Warren Bennis: An Original (and Originator) for Change Agents
June 7, 2006
Following Daniel's post, John Kotter, FEMA Reform and Advice to Change Agents, I felt compelled to look further into the work of Warren Bennis. Many articles discuss his ideas on the scoping of leadership, but I found a particularly interesting article that highlights his career as a change agent, and an inspiration for the term 'change agent' itself.
Since the early 1960’s, Warren Bennis dove headfirst into the topics of leadership and change agent development. After receiving his doctorate in Economics at MIT, he discovered a discomfort with a strictly quantitative way of looking of at social science, and he turned more towards the human side of business, management, and leadership. This led him to begin thinking about the idea of ‘change agents’, a term he first used in a book he co-authored in 1961 called The Planning of Change. The Change Agent paper quotes Bennis saying, "We may have been the first (1961) to write about change-agents. But the phrase was ‘in the air; and I’m not sure who coined it." According to the article, Bennis’ book, "crystallized the nascent field of organizational development, drawing together the latest social science thinking about how to transform static, authoritarian, and bureaucratic institutions into vibrant, creative, and democratic workplaces." Bennis found innovative ways to classify leaders, and studied them within the businesses or organizations they led, and by certain behaviors they exhibited. Through this contextual lens, Bennis became known for breaking down attributes of great leadership into practical bits of wisdom.
Following the publication of The Planning of Change, Bennis continued to write about leadership and change agents, while also making a conscious effort to be one himself. Even beyond the publication of his first book, whether he was serving as a university provost or president, acting as a presidential advisor, or playing the role of a thought leader, Bennis demonstrated that the concept of a change agent is nothing new. ‘Change Agent’ is an idea that is being continually refined and strengthened over time by people such as Bennis, whose work on thought leadership, management, and change agent development paved the way for change agents for decades to come.
For some short articles by or about Warren Bennis on leadership, check out:
The Leadership Advantage
The Secrets of Great Groups
Interview with Warren Bennis (Management Skills & Development magazine)
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