Today’s organisations face constant disruption. New technologies, changing market demands, economic headwinds, evolving employee expectations, it’s relentless.
To stay competitive, change isn’t just necessary. It’s survival.
But while transformation is essential, success isn’t guaranteed. In fact, 70% of organisational change efforts fail, according to McKinsey. And it’s not usually because the strategy is wrong or the vision is flawed.
It’s because we underestimate what stands in the way.
The Real Barriers to Change
We’ve seen it firsthand:
🚧 Misaligned leadership
🚧 Resistant teams
🚧 Outdated systems
🚧 Confusing communication
Sound familiar?
At Primeast, we’ve spent over 35 years helping organisations navigate complex change. From healthcare to energy, finance to tech, we’ve supported leaders in building high-performance teams, developing cultures of resilience, and making transformation stick.
What You’ll Learn in This Article
In working with organisations around the world, we’ve found that most barriers to change tend to fall into one of four categories:
1. Leadership & Strategy: Misaligned vision and unclear direction
When leadership teams pull in different directions, or when strategy lacks clarity, confusion spreads fast. It’s vital to create alignment from the top down.
2. Culture & People: Low engagement, high resistance
Even the best strategy fails without buy-in. Discover how to build trust, foster psychological safety, and shift mindsets to support lasting change.
3. Operations & Process: Flawed execution, inefficient systems
Clunky systems, outdated workflows, and poor handoffs can derail even the most promising initiatives. We’ll share tools for simplifying execution and boosting agility.
4. Communication & Tech: Broken messages and outdated tools
When people don’t understand the ‘why’ behind the change, or don’t hear the message at all, resistance is inevitable. We’ll show you how to communicate clearly, consistently, and with empathy.
Change Is Hard, But Not Impossible
Change can feel overwhelming. But with the right approach, it becomes not just manageable, but transformational.
You’ll leave this article with real-world examples, research-backed insights, and practical tools you can apply right away.
Ready to make change work for your organisation? Let’s dive in.
1. Leadership Gaps Undermine Change
When leaders don’t model, message, or mobilise, change stalls. Change starts at the top, but too often, that’s where it stalls.
Many leaders manage change, but few truly lead it. According to Gallup, just 22% of employees strongly agree their leaders have a clear vision. When executives send mixed messages, avoid disruption, or fail to model new behaviours, transformation loses momentum, fast.
What’s Going Wrong?
- Missing change leadership skills: Operationally strong, but not equipped for transformation.
- Mixed messages: Conflicting communication undermines trust.
- Personal resistance: Some leaders fear change just as much as employees.
What’s Missing?
- Visible commitment: Leaders fail to model the behaviour they expect.
How to Fix It?
- Lead by example: Change starts with visible commitment from the top.
- Align the message: Communicate a consistent, inspiring vision, loud and clear.
- Upskill for transformation: Train leaders in adaptive leadership and change resilience.
- Make it measurable: Bake change-driving behaviours into KPIs and performance reviews.
Primeast Insight
At Primeast, we’ve coached leaders around the world to build the resilience, confidence, skills, and mindset they need to lead real transformation, especially in times of uncertainty. Our toolkit for change leaders includes Barrett Values, MTQ48 Resilience Assessment, PrimeFocus strategic change framework and Leadership Circle.
Key Takeaway: When leaders champion change,clearly, consistently, and visibly, teams are far more likely to follow.
2. Missing Executive Sponsorship Derails Momentum
If top leadership doesn’t fully back the change, no one else will.
Change initiatives are 3.5x more likely to succeed when they have strong executive sponsorship (Prosci). Yet many transformations stall because senior leaders aren’t visibly involved. Employees take their cues from the top, when leaders are passive or distracted, change efforts lose credibility fast.
What’s Going Wrong
- Seen as “someone else’s job”: Execs expect HR, L&D, or Operations to manage change.
- Competing priorities: Business-as-usual overshadows strategic transformation.
- Fear of employee pushback: Leaders hesitate to press change, fearing resistance.
