Understanding Resistance: Prosci’s Flight and Risk Model
Managers and employees who persistently resist change over time create measurable
impacts on a company including decreased productivity, negative customer satisfaction
and loss of valued employees. In some cases, excessive resistance can cause a change to
fail. This tutorial presents a new model for understanding resistance to change and the
impact on a business.
Flight and Risk Model Description
The Flight and Risk Model is a useful teaching tool to convey the key attributes of
resistance to change. The model is shown in Figure 1 and consists of three regions.
Region 1, Comfort and security (also shown in green), is the normal work environment.
Region 2 (shown in yellow) is an area of worry and uncertainty for employees. Region 3,
the Risk or Flight zone (shown in red), is the area that employees feel at risk from the
change. Along the vertical axis, employee fear and resistance is increasing. Along the
horizontal axis, time is moving forward.
Each band of the Flight and Risk Model has characteristics for employee behavior. In the
comfort and security region, employees feel secure in their work status and environment.
This is the region of optimal productivity and normal work behavior. In Region 2,
employees are worried about the changes taking place at work. In this region, employees
become distracted (and they distract others). Employee morale may decline and evidence
of passive resistance becomes visible. Productivity loss is measurable. In Region 3,
employees enter a "fight or flight" role. Active resistance to change is apparent from
some employees, while other employees may leave the company. Customer impact is
measurable and the change itself is at risk.
The dashed line represents a potential track that a group of employees may follow when
faced with change. Note that the onset of this track is a management communication or a
rumor that change is coming. The two essential characteristics of this track are time and
degree. Time reflects the duration that the group is under stress from the change. Degree
represents the height or level of stress felt by the organization.
© 2004 Prosci. This article may be reprinted for educational purposes. Please cite source as: Change Management
Learning Center, www.change-management.com
Increasing fear and resistance
Turnover of valued employees
Tangible customer impact
Active resistance
Risk / flight
Worry / uncertainty
degree
Productivity loss
Employee dissatisfaction
Passive resistance
time
Comfort / security
Normal work environment
Time
1st communication or
1st rumor
Figure 1 – Prosci’s Flight and Risk Model
Interpreting the model in terms of resistance to change
When a management communication or rumor starts about change, the organization
moves upward in this Flight and Risk model. That movement is normal and predictable.
The rate at which the organization moves upward in this model (the slope of the curve)
depends on several defining attributes of the organization and the change itself. The
factors that can impact the rate of climb into Region 2 or Region 3 are:
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The organization's history with past change.
The organization's values and culture.
The level of change already going on within the organization.
These factors are inherent in the company. That does not imply that the track through the
Flight and Risk Model is pre-determined. In fact, the variables that managers can control
have a significant impact on this track. These variables include:
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How communications are made (who, when, how and what). For example, rumors
accelerate the rise in the Flight and Risk model faster than a carefully planned
management communication.
The sponsorship for the change at all management levels.
How the future state is perceived by each employee.
The level and type of training and coaching provided to employees.
How resistance to change is dealt with by managers.
© 2004 Prosci. This article may be reprinted for educational purposes. Please cite source as: Change Management
Learning Center, www.change-management.com
The time and degree for the track through the Flight and Risk Model is controlled by how
effectively change management techniques are employed to deal with these inherent
organizational factors. Figure 2 below shows two potential tracks for an organization.
One in which an organization employs change management effectively, and the other
track in which change management is not employed effectively. Note that in the track
labeled Poor Change Management, the organization rises rapidly into Region 3, the Red
Zone, and stays there for a long period of time. In this track, the organization is surprised
and shocked into change, and suffers customer and productivity impacts. In the second
track labeled Excellent Change Management, the rise into Region 2 is slower, and the
duration is shorter. In this track, change management techniques were employed carefully
to manage the negative consequences of the change.
Increasing fear and resistance
Poor change management
Risk / flight
Worry / uncertainty
Excellent change management
Comfort / security
Turnover of valued employees
Tangible customer impact
Active resistance
Productivity loss
Employee dissatisfaction
Passive resistance
Normal work environment
Time
1st communication or
1st rumor
Figure 2 - Effectiveness of managing change
The track through the Flight and Risk Model is not the same for every group in an
organization. Each group or department will have unique values and management
styles. Each of them will be impacted differently by proposed changes. Figure 3
shows the multiple tracks that may be experienced during the change process. Note
that while Departments C and D followed a positive track through the Flight and
Risk Model in this example, Departments A and B had a greater level of resistance.
© 2004 Prosci. This article may be reprinted for educational purposes. Please cite source as: Change Management
Learning Center, www.change-management.com
Increasing fear and resistance
Dept. A
Turnover of valued employees
Tangible customer impact
Active resistance
Risk / flight
Dept. B
Productivity loss
Employee dissatisfaction
Passive resistance
Worry / uncertainty
Dept. C
Comfort / security
Dept. D
Normal work environment
Time
1st communication
1st rumor
Figure 3 - Impact of change on different departments or groups
Observations from this model
This model is useful as a teaching tool when discussing resistance to change. The
following observations about resistance can be visualized with this model:
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From an organization perspective, resistance to change is automatic and
expected.
Resistance to change has levels of severity that have different impacts on the
organization.
Resistance to change is not an event, but a "state" of the organization. The longer
you remain in elevated states of resistance, the greater the impact on productivity
and on customers, and the greater the risk of losing valued employees.
Resistance to change is not uniform across the organization; each group or
department will develop a unique perspective on the change.
Change managers need to be concerned with both the time and degree to which
the organization is under stress or duress from the change process.
Persistent and enduring resistance from managers or employees is a threat to the
change and the organization.
Although the inherent attributes of an organization are not controllable (history, culture,
current change capacity), the ultimate track an organization follows through the Flight
and Risk Model is controllable through the correct application of change management
techniques. Understanding resistance in the context of this model helps managers and
change agents plan for and correctly manage change in their organization.
© 2004 Prosci. This article may be reprinted for educational purposes. Please cite source as: Change Management
Learning Center, www.change-management.com
Related Resources:
Change Management Toolkit: a comprehensive change management process, including
templates, worksheets, assessments, checklists and guidelines - a must have for change
management team members and consultants. Includes specific sections on developing a sponsor
model, preparing sponsors and creating a sponsor roadmap with key action steps.
Best Practices in Change Management: 288 companies share experiences in managing
change and lesson on how to build great executive sponsorship. Includes success factors,
methodology, role of top management, communications, team structure and more. The report
makes it easy to learn change management best practices and discover the mistakes to avoid
when creating executive sponsorship.
Change Management Guide for managers and supervisors: a guide specifically designed for
managers and supervisors dealing with change - complete with team and individual coaching
activities, best practices findings and frequently asked questions.
Go to www.change-management.com for more information.
© 2004 Prosci. This article may be reprinted for educational purposes. Please cite source as: Change Management
Learning Center, www.change-management.com