Leading Change

The step up and step back approach

Elsbeth Johnson

Step Up Early – Be clear about the outcomes you want, and align the organisation around the change you have asked for
Step Back Later – Give it the time it needs, and don’t change your mind until it’s done

Thursday 2 October 2025 | 1:30 pm
Zoom
1h 30mins

In order to fully participate in this virtual event, you will need a Zoom account, a webcam and microphone.

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About Leading Change

Strategic change efforts frequently fail and are nearly always harder than they need to be. At this event we’ll explore what leaders need to do differently to deliver change that sticks.

Based on a decade researching how to deliver strategic change in practice and asking managers what they needed from leaders, rather than just asking leaders what they did, the Step Up, Step Back approach challenges some of our most fundamental beliefs about how to lead change – and what we even consider to be 'leadership'.

Dr Elsbeth Johnson will reveal how to use this powerful method to successfully execute strategic change in your organisation. The result is not only change that sticks, but empowered, motivated managers who can get on with delivering change.

About Elsbeth Johnson

Dr Elsbeth Johnson is a Senior Lecturer at MIT’s Sloan School of Management and a Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics. Prior to joining MIT, she taught at London Business School for five years, having previously worked as an equity analyst and a corporate strategist. Through her consultancy firm, SystemShift, she works extensively with organizations and their leaders, advising them on strategy, leadership and change. Elsbeth is author of Step Up, Step Back: How to Really Deliver Strategic Change in Your Organization.

Huge thanks for yesterday's session, I’m still buzzing from it and reflecting on how impactful it was for a virtual event.

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