eekLearn: Week 2 Discussion Question #1

Discuss a time in your past when you were resistant to change. Why do you think you resisted?

Answer all questions and answer responses in 100 words count and keep them number in this format…

#1 Resisting Change

I worked for an electronics retailer H.H.Gregg. In 2015 I was a warehouse supervisor, and I was in charge of a team of 5 guys who unloaded merchandise bound for our "return to vendor" department and our service department. this merchandise had to be checked in sorted and taken to the proper department. The company was starting to feel the pressure of competing with Amazon in the online sector, so there was restructuring going on, and my team was reduced to just myself and two other guys. Meanwhile the workload did not change, and the only way to get everything done was for the three of us to work 60+ hours per week. Every day they would ask us to stay over for a few hours to finish. At first I did it, but I noticed that the situation got worse. Morale got progressively worse, and eventually I started to decline working the extra hours. I was resisting because I knew we had no chance to improve the situation, and top line management did not address or even acknowledge the situation. I eventually found another job. The company has since filed bankruptcy and gone out of business.

#2 Change in leadership

Hello Class,

The most current business change that I experienced was hard for me. I was manager for a selling department bring in $9.5 Million dollars to the store annually, and had a passion for merchandising and interacting with customers as they shop my department. But just recently, the company decided to change the leadership structure and the structure of store completely, which ultimately had me move into a new role that I was not experienced in. I went from a Selling Department Manager to a support role supporting the Customer Experience Department. I was happy that the store and my district manager had such confidence in me overseeing a huge department, and big responsibility. But, i did have some doubts about me, and informed the leadership that it was in my best interest that I stay in my current role and give one of the newer managers the role of Customer Experience Director. But, they informed me that it was a decision that was already made, and that I was given this opportunity because of my results in customer experience, quarterly increases, and my training/development with the current team.

I am about three months in as the customer experience director, and I am learning a lot of the behind of the scenes of what customer service managers do for the store, and what the employees offer to enhance the experience. I was resisting the change because it was new, and it was something that I was not an expert in, and the district wanted me to oversee the entire department that I never even worked in throughout my career with them. So I was nervous to fail and the let the team down, but so far my team has more increases in customer surveys, rewards, and etc within these last few months! It's always hard to go with the changes, especially leadership changes, but as managers we need to be able to adapt to these changes, and motivate our teams into a different mindset – a positive mindset of these changes.

-Christopher Jones

#3 Change

I think change is pretty difficult , because when someone becomes so use to one thing and its habitual, to totally turn the tables on them, It gets very irritating. It gets irritating because there is a bug misunderstanding, and if the change becomes unclear, and employees don't understand the change it could become resistant.

Also, fear of the unknown. Not knowing what to expect. When I takes steps into the unknown i would be scared and become resistant. The last thing would be stepping into a new position and not knowing if you know the skills or proper tools to even do the job. These three things have made only wiser and prepared for change.

#4 Discuss a time in your past when you were resistant to change. Why do you think you resisted?