• Change
• Conflict
• Reflective Discussion

Background

Economic forces are making it necessary for today's companies and organisations to be faster and more flexible in making adjustments to meet demand and grow. Major changes such as reorganisations are occurring with greater frequency, as are less extensive changes within the group. A private or personal change can impact the individual employee's ability to perform.

Regardless of its scope, change entails a psychological adjustment on the part of everyone involved and can create frustrations, misunderstandings and feelings of inadequacy and insecurity among both managers and employees. Others view changes as exciting challenges that can engender creativity and hope. One thing that is certain is that changes, whether large or small, always elicit reactions.

Purpose and goals

As a manager and leader, you need knowledge and understanding of how people's reactions to change manifest and affect those around them. You also need tools to deal with these reactions in a constructive and respectful way. This will make both you and those around you feel more comfortable and secure. Understanding the process and being able to manage these reactions can make the dramatic consequences of change less frightening. In a chaotic world, you will in any event be certain of not making things worse, but rather of fostering a sense of security and ease.

Depending on the situation, we can work together to create seminars or similar forums to shed light on and provide practice in the specific contexts in question. By increasing your knowledge of human psychological needs and the psychological defences that people use to deal with life, and by being attentive to and aware of these red flags and understanding the change process and people's relatively predictable reactions, you will also improve your ability to help people as they cope with change. Practicing for specific situations in which the way you act is important will leave you better equipped to deal with crises or other chaotic situations.