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Extant information systems literature has viewed systems acceptance and adoption from a technocentric viewpoint that emphasizes post-implementation intentions and attitudes - mainly usefulness and ease of use. Further, the effects of organizational hierarchy and work-environment factors have not been adequately factored largely because the single level user-level perspective has dominated. This dissertation addresses this gap by incorporating work environment factors while focusing on users’ preliminary, pre-implementation attitudes, perceptions, and intentions. It thus employs a multilevel perspective that allows for deeper insights into the interplay between workgroup- and individual-level phenomena. The objectives herein are, first, to illuminate change readiness as a plausible lens through which system acceptance and adoption can be viewed. Although change readiness is predominantly studied in organizational behavior, it has not yet been applied in information systems research. Consequently, it presents a promising approach to explore users’ responses to new systems. Secondly, this dissertation aims to empirically explore the multilevel nature of the change readiness constructs as envisaged in the framework of the antecedents and outcomes of change readiness. The research model is adapted from the multilevel framework of the antecedents and outcomes of change readiness as propounded by Rafferty et al. (2013). Appropriate hypotheses are developed and a survey instrument established to test those hypotheses. To ensure validity, preliminary investigations are conducted after an expert panel review. Subsequently, data was collected and analyzed to assess the extent to which the proposed model and hypotheses are empirically supported. Results and findings from this dissertation have theoretical and practical implications. Extant literature notes the dearth of research that theorizes outcomes of change readiness in the organizational behavior domain. This dissertation theorizes intention to adopt as an outcome of change readiness. Practice benefits from the context-based empirical results which (1) examine whether change readiness has any significant impact on system adoption and (2) the effect of workgroup change readiness on individual’s intention to adopt the system.

Titel: Mellanchefen & hantering av medarbetares motstånd mot förändring Nivå: Examensarbete på grundnivå (kandidatexamen) i ämnet företagsekonomi  Författare: Elsa Berg och Alicia Bergström Handledare: Emilia Kvarnström   Datum: 2024 - Januari   Syfte: Idag driver företag ständigt förändring- och utvecklingsarbeten och med förändringar kommer ofta motståndsreaktioner. Motstånd mot förändring från medarbetare behöver bemötas och hanteras för att förändringar ska kunna fortgå i verksamheter. Tidigare forskning studerar högre chefer och företags hantering av motstånd mot förändring, men mellanchefen däremellan har blivit bortglömd. Det finns en saknad i tidigare forskning om mellanchefens unika roll i samspel med hantering av motstånd från medarbetare. Därav syftar arbetet till att undersöka mellanchefers hantering av motstånd mot förändringsarbete. Den ledande forskningsfrågan för arbetet är: Hur hanterar mellanchefer motstånd mot förändring från sina medarbetare? Metod: Arbetets studie är av kvalitativ metod som har samlats in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer, dokument och iakttagelser. Det empiriska underlaget har samlats in och presenterats tematiskt utefter arbetets förutbestämda teman under avsnittet för resultat. Därefter har det gjorts en analys, där teori och empiri länkas till varandra. Studien har studerat mellanchefer som drivit igenom en strukturell förändring praktiskt och därtill hanterat motstånd mot förändring från sina medarbetare.  Resultat och slutsats: Resultatet för arbetets studie visar att det finns återkommande val av verktyg som mellanchefer använder sig av för att hantera motstånd mot förändring från sina medarbetare. Arbetet jämför tidigare forskning som riktas till högre chefer där tre sätt att hantera motstånd är centrala: kommunikation, förebyggande förändringsbearbetning och närvarande chef. Studien finner att mellanchefer likt högre chefer använder sig av kommunikation och närvarande chef, medan förebyggande hantering endast är möjlig om mellanchefen är involverad tidigt i förändringen. Upptäckten är att mellanchefer i förhållande till högre chefer står i en beroendeställning där de själva inte beslutar om deras involverande utan det ligger i händerna på deras överställda chefer. Därtill finner studien ett nytt sätt som mellanchefer hanterar motstånd mot förändring från sina medarbetare: mellanchefen som krockkudde.  