Psychological Keys to Managing Change, Especially during Tough Times

Thursday, September 24th, 2009, 5:45 PM - 7:15 PM, Uris 301

Science Commentary

Joel Brockner, the Phillip Hettleman Professor of Business and Chair of the Management Division, Columbia Business School

Practical Skills

Todd Jick, Professor of Management, Columbia Business School; President, Global Leadership Services, Inc.

Abstract:

The current economic climate creates the need for significant change in many firms (e.g., downsizings, mergers/acquisitions, relocations) yet also makes such changes more challenging to enact without perceptions of injustice and damaged morale. Especially in such times, effective leaders have to understand and manage the underlying psychology of employees' responses to change. This session will provide research-based insights about the psychology of justice perceptions and how to manage them, in combination with some practice-based guidelines for managing change. Joel Brockner, the Phillip Hettleman Professor of Business and Chair of the Management Division, will discuss his research on the psychology of process and outcome fairness. Todd Jick, CBS Professor and President of Global Leadership Services, Inc., will draw upon his extensive work helping guide organizations through some of their most challenging transitions. Participants will have the opportunity to take part in several exercises designed to enhance self-awareness of one's habitual change management style and to develop a more comprehensive change management strategy.

About the Speakers

Joel Brocker is the Phillip Hettleman Professor of Business and the chair of Columbia Business School's Management Division. Within the broader field of organizational behavior, Professor Brockner is well known for his work in several areas, including the effects of organizational downsizing on the productivity and morale of the “survivors,” management of organizational change, self processes in organizations and managerial judgment and decision making. He teaches the core course Leading and Managing in Organizations and the electives Leadership and Managerial Decision Making, and he is an active consultant and speaker to companies worldwide. Read more about Professor Brockner

Todd Jick is the Senior Lecturer in Discipline in Business at Columbia Business School. He teaches the MBA course Organizational Change. Professor Jick is also President of Global Leadership Services, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in leadership and executive development support. Read more about Professor Jick