A common view of change is that it must start from the top of the organization. However, change is often instigated and led from pockets within an organization. In fact many roles, such as IT, engineering, project management, process improvement, strategic planning and internal HR/OD practitioners, require influencing other people in the organization to change the way they work.  Since senior leaders can’t do all the work of change, managers and employees further down on the org chart are frequently tapped to take on change in addition to their day job.

At this meeting, we will explore the role of the internal change agent, with its risks, rewards, advantages and challenges. You will learn how to leverage the role and how to best influence organizational change without authority.

As founder of Enclaria LLC, Heather Stagl equips individuals to push the boulder uphill at work.  She provides a number of resources for organizational change practitioners, including individual coaching, training programs and step-by-step workbooks.  Heather is a blogger and radio host of “The Change Agent’s Dilemma:  How to Influence Change Without Authority” on BlogTalkRadio.  She is the author of the book, 99 Ways to Influence Change: The Essential Guide to Making an Impact at Work, as well as the brand new Change Agent's Guide, Irresistible: Design and Influence Change Without Getting Stuck.

Heather has implemented a wide variety of strategic initiatives as an internal change agent, including IT systems, a process improvement program, and strategy execution with the Balanced Scorecard.  She was the Director of Organizational Effectiveness at The Jel Sert Company, a mid-size food manufacturer headquartered in the Chicago suburbs.  After moving to Atlanta, she conducted a two-year working group program on strategy execution at Balanced Scorecard Collaborative.  She holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University and an MBA in Leadership and Change Management from DePaul University, and she completed coach training at The Coaches Training Institute.  Heather was the 2011 Chair of Organization Change Alliance, a learning community of organization development practitioners in metro Atlanta.