What separates excellent organizations from the truly ordinary? What allows some organizations to rapidly change and continually reinvent themselves while others have trouble making even modest improvements? the fundamental ingredient is the presence of change agents. Change agents are individuals who have the knowledge, skills and tools to help organizations create radical improvement. They achieve results through their keen ability to facilitate groups of people through well-defined processes to develop, organize, and sell new ideas. They are the invisible hands that turn vision into action. The Change Agentes Guide to Radical Improvement is a comprehensive how-to book, packed with all of the information and tools necessary to make any improvement project a rousing success. Its unique methods integrate the best practices in organizational development, team building, voice of the customer, reengineering, problem solving, creativity, innovation, and project management. the systematic change agent model introduced in this book will help you: Pick the right improvement projects to work on, by diagnosing the real issues effecting the organization. Organize the project so that it has the best chance to succeed, by uncovering the projectes success criteria, securing management support, and building the right team. Select the best change process to improve customer satisfaction, reengineer a process, solve a problem or develop a plan. Generate innovative out of the box ideas that dramatically impact the bottom line. Navigate the politics of change; ensuring radical ideas become radical improvements.

"A good balance between theory and practice . . . it definitely fills a void in the [lack of] texts in the area and the change literature in general . . . a good fit for my graduate class on 'Managing Organizational Change.'" —Anthony F. Buono, McCallum Graduate School of Business, Bentley College "Like Gareth Morgan's Images of Organization, this book is a superb blend of theory and practicality. It demystifies chaos and paradox, and it encourages the understanding of organizational dynamics from multiple perspectives. It is refreshing to read a book that presents diverse theories and interventions so even-handedly." —Andrea Markowitz, Ph.D., President, OB&D, Inc. Learning to Change: A Guide for Organizational Change Agents provides a comprehensive overview of organizational change theories and practices developed by both U.S. and European change theorists. The authors compare and contrast five fundamentally different ways of thinking about change: yellow print thinking, blue print thinking, red print thinking, green print thinking and white print thinking. They also discuss in detail the steps change agents take, such as diagnosis, change strategy, the intervention plan, and interventions. In addition, they explore the attributes of a successful change agent and provide advice for career and professional development. The book includes case studies that describe multiple approaches to organizational change issues. This book will appeal to both the practitioner and academic audiences. It can be used as a text in graduate courses in change management and will also be a useful reference for consultants and managers. Features: Discusses the abilities, attitudes, and styles of successful change agents Describes five fundamentally different ways of thinking about change Presents a state-of-the-art overview of change management insights, methods, and instruments Summarizes an extensive amount of organizational change literature Supplies readers with useful insights and courses of action that will allow them to design and implement change professionally Learning to Change became a bestseller upon its initial publication in the Netherlands. The color-model on change is very popular among thousands of managers and change consultants and presents a new approach to change processes and a new language for change.

" ... presents a theoretical road map for teachers, professors, or administrators who seek guidance from the educational change literature ... brings together the research and practical applications in a practitioner's toolbox"--Back cover.

In Engines of Innovation, Holden Thorp and Buck Goldstein make the case for the pivotal role of research universities as agents of societal change. They argue that universities must use their vast intellectual and financial resources to confront global challenges such as climate change, extreme poverty, childhood diseases, and an impending worldwide shortage of clean water. They provide not only an urgent call to action but also a practical guide for our nation's leading institutions to make the most of the opportunities available to be major players in solving the world's biggest problems. A preface and a new chapter by the authors address recent developments, including innovative licensing strategies, developments in online education, and the value of arts and sciences in an entrepreneurial society.

This book presents unique insights and advice on defining and managing the innovation transformation journey. Using novel ideas, examples and best practices, it empowers management executives at all levels to drive cultural, technological and organizational changes toward innovation. Covering modern innovation techniques, tools, programs and strategies, it focuses on the role of the latest technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence to discover, handle and manage ideas), methodologies (including Agile Engineering and Rapid Prototyping) and combinations of these (like hackathons or gamification). At the same time, it highlights the importance of culture and provides suggestions on how to build it. In the era of AI and the unprecedented pace of technology evolution, companies need to become truly innovative in order to survive. The transformation toward an innovation-led company is difficult – it requires a strong leadership and culture, advanced technologies and well-designed programs. The book is based on the author’s long-term experience and novel ideas, and reflects two decades of startup, consulting and corporate leadership experience. It is intended for business, technology, and innovation leaders.

"If education is to be the learning profession, then we must walk the walk of learners. The bottom line is not perfection, constant success, and high test scores. The bottom line is creating a culture in which learning, innovation, and collaboration are the norms-a learning culture. When adults in schools create such environments, children will thrive." -Lucy West and Antonia Cameron How can teacher leaders cultivate an adult learning environment that will upgrade teaching capacity system-wide, and ultimately improve student learning in every classroom? Lucy West and Toni Cameron turn decades of experience designing and implementing coaching initiatives into a practical resource for transforming school culture and inspiring true learning at every level. Agents of Change provides coaches, administrators, and teacher leaders with specific techniques, tools, and strategies for working with individual classroom teachers to plan and co-teach lessons, reflect on them afterwards, and find evidence of student learning. Lucy and Toni argue that when we infuse rich learning conversations into the professional discourse via coaching, study lessons, and regular meeting times for professionals to work collaboratively, we're able to examine what it takes on a day to day basis to reach every student in our classrooms. The transformative potential of content coaching to improve both teacher and student learning on a school-wide level has never been more clear. Purchase includes free access to an online video case study. Read a sample chapter