Scenario:

Comestibles Natural, a New Mexican restaurant, makes the best salsa and hot sauce in the state. The condiments are so popular that the restaurant began bottling 8 ounce and 16 ounce jars under the brand name Comestibles Salsa with the tag line "Natural" to sell directly from the location. This simple act created larger demand for the products. Increasingly more customers pour into the restaurant every day to purchase jars of salsa and hot sauce. While this may seem to like a good thing, overall it is negatively contributing to the entire operation of the restaurant. Too much congestion in the lobby is creating too much noise pollution for the diners, and people are constantly bumping into each other in the lobby. Just last week a Fire Marshall come in for a meal, and, after seeing the conditions, warned the manager of safety violations. Additionally, the restaurant cannot keep up with the demand. In fact, the chefs are becoming disgruntled because they constantly have to make salsa on the top of the regular orders. The manager has received increasingly more complaints from dinning customers regarding the decreasing quality of food. Some say that their orders are served cold while others claim that their sides of beans and rice are smaller than usual. Not surprisingly, most of the complaints refer to the lack of free salsa refills on the tables. The manager knows something needs to change, but he unsure how to go about it. He is also unsure how the employees will react to change since they are accustomed to their routines.

1. Why is change needed? What organizational issues does this change seek to address?

2. Who will be affected by this change?

3. Where in the organization would you expect to experience the most resistance to this change?

4. What types of resistance do you anticipate? What will the resistance look like?

5. What can you do to proactively manage those who are resistant?

6. What specific behaviors do you need from the employees to address the resistance?

7. What type of personal support or assistance will you need to implement the change?