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The aim of the study is to investigate how employees' unwillingness to change is influenced by demographic factors (age, gender, and educational attainment). Employees at car dealerships in the eThekwini region of South Africa make up the statistical population of this study. The means of data collection was by administration of questionnaires distributed across 170 employees from selected dealership automobiles. Cronbach's Alpha was used to compute and confirm the questionnaire's reliability, while factor analysis and the KMO index were used to authenticate its validity. The results demonstrate employees' resistance to change in the cognitive rigidity dimension to be significantly influenced by the mean of the variables in the two groups of men and women. Employee resistance to change in the cognitive rigidity construct is unaffected by age, and employees with better educational backgrounds displayed less cognitive resistance than those with lesser educational backgrounds. The tenure of employment also indicated that those with more years of tenure showed less resistance compared to those with lesser years of the tenure at the organisation. The study suggests that these insights are valuable for organisations seeking to improve their change management practices by considering demographic factors as means to understand change is increasingly essential and promises more successful change efforts in the future.

The purpose of this study is to explore the concept of change management, and employee engagement as a possible organisational turnaround strategy. This is owing to Organisations exist to deliver their strategic goal and objectives, this would amongst others ensure both technical and tactical strategical success. When organisations strategy is in shape there is a high rate of employee retention and recruitment of the best talent in the market. However, the organisations always faces a conundrum of having to tap in their organisational turnaround strategy which in most cases is marred with resistance from the employees. This study seeks to establish the extent to which change management and employee engagement can be adopted as key organisational turnaround strategy. The study adopts an interpretive qualitative design, and thematic analysis to organize dataset into relevant themes. Study recommends employer consultation and employee participation, facilitation, negotiation and agreement, and manipulation and coercion as a blended approach to effective organizational turnaround strategy. The value of the study is how a simultaneous use of change management and employee engagement can be used by global organizations for effective turnaround strategies.

Research studies have proven that leadership styles and communication are positively and significantly related to effective change management. This implies that the influence of leadership on effective communication is integral to the success of any organizational performance. These leadership styles include transformational and transactional leadership. The study was based on two different theories; the leadership theory and the communication theory. The study was descriptive in nature considering a sample size of 300 employees in the selected dealership organisations operating in the eThekwini, South-Africa. Data collection was achieved by handing out questionnaires to 300 employees, out of which 170 were returned completed. The study was analysed by means of correlational and regression analysis ascertained through the structural equation model (SEM). The study found that leadership styles and communication were positively and significantly related and are major determinant to the success of an effective organisational change management. The study further concluded that leadership styles and communication were positively and significantly related to effective change. Conclusively, it was indicated that the transformational leadership style stands out as the most effective leadership style for successful change management. It was also agreed that integrated communications which involves the application of more than one communication strategy to pass important information especially regarding change management was vital. The study recommended the adoption of transformational leadership style in the various departments of the organization. Also, it considers the application of integrated communication which includes verbal, non-verbal, written, assertive and electronic means of communication.

Transformational leadership and employee change resistance have been studied extensively. However, no systematic attempt has been made to reframe those findings in light of leaders' inspirational drive. The sample size of 170 participants from eThekwini automobile dealership organisations indicated that employees' intention to resist change was negatively associated with their managers' transformational leadership style focused on inspirational motivation. Transformational leadership's impact on employee resistance to change at eThewkini Automobiles in KwaZulu-Natal is examined through a leader's inspirational motivation. Inspirational motivation reduced staff resistance to change at these car companies, according to the transformational leadership tool multi-leadership questionnaire (MLQ). Various branches of 6 major automobile companies in eThekwini, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa were considered for this study. The study included 170 of 270 individuals. Both descriptive and correlational analysis were employed to test study objectives. The study found that inspirational motivation mediates the relationship between transformational leadership and employee resistance to change because transformational leadership reduces resistance, improves commitment, and embraces change. Inspirational motivation mediates transformational leadership in organisational change management, according to the study. The study suggests that management use inspiring motivation to promote change management acceptability and commitment to change and reduce employee resistance to change.

The effects of idealised influence as one of the four components of transformational leadership serve as a critical dimension of leadership style. Others include inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and gaining the admiration, trust, and respect of the followers. However, this study focuses on the context of employee resistance to change and its varying dimensions about the role idealised influence plays as a mediator in mitigating resistance to change and facilitating a successful change implementation at selected automobile dealerships in eThekwini Region of KwaZulu-Natal. Idealised influence refers to the leader’s ability to act as role model and gain the admiration of employees and by so doing, positively influence employee’s resistance to change. The study examines the effects of idealised influence on employee resistance to change at the automobile dealership organisations in the eThekwini Region of KwaZulu-Natal. The study investigates the mediating role of idealised influence on employee resistance to change at the automobile dealership organisations in the eThekwini Region of KwaZulu-Natal. Assessment was based on the effect of this leadership style component and its impact on employees’ willingness to accept or resist changes introduced at the selected organisations. Of the 270 staff members identified for participation, 196 questionnaires were returned and analysed using the convergent data analysis as well as the Structural Equation Model (SEM). The study revealed that the idealised influence is positively associated with the staff quick acceptance of change. The study improves the existing framework with regards to understanding how leaders with idealised influence can facilitate change management acceptance of employees by embracing and inculcating the essence of idealised influence. The results can help managers and change management interventionists formulate human resource development to improve change management planning programmmes.

Leadership is a core component of organizational management, but its functions are getting more complex with the increasing involvement of changes taking place in the world. As such, the complicated operation of managing cognitive rigidity as a form of resistance to change amongst employees is very critical. On the other hand, resistance to change is described as one of the impediments to organizational expansion due to its negative consequences. To cope with change, there is a need for an effective leadership style. This study focuses on the association between change leadership styles, i.e., transformational and transactional leadership styles with cognitive rigidity as a form of resistance to change. The study further seeks to investigate the impact of these leadership styles on employees’ resistance to cognitive rigidity at the selected automobile dealerships in the Durban Metropolitan Region of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Theories on change and leadership styles have been considered in this paper. A descriptive survey design was adopted to collect information from a stratified sample size using self-administered questionnaires to 170 staff at automotive dealerships in the metropolitan of Durban in South Africa. Pearson correlational and regression analysis were employed to analyze data. Results indicated significant correlations between these change leadership styles and cognitive rigidity as a form of resistance to change. However, the transactional leadership style revealed a more substantial possibility of increasing resistance to change. The study recommends that management practice the transformational leadership style to encourage employee participation in the decision, build confidence, accept constructive criticisms, effective communication and transparency, thereby reducing rigidity.

This study aims to assess the impact of communication adequacy on resistance to change at selected dealership companies in the Durban Metropolitan Region. Recent studies suggest that there could be various other factors that influence resistance including leadership skills, demographic factors and theoretical components of resistance to change. The study uses the non-random purposive sampling collected from 270 staff at selected dealership companies in the Durban Metropolitan Region using questionnaires administered to employees. The structural equation model was also applied in analyzing the data. The findings of the study show that there is a significant relationship between communication adequacy based on structure and channel efficiency in relation to resistance communication based on channel efficiency positively influencing resistance to change. The study further provides practical implications for the employees at the selected dealership companies to consider more strategic and appropriate communication tools.