Change is inevitable in any sphere of life. Although the results of change can bring great benefits, the process of change can be intensely traumatic, involve loss of choice, power and status, and when change happens in the workplace, it can even lead to loss of jobs. Many businesses and organisations use a model called the Change Curve to understand and manage how people react to change and the stages they go through before they accept it.
The concept of the Change Curve is based on work by psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. Her book On Death & Dying, published in 1969, dealt with the trauma and shock that people who are facing the end of life experience and how their families are also affected. Kübler-Ross proposed several stages of grief as a way of helping patients face death and their relatives deal with its effects. Kübler-Ross’s ideas were groundbreaking but have since become one of the bases of grief support and counselling. Moreover, because the ideas give a framework for dealing with personal trauma and change and for helping people adjust emotionally to significant life events, the model has been adopted by organisational theory and business management.
It is worth noting that Kübler-Ross’s original work described 10-13 stages of grief rather than the simpler four-stage version used by organisations, and that she did not intend them to be regarded as individual stages to be passed through in a fixed order but rather as phases of dealing with grief, which people may experience more than once at different times.
When change is introduced, in stage 1, people’s first reactions may be shock or denial as their normality is threatened. Their refusal to accept the facts is a natural defensive reaction and it is important to understand this in order to help them move beyond this stage. Even when people know about a change in advance and understand the need for it, they still need to be informed of what is happening to them and their workplace. At this stage, it is important to communicate with people and to give them the sense that they are being included in the process.
If stage 1 is handled well, stage 2, a critical stage, will be smoother than if stage 1 is badly handled. In stage 2, people start to react to the change and this may generate feelings of anger, resentment or fear. They may feel angry with themselves, their workmates and even their friends. For an organisation, this is the point at which a team can fall apart and the working environment can become chaotic. Good management is crucial now and it must consider the impact the change is having on people and their emotions and address any objections they may have. Furthermore, change may affect people differently. For example, some may find that their skills are no longer useful and that their position is being threatened or undermined. Reactions to change are highly personal so it is important to listen to people and monitor the situation and, if necessary, show that you are listening by taking action in response.
Stage 3 is when the organisation begins to assimilate the changes and come out of the crisis. At this point, the changes have become real to people and they have begun to accept them. They will begin to learn in practical terms what the changes mean for them and will do this more easily if they are helped and supported to do so. Therefore, training will be important, and time for this will need to be scheduled. The organisation’s productivity may slip as people begin to work with the changes instead of against them. People will stop focusing on the past and start to learn what is good about the changes and what they need to do to adapt. When they have the right skills and training to cope, the organisation can move forward again.
The final stage, stage 4, is when people embrace the new reality and begin to see the benefits. They then start seeing opportunities and build new plans and hopes. Some may actually acknowledge that the change has been for the best, while others may accept the new status quo because they have no other option. During this stage, the organisation will become more productive. At this point, it is a good idea to acknowledge the difficulties and turmoil people have been through and celebrate the success of the change.