…maybe they’re protecting themselves from another false start.
“We’ve tried this before.”
“Here we go again.”
“Let’s see how long this one lasts.”
If you’ve ever been involved in organisational change, you’ll probably recognise these responses. They’re often interpreted as resistance, negativity or a lack of willingness to embrace something new.
And sometimes, of course, people are genuinely reluctant to change.
But what if some of that scepticism is entirely reasonable?
Perhaps employees have seen similar initiatives launched with great enthusiasm, only to lose momentum when priorities change. Perhaps they’ve invested time in workshops, shared their ideas and helped develop plans that never materialised. Or perhaps they’ve watched leaders champion a new way of working, only to quietly abandon it six months later.
In those circumstances, scepticism isn’t necessarily resistance.
It might be something employees have learned from experience.
And that distinction matters, because it changes how we should approach change.
What previous change has taught people
Organisations often approach change as though they’re starting with a blank page.
There’s a new strategy, a compelling vision, a communications plan and a programme of activities designed to bring everyone along.
But employees don’t experience change in isolation. They bring everything they’ve learned from previous experiences with them.
If previous initiatives delivered meaningful improvements, people may be more willing to engage. If they created disruption without much visible benefit, employees may be understandably cautious.
This is particularly important when organisations have experienced repeated restructures, leadership changes or transformation programmes.
The problem isn’t necessarily that people don’t understand the case for change. They may understand it perfectly well.
What they’re less certain about is whether this time will actually be different.
And no amount of enthusiastic messaging can fully overcome that uncertainty.
Stop trying to overcome resistance. Start trying to understand it.
This is where we think organisations need to approach change differently.
Rather than immediately asking how to get employees on board, start by understanding what previous changes have taught them.
That doesn’t mean conducting a lengthy review of every transformation programme. It could be as simple as including a few different questions in your discovery conversations.
What happened the last time we tried something similar? What worked well? What made things difficult? Where did momentum disappear? What would people need to see to believe this change will be different?
These conversations may reveal practical barriers that would otherwise be missed. Perhaps managers weren’t given the time or support to implement changes. Perhaps decisions were made centrally without understanding how work happened locally. Or perhaps employees contributed ideas but never heard what happened to them.
Importantly, this isn’t about dwelling on the past or inviting people to complain.
It’s about using previous experience as insight to design a better approach this time.
Make fewer promises and create more evidence
One of the biggest mistakes organisations make is trying to build confidence through communication alone.
We explain why the change matters. We share the vision. We describe the benefits. We reassure people that things will be different.
All of that has a place.
But if employees have heard similar promises before, another polished presentation probably won’t make much difference.
What they need is evidence.
That might mean identifying one meaningful improvement that can happen early, rather than asking everyone to wait months for the benefits. It could mean acting visibly on employee feedback, removing a frustrating process or giving teams genuine influence over how changes are implemented.
The important thing is that people can see something changing in their everyday experience.
And when something isn’t working, acknowledge it. Explain what’s been learned and what will happen differently.
Confidence in change is built through what people experience, not simply what they’re told to expect.
Design for what happens after the launch
Another useful question is what happens once the initial excitement disappears.
Organisations are often very good at launching change. There’s energy, senior leadership attention, dedicated project teams and a clear programme of activity.
But sustaining change requires something different.
Do managers have the capability and capacity to support new ways of working? Have existing processes and expectations been updated? Is there ownership beyond the project team? Are we measuring whether the change is improving people’s experience, rather than simply whether activities have been completed?
And perhaps most importantly, what happens when priorities shift or the people leading the programme move on?
If the change depends entirely on the enthusiasm of a few individuals, employees may have good reason to question how long it will last.
Designing for sustainability from the beginning is one way to demonstrate that this isn’t simply another initiative.
Give people a reason to believe
None of this means organisations should wait until everyone feels positive before making changes.
Change can be uncomfortable, and there will always be different views about what’s needed. But we should be careful about labelling people resistant simply because they’re unconvinced.
Sometimes they’re asking entirely sensible questions about whether the organisation has learned from previous mistakes, whether the right conditions are in place and whether the promised improvements will actually materialise.
Rather than treating those questions as obstacles, perhaps we should see them as an opportunity to make the change better.
Because if employees have learned to be sceptical through experience, we probably won’t change their minds through persuasion alone.
We’ll need to give them a different experience.
At People Lab, we help organisations understand how employees are experiencing change, uncover what’s helping or getting in the way, and use those insights to design more effective, human-centred approaches. Whether you’re planning a new transformation or struggling to make change stick, we can help you move beyond good intentions to meaningful, lasting improvements.
Get in touch to find out how we can help.
