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How a strategic change agenda is implemented depends on leaders below the top in every function and geographic region translating the agenda into actions. But those actions do not always unfold as planned. This case examines the first 16 months of a turnaround from the perspective of implementers in... More

Leaders use seven leadership skills in conceiving and managing change projects, whether innovations in established organizations, culture and process changes, or entrepreneurial ventures for industry or social change. The skills leaders need are different at various phases of change projects. Offers... More

Presents a framework for leading change in institutions or society, showing leaders how to manage political, economic, or social change by mapping their targets (policy, programs, or people/culture) and choice of action vehicle (single organizations or coalitions of organizations).... More

Members of IBM's fifth Integration and Values Team (IVT5) were close to finishing their deliberations. Convened by Sam Palmisano, Chairman and CEO, and sponsored by Jon Iwata, Senior VP of Corporate Communications and Marketing, and John E. Kelly III, Senior VP and Director of Research, the IVT5's f... More

IBM's transformation into a globally integrated enterprise (GIE) began with a conviction about what should never change. Since its founding in 1911, the company operated under a set of principles articulated by founder Thomas Watson and became known for a strong culture and a commitment to fairness ... More

This note presents a framework and tool for leading fundamental systemic change in organizations and beyond. It identifies the 10 key elements of systemic change and arrays them along the spokes of a wheel, which suggests momentum and an interconnected rather than linear process for changing systems... More

First Community Bank, a bank-within-a-bank at Bank of Boston, was established in 1990 as a unique venture to serve urban communities. By 1995 it has achieved profitability but must manage relationships with the mainstream at Bank of Boston, serve as a change agent and role model, and face the challe... More

In this chapter, world-renowned business expert, author, and Harvard Business School professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter asks the question, "Is leadership different in a globalizing world-one of broadening horizons and burgeoning sources of ideas and supplies-than in other contexts?" The answer is a reso... More

Power, the critical element in managerial behavior, is representative of efficacy and capacity, as well as dominance and oppression. An individual's power comes from his or her position in an organization and access to resources, information, and organizational support. Power positions allow job dis... More

When companies join forces--whether on research or as full-scale partners--they often tend to emphasize the legal or financial aspects of the deal. But smart managers know that alliances involve much more. Like human relationships, business partnerships are living systems that have endless possibili... More

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"America has been waiting for a call to think big and act big as we envision our transportation future. Kanter's important book is it." --Deval Patrick, governor of Massachusetts, 2007--2015 Americans are stuck. We live with travel delays on congested roads, shipping delays on clogged railways, and ... More

What makes some communes work, while others fail? Why is it so difficult to put utopian ideals into practice? Rosabeth Kanter offers a unique analysis of the nature and process of enduring commitment, basing her theory of commitment mechanisms on exhaustive research of nineteenth-century utopias, sh... More

Identifies the challenges for experienced leaders who transition from their primary income-earning careers to a next phase of public service or social-purpose work, based on interviews and published sources. ... More

Describes the challenge of starting new ventures or new activities in established companies, especially if they diverge from the mainstream of ongoing commitments. Fledgling ventures require a different kind of management that acknowledges their uncertainty, intensity, and need/desire for freedom fr... More

Identifies the challenges for experienced leaders who transition from their primary income-earning careers to a next phase of public service or social-purpose work, based on interviews and published sources.... More

New CEO David Kenny transformed The Weather Company in less than two years from a primary identity as a cable television channel to a multi-platform digital company innovating in the uses of weather data. He assesses progress and considers strategic choices and organizational challenges ahead. He cr... More

Kanter details six ways to restore America's strengths by returning to open-society principles, viewing this society as one that "invests in people and new ideas, rewards talent and hard work, values dialogue and learns from dissent, operates to high standards with transparent information, looks for... More

Rosabeth Moss Kanter on the answer to the global crisis of business and American-style capitalism Out of the ashes of conventional business models arises a set of companies using their power not only for profits and sustainable growth but also social good. If you think business corporations are d... More

From the boardroom to the locker room to the living room--how winners become winners . . . and stay that way. Is success simply a matter of money and talent? Or is there another reason why some people and organizations always land on their feet, while others, equally talented, stumble again and ... More

Leaders use seven leadership skills in conceiving and managing change projects, whether innovations in established organizations, culture and process changes, or entrepreneurial ventures for industry or social change. The skills leaders need are different at various phases of change projects. Offers... More