On Leading Change: Recommended Reading

By definition, leaders are agents of change. We are the catalysts that overcome the inertia of complacency, cast a bold vision, and change the trajectory of the organization.

 Here are some of the best books I have read on the subject of leading change. I highly recommend these books. In fact, I have used most of them in my graduate courses on Power, Influence and Leadership and Leading Change.

 Heifetz, Ronald. Leadership Without Easy Answers.  Cambridge:  Belknap Press, 1994.

Heifetz, Ronald and Martin Linsky. Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Leading. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing, 2002.

Kotter, John.  Leading Change.  Boston:  Harvard Business School Press, 1996.

Quinn, Robert E.  Deep Change:  Discovering the Leader Within. San Francisco:  Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1996.

Quinn, Robert E. Building the Bridge as You Walk On It: A Guide for Leading Change. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 2004.

Stanley, Andy.  Visioneering. Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, Inc., 1999.

Willams, Dean. Real Leadership: Helping People and Organizations Face Their Toughest Challenges. San Francisco:  Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc., 2005.