Resistance to Control

Control should be viewed as a positive human behavior. Yet, people do not always look at controls inn a positive way. They view it as a check on their activates which limits their freedom to work and, therefore, often resist control. Resistance to control arises on account of the following reasons

1. Inaccurate/Inappropriate controls:

If controls are not related to goals, they are related to goals, they are resisted by employees. For example, if production department is asked to sell more without increasing the expenditure on advertisement; whatever measures of control are applied by the management, they will not help to attain the goals (high production or sales). Such controls are inappropriate controls.

2. Excessive controls:

Though controls are measures to increase the performance of employees, excessive controls can prove otherwise, control or check on every activity of employees, for example, the way they talk, the way they work, the way they spend their time during lunch break, persons with whom they interact (control on personal habits of employees) can restrict their perforce rather thank enchase it. Excessive controls restrict their freedom and reduce flexibility to work.

3. Unachievable standards:

If standards of performance are beyond the abilities of employees, they may get frustrated and work below their capacities. A worker, for example, cannot work for more than 8 hours a day. Managers want him to work overtime for 2 hours. Even if the overtime has financial benefits, the worker may resist since it is beyond his capacities to work 10 hours a day. If managers do not understand worker’s problems, he may actually start working for even less than 8 hours day. Excessive controls can, therefore, suppress the creativity o employees.

4. Fear of accountability:

In contrast to those who perform well, employees who cannot perform unto the standards also resist controls because of the fear of being punished by the superior. The food and the poor performances, therefore, both resist controls either for loss of freedom or for the fear of accountability.

5. Unpredictable:

If standards of performance keep on changing. Sometimes high and sometimes low, workers will not be able to assess their performance against any predictable target and, therefore. Will not motivated to work. Any measure of control will not achieve the targets.

6. Lack of authority over the area of control:

If supervisors are asked to increase productivity of workers without the authority to issue directions, any measure of control will not get the desired output from workers. Control over areas for which authority is not given invites resistance.

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