Examensarbetets bidrag: Arbetet bidrar med ökad förståelse för hur mellanchefer hanterar motstånd mot förändring från sina medarbetare. Samt att de i förhållande till högre chefer hanterar motstånd mot förändring under andra villkor, vilket styr deras val av och möjlighet till hanteringsverktyg. Detta kan dels vara värdefullt för företag som strävar efter att vinna mer kunskap om den komplicerade mellanchefsrollen eller att utveckla sina mellanchefers funktioner. Det kan även vara en vägledning för vidare forskning inom området för mellanchefer.  Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Utifrån studiens resultat föreslås vidare forskning i form av att inkludera ett större antal respondenter samt olika sorters positioner för att vinna fler infallsvinklar. Vidare skulle även en tvärsnittsstudie vara av intresse för att undersöka om utfallet skiljer sig mellan olika företag. Ett mer komplicerat men ack så intressant förslag på vidare forskning är att genomföra observationer, förslagsvis deltagande observationer som sträcker sig över en längre tid och ger möjligheten till att verkligen få inblick i hur mellanchefers faktiska hanteringen av motstånd mot förändring ser ut. Nyckelord: Middle manager, employee resistance to change, change aversion, change management och managing resistance to change. / Title: The middle manager & managing employee resistance to change Level: Bachelor's degree thesis in business administration Author: Elsa Berg och Alicia Bergström Supervisor: Emilia Kvarnström   Date: 2024 – January  Aim: Today, companies are constantly pursuing improvement and development work, and with changes often come resistance reactions. Resistance to change from employees needs to be met and managed for changes to continue in businesses. Previous research studies managers and companies' management of resistance to change, but the middle manager in between has been forgotten. There is a lack in previous research on the unique role of the middle manager in interaction with handling resistance from employees. Hence, the work aims to investigate middle managers' handling of resistance to change work. The leading research question for the work is: How do middle managers handle resistance from their employees during change work? Method: The study is of a qualitative method that has been collected through semi-structured interviews, documents and observation. The empirical basis has been collected and presented thematically according to the predetermined themes of the work under the results section. After that, an analysis has been made, where theory and empiricism are linked to each other. The study has studied middle managers who pushed through a structural change in practice and also dealt with resistance to change from their employees. Results and conclusion: The result of the study shows that there are recurring choices of tools that middle managers use to deal with resistance to change from their employees. The work compares previous research aimed at senior managers where three ways of handling resistance are central: communication, preventive change processing and present manager. The study finds that middle managers, like senior managers, use communication and a present manager, while preventive management is only possible if the middle manager is involved early in the change. The discovery is that middle managers in relation to higher managers are in a dependent position where they themselves do not decide on their involvement, but it is in the hands of their superior managers. In addition, the study finds a new way in which middle managers handle resistance to change from their employees: the middle manager as an airbag.  Contribution of the thesis: The work contributes with increased understanding of how middle managers handle resistance to change from their employees. And that, in relation to higher managers, they deal with resistance to change under other conditions, which controls their choice of and opportunity for management tools. This can be valuable for companies that strive to gain more knowledge about the complicated middle management role or to develop the functions of their middle managers. It can also be a guide for further research in the area of ​​middle managers.  Suggestions for future research: Based on the study's results and limitations, further research is suggested in the form of including a larger number of respondents and different kinds of positions to gain more angles. Furthermore, a cross-sectional study would also be of interest to investigate whether the outcome differs between different companies. A more complicated but oh so interesting proposal for further research is to carry out observations, for example participant observations that extend over a longer period of time and provide the opportunity to really gain insight into what middle managers' actual handling of resistance to change looks like.  Key words: Middle manager, employee resistance to change, change aversion, change management and managing resistance to change.

