Using the future time perspective to analyse resistance to, and readiness for, change
Abstract
Purpose
When a major Russian energy provider introduced a new technology that required organisational adjustment, the company’s management was surprised by the degree of internal resistance these changes provoked. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors took reference to the work on readiness to change and studied how the future time perspective, which connects with early writings by Lewin (1942), would explain the attitudes and behaviour of 148 managers.
Findings
The findings indicate that only a small number of employees perceived the future as offering many opportunities and showed willingness to pursue them. The majority of employees are either fearful of future changes, or do not have a strong sense of belonging to the company and hence are disinterested in prospective opportunities within the firm.
Originality/value
The different constructs of the future introduce an emic perspective to the study of organisational change and answer calls to enrich the measurements that are currently in use.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The paper was prepared within the framework of the Basic Research Program at the National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE) and supported within the framework of a subsidy by the Russian Academic Excellence Project “5-100”.
Citation
Bagrationi, K. and Thurner, T. (2020), "Using the future time perspective to analyse resistance to, and readiness for, change", Employee Relations, Vol. 42 No. 1, pp. 262-279. https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-04-2018-0113
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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