Effective Organizational Change (2021); Virtual Coaching to Improve Group Relationships: Process Consultation Reimagined (2021); The Essential HR Guide for Small Business and Start Ups (2020); Increasing Learning and Development’s Impact Through Accreditation (2020); Adult Learning Basics, 2nd ed. (2020); and, Workforce Development: Guidelines for Community College Professionals, 2nd ed. (2020).
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