Depuis plus de 50 ans, les chercheurs s’intéressent à la résistance au changement. Or, malgré plusieurs années de recherche, on ne sait toujours pas exactement quelles variables peuvent prédire les comportements de résistance et encore moins ceux de soutien. La présente thèse vise à pallier cette lacune en identifiant des variables pouvant expliquer à la fois les comportements de soutien et de résistance lors d’un changement organisationnel majeur. Le modèle des phases de préoccupations (Bareil 2004a) s’avère intéressant à cet effet puisqu’il intègre bien les savoirs actuels et s’adapte à différents changements. L’objectif principal de cette thèse est donc de vérifier jusqu’à quel point les comportements de soutien et de résistance peuvent être prédits par les phases de préoccupations, en tenant compte de l’engagement affectif envers le changement comme variable médiatrice et du rôle des acteurs et de l’avancement de la mise en œuvre comme variables modératrices. Pour ce faire, une étude a été menée auprès d’enseignants, de professionnels et de directeurs d’une Commission scolaire québécoise ayant implanté une réforme majeure provoquant des préoccupations d’intensité variée et des comportements divers, allant de la résistance au soutien. Les analyses acheminatoires effectuées auprès de deux échantillons indépendants (n=464 et n=171) indiquent que les premières phases du modèle (centrées sur le destinataire, l’organisation et le changement) sont liées positivement aux comportements de résistance et négativement à ceux de soutien. À l’inverse, les dernières phases (centrées sur l’expérimentation, la collaboration et l’amélioration continue) sont liées négativement aux comportements de résistance et positivement à ceux de soutien. Ainsi, plus on avance dans la séquence des phases de préoccupations, plus les comportements de soutien augmentent et ceux de résistance diminuent. Également, l’engagement affectif envers le changement agit à titre de variable médiatrice et permet d’expliquer davantage de variance des comportements de soutien et de résistance. De plus, les analyses de régression indiquent que les phases de préoccupations expliquent davantage de variance des comportements de soutien des agents de changement, alors qu’elles expliquent plus de variance des comportements de résistance des destinataires. On constate aussi que c’est au début de la mise en œuvre que les phases de préoccupations expliquent le plus de variance des comportements de soutien et de résistance. Finalement, un troisième échantillon (n=143) permet de suivre l’évolution des participants ayant répondu deux fois au questionnaire. Les tests t ne rapportent aucune différence significative entre les deux temps de mesure et ce, autant pour les phases de préoccupations que pour les comportements de soutien et de résistance. On constate que lorsque les phases de préoccupations n’évoluent pas, les comportements de soutien ou de résistance demeurent les mêmes. En somme, ces résultats indiquent qu’il est possible de prédire à la fois les comportements de soutien et de résistance avec les phases de préoccupations. En outre, on sait maintenant à quel moment et avec quel type d’acteurs le modèle des phases de préoccupations s’avère le plus utile. Afin de généraliser ces résultats, il serait pertinent de reproduire cette recherche dans une autre organisation qui implante un changement majeur. / For over 50 years, researchers have been interested in resistance to change. However, despite several years of research, it remains unclear which variables can predict resistance and support behaviours. The aim of this thesis is to fill this gap by identifying variables that can explain both support and resistance behaviours during a major organizational change. The stages of concerns’ model (Bareil, 2004a, adapted from Hall & Hord, 2001) is an interesting option for this purpose since it includes many current knowledge and can be adapted to various changes. Thus, the main objective of this thesis is to ascertain to what extent support and resistance behaviours can be predicted by stages of concerns, taking into account affective commitment to change as a mediator variable and the actor’s role and the progress of the implementation as moderator variables. To this end, a study was conducted with teachers, professionals and directors of a school board in Quebec, implementing a reform causing major concerns of different intensities and various behaviours, ranging from resistance to support. The path analysis performed with two independent samples (n = 464 and n = 171) indicates that the first stages (focused on the employee, on the organization and on the change) are positively related to resistance behaviours and negatively related to support behaviours. Conversely, the last stages (focused on experimentation, on collaboration and on continuous improvement) are negatively related to resistance behaviours and positively related to support behaviours. Thus, the further along the sequence of stages of concerns, the more supportive behaviours increase and resistance behaviours decreases. Also, affective commitment to change can act as a mediator variable in this relation. Moreover, regression analysis indicates that the stages of concerns explain more variance in supportive behaviours of change agents as they explain more variance in resistance behaviours of employees. We also note that it is in early implementation that the stages of concerns explain the most variance in support and resistance behaviours. Finally, a third sample (n = 143) follows the evolution of participants who completed the questionnaire twice. The t-tests report no significant difference between the two measurement time, and this for both preoccupations and support and resistance behaviours. We note that when the stages of concerns do not change, support or resistance behaviours remain the same. In sum, these results indicate that we can now predict both support and resistance behaviours with the stages of concerns. In addition, this study permitted to know when this model is the most appropriate and who benefits the most of it. To generalize these results, it would be appropriate to replicate this research in another organization implementing a different major change.