What’s Missing
- Ownership at the top: Change isn’t embedded in business strategy or executive accountability.
How to Fix It
- Make it a priority: Tie change leadership to KPIs, performance metrics, and executive incentives.
- Form a sponsorship team:Appoint visible senior champions who actively drive alignment.
- Build it into strategy: Weave change initiatives into quarterly goals and annual plans.
- Lead the message: Ensure executives are front and centre in communications—credibility starts with visibility
Primeast Insight
We’ve helped senior leadership teams move beyond passive support by embedding change into how they lead, communicate, and measure success. When top leaders own the change, adoption climbs, resistance fades, and results accelerate.
Key Takeaway: Change must be led from the top, not treated like a side project. When executive teams champion transformation, the rest of the organisation follows.
3. Middle Management Resistance Slows Momentum
Managers are the bridge between vision and reality, if they’re not on board, change can’t move forward.
Middle managers play a pivotal role in translating strategy into action. Yet only 39% actively support change (McKinsey). When they’re excluded from planning or feel overloaded, resistance builds, and adoption stalls.
What’s Going Wrong
- Left out of planning: Managers are expected to execute, not shape, change.
- Threat to influence: Some fear losing authority or relevance.
- Overburdened: Change becomes “extra work” without extra support.
What’s Missing
- Leadership skills: Many are strong operationally, but lack training in leading transformation.
How to Fix It
- Involve them early: Bring managers into the planning phase to foster buy-in.
- Train for change: Provide tools for coaching, communication, and navigating uncertainty.
- Lighten the load: Offer support, resources, and clear expectations.
- Celebrate champions: Recognise and reward managers who lead the way.
Primeast Insight
We’ve helped global organisations turn middle managers into change multipliers. With the right training, involvement, and support, they shift from reluctant executors to trusted advocates, driving transformation from within.
Key Takeaway: Middle managers make or break change. Engage them early, equip them fully, and empower them to lead from the middle out.
4. Conflicting Goals Undermine Alignment
When teams pull in different directions, change pulls apart.
Change fails when there’s no unified direction. According to Gartner, 50% of failed transformations are due to misalignment between business units. When departments operate in silos, with clashing priorities and competing incentives, execution slows, resistance rises, and progress grinds to a halt.
What’s Going Wrong
- Siloed decision-making: Teams follow their own agendas, disconnected from the bigger picture.
- No collaboration: Departments don’t share information or coordinate efforts.
- Conflicting timelines: Some leaders prioritise quick wins over long-term strategy.
What’s Missing
- Aligned incentives: Legacy KPIs reward old behaviours, not change-focused ones.
How to Fix It
- Unify the vision: Define a clear, organisation-wide goal that every team can rally around.
- Break down silos: Create cross-functional task forces to build collaboration and coherence.
- Update the scorecard: Align KPIs with change goals to reinforce desired behaviours.
- Prioritise alignment: Use regular leadership check-ins to course-correct and stay on track.
Primeast Insight
We help organisations align strategy, teams, and leadership to eliminate internal friction and accelerate transformation. When everyone’s pulling in the same direction, change gains unstoppable momentum.
Key Takeaway: Conflicting goals are the silent killers of change. Shared vision + strategic alignment = lasting success.
5. No Clear Vision = No Buy-In
If people can’t see the ‘why,’ they’ll resist the ‘how.’
Employees won’t commit to change they don’t understand. McKinsey found that 70% of employees feel disconnected from their organisation’s change vision, leading to confusion, low engagement, and passive (or active) resistance.
Without a compelling vision, change feels like disruption instead of progress.
What’s Going Wrong
- Assumed understanding: Leaders believe the vision is clear—but it often isn’t.
- No big-picture view: Employees don’t see how the change fits into a broader strategy.
- All process, no purpose: The ‘how’ is over-explained, while the ‘why’ is missing.
What’s Missing
- A compelling narrative: Facts inform, but stories inspire. People need a vision they can believe in.
