ABSTRACT
The aim of this chapter is to take eight 'obvious' claims about the nature of change and to suggest that these are misguided. These eight assumptions about change management are the basis of a reassuring narrative, which says that one understand the problems, and one know how to solve them. Everyone knows that progress is inevitable, that resistance to change is a natural human response, that the pace of change is increasing, that bureaucracy is rigid and bad, and so on. Conventional wisdom says that change today is affecting more aspects of our lives, at a faster pace than ever before. Conventional wisdom says that people need transformational leaders to deliver the scope and pace of the changes required by the current uncertain, competitive, and rapidly changing environment. Transformational leaders are defined as charismatic, visionary individuals who motivate and inspire their followers to excel, to lift their game, to 'go the extra mile'.
