Leading Strategic Change

Rating:
Summary: Leading Strategic Change (Black, Gregersen)
Review: Finally a book on strategy that gets it right. Some have talked of organizational change as tantamount to squashing a square lump of clay into one that was round. We have talked of organizations as if they were inanimate objects. The reality, of course, is that nothing is further from the truth. Organizations are comprised of people, with all of their biases, prejudices and passions. When you understand that it is people that must be changed, then you are on the right track to lead strategic change.

Better yet, Black and Gregersen provide readers with some extremely practical tools to make change happen.

Jack Zenger, Vice Chairman, Provant and co-author of The Extraordinary Leader.

Rating:
Summary: Narrow Focus
Review: Interesting, but the focus on the organization is missing. We should not confuse management development with organization development (or vice versa).

Rating:
Summary: Great practical framework and ideas for org. change
Review: My experience as an Organizational Development professional has exposed me to quite a few books, models, and methodolgies related to organizational change. Most are pretty similar. I found this book had some refreshing new insights. More importantly, I think it is presented with a logic that is both simple to follow and easy to explain to others, which is becoming more and more important to my clients who have also "seen it all" by now when it comes to organizational change materials.

While the specific suggestions for "how" to help organizations overcome the barriers to change were a little thin in places, overall I found them practical and a good catalyst for my own ideas. I can easily endorse and have already recommended this book to others.

Rating:
Summary: Very good book!
Review: Stewart Black and Hal Gregersen do a great job with this book. I recommend this book to my clients, in addition to my own book.

Dr. Michael Beitler
Author of "Strategic Organizational Change"

Rating:
Summary: Good book, plus...
Review: This book is a refreshing new way to look at leading change. It focuses on the real and often overlooked barriers to change and re-draws our maps of the change process. It gets right at the heart of leading people through change by addressing the fundamental barriers people face when confronted with change. Black and Gregersen provide a model that is simple, practical, and rings true. I use it in my organization change work and I highly recommend it. Any leader trying to lead his/her organization into the future will benefit from reading this book!

Rating:
Summary: Great book, plus...
Review: This is a great book. I recommend it in addition to "Strategic Organizational Change" by Beitler.

Black & Gregersen focus on the management development level. Beitler focuses on the organization development level.

They make a great combo!

Charles "Chuck" Lowell