Overcoming internal resistance to change: in many ways, the hallmark of a great leader is how well he or she manages change. (Marketing).

People, and the organizations they create and inhabit, seldom welcome change. For the most part, they are resistant and reluctant, believing that there is great comfort in the familiar and greater security in the status qua. As a result, they tend to resist new ideas and new ways to think about old ideas. They suffer, as one wag reminded me, from hardening of the categories.

Unfortunately, our present, and certainly our future, is all about change. In fact, there is a wonderful adage that describes the issue succinctly: The only constant is change. Ultimately, both individual and organizational success may well depend not on how well we resist change, but how well we embrace it. After all, at its most basic, leadership is all about managing change. It is about anticipating it; framing it in ways the organization understands; finding a path through it In many ways, the hallmark of a great leader is how well he or she manages change.

But why are people on campus so darn change-averse?

CHANGE AND FEAR

What is it about change that people in general--and faculty and staff in particular--most fear? Based on the work I have done with strategic planning and organizational change, it appears that members of the campus community are often concerned about:

* Loss of power and prestige

* Reallocation or loss of resources

* Loss of autonomy

* Intrusion into personal and professional domains

* Changing definitions of success

* Altered reward systems

* Fear of technology

* Fear of having to relearn 

On campus, times of change are usually seen as times of angst (True to that tendency, Lily Tomlin once quipped, "Why walk boldly when I can be driven by leaf?") Now that we have a basic understanding of the reasons behind change resistance, let's look at a handful of strategies for overcoming internal resistance to change To do that, we need to first understand the physics of change.

THE PHYSICS OF CHANGE

There is a saying among Newtonians that a body at rest will remain at rest unless acted upon by a (greater) outside force. In other words, if the pressure to change is not greater than the resistance to change, little will happen. Stasis has been achieved.

Understanding and sometimes applying these outside forces is critical to understanding and bringing about change, especially transformational change. For colleges and universities, these outside forces typically involve:

A major threat or pressure From the external environment. In the mid '90s, following a series of lawsuits and mounting public pressure, The Citadel (SC) was forced to become coeducational. This was a major pressure from the external environment.

An unanticipated opportunity, In 1981, Macalester College (MN) received a significant gift of stock from DeWitt and Lila Wallace. The gift, coupled with other gifts, keen leadership, and careful management, not only allowed the school to control its own destiny, but challenged the college to think about the larger responsibility it had to serve society.

An internal crisis or setback. In the mid '90s, following disclosure that the New Era Foundation was bankrupt, a number of colleges and universities that had invested heavily in the fund found themselves without the necessary cash flow to finance some short-term obligations.

These kinds of catalysts, either singularly or in tandem, can serve as the genesis for change.

7 STRATEGIES TO OVERCOME RESISTANCE

Now that we understand both the fear and physics of change, let's take a look at seven strategies designed to help you overcome resistance to change.

One--Clarify the change "event." First and foremost, always clarify the change event. In other words, what's the itch? If you cannot clarify the specific threat or opportunity in real, concrete a terms, you can't advance. What's more, the change event must be identifiable not only to senior administrators, but also to the faculty and staff actually in the trenches.

Two--Create a sense of urgency. Next, you must create a sense of urgency. A college or university might suffer declining enrollment for a number of years with little real concern. However, showing that this decline will affect faculty salaries or might cause a loss of accreditation is more likely to generate a sense that something must be done. To create a sense of urgency, key audiences must understand in real and concrete terms how the change event will affect them. Either show them how their lives will be diminished if the threat is not dealt with, or how their lives will be improved if the opportunity is accommodated.

Three--Develop a course of action. Once you have identified a threat or opportunity, you must develop a course of action that is clear and simple. If it is not dear, people won't understand how it will deal with the issue. If it is not simple, people will get bogged down. A simple decision to freeze tuition increases, for example, is a lot easier to understand than a complex financial aid leveraging scheme that takes a raft of Ph.D.s in Economics to understand and implement. As you think about your course of action, however, keep in mind two important fundamentals: First, a good response created and acted upon quickly is much better than a perfect response that takes forever to Formulate. Second, don't get too focused on a need for consensus. Consensus sounds great, and change-management literature is chock-full of strategies for achieving it. But the fact is, total consensus almost never occurs. So, rather than consensus, seek just enough consensus. Get enough people on board, especially the right people. Don't worry about the vocal 10 percent who seem to oppose your every move. Let their peers work on them; you work with the go percent who are willing to be led.

Four--Establish a guiding coalition. While the vision for a change may originate with one person, the actual change process must be accomplished through a coalition of believers who, in response to a threat or opportunity, developed a unified response. This guiding coalition must be large enough to have an impact on the organization, but small enough to act in a truly coordinated fashion. Furthermore, this coalition must include major and minor players and be as cross-functional as possible, drawing from all segments of the campus. A coalition that includes people from Admissions, Advancement, and senior faculty will likely be more credible than a team comprising people only from Advancement.

Five--Communicate your course of action widely. With the key elements in place, you must communicate your course of action widely and continually. Not only must people understand in general the institutional response, but they must understand specifically their role in the change process. What is the role that the people in Parking or the Registrar's office have in the change process? If they don't understand their role, they will not be wedded to the change event. Furthermore, they might unintentionally undermine what you are trying to accomplish.

Six--Generate and celebrate near-term wins. While significant change is typically a long-term undertaking, people need to know immediately that their efforts are having some impact. This is much like the overweight person who decides to lose 50 pounds over the next year. After a week of struggling with a new food plan, a dieter wants to know that she's dropped a few pounds Without that near-term win, she'll become discouraged and drop out before the long haul. So, celebrate your near-term wins. If you decide to open an off-campus center for adult students, people on the main campus need to be aware that the center is successful and that adults are enrolling. And if you are smart, you'll also tell them how the revenue from that new center is going to help them in their day-to-day activities.

Seven--Anchor change in the organization. Change begins with people, but it is institutionalized through artfully developed policies and procedures, realistic budgets, measures of success, and ongoing training. You simply cannot ask people to change without giving them the tools to change. This support must be real, obvious, and given freely. At the same time, people who opt not to change must be dealt with or their recalcitrance will spread. One of the quickest ways to undermine change is to ignore people who will not embrace--and even sabotage--the change initiative.

IN A NUTSHELL ...

Educator and philosopher Clarke Kerr once wrote, "The major test of a modern U.S. university is how wisely and how quickly it is able to adjust to important new possibilities." Bottom Line? It's all about change.

TWO TOMES ON CHANGE

There Ore a great number of books on change, but my two favorites are:

Kotter, John. Leading Change [Boston; Harvard Business School Press, 1996]

Kouzes, James M, and Barry Z. Posner. Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why People Demand It [San Francisco, Jossey-Bass, 1995]

Bob Sevier is a senior VP of Stamats Communications (www.stamats .com). He pens a free e-newsletter, QuickTakes, focusing on strategic planning and brand marketing. A complete glossary of marketing end strategic planning terms is also available. For more information, e-mail [e-mail].