Change the Culture, Change the Game: The Breakthrough Strategy for Energizing Your Organization and Creating Accountability for Results

by Roger Connors, Tom Smith

Three-time New York Times bestselling authors Roger Connors and Tom Smith show how leaders can achieve record-breaking results by quickly and effectively shaping their organizational culture to capitalize on their greatest asset-their people.

Change the Culture, Change the Game joins their classic book, The Oz Principle , and their recent bestseller, How Did That Happen? , to complete the most comprehensive series ever written on workplace accountability. Based on an earlier book, Journey to the Emerald City , this fully revised installment captures what the authors have learned while working with the hundreds of thousands of people on using organizational culture as a strategic advantage.

Genres: Business, Leadership, Nonfiction, Management, Cultural, Self Help, Psychology

240 pages, Hardcover

First published December 8, 2010

Reviews

[Denisita · Rating 2 out of 5]

I believed in the message and attempted to read this book, but found it much too complex. I couldn't get into the model or pyramid and unfortunately had to bail early on. I'm an avid reader but prefer an easy, understandable read backed my theory and instructions for practice. Might just be too intellectual for my taste.

[Andralynn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Okay, so I didn't technically finish this book, but I can tell you that I didn't need to. It says the exact same thing over and over in every chapter. So if you read the intro and the first couple of chapters, you get all the information you need.

[Elese Roger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was selected by my Leadership Book Club, and it was fantastic. Lots of wonderful validation. More importantly it anchors accountability, good basic leadership acumen and the power of people when it comes to change. Capturing hearts, minds and souls - it provides you the formula for doing that...

[Jenifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is repetitive and ridiculous. I think the authors should have stopped with The Oz Principle. In addition to feeling like I read the same book that I had already read (The Oz Principle), this book made me feel like I was reading a math book. There were maybe three useful things in it.

[Iman Shabani · Rating 2 out of 5]

(It's more of a 1.5) Can't really recommend reading it.

[Emilie · Rating 1 out of 5]

You know those meetings that could have been an email? Not only does this book encourage you to have lots of those (please don't), it also is a book that could have been a short blog post or white paper. But those don't make much money, do they?

There's really nothing of substance in the whole thing. It says the same thing over and over, and doesn't say much. There are ridiculous graphics that don't clarify anything; just a bunch of arrows going around in a circle with no explanation, and pyramids galore with slightly more explanation.

The authors would have been wise to have made this more concise with explicit steps and recommendations. My guess is they didn't do that because they don't really have any actionable recommendations beyond giving people praise at the beginning of each meeting.

1/10 would not implement this change process.

[Robert Chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book as a follow-up to The OZ Principle which to this day I consider one of the best books I have ever read relating to business. You could read this book without first having read The OZ Principle, however, I believe you would get far more out of this book having first done so.

The book is great for the same reasons The OZ Principle is - it's great information, provided in a simple and digestible format which allows the reader to start taking immediate action. Don't be fooled by the above statement, the information may be simple, but like anything related to accountability, the results come from a deep commitment to the actions needed to create change.

The authors focus on defining, building, and creating organization wide adoption of cultural beliefs as the means to change the culture. The vehicle to achieving these results is joint accountability to create experiences which change personal beliefs. Only when beliefs are changed will the proper actions be taken which lead to achieving the key results.

Similar to what I said in my review of The OZ Principle, there are lots of books written on this topic, but few will offer the value this one does. I highly recommend this book, that is of course after you read The OZ Principle.

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alright but very repetitive. Great tips and ideas but not sure of the practical use over time.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting premise but the text is clearly predicated on the authors' previous book so reading this feels like coming into a movie half way through.

[Julie Spencer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has certainly taken me a while to read, it is one that I have dipped in and out of, I read it at my leisure and not so much for pleasure.

I've read so many books of late which discuss the importance of accountability. In my youth this was unheard of and it was a given through training and education that accountability was core to the importance of being and attaining a great occupation in the future.

Accountability encourages good practice, it generates a sense of enthusiasm and a sense of pride in our actions which intentionally achieve the results.

Maybe if I hadn't have read this book I wouldn't have learned through others experiences the importance of what accountability is, and why it is essential, not just in organisational practice, in everyday life.

I do recommend this book, but it isn't one that you can read swiftly, put down and walk away, the importance of this Hardcover is to keep it with you as a point of reference and a reminder that accountability generates a focus, aligns people and connects people to work productively both independently and as part of a supportive team.

