Managing Complex Change

Change is everywhere, constant and increasing in frequency, magnitude and complexity. Leaders, managers, and workplace professionals are expected to manage change on three levels: individually, in teamwork, and organizationally. Complacency is considered a barrier to progress and resiliency is becoming a core competency. Workplace professionals are expected to be collaboratively responsive in an expeditious manner. The focus of this course will be to manage change, and recognize how individuals, teams, and organizations so do. Presentations, interactive dialogues, assigned readings, video, case studies, and student projects will be used to explore structural, process, technological, and human change dynamics. Students will look at examples of small to large companies that have implemented change strategy and actions ? some successfully, others not. This is a highly interactive course that moves from awareness, knowledge acquisition and progress, to synthesis and application of behavioral practices. Topics include (but are not limited to) dimensions of change, organizational development/change models and theories, success factors, readiness and assessment tools for self, individual, and organizational audit, culture, actions and behaviors that model best practices, using metrics to benchmark progress, complacency conflicts, competencies, successfully leveraging change and developing initiatives to foster positive attitudes among workplace professionals toward change management. Best practices theories such as Kotter?s 8 Step Model, Bridges Three Zones for Transition and Renewal, Abrahamson?s Creative Recombination approach, and Conner?s Resiliency Reflections will all be included. Alternative theories and practices will also be introduced. Upon successful completion of the course, the student will be expected to have mastered the basic fundamentals of, and perspectives on, defining change, transitional change, transformational change, and various aspects of building proactive and positive teams and coalitions for sponsorship (as well as such teams? impact on complex change activities and other organizational activities).