According to Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher who was born in 535 B.C., “Change is the only constant.”
John Kotter (1995) stated that there are eight steps to successfully leading change; they are
1. Create a sense of urgency
2. Create the guiding coalition
3. Develop a vision and strategy
4. Communicate the change vision
5. Empower employees for broad-based action
6. Create a series of short-term wins
7. Consolidate gains and produce more change
8. Anchor the changes in the corporate culture.
Your assignment (Mr. Phelps), should you choose to accept it, is to watch the following three YouTube videos:
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ol9zYw4Chg&feature=related
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZ83MffY3lI&feature=related
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuGjYfJ0HSY&feature=related
Then, discuss what you feel is the most effective way for a leader to implement organizational change. Go into detail in each of the phases of the change as to the appropriate leadership style to ensure success.
Compare it to a change effort that you have seen fail. What could the leader have done to ensure the change was successful?
This [course] will not self-destruct in 5 seconds, so you should remember the guidance from Module 1 with respect to depth and breadth of your responses, and relating them back to literature and research.
Kotter, J. (1995). Leading Change. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press.