Depuis plus de 50 ans, les chercheurs s’intéressent à la résistance au changement. Or, malgré plusieurs années de recherche, on ne sait toujours pas exactement quelles variables peuvent prédire les comportements de résistance et encore moins ceux de soutien. La présente thèse vise à pallier cette lacune en identifiant des variables pouvant expliquer à la fois les comportements de soutien et de résistance lors d’un changement organisationnel majeur. Le modèle des phases de préoccupations (Bareil 2004a) s’avère intéressant à cet effet puisqu’il intègre bien les savoirs actuels et s’adapte à différents changements. L’objectif principal de cette thèse est donc de vérifier jusqu’à quel point les comportements de soutien et de résistance peuvent être prédits par les phases de préoccupations, en tenant compte de l’engagement affectif envers le changement comme variable médiatrice et du rôle des acteurs et de l’avancement de la mise en œuvre comme variables modératrices. Pour ce faire, une étude a été menée auprès d’enseignants, de professionnels et de directeurs d’une Commission scolaire québécoise ayant implanté une réforme majeure provoquant des préoccupations d’intensité variée et des comportements divers, allant de la résistance au soutien. Les analyses acheminatoires effectuées auprès de deux échantillons indépendants (n=464 et n=171) indiquent que les premières phases du modèle (centrées sur le destinataire, l’organisation et le changement) sont liées positivement aux comportements de résistance et négativement à ceux de soutien. À l’inverse, les dernières phases (centrées sur l’expérimentation, la collaboration et l’amélioration continue) sont liées négativement aux comportements de résistance et positivement à ceux de soutien. Ainsi, plus on avance dans la séquence des phases de préoccupations, plus les comportements de soutien augmentent et ceux de résistance diminuent. Également, l’engagement affectif envers le changement agit à titre de variable médiatrice et permet d’expliquer davantage de variance des comportements de soutien et de résistance. De plus, les analyses de régression indiquent que les phases de préoccupations expliquent davantage de variance des comportements de soutien des agents de changement, alors qu’elles expliquent plus de variance des comportements de résistance des destinataires. On constate aussi que c’est au début de la mise en œuvre que les phases de préoccupations expliquent le plus de variance des comportements de soutien et de résistance. Finalement, un troisième échantillon (n=143) permet de suivre l’évolution des participants ayant répondu deux fois au questionnaire. Les tests t ne rapportent aucune différence significative entre les deux temps de mesure et ce, autant pour les phases de préoccupations que pour les comportements de soutien et de résistance. On constate que lorsque les phases de préoccupations n’évoluent pas, les comportements de soutien ou de résistance demeurent les mêmes. En somme, ces résultats indiquent qu’il est possible de prédire à la fois les comportements de soutien et de résistance avec les phases de préoccupations. En outre, on sait maintenant à quel moment et avec quel type d’acteurs le modèle des phases de préoccupations s’avère le plus utile. Afin de généraliser ces résultats, il serait pertinent de reproduire cette recherche dans une autre organisation qui implante un changement majeur. / For over 50 years, researchers have been interested in resistance to change. However, despite several years of research, it remains unclear which variables can predict resistance and support behaviours. The aim of this thesis is to fill this gap by identifying variables that can explain both support and resistance behaviours during a major organizational change. The stages of concerns’ model (Bareil, 2004a, adapted from Hall & Hord, 2001) is an interesting option for this purpose since it includes many current knowledge and can be adapted to various changes. Thus, the main objective of this thesis is to ascertain to what extent support and resistance behaviours can be predicted by stages of concerns, taking into account affective commitment to change as a mediator variable and the actor’s role and the progress of the implementation as moderator variables. To this end, a study was conducted with teachers, professionals and directors of a school board in Quebec, implementing a reform causing major concerns of different intensities and various behaviours, ranging from resistance to support. The path analysis performed with two independent samples (n = 464 and n = 171) indicates that the first stages (focused on the employee, on the organization and on the change) are positively related to resistance behaviours and negatively related