Organization Change: Theory and Practice, Essay Example

Chapter one of Burke’s “Organization Change: Theory and Practice”, sources for understanding organizational change are covered, including . In chapter two of Burke’s “Organization Change: Theory and Practice”, the author covers how organizations should rethink change within their own environment. The first two chapters both deal with the concept of change within an organization, combined with how to deal with such changes and how they may occur in any given company or organization.

In the book, Burke describes the majority of change within an organization as “unplanned and gradual”. Planned changes with an organization are usually accounted for, and are not typical everyday occurrences. Chapter one covers various studies and approaches to dealing with change within an organization. Burke discusses how even small changes within a large organization can cause drastic ripples in the blueprint of an organization. Burke discusses external environmental factors that are shaping today’s organizations that differ from organizations of the past.

Chapter two, titled “Rethinking Organization Change”, deals with new ways to approach change within a growing organization. Burke claims that the efforts of most executives, managers and administrators to cope with change in a growing and dynamic workplace is typically unsuccessful. Burke presents the paradox of planned organization change- a theory where organizations typically are able to deal with planned changes much easier than unplanned changes within an organization. Burke then discusses not only how to cope with organizational change, but how it develops within an organization as well.