OTUG January 15, 2008 Meeting

Abstract

I recently talked to an executive who described middle management at his company as the "clay layer." The changes he was trying to implement at the company seemed to take hold with his team, and gain support in the trenches, but never seemed to seep through that layer of middle management.

It doesn't have to be that way.

In this talk, we'll look at why middle management gets a bad rap and explore ways to leverage middle management as a force for change.

Esther Derby is founder of Esther Derby Associates, Inc. (www.estherderby.com) a consulting firm dedicated to helping teams and managers reach new levels of productivity. Esther's clients value her expertise, pragmatic approach, and her ability to reframe difficult interactions toward creative possibilities. Esther has worked with Fortune 500 firms as well as small niche market firms.

Esther speaks and leads workshops internationally and is a regular contributor to several publications. Her articles have appeared in Better Software, Software Development, CrossTalk and on-line at ayeconference.com, cio.com, stickyminds.com, and scrumalliance.org. Esther is co-author of Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great (with Diana Larsen), and Behind Closed Doors: Secrets of Great Management (with Johanna Rothman). One of the founders of the Scrum Alliance, Esther is currently serving on the Board of the Agile Alliance. She has an MA in Organizational Leadership.