Agent of Change: My Life, My Practice (Jossey-Bass Business & Management) [Hardcover]

Richard Beckhard (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0787910120 | ISBN-13: 978-0787910129 | Publication Date: September 26, 1997 | Edition: 1st

The professional memoirs (and insights) from a revered organization consultant.

In this remarkable memoir, Richard Beckhard shares a lifetime of wisdom from his forty-five year career as one of the country's foremost organization consultants. Written in a highly readable style, this book offers an insiders view of how change management has evolved in the latter half of the twentieth century. Throughout the book Beckhard weaves his life story with the lessons he learned from his role as an influential ?agent of change.? The book thoughtfully outlines his principles of practice to show how they not only shaped his career but how they can be used as a model for anyone who is grappling with the issues of organizational change.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This personal account of Richard Beckhard's many careers is must reading for managers and consultants alike. Beckhard, one of the founders and true innovators in organization development, has always been a master at designing interventions that produce learning and the management of change. Anyone interested in organizational, group, and individual learning will find this a fascinating account full of wisdom and insight." —Edgar H. Schein, Sloan Fellows Professor Emeritus and senior lecturer, Sloan School of Management, MIT

"Beckhard has done it again! He sets out to tell us a story?his own?and along the way passes on his great wisdom. He truly is a master teacher. Using the unfolding of his life and career, he teaches us how to be flexible, develop theory from practice, garner strength through experience, create change, and much more." —Fredda Herz Brown, Ph.D., principal, Metropolitan Group, Family Business Consulting

From the Inside Flap

For nearly fifty years Richard Beckhard has worked to help organizations function in a more humane and high-performing manner, and to empower people to be agents of change. A pioneer in organization development (OD), human relations training, and large systems change, he has both witnessed and personally influenced the evolution of the organization development field.Here, in his professional memoirs, Beckhard articulates his principles of practice, reflecting on how they affected his work and how the next generation of OD practitioners can build on them. In recounting his vast and varied experience as a top consultant, Beckhard provides a personal, yet broad and enlightening perspective on the history and theory of organizational change. Readers will gain new insights from the first-hand account of a career that parallels the establishment and growth of the OD field itself?an account in which Beckhard relates his experience creating one of the first professional training programs for OD practitioners, his work as a consultant and leadership trainer throughout the U.S. and abroad, and his development of models and tools that help people become better students and learners.To those grappling with the developments impacting today's business environments, this book offers a personal and incisive historical perspective on consulting and change management. Academics and practitioners in consulting and human resources management can use Beckhard's solid guidelines and conceptual models to hone their own expertise and benefit from his wisdom and unique experience.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 202 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1st edition (September 26, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787910120
• ISBN-13: 978-0787910129
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,865,598 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not his best work, October 19, 2000

By 

Business Consultant (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Agent of Change: My Life, My Practice (Jossey-Bass Business & Management) (Hardcover)

I expected Beckhard to tie his professional experiences to consulting practices and principles. Though that occured to an extent, I felt more like I was reading some sort of stream-of-conciousness narrative. The stories just seemed to ramble--no synthesis of ideas or cohesion of thought. The writing was mediocre at best.

Some points were valuable, but not worth the investment of time and money. If you don't care about how you spend your money or your time, perhaps this is the book for you.