How to Fix It
- Craft a change narrative: Clearly articulate the why, what, and how in plain, human language.
- Communicate often and everywhere: Use all channels, town halls, email, Slack, video, to keep the message alive.
- Tie it to purpose: Show how the change supports the organisation’s long-term goals and values.
- Involve your people: Give teams a voice in shaping the journey to build ownership and belief.
Primeast Insight
We help leaders move beyond PowerPoint decks and bullet points to create emotionally resonant change narratives. When employees understand the purpose behind the change, and feel part of it, they become its strongest advocates.
Key Takeaway: A strong vision doesn’t just inform, it inspires. Lead with purpose, tell a story, and make people care.
6. A Culture Resistant to Change
Culture eats strategy for breakfast, and change for dinner.
Even the best-laid transformation plans will stall in a culture that resists them. Gartner reports that 46% of transformation failures are due to cultural resistance. When employees fear change, distrust leadership, or cling to old habits, momentum dies, and so does innovation.
What’s Going Wrong
- Change fatigue: Employees are burned out by constant initiatives.
- Fear of failure: Risk-averse environments kill experimentation.
- Old habits die hard: “We’ve always done it this way” thinking blocks progress.
What’s Missing
- Psychological safety: People won’t step into the unknown if they fear being punished for mistakes.
How to Fix It
- Promote a growth mindset: Encourage continuous learning, curiosity, and adaptability.
- Build psychological safety: Foster a no-blame culture where failing forward is part of success.
- Celebrate small wins: Publicly recognise teams and individuals who embrace change.
- Involve employees in shaping change: Co-create solutions to drive ownership and empowerment.
Primeast Insight
We help organisations go beyond “change programs” to embed cultures of adaptability. When people feel safe, supported, and involved, they don’t just accept change, they lead it.
Key Takeaway: Culture isn’t written in values posters, it’s lived in behaviours. To drive lasting change, make adaptability part of your organisational DNA.
7. Experience of Previous Failed Change Initiatives
When employees have witnessed failed change efforts in the past, they become cynical, disengaged, and resistant to new initiatives. Research by McKinsey found that only 38% of employees believe their organisation’s change efforts will succeed, largely due to past failures.
What’s Going Wrong
- Change fatigue: Employees feel exhausted by continuous, unsuccessful transformations.
- Lack of follow-through: Past initiatives started strong but lost momentum over time.
- Poor communication: Employees never understood why previous changes failed or what was learned.
- Distrust in leadership: When leaders push change without addressing past failures, resistance grows.
How to Fix It
- Acknowledge Past Failures Openly: Be transparent about what went wrong and what’s different this time.
- Showcase Quick Wins: Demonstrate early success stories to rebuild trust and engagement.
- Engage Employees in Solution Design: Give teams a voice in shaping the change, making them partners rather than bystanders.
- Maintain Momentum and Accountability: Set clear milestones, track progress, and ensure long-term commitment.
Primeast Insight
We help organisations rebuild trust and engagement by ensuring change efforts are aligned, well-communicated, and sustained over time. When employees see real progress and feel involved, they re-engage with transformation rather than resist it.
Key Takeaway: Employees remember past failures, own them, learn from them, and prove this time is different.
8. Change Fatigue Drains Energy and Engagement
When change feels endless, people stop trying to keep up.
Change, in isolation, isn’t the problem, too much change is. According to Gartner, 73% of employees experiencing change fatigue report feeling overwhelmed and less productive. When every quarter brings a new transformation, teams burn out. And burned-out teams resist, even the good stuff.
What’s Going Wrong
- Stacked initiatives: Employees are juggling too many changes at once.
- No prioritisation: Everything’s a priority, so nothing feels manageable.
- No time to adapt: Rapid rollouts don’t allow space to reflect or adjust.
What’s Missing
- Support and pacing: Employees are left to cope without tools, time, or empathy.
How to Fix It
- Prioritise what matters: Focus on high-impact changes and phase them in with intention.
