Organization Change: Theory and Practice

For a non-business oriented person, this book has provided clear explanations about the organizational change process. My professor for the Organizational Performance and Change course required this book and I have appreciated the perspective the book has provided.

In Burke's Organization Change Theory and Practice the author provides us with a solid base of understanding of the nature of organizational change and the leadership needed to shepherd change through to a successful completion. In the book Burk provides and overview of organizational change, defining the differences between evolutionary and revolutionary change, and how it applies by looking at real world examples. He also discusses the nature of change and goes into both theoretical and practical approaches in a variety of situations. This edition has been updated to cover transformational leadership. I the additional chapters the author identifies roles and responsibilities that are important to instill in developing the leaders. Burke covers what he feels are eight areas important to shepherding the change process through the prelaunch, launch and post launch phases of any size change initiative. All throughout the book the author cites the large body of previous work that this book is built on, making it a fantastic reference for those who may wish to delve further into the theory and practice of organizational change.

If you are concerned about change and need more and better arguments, techniques, tools and experience to do, this book is the best option. Great analysis and very solid in theory and practice. I Like so much.

Now in a completely updated and significantly expanded second edition, "Organization Change: Theory And Practice" by W. Warner Burke (Edward Lee Thorndike Professor of Psychology and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, where he also serves as the Chair of the Department of Organization and Leadership) continues to be esteemed and recommended as a graduate school level text for university course work in the disciplines of industrial psychology, business administration, and organizational behavior. An invaluable resource for understanding and analyzing organizations be they corporate, governmental, or academic, this edition of "Organizational Change" is enhanced with a new chapter on 'Transformational Leadership' covering the fundamentals of leadership compared with management, transformational leadership, and the roles/responsibilities of the change leader. Also of note is the illuminating discussion on theories for understanding organization and change; as well as the evolutionary and revolutionary aspects of organization change. Professor Burke analytically discusses the nature of change and how organizational change is initiated by changing behavior, but not (as is commonly supposed) changes in mental sets or attributes. Enhanced with the inclusion of theoretical and illustrative models, as well as a model of meticulous and articulate scholarship, "Organizational Change" should be a part of every academic library reference collection and is especially recommended reading for students of the role of leadership in organizational evolution.

So much of the literature on change is often a simplistic cookbook claiming change can be executed in 7 easy steps. Burke provides the reader with the theoretical background and takes one through the multiple considerations when executing organizational change. I applaud Dr Burke for revealing the complexity of change and providing insights into the practice of change management.This is a primer for all who are engaged especially in large scale transformational change as it clearly provides one the background to help one educate others on why the change agent does what she does.