The Change Engineer

‘While reading The Change Engineer I was hit by how many things I’ve been involved in, both consciously and subconsciously, while competing at the highest level in elite sport. At British Cycling we must constantly adjust to stay ahead of the ever evolving and improving opposition. The only way to do that is through creating a high-performance collaborative environment. Garry has summed it up perfectly in this book, as well as highlighting a few areas where I think we could improve further. A must read for any team leaders.’ — Neil Fachie OBE, Paralympic Champion Cyclist ‘In The Change Engineer, Garry shares effective principles and tools for communicating strategy and leading change. The approach he presents has supported successful change and improved performance in my global teams.’ —Pia Aaltonen-Forsell, former CFO, Outokumpu, and Board Member, UPM, Finland ‘Garry’s book, The Change Engineer, really resonated with me, given my own career evolution from engineer to senior leader of an engineering organisation. It is a valuable read and practical guide for any senior leader of technical and knowledge-based organisations who seek to create environments that empower their people to be their best.’ — Chris Young, President and CEO, Plummer, Texas, USA ‘The Change Engineer is a much-needed leadership guide to navigating the complexities of our current world, in which digital transformation and driving ever better performance with dispersed teams, is our daily reality. In water infrastructure, people will remain at the heart of all we do, despite the advances in AI. Motivating people through storytelling, empathy and inclusion are important themes that underpin this book. Garry brings his vast experience and behavioural science, together with resonating examples, into practical guidance for leaders seeking to engage their people to deliver better outcomes.’ — Tania Flasck, Director of Water Operations, Southern Water, former Chair, Waterwise, and former Board Member, British Water ‘Garry’s The Change Engineer is the essential guide to navigating today’s infrastructure transitions, addressing challenges like energy security and achieving net zero. It underscores the necessity for enhanced collaboration, offering innovative strategies to foster more effective teamwork. This is the blueprint for transformative leadership.’ — John Davies CEng, Founder and CEO, 2DegreesKelvin ‘In his book, which is an easy read and an appropriate length, Garry sets out with clarity the critical human factors which either enable, or all too often derail, vital organisational evolution and more significant change initiatives, most of which frankly do not deliver. Armed with Garry’s insights, I defy you not to improve your and your organisation’s performance in both aspects.’ — Mark Ashton, Founder and CEO, Resolve ‘The perspectives on leading strategic change that Garry presents in The Change Engineer resonate and have fundamental benefits for my current challenges. Our purpose at Vaisala is to take every measure for the planet. Fulfilling this relies not just on innovative technology but on successfully navigating the complex interdependencies between people and organisations. The behavioural approach put forward in this book has given me an additional set of tools to drive the required collaboration and transformation.’ — Anne Jalkala, Chief Sustainability & Strategy Officer, Vaisala, Finland ‘This is an excellent book. Garry has combined his deep knowledge of human behaviour with an engineer’s practical orientation to create a clear roadmap for a high performing collaborative environment. He argues convincingly that this is essential to deliver transformational change at the speed needed today. While Garry draws from all his knowledge in infrastructure industries the lessons are equally applicable to all organisations and certainly the food and manufacturing industries where I’ve spent my working life.’ — Neil Campbell, former Leader of Walkers, Tropicana North America and Warburtons ‘The Change Engineer presents a concept for understanding and improving the behavioural aspects of strategic collaborations which are increasingly critical to addressing complex challenges in business, infrastructure and wider society. Conventional, “management process” based approaches struggle with the complexity and interdependence of the human, industrial, social, and political systems that need to connect and collaborate effectively across boundaries to meet these challenges. Garry offers a leadership model for influencing collaborative performance that I believe will help move us towards “Collaboration 2.0” which will be informed by cutting edge behavioural and digital innovation.’ — Michael Taylor, CEO and Co-founder, SchellingPoint, Pennsylvania, USA ‘I have known Garry for over 15 years, and we share a passion for promoting and enabling collaboration. The water sector faces a demanding set of interdependent challenges and opportunities. In this complex landscape success depends on water professionals and wider stakeholders working even more closely together, combining their expertise and capabilities. The Change Engineer presents Garry’s valuable insights that support the leadership and collaboration essential for our industry to tackle the challenges and pursue the opportunities.’ — Professor Tony Conway, Director, British Water, Chair, Water Industry Forum, and former water utility Executive Director