The Paradox of Change Management

Save time and Resources: Build Readiness

(excerpt from Launch Lead Live: The Executive’s Guide to Preventing Resistance and Succeeding with Organizational Change)

By: Dr. Dawn-Marie Turner

Time is an issue in every organization. Initially, if you are used to working from a resistance perspective, it can feel like it takes longer to get people ready. It doesn’t. Consider the time and energy you must spend trying to enforce compliance when you use the traditional “resistance” approach.

By focusing on building readiness instead of managing resistance, and emphasizing the needs of the change-recipients, you can actually make better use of your time and resources. You can also get a greater return on your investment.

The traditional approach to organizational change (figure 1) looks to move quickly to training and implementation.

Figure 1 Common Approach to Organizational Change
Turner Change Management Inc.

It tries to minimize the amount of time spent in the early period; the majority of the effort is at the back end of the change. This approach gives the appearance of saving time, but it top loads issues so that they emerge right around the time of implementation– when time and resources are at a premium.

You expend more energy and resources, but the return on that energy decreases as people move through the Whitespace. It’s like heating your house in the winter while leaving the all the windows open.

This kind of back-end approach forces you to manage the resistance created when the change-recipients are pushed into taking action before they are ready. The approach gives the perception of speed, while actually taking more time. I call this the paradox of change management.

Figure 2 Change-Recipient Readiness Approach

Building readiness shifts the effort to the front end of the Event. Time is allocated to ensure the change-recipients can internalize the need, raise perceived capability, prepare, and support people through the transition. The change is built on a stable foundation. This results in a more sustainable change (Figure 2).

Launch Lead Live: The Executive’s Guide to Preventing Resistance and Succeeding with Organizational Change p. 88-90

The Efficiency Paradox: Why Certain Words Block Innovation

October 29, 2026

What do an orchestra and your organization have in common? Both can be destroyed by the pursuit of efficiency. Sounds strange, right? Stay with me. One word that always comes up when I work with leaders to define why a change is needed and create their outcome story is efficiency. Every leader, regardless of level, talks about the desire and need to make things more efficient. And sure, efficiency sounds good, and it’s important. Who doesn’t want things to run smoothly with the least amount of effort and resources? However, when it comes to change, efficiency is what I call a trigger word. And trigger words like efficient and other similar words can quickly sabotage your change efforts.

https://thinktransition.com/wp-content/uploads/The-Efficiency-Paradox-.png 1080 1920 Tricia Heibert https://thinktransition.com/wp-content/uploads/Turner-Change-Management-logo-1.jpg Tricia Heibert2026-10-29 08:00:592026-10-28 13:58:21The Efficiency Paradox: Why Certain Words Block Innovation

Book Club -Mindset

October 22, 2026

Have you ever said, “I’m not good at math” or “She is a natural leader”? I used to say things like that, too, until I realized they aren’t simply observations. They’re indicators of a fixed mindset. And that mindset quietly limits your performance, your possibilities, and your ability to lead change. Carol Dweck’s book Mindset: Changing the Way You Think to Fulfill Your Potential explores how mindset shapes what we believe we can accomplish. Her work also connects to The Readiness Mindset®, an approach that helps people thrive because of change.

https://thinktransition.com/wp-content/uploads/Book-Club-Mindset.png 1080 1920 Tricia Heibert https://thinktransition.com/wp-content/uploads/Turner-Change-Management-logo-1.jpg Tricia Heibert2026-10-22 08:00:272026-10-14 09:55:28Book Club -Mindset

Strategic Plans: Turning Goals into Meaningful Change

October 8, 2026

Before you finalize your next strategic plan, ask yourself: Will it drive meaningful change? Or will it become another document that sits on the shelf, only to be looked at when it’s once again time to create a strategic plan? Too often, the strategic planning process is carried out in isolation by people who are too disconnected from daily operations. The result is a strategic plan that may look good on paper but fails to achieve the intended results. Don’t get me wrong. When done well, a strategic plan is a powerful tool. It provides a roadmap, aligns people with the organization, and can create momentum. However, in my work with executive teams, I have identified three fundamental flaws in strategic plans and planning processes that hinder organizations’ progress.

https://thinktransition.com/wp-content/uploads/Strategic-plans-turning-goals-into-meaningful-change.png 1080 1920 Tricia Heibert https://thinktransition.com/wp-content/uploads/Turner-Change-Management-logo-1.jpg Tricia Heibert2026-10-08 08:00:072026-09-21 10:16:10Strategic Plans: Turning Goals into Meaningful Change