Name: Episode 156: Lewin's Force Field Analysis
Uploaded: 2018-04-02T13:17:18.000Z
Duration: 6 min 35 s
Description: Thousands of YouTube videos with English-Chinese subtitles! Now you can learn to understand native speakers, expand your vocabulary, and improve your pronunciation...

Basic passive voice

In 1951, a sociologist by the name of Kurt
Lewin developed what is referred to as the

What Lewin believed was that any state of
equilibrium or level of performance was the

result of a combination of driving and restraining
forces at work.

Driving forces represent those forces that
encourage change in some way.

For example, if an organization was adopting
a new inventory management system, supervisor

encouragement, monetary incentives, and even
training could be considered driving forces.

The second forces at work are restraining
forces.

Restraining forces represent those forces
that help maintain the status quo and make

the implementation of change much more difficult.

For example, worker's habits, hostility towards
management, or even past experiences can serve

as forces that prevent or at least lessen
the likelihood of the new system being adopted.

Now this constant interaction between driving
and restraining forces produces what is known

This equilibrium can represent either the
current level of performance or simply the

So according to Lewin's force field analysis,
in order to implement change we would need

to increase those driving forces, decrease
those restraining forces, or both.

Now that we know a little bit about the model
lets walk through some steps that management

can take to increase the rate of adoption
to change.

A few days ago Comcast announced an offer
to buy competing cable provider Time Warner

Although the deal may not go through due to
anti-competitive concerns, lets use it as

an example as we conduct a force field analysis.

First lets outline the driving and restraining
forces that are likely present in this scenario.

This is unlikely to be an exhaustive list,
but at least you'll get a feel for how to

Driving forces may include the enthusiasm
and commitment of top management, the approval

of the board of directors, and even the support
of the investment community.

These forces are considered driving forces
because they encourage the change and a departure

But are they enough to move the equilibrium?

Working against those driving forces could
include: employees who are concerned of layoffs,

customers who are fearful of paying higher
prices as cable options decrease, and even

established operating procedures that would
need to change.

In addition to these changes, the U.S. government
can always file suit and attempt to block

the acquisition under grounds that it harms
competition and subsequently consumers.

Now each of these forces doesn't affect the
situation the same, but all play some part

Now that we've conducted a brief analysis
of the present situation we need to develop

The first question that we should ask is do
the driving forces far outweigh the restraining

If so, management would need to do very little
to see the adoption of the change.

In our situation this is unlikely given the
nature of our restraining forces.

The second question we should ask is: Are
the restraining forces much stronger than

If the answer is yes, we have a couple of
options.

We come to the realization that attempting
to change the status quo would be far too

The second option is that we can pursue the
change effort by maintaining those driving

forces, while attempting to minimize the impact
of those restraining forces.

And the last possible situation occurs when
the driving and restraining forces are similar

In this case, management can push the driving
forces while slowly attempting to lessen the

Regardless of which option we choose, lets
look at how we can increase those driving

forces and decrease the restraining forces
in our example.

One of the first things that likely needs
to be done is to educate and communicate with

They probably have a lot of concerns, and
rightfully so.

By educating them about the acquisition and
what the new company would look like we can

slowly start to chip away at those restraining
forces, making change much more likely.

It would also be important to educate consumers
and government officials, and inform them

of how the company would operate post-acquisition
and what the potential impact would be on

The next action that we can take is to allow
employees to actively participate in the change

Research shows that people are far more willing
to go along with a course action if they've

been given the opportunity to voice their
opinion.

Even if the decided course of action is against
what they proposed.

So by involving employees in the process and
allowing them to make certain decisions on

how jobs will be performed this may lessen
some of the restraining forces at work.

Providing managerial support in the form of
training, added incentives, and other actions

can also decrease restraining forces and make
the possibility of an acquisition more of

But organizations today operate in environments
that require them to be nimble.

That require them to be able to leverage opportunities
in the market.

Unfortunately, it's difficult to do those
things if your workforce is set on maintaing

So by using techniques such as Lewin's force
field analysis, organizations can better implement

change and increase their chances of success.

Thank you for watching this video on the Lewin's
force field analysis.

In next week's video, we're going to talk
about some of the different characteristics

that lead to more satisfying and motivating
jobs in the workplace.

For questions, please leave them in the comment
box below and I'll do my best to get back

If you want more from Alanis Business Academy
you can subscribe to our channel or go the

alanisbusinessacademy.com where you'll find
additional content, quizzes, and more.