Introduction

The view is widely shared that the world continues to change and the magnitude, speed, influence, as well as the unpredictability of change, are greater than ever before in today’s society (Burnes, 2009; Cameron and Green, 2015). To keep up with the rapidly changing world and enable the organizations to survive in the competitive market, undertaking the change and managing the change across the organizations has become a crucial topic (Kumavat, 2012).

Organizational leaders play an important role in managing the change, and they are encouraged to lead rather than manage (Cameron and Green, 2015). Although there are many definitions of leadership, it is possible to describe leadership as ‘a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal’ (Northouse, 2013). It is leaders’ responsibility to identify the need for change, to plan carefully, and to lead others to implement the change in organizations.

Numerous approaches and models have already been developed, attempting to help manage change effectively. The aim of this essay is to assess the three approaches of leading change in organizations: the planned approach, Organization Development and the emergent approach. It begins with an understanding and evaluation of these three approaches. By comparing these approaches, there will be potential to get some implications for implementing the change in organizations.

Evaluation of the Three Approaches

The Planned Approach

Planned change was first put forward by Kurt Lewin to differentiate changes that were consciously embarked on by an organization from those unintended changes, for instance changes that might take place by chance, by impulse, by mistake or might be forced in an organization (Marrow, 1969). Since planned change first introduced by Kurt Lewin, lots of models have been developed. Among