It may have taken some time, overall, I enjoyed learning from the ideas shared within this book by Roger Connors.

[Robert Bogue]

Most books on change conveniently dodge the challenge of culture. After all, changing an organizational culture is difficult. It’s easier to deliver a tactical project than it is to change the way that people think. However, Roger Connors and Tom Smith rightfully think that until you change the beliefs embedded into the culture, you’ll never achieve the breakthrough results you really want. In Change the Culture, Change the Game: The Breakthrough Strategy for Energizing Your Organization and Creating Accountability for Results, they lay out a process for getting different results based on the foundation of accountability and beliefs.

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[Tiffany · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd describe this book as a whitepaper made into a book when it should've stayed a whitepaper. The premise could be summed up with a view visuals in an infographic format with some case studies to provide application. Instead, it drones on for over 200 pages using algebraic equation-like style to convey current state and desired state as if that makes it more mysterious or impressive (C1 to C2, R1 to R2, B1 to B2, etc.). It felt like this book was written just to sell consulting services versus being written to facilitate self-learning.

[Juan González Núñez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Knowledge Level: Basic - Intermediate
Audience: Leaders and managers that want to understand tools in order to change the organization's culture.
Review: The author explains the concepts of the organization's culture and in the second part how to apply changes that stick to the company.
Lessons Learned: Levels of change: Temporary, transitional, and transformational. Mistakes on cultural change: focus only on results.

[JP · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good concepts but they weren't additive for me and the framework involves a lot of lists and levels of competence, which are organized into single-letter variables and exponents. It would be a useful system to follow, but seemed too complex for someone who already has systems of their own. There were some useful reminders about how to create real change through clear measures of success and by addressing the root cultural and belief systems.

[Mike Budzik · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some great examples and really good principles, but there is also A LOT of repetition. This audiobook could have been 5.25 hours instead of 7.5 (or 175 pages instead of 250 for the print edition).

The audiobook came with a great PDF that bridged the gap between the audiobook and the print edition. That was great feature and made the audiobook edition a reasonable choice for me.

[Matthew Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a very focused culture management toolkit. It is part of a larger set of tools developed by a consulting firm. The nice thing here is that the book contains both some of the introspection that leadership teams need to do to make culture change happen but also gives concrete tools on how to engage with the workforce.

[Jim · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is not a book for modern leaders. It’s incredibly top down and bottom-line focused. The employee is not as important as the revenue. The concepts aren’t bad but the processes are. The graphic design and use of visuals could have used an expert in communication with visuals. An upside down triangle for foundational explanations? Really? Uggghhh.

[Esteban · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting approach, presentedwith vast details and examples.
It'd be nice though to have further examples of difficulties encountered during the process, like bosses resisting the changes or playong against it.

[Nikolas Fox · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was not as rife with privilege and victim blaming as the Oz Principle, and had some good points about how to change the culture of an organization. It was still quite redundant and could have been condensed to about half the size.

[Jack · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots of plugs for their other book. Breakdown of present and future culture states are in the form of coded variables (A1,C2). Experiences instill beliefs. Ask: What do you think? Why do you think that? What would you do?

[Abby Epplett · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author drones on about the same thing in every lengthy chapter, using unnecessary acronyms and math-like equations to beat his opinions about changing the culture (i.e. turning employees into mindless, complicit drones) into the reader's head.

[Tamara Whitters · Rating 3 out of 5]

More complex than needed

The overall writing was not as clear as it could be. The authors needed more examples, stories and implementation plans.

[Jay Hennessey · Rating 2 out of 5]

UGGG!!!!

Repetitive, Repetitive, Repetitive — worst of all, I was not a huge fan of the content either.

[Tracy Brower · Rating 1 out of 5]

Solid information but very, very dry and also quite basic. Includes a lot of sales talk for the authors’ previous book and consulting.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Concepts are sound and proven but the presentation drags on and is very repetitive from prior writings.

[Shane Young · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book with good concepts. Due to the nature of the book, I feel that the audience is limited to those that want to change the culture and have the power to.

[Nacho Bassino · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good framework for thinking and implementing culture change.
Some specific examples mixed with "theory" and a way to think about culture change.

[Becky Garbe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good strategy and useful tools for driving a culture of accountability. Book seemed to repeat itself, otherwise would have rated higher.

[Irma Parone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good points, good read. REcommend

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for guiding and mapping out change with the idea that accountability and culture are the most important pieces and experiences matter and shape beliefs and actions and therefore results.