Leading Through Change

Change asks people to absorb new work while keeping current work going. This pathway connects research on how employees react to change with practical habits for explanation, input and support.

Navigate the Human Side of Change
Honor the Human Contract

Dimension links are the editor's conceptual mapping, not a measured relationship.

Stage 1

Discover: what the research reported

Peer-reviewed · Systematic review of quantitative studies

Change recipients' reactions to organizational change: A 60-year review of quantitative studies

Oreg, S., Vakola, M., & Armenakis, A. (2011). Change recipients' reactions to organizational change: A 60-year review of quantitative studies. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 47(4), 461-524. https://doi.org/10.1177/0021886310396550 (opens in a new tab)

What the study reported: The review organized decades of studies on how employees react to organizational change. Features of the change process, such as communication, participation and support, appeared among the antecedents linked to recipients' reactions, alongside personal characteristics and the perceived benefits of the change.
Why it informs this pathway: Informs the Change pathway emphasis on explanation, employee input and operational support during change.
Limitations: A review of mostly correlational, self-report studies. It does not establish that a particular leader script changes reactions.

Open the shareable evidence brief

Peer-reviewed · Multi-method field study of work teams in one manufacturing company

Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams

Edmondson, A. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), 350-383. https://doi.org/10.2307/2666999 (opens in a new tab)

What the study reported: Team psychological safety, a shared belief that the team is safe for interpersonal risk taking, was associated with team learning behavior, which in turn was associated with team performance.
Why it informs this pathway: Informs practice prompts that invite concerns and questions before decisions, and that respond to bad news without penalty.
Limitations: Correlational data from a single organization. It does not show that any individual leader behavior or exercise creates psychological safety.

Open the shareable evidence brief

Peer-reviewed · Meta-analysis

Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes

Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, Vol. 38, 69-119. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2601(06)38002-1 (opens in a new tab)

What the study reported: Across the studies analyzed, forming implementation intentions was associated with better goal attainment than forming goal intentions alone, with the authors reporting a meaningful overall effect.
Why it informs this pathway: Supports pairing each Transfer commitment with at least one if-then obstacle plan rather than relying on a general intention.
Limitations: Studies varied in setting and outcome, and few involved workplace leaders. Results describe averages across studies, not what will happen for any one person or this library.

Open the shareable evidence brief

Research-informed practice principles

Editorial translations inspired by the sources above, not findings from them.

Explain why the change is happening and what is not yet decided.
Invite input before decisions are final, and show what you did with it.
Remove or pause work where you can, so the change is not simply added on top.

Stage 2

Practice: rehearse safely

Lead a fictional team through six simulated weeks of change from a leader or employee perspective.

Practice in the Change Leadership Lab

Return here afterward to write your Transfer plan.

Stage 3

Transfer: plan one specific action

Research on implementation intentions and goal setting informs this format: an if-then plan, a specific commitment, a way to notice it happened and a check-in date.

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