As the new year begins and we look ahead to the changes that await us at the Laboratory, we may find ourselves feeling a mixture of enthusiasm and fear of the unknown. You may have heard the term “resistance to change”, which is usually defined as a natural human reaction to new routines, habits, workflows, processes and equipment in the workplace.

Managers often assume that resistance to change is inevitable and will gradually fade away once the changes are in place. Ron Carucci, a renowned speaker on leadership and organisational change, believes that resistance to change is a myth. What human beings fear is change that threatens to exclude them. In his view, it is this anxiety-generating fear of being sidelined that can compromise even the best managerial initiatives.

I would add that any major change represents a loss and that it is important to recognise this. For example, you might lose a sense of efficiency when you move to a new role, or lose a strong collaborative relationship with a colleague after a restructure. Even desired changes where we are both actors and beneficiaries have an impact on us, requiring us to take time to adapt and expend a lot of effort.

Here are three key points to help you to overcome resistance to change, taking the human factor into account.

1. Analyse the human impact of the change: what consequences will it have on the activities of the team members, how their work is organised and their motivation?

2. Announce changes clearly, early enough to allow time to reflect and to consult everyone who will be affected.

3. Manage the change, which requires listening, sharing and communicating. By making themselves available to the members of their teams, managers can avoid unfounded concerns and give everyone the time and tools they need to get used to the new situation. 

Change shakes up our habits and well-established relationships, so we need to be well prepared and take the time to establish new points of reference and collaborations.

If you would like to talk about this subject or understand how the points above can be applied to a particular situation, please contact me. As Ombud, my main purpose is to provide a non-official channel for conflict resolution, as well as to give impartial help and advice. My role is also to offer my opinion on the implementation of the Code of Conduct.

Thank you for your attention, and I look forward to seeing you soon.

Marie-Luce Falipou

I would like to hear your reactions and suggestions – join the CERN Ombud Mattermost team at https://mattermost.web.cern.ch/cern-ombud/.

The Ombud is available from Monday to Friday in office 500/1-004 on the Meyrin site. To make an appointment, in person or online, contact the Ombud at ombuds@cern.ch.

More information can be found on the Ombud’s website: https://ombuds.web.cern.ch/