The Change Agents Handbook

To the Reader

There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things.

Niccolò Machiavelli
"The Prince"

This book is a personal "survival guide" for anyone who is striving to create change for the better within an organization. The world would be a poorer and duller place without people who are prepared to 'take on' the established system and make it better. Although they may not always realize it, these individuals are change agents, and they are on a journey which many others have traveled before. This is valuable work which is exciting and immensely rewarding – you can 'win big' in terms of job satisfaction and career.

We know much more about organizations and about creating change than people did in Machiavelli's time, but the task is still challenging. If you do not prepare yourself well it can be hazardous – to your mental and emotional well-being, to your health, and to your career prospects.

If you are engaged in this type of work, you could use a wise, experienced guide and counselor who can tell you what to expect – someone to help you succeed for the benefit of the organization, and at the same time to look out for your personal well-being. Someone who can help you answer questions like these:

How can we really make things change around here? I know how to organize training classes and roll out new methodologies, but are these actions sufficient?
What is the role of the officially-appointed change agent, and what should others expect of this person?
How can I tell if we really have any chance of success, given the current status of this organization and the mind-sets of my colleagues?
Why are so many people resisting what we trying to do, even though it makes such perfect sense and will benefit everyone?
Everything went great for the first year, but now we seem to have gone 'off the rails'. What can I do?
What aspects of my temperament and outlook will help me to be successful in creating change – and what skills and knowledge do I need?
Why do some colleagues, whom I respect, act as if they dislike what we are trying to do? What is going on?
I love my work, but I find myself experiencing more 'ups and downs' since we began these changes. This is affecting my family, my friendships and my health. What should I do?

Most people don't have a close friend with the knowledge and experience to help them with questions like these. This book tries to be the next-best thing. True, it cannot help you celebrate your successes, or commiserate over a beer – but it does offer wisdom and practical guidance distilled from the experience of many people who have already 'been there'. It also shows you how to reach out and use many other sources of help. What you read in these chapters can help you to understand the nature of your journey and to make better decisions along the way.

With the right kind of preparation and guidance, you will be able to do much more than just survive the inevitable ups and downs – you will have the time of your life, broaden your experience and knowledge more than you believed possible, and make a great contribution to the success of your organization.

In order to make things better, many people within the organization need to take up the challenge, not just the 'official' change agent. Whatever your position in the organization, you can choose to work in a pro-active fashion to achieve changes for the better.
You will find this guidebook valuable if you fit any of these descriptions:

You have been given formal responsibility for creating change – such as overseeing an effort to improve quality or service.
You are the official change agent you are the leader of the organization, contemplating ambitious changes, or already embarked on them.
You need to understand what type of person you should have to help you, and what their role should be you are a colleague of the formally-appointed change agent.
You need to know what to expect of this individual, your own role in the change process, and how to implement change within your own area.
No-one is asking you to create change, but you see a real need in your organization, and you intend to do something about it. You are an activist!

The context of the book is an organization-wide change process, based upon the powerful, universal principles of quality management. There are many excellent publications which can help you understand the more technical aspects of quality management, such as the intricate workings of the methodologies, the teachings of the 'gurus', and what other organizations have done. The Appendices provide sources of this type of information, if you need it.

However, no book can cover everything you need to know about a quality approach. This book focuses on the role and the personal needs of change agents.

If you are striving to create change, then this book is about you – your job, your happiness, your sanity, your future success and fulfillment on the journey ahead.

Read and enjoy!

The Change Agents Handbook

To the Reader

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