to support behaviours. Conversely, the last stages (focused on experimentation, on collaboration and on continuous improvement) are negatively related to resistance behaviours and positively related to support behaviours. Thus, the further along the sequence of stages of concerns, the more supportive behaviours increase and resistance behaviours decreases. Also, affective commitment to change can act as a mediator variable in this relation. Moreover, regression analysis indicates that the stages of concerns explain more variance in supportive behaviours of change agents as they explain more variance in resistance behaviours of employees. We also note that it is in early implementation that the stages of concerns explain the most variance in support and resistance behaviours. Finally, a third sample (n = 143) follows the evolution of participants who completed the questionnaire twice. The t-tests report no significant difference between the two measurement time, and this for both preoccupations and support and resistance behaviours. We note that when the stages of concerns do not change, support or resistance behaviours remain the same. In sum, these results indicate that we can now predict both support and resistance behaviours with the stages of concerns. In addition, this study permitted to know when this model is the most appropriate and who benefits the most of it. To generalize these results, it would be appropriate to replicate this research in another organization implementing a different major change.

Prior to 1994, the South African Health Department was characterised by a fragmented health care system, which was largely curative and hospital based, with services planned and managed without community involvement and participation. The government, through the establishment of a district health system, integrated the health services with the aim of overcoming the fragmentation, and providing integrated comprehensive health care services that are equitable, accessible, efficient and effective. The integration of health services in Gauteng, meant the devolution of primary health care services from the provincial health department to the local authority health department, because the local authority services are nearer and accountable to the community. The process of integration of health services also meant the closing down of provincial clinics and transferring of provincial authority nurses to the local authority clinics. The transfer process impacted negatively on staff morale and on the resources available for health care delivery to the communities. It is against this background that the researcher decided to investigate the integration process. The researcher then conducted focus group interviews with the local authority nurses, provincial authority nurses and the district management team as these nurses's immediate supervisors. The results revealed that the local and provincial authority nurses were integrated without proper consultation and as a result integration was rejected. The following themes emerged from the results as negative perceptions and obstacles towards integration: lack of consultation, disparities in conditions of service and resistance to change. Positive perceptions also emerged from the results as strategies to improve the integration, and these strategies were used to develop guidelines to operationalise the model. It is envisaged that the proposed model will serve as a theoretical framework for nurse managers from both spheres of government, local and provincial to improve the integration of nurses through proper consultation, and involvement of nurses in the process affecting them. It is further envisaged that the model will serve as guideline to introduce changes within the district health system with more understanding and acceptance by nurses affected. Health care managers will find the model useful to overcome disparities in conditions of service among nurses and, in turn this may boost the moral of nurses and lead to successful integration of provincial and local authority nurses. / Health Studies / D.Litt. et Phil (Health Studies)

