Peer Review

What is Change Management?

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Reviewed:: Jan 5, 2026 by Business

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Ratings

Overall Rating:

Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

Ease of Use:

Overview:

The video focuses on the fundamental principles and academic models of change management, using NASA's cultural transformation after the 2003 Columbia shuttle disaster as a primary case study. It features an in-depth exploration of several scholarly frameworks, including the Kübler-Ross Change Curve for understanding individual psychology, Kurt Lewin’s Three-Stage Model (Unfreeze, Change, Refreeze), and Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model for executing complex organizational visions. The content is designed to be used as an educational guide for HR professionals and leaders to help them navigate the high failure rates of organizational initiatives by addressing human resistance and loss aversion. These principles find practical application in diverse scenarios such as adopting new technologies like AI, managing unplanned crises such as cybersecurity breaches, or shifting an entire corporate culture toward safety and continuous improvement.

Type of Material:

Presentation

Recommended Uses:

1. In-Class Activities:

Lecture Support: Integrate key concepts and models into lectures on change management.
Case Study Analysis: Use the NASA case study to analyze real-world applications of change management principles.
Discussion Sessions: Facilitate class discussions on why change initiatives fail and how to overcome resistance.

2. Group Work:

Role-Playing Exercises: Students role-play as leaders implementing change using Kotter's or Lewin's models.
Team Debates: Debate on the effectiveness of planned vs. unplanned change strategies.
Change Management Simulations: Simulate organizational change scenarios to apply learned models.

3. Individual Assignments:

Reflection Papers: Students reflect on personal experiences with change and relate them to change models.
Case Study Reports: Analyze the NASA transformation story, linking it to change management theories.
Model Comparisons: Compare and contrast Lewin’s and Kotter’s models in written essays.

4. Homework and Research:

Video Analysis: Assign students to watch the video and identify key learning goals.
Research Assignments: Explore additional real-world examples of successful and failed change initiatives.
Critical Reviews: Write critiques on the limitations of change models presented in the video.

5. Interactive Learning:

Online Discussion Forums: Students debate the challenges of change management and share personal experiences.
Quiz and Polls: Conduct quizzes on key concepts or polls on change resistance factors.

6. Experiential Learning:

Role Play as Change Agents: Practice leading change initiatives in a controlled environment.
Leadership Simulation: Simulate crisis management scenarios requiring unplanned change.

Technical Requirements:

None

Identify Major Learning Goals:

Define change management, its importance, and its systemic impact on organizations.
Explore reasons for high failure rates in change initiatives, including resistance due to habits, loss aversion, and poor communication.
Learn about the psychological impact of change on individuals, using models like the Kubler-Ross Change Curve.
Gain knowledge of:
- Kurt Lewin’s Model
- Kotter’s 8-Step Model
- Planned vs. Unplanned Change
- Application and Leadership Role

Target Student Population:

Disciplines: Business Administration, Human Resource Management, Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Public Administration, Engineering Management, Healthcare Administration
Undergraduate and Graduate levels

Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:

To effectively understand the instructional content of this video, learners should have a foundational background in Organizational Behavior (OB) and management principles to grasp how hierarchical structures and systemic processes interact during organizational transformation. A basic understanding of behavioral science, particularly in the areas of habit formation and cognitive biases such as loss aversion, is crucial for comprehending psychological resistance models, like the Küpler-Ross Change Curve. Students should also possess skills in conceptual modeling and case study analysis to connect theoretical frameworks—such as Lewin’s or Kotter’s models—with real-world applications in complex environments like NASA.

Content Quality

Rating:

Strengths:

High quality video prodcution with smooth supplemental animations.
Speech (English language) is clear and articulate.
Video can be used in many courses and is suitable for a variety of study programs.
This learning material excels in integrating key academic frameworks, including Kurt Lewin’s Three-Stage Model, John Kotter’s 8-Step Process, and the Kübler-Ross Change Curve.
It includes a case study on NASA’s cultural transformation after the Columbia disaster.
It clearly presents complex management concepts while addressing the psychological challenges of loss aversion and resistance to change.
The content is relevant to the challenges of 2025, such as digital transformation and AI integration.

