arlene Austin
Management 6681
13 November 2011
Case Study- Problems at Perrier (Chapter 6, pg 183)
1. Identify the key elements of the resistance to change described in this situation.
The key elements of the resistance to change described in the Perrier case are:
Lack of communication and the companies inability to inform the employees of what changes affected production at Perrier, the company made excessive changes, the company introduces a series of changes and the people felt the changes were unnecessary, and they were unsure if they would still have the required skills to continue to work for the company. Perrier has made quite a fair amount of changes in a short period of time and they will need to be aware that some people
Another problem consist of the disagreement between the Union and Nestle and their need to work together to solve the problem. When employees are involved in the change effort they are more likely to accept change rather than resist it. This approach is likely to lower resistance and those who merely agree to change.
C )Negotiation and Agreement. This strategy is where someone or some group may lose out in a change and where that individual or group has considerable power to resist. When Perrier's management put bottles of Badoit Rouge in the factory cafeteria in June, the union knew they were sending them a message. This had been done to emphasize the point to Perrier employees that they were involved in a head-to-head battle for that niche in the market. The union felt that it was a provocation. Using the Negotiation and Agreement strategy would be effective in dealing with the Union. This can be done by allowing change resistors to refuse the approved elements of change that are threatening, or change resistors can be offered incentives to leave the company(for example, early retirement). This approach is appropriate where those resisting change are in a position of power, like the CGT(the union).
D) Explicit and Implicit Coercion. This is a last resort strategy used when the change recipients have little capacity to effectively resist; where survival of the organization is at risk if change does not occur quickly and