We fear change 1

[ManagerJay]

I am currently employed by an association for which, primarily, older women work. And, we are in the process of migrating from Banyan Vines to Windows/Exchange 2000.

Throughout the entire project I have been met with nothing but resistance. And, the most common comment is, "Why do we have to change anything? It worked the way it was."

What are some strategies for overcoming the resistance to change and helping people to understand change is good.

Thanks,



Jay

 

[Albion]

Go out and buy the book, "Who Moved my Cheese?" by Spencer Johnson and have everyone read it. It's a very simple read, took me about 40 minutes, but it's right up there with "Making Friends and Influencing People" for must reads in business.

In business there's the quick and the dead. People like Bill Gates didn't get ahead by moving slowly or saying, "We been doing it this way forever and it's worked, why change?" or "If it's not broke don't fix it." He got ahead by taking risks and accepting change. That's why he's now worth +/-$60 billion dollars.

-al

 

[heyitsthephoneguy]

[i}"That's why he's now worth +/-$60 billion dollars."[/i]
We'll see how long that lasts

 

[pmrankine]

"Who Moved my Cheese?" is excellent - follow Albion's advice and get everyone to read it but remember you need to show users what the change is; you wouldn't swap your old, reliable car (even if it is a rust bucket) without first having a look at the replacement.

One of my first projects was the migration of our typing system using Word Perfect on Sun O/S to Word 2000 on NT4. The users were anxious to say the least about moving from the sanctuary of their terminals but by involving them in the development and providing them with full training, they are the department we have least problems with and wouldn't give up their mice if you paid them!

Good luck,
Patricia