Concerns:

Minor concern: Speaker has a hint of a Eastern European accent which may distract students whom may not have experience with English speakers with foreign accents from international locations.
The video provides an overview of established frameworks but points out common issues in materials for practitioners. Many simplify complex research and rely on disputed statistics. For example, the "70% Failure Rate" lacks solid proof and comes from informal estimates in the 1990s, not strong data. The term "failure" can be vague, and using a fixed percentage overlooks the differences across industries.
The video presents the Kübler-Ross Change Curve as a key model for business, but it was originally designed to describe grief, not workplace changes. Research, as seen in critiques by Stroebe et al. (2017), provides limited support for the notion that these stages occur in a linear fashion at work.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

Rating:

Strengths:

Identifies the topics to be covered in the video in the first two minutes.
Video transcript is available.
Video is short enough that it can be played in whole or in part and can easy to integrate into curriculum assignments.
The effectiveness of this teaching material comes from its dense information and structured approach, enabling students to quickly grasp complex organizational theories.
By combining peer-reviewed frameworks such as Lewin’s Three-Stage Model and Kotter’s 8-Step Process with the real-life narrative of NASA's cultural evolution, it promotes the essential "transfer of learning."
Additionally, the organization into psychological, procedural, and contextual chapters allows for easy integration into flipped classrooms and assessment of learning outcomes.
Clear definitions of terminology and distinctions between planned and unplanned change help students develop a nuanced understanding applicable to both exams and professional scenarios.

Concerns:

Not available in other audio or subititle languages.
The primary concern with this material is its presentation of contested management myths as facts, which may impede critical thinking. For example, the often-cited "70% failure rate" for change initiatives and the application of the Kübler-Ross Change Curve lack empiri
cal backing, possibly leading students to adopt a simplistic view of psychology. Additionally, reliance on linear frameworks like Kotter’s 8-Step Model and Lewin's Three-Stage Model oversimplifies the complex realities of modern organizational dynamics, risking "framework over-reliance" as students struggle to adapt these outdated models to the fast-paced, decentralized environments of 2025.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

Rating:

Strengths:

Video is easy to operate and does not require establishing an account to watch.
The usability of this learning material stems from its high-quality production design and a well-sequenced narrative that uses effective signposting.
Its strength lies in visual-verbal redundancy, with minimalist motion graphics enhancing the instructor’s delivery and aiding cognitive retention.
The content is engaging, featuring a compelling historical narrative from NASA, and is accessible with accurate closed captioning and a clear chapter structure for easy navigation.
Additionally, structured diagrams for Lewin’s Change Management Model and the Kübler-Ross Change Curve effectively present abstract concepts, suitable for both mobile viewing and classroom presentations.

Concerns:

The material is generally user-friendly but has notable usability concerns.
There is no formal instructional documentation, and accessibility gaps exist for neurodivergent or visually impaired learners.
The video lacks a downloadable, screen-reader-friendly transcript and a PDF of its diagrams, limiting engagement with the Lewin or Kotter frameworks.
Additionally, while verbal signposting is effective, there is no written list of prerequisites or learning objectives at the start, leaving students unclear about the material's scope until later.
The dense information, which quickly shifts between the Kübler-Ross Change Curve and complex models, may create a cognitive load challenge for learners without access to static, text-based summaries for reference.

Other Issues and Comments:: To maximize the value of this material, it is recommended that it be used as a point of comparison. Students should be encouraged to take the classic frameworks presented in the video and contrast them with more modern, peer-reviewed approaches, such as Agile Change Management or Complexity Theory. This approach will help avoid oversimplification while leveraging the video’s strength in clear and foundational storytelling.
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