Politics is an aspect of everyday life within organizations, and is a force that inhibits individual and collective behaviour. If not fully understood, it can impede organizational change and development. In order to minimise the political aspects of organizational dynamics there is a need to understand the extent to which organizational culture brings about politicised conformance and how individuals shape their behaviour through self-interest to conform-sense-giving and sense-making nexus-thus moderating the degree of change initiatives. The Politics of Organizational Change explores the relationship between self-interest, power, politics and managing organizational change from a theoretical perspective. It encourages the fundamental questioning of the relationship between self-interest, power and control inherent within organizational change, and discusses the attendant implications for managing change. It will be of value to those who require a text that goes beyond set patterns of coverage found in textbooks dealing with managing change.

Politics is an aspect of everyday life within organizations, and is a force that inhibits individual and collective behaviour. If not fully understood, it can impede organizational change and development. In order to minimise the political aspects of organizational dynamics there is a need to understand the extent to which organizational culture brings about politicised conformance and how individuals shape their behaviour through self-interest to conform-sense-giving and sense-making nexus-thus moderating the degree of change initiatives. The Politics of Organizational Change explores the relationship between self-interest, power, politics and managing organizational change from a theoretical perspective. It encourages the fundamental questioning of the relationship between self-interest, power and control inherent within organizational change, and discusses the attendant implications for managing change. It will be of value to those who require a text that goes beyond set patterns of coverage found in textbooks dealing with managing change.

(Book). Nestled at the southern end of California's San Joaquin Valley, the city of Bakersfield is best known for farming, oil fields, and a unique brand of country music called the "Bakersfield Sound." The term is generally used to describe a hard-edged honkytonk sensibility characterized by sharp, twanging Fender Telecaster guitars, crying pedal steel, and straight-ahead country vocals a sound that thrived in Bakersfield clubs in the 1950s and '60s. The music emanating from these venues was by no means homogeneous. One need only compare Buck Owens's razor-sharp honky-tonk attack with Merle Haggard's western swing and blues-inflected recordings to recognize that there is no single Bakersfield Sound. The label is best understood as an umbrella term encompassing a number of strains developed by Haggard, Owens, and their West Coast contemporaries. The Bakersfield Sound is a full-color exploration of what social and economic factors led to this country music hotbed, as well as a look at the many stars who rose to fame with roots in Bakersfield. Country luminaries with ties to the area include Bob Willis, Leon Payne, Jean Shepherd, Dallas Frazier, Bonnie Owens, Barbara Mandrell, and Ferlin Husky. Written by the experts at the Country Music Hall of Fame, The Bakersfield Sound describes with rich words and classic photos how the deep roots of the Bakersfield Sound are so much more than just a reaction to the pop-oriented Nashville Sound.

The age-old Christmas Story is a narrative many of us know by heart. Imagine, then, hearing the sacred tale from fresh voices to re-awaken the awe that originally inspired storytellers. "Mary's Night" illumines the Nativity as a poetic Christmas treasure of fourteen perspectives of one very special night, told by an unlikely cast of narrators. See the trip to Bethlehem through the eyes of a Donkey, feel the experience of a Manger that held the newborn Christ, and sense the innocent connection between an awkward young Lamb and the infant Lamb of God. Accompanied by some of the most beautiful works of art from the 15th, 16th, and 19th centuries, the unique poems of "Mary's Night" will inspire you to share this Story with your loved ones for generations to come.