Leaders as agents of change (change management)

This chapter considers leaders as agents of change. A leader's role involves looking at what is happening in the present but with an eye on the future. Thus, police leaders need to meet the demands and challenges of managing changes in social attitudes, public expectations, new laws, advances in technological innovation and new working practices. The chapter explains that all changes implemented must be necessary, well considered and well planned. It considers how people react to change, citing how changes often test leadership skills to the utmost. People most often resist changes due to the shock of the new, inconvenience, uncertainty and fears concerning competence, symbolism, economy, status, or skill.