- Create breathing room: Build pauses between initiatives so teams can adapt and recover.
- Support the human side: Provide coaching, well-being resources, and ongoing guidance.
- Celebrate stability: Reinforce what’s not changing to create a sense of safety and focus.
Primeast Insight
We help organisations adopt a human-first approach to change, balancing momentum with mindfulness. When employees feel heard, supported, and given space to breathe, fatigue turns into resilience.
Key Takeaway: Change shouldn’t feel like a treadmill on high speed. Pace it with purpose, support your people, and engagement will follow.
9. Unjustified Change Sparks Frustration
If people don’t know the “why,” they’ll assume there isn’t one.
Employees don’t resist change because they’re stubborn, they resist when it seems random, reactive, or unnecessary. According to McKinsey, 68% of employees feel frustrated when organisational changes lack a clear rationale. If change doesn’t feel meaningful, people tune out, or push back.
What’s Going Wrong
- Change for change’s sake: Initiatives are launched with no clear business case.
- No urgency shared: Employees don’t understand why change is happening now.
- Disconnected from strategy: Change feels random, not part of a bigger plan.
What’s Missing
- Evidence and context: Employees don’t see the data, or the decisions behind it.
How to Fix It
- Start with the ‘why’: Clearly explain the reason for change before you talk about the process.
- Back it with data: Use internal and external insights to show why the change is necessary.
- Tie it to strategy: Show how the initiative supports long-term goals and business vision.
- Be radically transparent: Communicate the purpose, the stakes, and how success will be measured.
Primeast Insight
We work with leaders to ensure change initiatives are grounded in purpose, aligned to strategy, and communicated with clarity. When employees understand the “why,” they’re far more likely to say yes to the “how.”
Key Takeaway: Unjustified change breeds resistance. Clear purpose, shared urgency, and strategic alignment turn frustration into focus.
10. The Wrong Change Method Undermines Results
Even the right change fails when implemented the wrong way.
Well-intentioned change collapses under poor execution. McKinsey reports that only 30% of traditional, top-down change efforts succeed, while agile, people-centred models see success rates closer to 70%. If your method doesn’t fit your culture, people won’t follow it.
What’s Going Wrong
- One-size-fits-all models: Tools that worked elsewhere don’t align with internal culture.
- Top-down tactics: Change is mandated instead of co-created.
- Stakeholder blind spots: Key players are excluded from the process.
What’s Missing
- Adaptability: Rigid plans can’t flex when real-world challenges emerge.
How to Fix It
- Go agile: Roll out change in manageable phases, with room to learn and adjust.
- Co-create from the start: Involve leaders, managers, and employees early for greater buy-in.
- Customise your model: Tailor proven frameworks (like ADKAR, Kotter, or Lean Change) to your unique environment.
- Keep listening: Build in checkpoints, feedback loops, and metrics to adapt in real time.
Primeast Insight
We help organisations ditch rigid, top-down rollouts in favour of flexible, people-first strategies. When change is co-created and responsive to feedback, resistance fades, and results improve.
Key Takeaway: There’s no universal blueprint for change. The best approach is one that fits your people, your culture, and your goals.
11. Lack of Expertise Stalls Execution
Without the right skills, even the best change strategy goes nowhere.
A clear vision is critical, but it’s not enough. Change efforts fail when the people responsible for executing them aren’t equipped to succeed. According to PwC, 75% of organisations struggle to implement change due to internal skill gaps. Without those capabilities, transformation can’t take root.
What’s Going Wrong
- No experience leading change: Leaders and managers lack practical training.
- Technical skill gaps: Teams don’t know how to use new systems or processes.
- Assumed adaptability: Change is expected, but not supported.
What’s Missing
- Internal capability building: Over-reliance on external consultants creates short-term wins but no long-term muscle.
How to Fix It
- Train change leaders: Build skills in agile transformation, coaching, and resilience.
- Upskill employees: Provide hands-on training for new tools, behaviours, and workflows.
