Leading Change

a process of continual cleaning will

But nowhere was there a clear and compelling statement of where all this was leading.

In many failed transformations, you find plans and programs trying to play the role of vision.

they confuse urgency with anxiety, and

The most fundamental mistakes smart people make when they are trying to make big changes, especially implementing high stakes strategies or initiatives, are mostly still the same today (chapter 1). That does not mean executives have learned nothing in the past few decades. They have. But the challenges have been growing as fast, or faster, than their skills.

We have learned an enormous amount in the past decade about the kinds of structures and capabilities that create a powerful enough basis to launch and sustain a big change. But among the general population of leaders and managers, the basics are still very poorly understood (chapter 4). Task forces, “​​​​​​work-streams,”​​​​​​ and project management organizations are still

We know much more today than we did sixteen years ago. I have already published four additional books that drill deeper into these ideas in various ways. I am working on the fifth now, which takes another leap (not an incremental step) into what success will demand in the twenty-first century. But when people ask me where to start their journey to learn about leadership in a changing world, I always have them start here.

We need more of those people

That sense of purpose spurs them on and inspires them during rough periods.

Twenty-First-Century Careers