Event

How to Harness Power and Be an Effective Social Changemaker

Host Organization: Stanford Social Innovation Review

About

This 90-minute SSIR Live! program will…

  • Define what power is, where it comes from, and dispel harmful misconceptions about it
  • Illuminate the three key sources of power available to each of us and how they can be used for social good
  • Spotlight how to harness power for a positive impact on individuals, organizations, and society
  • Explore strategies for implementing change, including through the “Agitate, Innovate, Orchestrate” framework

Introducing positive change in organizations and society can prove very challenging. Numerous studies show that people tend to instinctively oppose such initiatives because they diverge from well-established norms and disrupt existing power structures. So social changemakers must consider people’s attitudes and then work to get them on board. Some do succeed—often spectacularly—at transforming their organizations, communities, or sectors of society. What factors enable one changemaker to succeed in a situation when the vast majority fail? 

In this LIVE session, Julie Battilana, professor of organizational behavior at Harvard Business School and professor of social innovation at Harvard Kennedy School, will reveal what successful change agents do differently. Leveraging nearly two decades of experience researching and teaching about power and social change across the globe—including her Agitate, Innovate, Orchestrate framework—Battilana will show leaders and teams that the key to successfully implementing change is understanding how power works, then using one’s power effectively and responsibly. She will cover the fundamentals of power, debunk the common myths surrounding it, and unveil how to harness power for a positive impact on individuals, organizations, and society.

By explaining what power is, dispelling common but pernicious misconceptions about it, and explaining how to identify one’s sources of power, this 90-minute live session will help participants understand and navigate power in their relationships, organizations, and society and empower them to be more effective changemakers. This session will elaborate and underscore why power is not inherently dirty but instead is energy that can be used for social good.

As part of your registration, you are entitled to a complimentary copy of the eBook, Power for All, written by Professors Julie Battilana (lead speaker of this webinar) and Tiziana Casciaro.  

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