How CHROs Can Turn Change Resistance into a Change Advantage

When Darlyne Keller became president and CEO of Rock Valley Credit Union eight years ago, she arrived with a bold new strategy, but the first reaction she received was resistance. Her goal to convert 15,000-plus members to a new online and mobile banking system initially led to fear that automation would replace staff.  

She noted that the banking industry is very people-centric, and the plan was very tech focused. Keller’s first instinct was frustration until she realized the resistance had less to do with vision, and more to do with how she communicated the change.  

"We are not going to necessarily champion change just because HR tells us to. Your leaders and your C-suite leaders in particular, they’re going to champion change when they understand the business impact,” Keller told the audience at SHRM26.  

During her session, Keller explained how she worked with Barbara Trautlein, principal of Change Catalysts LLC, to successfully lead the organizational change. Rock Valley Credit Union converted 90% of its members to the new digital banking platforms within seven days of a 2023 launch.  

Here are the leadership lessons on navigating disruption from Keller and Trautlein. 

Resistance Is Data, Not Defiance 

Resistance isn't a character flaw to overcome; it's a biological response to understand, advised Trautlein. She cited how neuroscience identifies the same brain regions activate when people encounter change as when they feel physical pain, making resistance a normal and natural human reaction.  

This presents leaders with an opportunity to reframe the conversation based on the type of resistance they’re seeing. The resistance can be cognitive ("I don't get it"), emotional ("I don't want it"), or behavioral ("I can't do it"). Leaders can respond to cognitive resistance with town halls or information sessions to more clearly communicate the change initiative.  

For employees exhibiting more emotional resistance, Trautlein suggested targeted one-on-ones, pulse surveys, and team engagement. For the behavioral resistors, that’s an opportunity to “engage the hands,” she said. 

“Give people the tools, the training,” Trautlein explained. “Maybe they need more coaching, maybe they need more resources, maybe there's barriers standing in the way communication, compensation, operational systems that are standing in the way of good people behaving consistently with change.” 

By strategically reframing the change initiative based on how employees are responding, leaders can respond with the corresponding lever: clarity, connection, or capability-building. 

Lead With Head, Heart, and Hands — In That Order of Awareness 

To better understand how workers respond, Trautlein created a Change Intelligence (CQ) assessment which HR leaders can use when navigating change. The framework identifies three change leadership styles: Head (vision, strategy, business case), Heart (empathy, culture, people impact), and Hands (tools, training, execution). Her firm's database of framework survey results shows a consistent pattern: Executives skew heavily toward Head; directors, managers, and individual contributors skew Heart; and Hands — the operational muscle needed to sustain change — was seen across all levels, but thins out the higher you climb the org chart. 

That gap explains a familiar phenomenon: Leadership announces a bold strategy, everyone nods, but nothing sticks. CHROs can reach the landing by coaching other leaders to communicate purpose and impact — not just the parts that come naturally to them. 

“CEOs and executives are not intentionally trying to sabotage these change initiatives, but they can become unintentional blockers when they don't have awareness or the tools or the support, and that's where HR can step in and actually save the day,” Trautlein said.  

She advised HR to recognize the strengths of its leaders but to also help point out their blind spots.  

“You can coach them to effectively communicate with empathy, with clarity, with collaboration,” Keller said. “Change is rarely flawless ... but it doesn't have to be as daunting as it has been, maybe in the past, and [HR] can actually be that enabler of change.” 

Use Data to Bring Clarity to the Board

When Keller rolled the assessment out to her full staff, nearly two-thirds scored Heart-dominant. Her board, by contrast, mirrored her own Head-heavy profile. Keller saw these conflicting results as an opportunity to explain to her board why change wasn’t going to happen as quickly as they may have hoped. 

“I really wanted the board to understand what it was going to take to turn around the Titanic, because change was not going to happen super fast like us ‘heads’ really wanted to see,” Keller explained.

Keller was able to reset the board's expectations about pace and help them understand what her employees needed for transformation to happen. 

Don't Neglect the Middle Manager

Both Keller and Trautlein identified middle managers as the make-or-break layer squeezed between strategy and execution. Managers who lean too far into empathy can slow momentum by over-protecting their teams; those who lean too hard into strategy or operations can come across as cold or overwhelming.  

CHROs can coach the managers in this layer to balance empathy with pace. Keller advised that managers ensure they’re taking the time to check in on their people and listen. 

"Hold space with the concerns,” she said, “but also keep that pace moving. Be that listener but still make sure that those expectations are set and met." 

The Takeaway for CHROs

Change resistance doesn’t necessarily mean your workforce lacks resilience. It's often a sign that leaders haven't been equipped to lead differently across levels.  

“Capability builds courage,” Trautlein said. “If people also understand that they do have tools in their tool bag to influence, that there is something that they can do that will enable their voices to be heard, they're a lot more likely to have the courage to actually speak up.”