Dr. Alexis Marrero presented managing Complex Change to the CSA conference (Council of school Supervisors and Administrators). Dr. Marrero completed his doctoral program with the SAGE colleges in partnership with CITE.

1. “Education is the most powerful weapon
which you can use to change the world”
- Mandela

2. Managing Complex Change
Presented by: Dr. Alex Marrero
Principal. TEAM 254

3. You are the CEO
• You are responsible for the initiation of change
• You are the change-agent that makes a difference
Tale of the CEO and the Teacher
What Do Teachers Make?

4. Let’s Talk About Change
• What is change in your school building?
• What is complex change?

5. Personal Experiences
with change
“Change is constant”

6. NYC Department of
Education
• Over 1.1 million students
• Over 1,700 schools
• Over 1,700 Principals
• 41 Superintendents
• 1 Chancellor
• Total Budget of over $25 Billion

7. What Does The Research Say?
“People don’t resist change, They resist being changed”
Peter Senge
• Help people see the need for change with compelling,
eye-catching dramatic situations to visualize problems
and solutions.
• Let people feel as they are hit with the reality of their
situation and feel the need to act.
• Let people take their emotionally charged ideas into
action (Kotter, 1996).

8. Think about this…
• If you’ve ever tried to change anything, you know
how hard it is. How do you go about getting your
message across to truly change people’s behavior?
• While most believe change happens by making
people think differently, that isn’t the case…
Change happens when you make people
feel differently.

10. 1. Create a sense of urgency so that people start telling each
other “Let’s go, we need to change things!”
2. Pull together a guiding team powerful enough to guide a
big change.
3. Create clear, simple, uplifting visions and sets of strategies.
4. Communicate the vision through simple, heartfelt messages
sent through multiple channels so that people begin to buy
into the change
Stages of Change

11. 5. Empower people by removing obstacles to the vision.
6. Create short-term wins that provide momentum.
7. Maintain momentum so that wave after wave of
change is possible.
8. Make change stick by nurturing a new culture
(Kotter, 2002, p.7).
Stages of Change
Continued

12. ?
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13. What should we be asking ourselves?
• In what ways have schools changed during your professional
career?
• What has been the effect of these changes on educators
personally and on their relationship with one another?
• What effect have these changes had on expectations for school
leaders?

14. It’s all about Leadership
CHANGE is INEVITABLE
PROGRESS is OPTIONAL
Changing Your Behavior - Leads to Teamwork

15. "One key to a successful leadership is
continuous personal change. Personal
change is a reflection of our inner
growth and empowerment."
— Dr. Robert E. Quinn
Dr. Alex Marrero, November 5, 2016
CSA Leadership Conference