Chapter 55
BusinessManagement Toolkit (BMT) 12
- Forcefield analysis(HL only)
"Growth is painful. Change is painful. But nothing is as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don't belong."
- N. [Link] Murthy (b.1946), Founder and Chairman emeritus of Infosys
Forcefield analysis
The Business Management toolkit is a set of
situational, planning and decision-making tools used
to analyse and evaluate the syllabus content as well
as being applied in different contexts. Force field
analysis is both a type of situational and decision-making tool.
© 180, 2022
F
orce field analysis was developed by German American 2. List the driving forces in favour of change and the
social psychologist Kurt Lewin in 1943. It is a situational restraining forces against change.
and decision-making tool that deals with the forces
for and against change. Professor Lewin (1890 - 1947) argued 3. Allocate a statistical weight to each of these forces, from 1
that successful businesses tend to be constantly adapting and (weak) to 5 (strong) based on the level of importance to the
changing, rather than being fixed in outdated practices and organization and then total the scores for the driving forces
unable to look or move forward. Force field analysis consists of and restraining forces.
two types of forces:
4. Construct the FFA diagram for a visual representation of
Driving forces push for change. These represent the the results (see Figure 55.1).
arguments or reasons for change.
5. Analyse the results in order to (i) decide whether or not to
Restraining forces act against change. These are the factors proceed with the proposed change, (ii) determine how best
(or forces) that resist change. to weaken the restraining forces and (iii) decide how best
to strengthen the driving forces.
The relative strength of these forces determines whether the
change should take place (be implemented in the workplace). For example, a business deciding whether to transfer its
production facilities to an overseas location might produce a
There are several steps involved in a force field analysis (FFA): FFA that looks similar to the one in Figure 55.1:
1. Identify the goal (purpose of the proposed change).
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Business Management Toolkit (BMT)
Driving forces Restraining forces
(Forces for change) (Forces against change)
4-Wider customer base 3-High set-up costs
4
4-Lower production costs 3-Risks of operating overseas
4
3-Tax incentives 2-Job losses in home country
4
2-Fewer rules and regulations 2-Longer supply chains
Figure 55.1 - Example of a force field analysis
Figure 55.1 shows that in this case the driving forces for Unlike SWOT analysis (see Chapter 44) or STEEPLE
change outweigh the restraining forces against the change. analysis (see Chapter 46), the use of FFA analysis requires
Even if managers have already decided they prefer this option, managers and decision makers to assess the relative
conducting a FFA can help to make this decision more objective. strengths of the driving and restraining forces by applying
It also provides a framework for managers to consider how best a statistical weight to each of these factors.
to improve the project's chances of success. This is done by
investigating how the driving forces can be strengthened and There are two main weaknesses of using FFA as a situational
how the restraining forces can be minimized. and decision-making tool:
Whilst the problems of change management and resistance to The weights attached to the driving and restraining forces
change (see Chapter 7) are not solved by FFA, it still enables might be done subjectively rather than based on facts or
managers to examine the driving and restraining forces in a evidence, perhaps to over-emphasise the need for change.
more coherent and focused way. Lewin argued that progress is
not the result of one-off changes but by many small changes and Not all relevant forces might be considered. There is
improvements. always a possibility that some factors, be they driving and/
or restraining forces, can arise that were not previously
The advantages of using FFA as a situational and decision- considered as managers did not think these actually existed
making tool include: at the time.
It offers a visual interpretation of the driving forces for
and restraining forces against change. This makes it more
straightforward to understand the different factors that Exam tip!
need to be considered in order to make better informed
choices. It is important to note that the quantity of driving forces
and restraining forces in a FFA is not as important as
The statistical weights used in FFA help managers and the relative strength (weights) of each force. So, whilst
decision makers to look at business problems and issues there could be many different restraining forces against a
in a more logical and methodical way. This can improve certain option, simply one or two very important (heavily
business decision making and help organizations to weighted) driving forces may be sufficient to convince
develop more suitable business plans (see Chapter 48) to decision makers to proceed with the proposed change.
achieve their organizational objectives (see Chapter 3).
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BMT 12 - Forcefield analysis (HL only)
Question 55.1 - Tyagi Enterprise
The management team atTyagi Enterprise (TE)is deciding whether to the company should invest in new capital equipment
in order to increase its output. The team has identified the following driving and restraining forces as well as attaching their
weights to each of these factors. These weights are the numbers shown in brackets (where 1 = weak and 5 = strong).
Training needed to upskill workers to use the new capital equipment (2).
There has been a steady and sustained increase in the number of customers (4).
Upgrading the capital equipment will help TE to stay competitive (3).
Some staff redundancies will occur, so need to be handled carefully (3).
The maintenance costs of the current capital equipment have been increasing (2).
The cost of the new capital equipment is expensive (3).
(a) Construct a force field analysis diagram of the driving and restraining forces for TE. [4marks]
(b) Comment on the results of your force field analysis for TE. [2 marks]
Evaluationof force field analysis
Overall, the effectiveness of force field analysis will depend Nevertheless, Lewin's force field analysis is a useful situational
on the quality of the data (in terms of suitability, breadth and tool as it allows managers to decide what might need changing
depth) and how well or accurate the data is interpreted in order as well as looking at the forces acting for and against change.
to select the right choice. Despite the tool relying on scientific It is also a useful decision-making tool as it informs managers
decision-making processes, the role of intuitive thinking and whether the restraining or driving forces are stronger. This
management (see Chapter 9) can skew the results of a force field forms the basis for effective change management (see Chapter
analysis. Hence, the outcomes of a FFA can have a direct impact 7).
on whether implementation of an organization's strategic plan
is effective in influencing change. If change is desired, managers can analyse and devise appropriate
plans to influence the forces to make the change happen. FFA
is essentially a specialised technique of weighing up advantages
Possibilities and disadvantages to help decide whether a proposed change
is worth implementing. Hence, FFA can be used as a strategy
Possibility for reducing the impact of change and resistance to change
Possibility (see Chapter 7). However, as the tool is static (representing
the position at one point in time, it is important for managers
Possibility
to continually review the situation and progress because the
Possibility driving and/or restraining forces can change at any time due to
Possibil~ changes in the internal and external environments (see Chapter
46).
Figure 55.2 - FFAcan help managers to make more informed
decisions
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Business Management Toolkit (BMT)
Finally, it is important to note that for this tool to be of any
real value, force field analysis requires managers and decision
makers to apply the weights to each restraining and driving
force in an objective and honest manner. If the weights are
assigned arbitrarily, the results will add very little, if any, value
to the decision-making process.
Key concept
What is the role of intuition in ethical decision-making?
Figure 55.3 - Force field analysis can help firms to decide
whether it is the right time for change
Key concept
How significant is creativity in strategic decision-
making?
REVIEWQUESTIONS
1. What is force field analysis (FFA)?
2. How do driving forces and restraining forces differ?
3. What are the benefits to an organization of using FFA?
4. What are the limitations ofFFA?
5. How are the weights in a force field analysis assigned?
KEYTERMS
Driving forces in a force field analysis show the reasons
for (benefits of) change, such as such as reduced costs and
improved productivity.
Force field analysis is an organizational planning tool that
deals with the forces for and against change.
Restraining forces in a force field analysis show the reasons
against (drawbacks of) change and hence the causes of
resistance to change.
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