- Build internal champions: Develop trusted influencers who can lead from within.
- Make learning continuous: Integrate coaching and support into the entire change journey, not just one-off sessions.
Primeast Insight
We help organisations build lasting change capability by developing internal expertise—so transformation isn’t outsourced, it’s owned. When people feel confident and competent, change becomes part of how they work.
Key Takeaway: Change doesn’t happen without capability. Invest in your people’s skills, and you invest in sustainable transformation.
12. Bureaucracy Slows Everything Down
When change is buried under red tape, momentum dies.
Excessive complexity can kill even the best transformation plans. According to Harvard Business Review, organisations with high levels of bureaucracy are 50% less likely to achieve successful change. When every step requires an approval form, or five, progress stalls, frustration rises, and people check out.
What’s Going Wrong
- Too many approval layers: Decision-making becomes a slow, frustrating crawl.
- Change overload: Endless reports, forms, and compliance checks burn people out.
- Rigid processes: Outdated hierarchies block quick action and experimentation.
What’s Missing
- Agility and trust: Bureaucracy becomes a crutch for control instead of a tool for clarity.
How to Fix It
- Streamline approvals: Cut unnecessary layers and empower teams to make real-time decisions.
- Simplify change steps: Focus on what’s essential to move forward, ditch the excess.
- Test, learn, adapt: Encourage small pilots and fast iterations instead of perfect planning.
- Automate the admin: Use tech to eliminate repetitive paperwork and accelerate progress.
Primeast Insight
We help organisations break through bureaucracy by designing lean, efficient change processes that empower action at every level. When complexity is reduced and teams are trusted, change doesn’t just move faster, it sticks.
Key Takeaway: Change doesn’t have to be complicated. Remove the red tape, and you remove the resistance.
13. Lack of Communication
Poor communication is one of the biggest reasons change efforts fail. 70% of change programs fail due to ineffective communication (McKinsey). When employees don’t understand the why, what, or how of change, they become disengaged and resistant.
What’s Going Wrong
- Inconsistent messaging: Different leaders share contradictory or unclear information.
- Too much or too little information: Employees feel overloaded or left in the dark.
- Lack of two-way communication: Employees aren’t given a voice to share concerns or ideas.
- Failure to tailor messaging: Communication doesn’t resonate with different audiences (e.g., frontline staff vs. executives).
How to Fix It
- Create a Clear Change Narrative: Explain the why, what, and how of change in simple, consistent language.
- Use Multi-Channel Communication: Combine face-to-face, digital, video, and written updates for clarity.
- Encourage Two-Way Dialogue: Set up feedback loops, Q&A sessions, and employee check-ins.
- Segment Messaging for Different Audiences: Adapt communications based on roles, impact, and needs.
Primeast Insight
We help organisations build structured, transparent communication strategies that ensure employees feel informed, engaged, and heard. When communication is clear, consistent, and inclusive, resistance drops, and adoption rates increase.
Key Takeaway: Change succeeds when people understand it—clarity, consistency, and engagement are key.
Turning Barriers into Breakthroughs
Successful Change is about people, leadership, culture, and execution.
By understanding the 13 most common barriers to organisational change, you can move from reactive to proactive, from resistance to momentum. These insights will act as your roadmap to meaningful, lasting transformation.
Key Takeaways:
✔ Leaders must lead from the front: Without visible executive support and empowered middle managers, change stalls.
✔ Culture is the foundation: Resistance is human, but with engagement and ownership, mindsets shift.
✔ Execution is everything: Vision without systems, support, and measurement won’t deliver results.
✔ Clarity beats complexity: People don’t resist change, they resist confusion, uncertainty, and chaos.
How Primeast Can Help
At Primeast, we’ve spent over 35 years helping organisations worldwide lead change with confidence. From leadership development to culture transformation and change capability building, we help teams turn resistance into readiness, and barriers into breakthroughs.
Want to discuss how to make change work in your organisation? Get in touch with our team today.
