Us and Them – First-line Management and Change Resistance
Change agents are vital in enacting organizational change, yet we know little about the specific challenges first-line managers face in this role.This study draws on written responses from man- agers in Norwegian public welfare organizations to describe the trials of being a change agent. The respon...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Aalborg University
2018-06-01
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| Series: | Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://tidsskrift.dk/njwls/article/view/106152 |
| _version_ | 1818857628000845824 |
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| author | Chris Rønningstad |
| author_facet | Chris Rønningstad |
| author_sort | Chris Rønningstad |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Change agents are vital in enacting organizational change, yet we know little about the specific challenges first-line managers face in this role.This study draws on written responses from man- agers in Norwegian public welfare organizations to describe the trials of being a change agent. The responses reveal that issues arise from resistance among recipients of the change and from the nature of the manager’s role in the organization. Within these categories, four challenges are delineated: (1) fall-out from ‘change fatigue’, (2) individual resistance to change, (3) managers being caught between two worlds, and (4) a lack of managerial discretion.These challenges could potentially limit the change agent’s efficiency. The study suggests areas for future research and ways for public welfare organizations to improve their change processes |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T08:43:25Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e8c0023b2246486fa25caef883a30982 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2245-0157 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T08:43:25Z |
| publishDate | 2018-06-01 |
| publisher | Aalborg University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-e8c0023b2246486fa25caef883a309822022-12-21T20:28:52ZengAalborg UniversityNordic Journal of Working Life Studies2245-01572018-06-018210.18291/njwls.v8i2.106152Us and Them – First-line Management and Change ResistanceChris Rønningstad0OsloMetChange agents are vital in enacting organizational change, yet we know little about the specific challenges first-line managers face in this role.This study draws on written responses from man- agers in Norwegian public welfare organizations to describe the trials of being a change agent. The responses reveal that issues arise from resistance among recipients of the change and from the nature of the manager’s role in the organization. Within these categories, four challenges are delineated: (1) fall-out from ‘change fatigue’, (2) individual resistance to change, (3) managers being caught between two worlds, and (4) a lack of managerial discretion.These challenges could potentially limit the change agent’s efficiency. The study suggests areas for future research and ways for public welfare organizations to improve their change processeshttps://tidsskrift.dk/njwls/article/view/106152Organization & management |
| spellingShingle | Chris Rønningstad Us and Them – First-line Management and Change Resistance Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies Organization & management |
| title | Us and Them – First-line Management and Change Resistance |
| title_full | Us and Them – First-line Management and Change Resistance |
| title_fullStr | Us and Them – First-line Management and Change Resistance |
| title_full_unstemmed | Us and Them – First-line Management and Change Resistance |
| title_short | Us and Them – First-line Management and Change Resistance |
| title_sort | us and them first line management and change resistance |
| topic | Organization & management |
| url | https://tidsskrift.dk/njwls/article/view/106152 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT chrisrønningstad usandthemfirstlinemanagementandchangeresistance |