Creating Contagious Commitment: Applying the Tipping Point to Organizational change is essential to anyone interested in the process of organizational change. It builds on the diverse resources in the Tipping Point computer simulation, which builds on lessons from public health, systems thinking and organizational theory. Creating Contagious Commitment simultaneously provides a solid foundation and helps the reader to think out-of-the-box to create contagious, sustainable change. Illustrations and examples of change initiatives bring the concepts to life and make it easy for the reader to apply them immediately to his or her own change initiative.

Dr. Andrea Shapiro is a friend and colleague from the days when we were both employed by Nortel Networks, a telecommunications firm recognized for "delivering communications capabilities that enhance the human experience, securing and protecting the world's most critical information."

As I opened the pages of my newly acquired copy of "Creating Contagious Commitment" I was thrilled to see another friend, Helen Sims, provide testimony for this work.

Andrea Shapiro's book: "Creating Contagious Commitment, Applying the Tipping Point to Organizational Change" provides valuable insight on how organizations can optimize their effectiveness through proved decision making.

Dr. Shapiro provides a unique perspective to organizational change because while working for Nortel Networks we experienced only one constant force... change... Throughout many projects and initiatives, such as our global attempt to fine-tune the Supply Chain Management of Nortel, from Customers to suppliers, we learned first hand how to utilize the Tipping Point computer simulations, developed by Dr. Shapiro.

Today, many of us still approach our jobs by utilizing the tools we developed, the strategies we learned to deal with the dynamics that underpin effective organizational change. Simply... best-in-class!

You could sum all of this book's content in just one page, even one paragraph: Design processes on the basis of usability. Include in process design activities people who will use the process. If you don't convince people about the merits of a new process, they won't use it, worse they will sabotage it. Once the process catches momentum, it will spread quickly.

Now, if you repeat this a thousand times with slightly different sentences, add a thousand "tipping point" phrases, a lot of tables and graphs of questionable use, voila, you have a book.

It is a wonder to me how it got such a high rating.

This is a 'must read' for anyone working with groups of people of any size in any organization. Great application for business, schools, churches, volunteers, anyone wanting to motivate people with a common goal, purpose, or vision.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone seeking insight into the peculiarities of organizational/workplace change. It has helped me understand why so many workplace "initiatives" seem doomed to failure almost before they have been launched. More important, the author provides concrete examples of remedies to prevent these failures. The author's writing style is clear, jargon-free, and to the point. The examples she uses to illustrate her ideas are clearly stated, and interesting. I read this book after reading the "The Tipping Point" (forgot the author's name, sorry) and found this book to be an excellent companion piece. It beautifully illustrates how tipping point theory is not only relevent but directly applicable to the work place.

In less than 200 pages, Dr. Shapiro provides an informative, engaging overview of change management concepts, principles and tactics. The inclusion of brief cases and summary graphics facilitate understanding and memorization of key points. As a management consultant and educator, I look forward to recommending this book to clients and students seeking practical information on making change work.