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 Welcome to Allegra Consulting's September Newsletter.
I have just enjoyed a wonderful month in the UK mixing business with pleasure. A particular highlight was attending the International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change at Cambridge University. See below for my round up on the event which - aside from being held in the most superb setting - was well managed, informative and provided a great opportunity to compare change management notes with overseas colleagues.
We also spend Five Minutes with Dawn-Marie Turner - director of a Canadian Change Management Consultancy. Don't forget to check out our recently refreshed website to read previous editions of the newsletter and and catch up on all the latest change management news and views. We encourage all of our community to particpate in our online forum, which now no longer requires a login or ID - it's open to all willing participants! We hope you enjoy this month's newsletter. Warm regards, Helen Haley and the team at Allegra Consulting
I recently attended the International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change in Organisations, held at Cambridge University, Cambridge UK. Each day of the four day conference featured plenary sessions, parallel sessions and less formal discussions.
The conference was attended by change and knowledge management practitioners and academic change experts from across the globe which resulted in an interesting mix of perspectives on the challenges a variety of organisations and groups face today.
Knowledge, culture and change was discussed in the context of a range of industries and fields of expertise including manufacturing, higher education, social services, financial services, military, religious organisations and others.
An area of interesting debate which came up in the conversations I was involved in was the intersect between change management research and theory being developed by our change colleagues within higher education and research facilities and the real-life challenges faced by practising change professionals like Allegra Consulting. In the discussions I had with many new acquaintances this topic was of significant interest. There was a general consensus that conferences like this are pivotal in helping to forge closer links and collaboration between change and knowledge management practitioners across organisations and geographies.
The Ninth International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change in Organisations will be held at Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, 27th“29th July 2009. You can find out more at www.ManagementConference.com. - Helen Haley, Managing Director, Allegra Consulting
There is a significant amount of literature today focused on a wide variety of aspects of change management. In many instances, authors focus on the importance of having a change-capable organisation, but what does this actually mean and what does a change-capable organisation look like? Patricia McLagans article The Change Capable Organizationť takes an in-depth look at this fascinating topic with some very interesting insights and research based findings. It can be accessed free via this link: http://www.mclaganint.com/free/ This topic is of definitely worthy of further discussion, however one thing most change managers would agree on is that organisations who are able to take advantage of the fact that change is continual and happens at all levels in all organisations every day are one step closer to long-term success.
We are in the process of finalising our presenters at the first Allegra Consulting change management event in November. The event will centre around practical change management and will include reference to real change management challenges. Just a reminder for your diaries: the event will be held at The Hotel Charsfield, 478 St Kilda Road, Melbourne from 6.30-8.30pm including drinks and canapes. Please check out our website for regular updates on this and other events.
The Allegra Consulting referral program has been an outstanding success proving that using networks and word of mouth are still great ways to match change management candidates with suitable roles. Please continue to take advantage of this offer and let us know of change or project management friends or colleagues who are looking for the next "big thing". As a gesture of our appreciation, we will pay you a referral reward of $300 if you refer a candidate to us who is not currently on our database and we place the person in either a permanent role or a contract of at least 3 months duration within 3 months of the introduction.
Call us now on: 03 9614 1616 or email us to directly introduce new candidates to us “ whether they are friends, family or acquaintances - if we place them, well give you $300*. Terms and conditions apply*
Every month, we publish a short Q & A with some of the world's most experienced change management practitioners. This month we spend five minutes with:
Dawn-Marie Turner - President and Organisational Change Specialist, Turner Change Management Inc,
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
 Read Dawn-Marie's Q&A
Allegra Consulting is delighted to announce a relocation to a new premises at Level 3, 50 Market Street, Melbourne 3000. This marks an exciting year for Allegra Consulting and significant development of our business. Our new offices are in the heart of the CBD within easy access from all public transport links.
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