Since Peter Senge published his groundbreaking book The Fifth
Discipline, he and his associates have frequently been asked by the
business community: "How do we go beyond the first steps of corporate
change? How do we sustain momentum?" They know that companies and
organizations cannot thrive today without learning to adapt their
attitudes and practices. But companies that establish change initiatives
discover, after initial success, that even the most promising efforts to
transform or revitalize organizations--despite interest, resources, and
compelling business results--can fail to sustain themselves over time.
That's because organizations have complex, well-developed immune
systems, aimed at preserving the status quo.
Now, drawing upon new theories about leadership and the long-term
success of change initiatives, and based upon twenty-five years
of experience building learning organizations, the authors of The
Fifth Discipline Fieldbook show how to accelerate success and avoid
the obstacles that can stall momentum. The Dance of Change, written
for managers and executives at every level of an organization, reveals
how business leaders can work together to anticipate the challenges that
profound change will ultimately force the organization to face. Then, in
a down-to-earth and compellingly clear format, readers will learn how to
build the personal and organizational capabilities needed to meet those
challenges.
These challenges are not imposed from the outside; they are the product
of assumptions and practices that people take for granted--an inherent,
natural part of the processes of change. And they can stop innovation
cold, unless managers at all levels learn to anticipate them and
recognize the hidden rewards in each challenge, and the potential to
spur further growth. Within the frequently encountered challenge of "Not
Enough Time," for example--the lack of control over time available for
innovation and learning initiatives--lies a valuable opportunity to
reframe the way people organize their workplaces.
This book identifies universal challenges that organizations ultimately
find themselves confronting, including the challenge of "Fear and
Anxiety"; the need to diffuse learning across organizational boundaries;
the ways in which assumptions built in to corporate measurement systems
can handcuff learning initiatives; and the almost unavoidable
misunderstandings between "true believers" and nonbelievers in a
company.
Filled with individual and team exercises, in-depth accounts of
sustaining learning initiatives by managers and leaders in the field,
and well-tested practical advice, The Dance of Change provides an
insider's perspective on implementing learning and change initiatives at
such corporations as British Petroleum, Chrysler, Dupont, Ford, General
Electric, Harley-Davidson, Hewlett-Packard, Mitsubishi Electric, Royal
DutchShell, Shell Oil Company, Toyota, the United States Army, and
Xerox. It offers crucial advice for line-level managers, executive
leaders, internal networkers, educators, and others who are struggling
to put change initiatives into practice.
