Balanced Diversity

Karen is a self-professed organizational change management rebel with a cause. She is prepared to push the boundaries of the profession and challenge traditional ways of thinking.Originally a service management professional with a passion for the people side of change, Karen made the ‘formal’ shift into the organizational change management profession in 2011. She authored a white paper, which unexpectedly turned into a book that introduced a new and innovative framework for ensuring changes become embedded into the fabric of the organization. Balanced Diversity was hailed as ground-breaking by the service management industry—the target audience at the time. Ten years later, Karen has revised the publication for a more agile and digitally enabled world, and broadened its applicability to every industry sector. The Balanced Diversity framework is a guide for every leader of change who needs access to a wide range of practices. It advocates ‘the use of a diverse’ yet balanced approach. The practices within the framework are arranged into groups (quadrants) of informal and formal practices that either deliver on current commitments (fulfillment) or move the organization farther along the path to change (innovation). The key is to select a balance of practices from each group in order to successfully embed change into the organization. Karen’s other publications include: ‘Game On! Tactics to Win When Leading Change is Everyone’s Business’ ‘Unleash the Resiliator within Resilience: A Handbook for Individuals’ ‘Unleash the Resiliator within Resilience: A Handbook for Leaders’ Her work has been acclaimed as inspiring, thought-provoking, insightful, powerful, challenging and energizing. About the Author: Karen Ferris is an unashamed organizational change management rebel with a cause. She likes to challenge the status quo but only when her reason for doing so is defensible. Karen began her working life in IT but has spent a large part of her career in the IT service management space where she is recognized globally for her expertise and insight. She considered herself an accidental author back then. She stumbled across a framework for embedding change, set out to write a whitepaper about it and ended up with a book on her hands. That was the moment where she was propelled into the world of organizational change management. Karen is a sought after international keynote speaker, coach, mentor, facilitator, and trainer. Born in Liverpool, UK, she immigrated to Australia in 1998. She lives with her wife, Breed, in Melbourne. She is an avid Liverpool Football Club supporter, an Elvis fan, has an obsession for shoes, and is a self-confessed arctophile—you might want to Google that.