Date
9-17-2026
Department
Graduate School of Business
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Organization and Management (PhD)
Chair
Antonio Williams
Keywords
Organizational change, employee reactions, indigenous banks, change management, organizational culture
Disciplines
Business | Leadership Studies
Recommended Citation
Asiedu-Antwi, Michael, "Managing Employees’ Negative Reactions During Transformational Change: A Case Study of Indigenous Banks in Ghana" (2026). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 8899.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/8899
Abstract
Prior research estimates that only 30% of significant organizational change initiatives succeed, citing employees' negative reactions as the primary cause of failure. Few studies in Ghana have explored how organizations manage employees' reactions during change implementation. This flexible single-case study explored the organizational and managerial factors contributing to the success or failure of transformational change implemented by indigenous banks in Ghana. Eight main themes emerged from the analysis of interview transcripts of 29 branch managers from four indigenous banks. The themes documented both barriers to and enablers of successful change implementation. The barriers include resistance rooted in fear and uncertainty, inadequate communication about change, a deficit in branch managers' leadership competence, and national cultural dispositions. Indigenous banks in Ghana employ pre-implementation sensitization activities and benefit framing of change communication as part of the change management practices that promote successful change implementation. The study established a 12-element composite change management framework that is leadership-driven and people-centered. The composite framework is embedded in a clan organizational culture reflective of the high power distance and collectivist orientation of Ghanaian society. The study extends self-determination theory by demonstrating that indigenous banks in Ghana satisfy employees' needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness through culturally embedded collectivist practices. The findings offer practical implications for executive coaches, change leaders, executive management teams, and regulatory bodies in Ghana's banking sector, as well as six theoretical contributions to the fields of organizational change management and organizational culture.