Syfte: Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur mellanchefer kan hantera motstånd inom offentliga organisationer i samband med organisationsförändringar. Studien ämnar vidare undersöka vilka förutsättningar som mellanchefer behöver från ledningen för att hantera medarbetarnas förändringsmotstånd. Frågeställningar: • Hur använder mellanchefer i offentliga organisationer sitt ledarskap för att hantera förändringsmotstånd? • På vilket sätt påverkas mellanchefer i samband med organisationsförändringar i offentliga organisationer? Metod: I studien har en kvalitativ forskningsdesign använts. Sex stycken semi-strukturerade intervjuer har genomförts på två olika statliga myndigheter. Genom teoretiskt tematisk analys har empiri analyserats. Empirin har kodats utefter relevanta begrepp och teorier. Slutsats: Studien har påvisat att kommunikation är viktigt genom hela förändringsprocessen, både gällande att informera om förändringen och dess betydelse, men också för att möjliggöra att en dialog kan föras med medarbetare kring deras upplevelse av förändringen. Studien har även funnit att medarbetarinvolvering och delaktighet är viktigt men att detta behöver motiveras och mellanchefer behöver även informera om vad delaktighet innebär för att medarbetare ska ha rätt förväntningar. Delaktighet, kommunikation och hanteringsverktyg är delar som myndigheter behöver arbeta med på olika nivåer. Detta för att mellanchefer ska kunna ha rätt förutsättningar för att kunna hantera motstånd i förändring. / Purpose: The purpose is to examine how middle managers can manage resistance in state agencies. The purpose is also to examine the conditions middle mangers need to manage employees’ resistance to change. Research questions: • How does middle mangers use their leadership in managing resistance to change in state agencies? • How does organizational change in state agencies affect middle managers? Method: The authors conducted a qualitative method for this study. The authors preformed six semi-structured interviews with middle managers working in two different state agencies. Empirical evidence has been analyzed through theoretical thematic analysis. The empirical data was coded along relevant concepts and theories. Conclusion: The need of communication is very important through the whole change process. Communication in this case includes both giving information about the change but also to give employees the opportunity to express their feelings about the change. It is also important for middle managers to involve employees in the change. The involvement needs to be motivated and middle managers also need to communicate what employees can expect from their involvement. Involvement, communication and strategies for dealing with resistance to change are vital parts that needs to be handled on all levels in the organization.This is important because it will enable the right conditions for middle managers to handle resistance to change.

Small business operations contribute to economic growth and account for 110 million new jobs in the United States. Despite the increase in the number of businesses created in the United States, some business leaders fail to manage change effectively. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the strategies that some leaders of small businesses used to reduce employees' resistance to change. Lewin's 3-phase change theory served as the conceptual framework. The target population consisted of 3 successful leaders of small businesses in the central and southern region of Texas. Each participant had more than 5 years of experience and successfully used strategies to reduce employees' resistance to change in the workplace. Data were collected from semistructured interviews, review of company documents, and observations. Thematic coding, text/word queries, and a cross-case analysis revealed three central themes: communication, support, and evaluation. The implications of this study for positive social change include engaging employees in the change process, which might enhance the work environment and reduce employee stress and resistance to change. An improvement in a business leader's change management initiatives may generate beneficial outcomes for the businesses that may improve community growth through increased local employment rates.

<p>ABSTRACT</p><p>Denna uppsats var en undersökning av motivationsarbetet på ett hälsoföretag i Sverige. Syftet med undersökningen var att beskriva vad hälsoföretaget använder sig av för teorier och metoder för att motivera sina klienter. Uppsatsen baserades på fyra intervjuer och två observationer. Personerna som ingick i undersökningen var alla anställda på företaget. Ledarna använder sig av olika teorier och modeller för att motivera sina deltagare. Några av dessa var motiverande samtal, kroppsspråk och motivationskorset. En viktig del av Hälsoföretagets arbete var att sprida glädje bland sina deltagare. De vill få alla att känna sig sedda och detta gjorde de genom uppmuntrande kommentarer och blickar. Trots det så upplevde vi att ingen av dem har reflekterat särskilt över hur de gör när de ska motivera sina klienter. Ett annat resultat vi fann var att inte alla använder sig av någon vetenskapligt baserad motivationsmodell. För att öka chansen för bättre resultat kan det vara en fördel att ta stöd från forskningen.</p>