Leading Strategic Change: How to Really Deliver the Shift Your Organization Needs

Many strategic change efforts fail, and almost all are harder to execute than they need to be. Why? And what can leaders do to increase the chances that their change is successful?

This 4.5-day course explains the four critical steps required to deliver strategic change and sustained performance improvement. Centered around a proven but in many ways counter-intuitive change model, the course enables participants to work on their own strategic change throughout the week and to leave with a detailed plan that they can immediately put into practice. Led by renowned MIT faculty, the course makes extensive use of case studies, table discussions, group work, and reflection. 

The course is based on the “Step Up, Step Back” approach to leading strategic change, created by Dr. Elsbeth Johnson, the Faculty Director for this course. This approach requires leaders to step up and do more than they typically do in the early stages of the change; and then step back do less than they typically do in its later stages. This framework goes against much of what we think we know about how to lead change – and, therefore, helps focus on what leaders should do instead.

You will receive a copy of Dr. Johnson’s book at the start of the course.

During this week-long course, you will:

• Share your own change project that you will use as your work example during the course
• Clarify your "change narrative" to clearly communicate why the change is needed and what outcomes it will deliver
• Understand why so-called "quick wins," although popular, are often toxic to fundamental strategic change and what to do instead in order to justify the more fundamental investments the change requires
• Understand what you need to do (and what you'll need to avoid) in order to sustain the change that you’ve started, including how to remain focused and consistent about the change until it’s done

We use interactive lectures, case studies, individual reflection and small-group conversations to clarify and refine your personal ‘Plan for Change’ so you leave with a clear road-map you can immediate put into practice.

This course includes the opportunity for you to apply new frameworks immediately to your own products or services to generate immediate results for your business.

Participants will leave this course with:

• An understanding of the critical stages required to successfully lead a strategic change effort—and what each of these stages requires from leaders
• Insight into what is likely to derail the change and how to manage these potential pitfalls
• A clear, concrete, step-by-step action plan to set up the change—and those tasked with delivering it—for success

This is a decision-based course contingent upon responses to the application questions. We accept enrollments until the offering reaches capacity, at which point we will maintain a waitlist. Many of the courses fill up several weeks in advance, so we advise that you enroll as early as possible to secure your seat.

You can begin the application process by using the red 'Enroll Now' bar at the bottom of the screen.

Please note, applications close one week prior to course start date.