We often see change as threatening. Even when employees are shown data that suggest they need to change, they still may feel negatively toward a change, and cope by a ignoring it, increasing their use of sick time, or quitting. Resistance to change doesn’t come only from lower levels of the organization. In many cases, higher-level managers resist changes proposed by subordinates, especially if these leaders are focused on immediate performance.

Resistance to change can be positive if it leads to open discussion and debate. Change agents can also monitor the resistance to modify the change to fit the preferences of members of the organization. The challenge is managing resistance that is implicit or deferred because these responses—loss of loyalty or motivation, increased errors or absenteeism—are more subtle and more difficult to recognize for what they are. It’s worth noting that not all change is good. Rapid, transformational change is risky, so change agents need to think through the full implications carefully.

Sometimes those initiating change fail to realize the full magnitude of the effects or their true costs.