" Elizabeth has elegantly captured the history, complexity and process of change management in a way that will make it accessible to organisations making it immensely helpful in understanding and working through the challenges facing them. The case study, and its cautionary tales and successes, is particularly relevant as an illustration of a transformational programme that brought about real change. Read it and use it! "

John Doidge Director, Staff Development Centre, University of Leicester

" This reader found the material engaging from cover to cover with a long list of ideas that merit either further investigation or trial "

Ross A.Wirth Manager, Organizational Learning, Citgo Petroleum Corporation

" This is an important book, and essential reading for scholars and practitioners concerned with (political or commercial) organizational change management in the 21st century, especially those unfamiliar with the fast - advancing and now widely accepted scientific discourse on complexity theory "

Katharine N. Farrell Queen's University, Belfast

" Chaos, complexity, change... the world is fast flowing and highly uncertain. How can business organizations and other institutions survive in ambiguous times? How can modern approaches in science help to provide a more realistic picture of managerial practice? These are the subjects of the present book... I firmly believe that most readers will walk away with a significantly better understanding of these issues... "

Christine Vallaster University of Giessen, Germany

Author

Complexity, organizations and change: An essential introduction

Complexity science has seriously challenged long-held views in the scientific community about how the world works. These ideas, particularly about the living world, also have radical and profound implications for organizations and society as a whole. Complexity, Organizations and Change, available in paperback for the first time, describes and considers ideas and insights from complexity science, and examines their use in organizations, especially in bringing about major organizational change.

This key book explores how organizations, their design, the way they operate and, importantly, the people who co-create them, are thought of. Explaining the history and development of complexity science in an accessible way for the non-scientific reader, this outstanding book describes key concepts and their use in theory and practice. Illustrated with real-life examples from organizations in the UK, Europe and the USA, the book includes an in-depth case study of an organization which used complexity principles as part of a strategic change intervention. From this, useful models for introducing a complexity-based change process are derived. Complexity, Organizations and Change will appeal to academics, researchers and advanced students who are interested in complexity science and what it means for strategy, organization and management theory and organizational change.

Read excerpts from the book.

Buy it now on www.Amazon.co.uk.

Complexity, Management and the Dynamics of Change: Challenges for Practice

Elizabeth is currently writing her second book for Routledge: Complexity, Management and the Dynamics of Change: Challenges for Practice. Due to be published March 2008.

The following is an excerpt from Complexity, Management and the Dynamics of Change: Challenges for Practice entitled Self Organisation:

" Human beings are able to self organise to their advantage, to improve their survival chances and especially to counteract any perceived threats to their wellbeing. One very potent example of people's ability to self organise is provided by the fuel protests in the UK a few years ago. In early September 2000 at a meeting in Wales a group of local farmers spontaneously decided that it was time to take action over the high price of diesel fuel. The high tax on diesel, which is essential for farm vehicles, was yet another burden on many farmers who were struggling to survive. Their livelihood was threatened and they felt that they had to do something about it if they were to survive. They took action by picketing a local oil refinery in protest. They were soon joined by local hauliers. The hauliers felt that the high tax on diesel put their businesses at a disadvantage in comparison with other Europeans hauliers. Via mobile phones and word of mouth the news of the protest spread rapidly and gained sympathy and support. As a result within a week 75% of fuel deliveries had been halted, as refineries and fuel depots across the country were blockaded. As petrol stations ran out of fuel the army was asked to standby and the government was outmanoeuvred on the PR front. And all this happened because a group of people spontaneously decided to take action and rapidly and effectively organised themselves using modern communications technology.

Managers instead of trying to control and direct employees should work with their innate self organising abilities. This will save them time and energy and lead to innovation and improvements in all areas of activity. "

Read further excerpts from the new book.