This is a DIFFERENT book. It made me see myself, my subordinates, colleagues and bosses in the characters. It fully utilizes fable "tools" to guide us through the process of change. Choosing the pengiun, that resourceless creature, was very intelligent in order to prove that change is ALWAYS possible - when there is a will there is way.

I have read John Kotter's previous work on leading change so I was curious as to whether his concepts could be effectively conveyed in fable form. To my delight, I discovered that Kotter put his own findings about the power of stories to work to create an engaging story that conveys his principles about organizational change more powerfully. By reading this book, my staff and colleagues remember the steps and continue to be guided by them as we transform our work group and help to transform our company. I highly recommend this book!

The only other book I've seen do this so well is Squawk!: How to Stop Making Noise and Start Getting Results, which uses a seagull manager to illustrate the problem managers are having these days with swooping in at the last minute, squawking up a storm and dumping orders riddled with formulaic advice upon their people. Highly recommended as well.

I read this book after seeing a review in the New York Times. It is a quick read, and I totally fell for the fable, as a way to tell a story with a message.

I realized after reading Our Iceburg is Melting, that this process sounded familiar, and remembered that I had Kotter's Leading Change on my bookshelf from the time I was working on my MPA. So I took that book off the shelf and read that one again. It reinforced the story of the penguins. I also checked out Kotter's web site www.ouriceburgismelting.com, which has some really cute videos that illustrate the specific steps in the 8 step change process.

There are a variety of testimonials and training videos there, which I found useful. From that web site I learned that Kotter had just finished a book on the first step A Sense of Urgency. This step, which is by far the hardest to accomplish, was the real issue for me. I bought that book too.

I have been working in the nonprofit or government sector my whole career and realize that change is hard everywhere, but especially in places that are not motivated by money. How do you get complacent organizations to move forward and take risks? Kotter spends virtually half of Our Iceburg is melting on the first step, creating urgency.

Fred, the middle management penguin who identifies there is a problem (melting), has to manage up and down the penguin food chain to make people understand the iceburg is indeed melting. He is thwarted by No No, the penguin who resists change, actively and passively. No No is my favorite in the entire book, if only because Kotter has personalized through this penguin, the folks who are basic blockers for change in organizations where I consult. Kotter offers some great insights in A Sense of Urgency about how to deal with No Nos (and those of their ilk) that could be useful in a nonprofit context.

Kotter's 8 step change process makes sense. This fable is an easy way to engage a group of people in the many steps needed to make organizational change happen. This book is worth your time.

Kotter's book is unlike any business parable I've seen (except for one, I'll get to that in a minute). It uses animals (penguins on an iceberg) as a metaphor for the challenging environment in which corporations operate today and their resistance to organizational change. Unlike the over simplified Who Moved My Cheese, these animals have far more human characteristics that pose challenges like those you face in your work and they'll remind you of people you know. Hard to fully explain how it works so well, but, believe me, it works. Highly recommended.

The only other book I've seen do this so well is Squawk!: How to Stop Making Noise and Start Getting Results, which uses a seagull manager to illustrate the problem managers are having these days with swooping in at the last minute, squawking up a storm and dumping orders riddled with formulaic advice upon their people. Highly recommended as well.

My daughter gave me a copy of this book. As a corporate human resources director, she believed I would enjoy the subject. I can truly say that she underestimated the enjoyment I derived from these penguins.

This book is a must read for anyone that manages people with all of their quirks and baggage. While the book is largely common sense, it opens your eyes to various tools to stimulate discussion and engage in effective communication.

There is no better way to teach a topic than to build an interesting story around the topic. This empowers the subject in a way that straightforward narrative and lecture style can never achieve. Keep writing John Kotter. It is a great book. Michael L. Gooch, SPHR Author of Wingtips with Spurs

I am usually more into serious literature, but one of my team mates in an on-line course suggested that our group use this book for an educational leadership project. It was an excellent suggestion. Not only was the book "short and sweet", but within its pages, I could actually see myself and the role that I play within the structural system of my school. I am a die hard for doing things the "old way" and this little fable opened my eyes to seeing the importance of change. If we don't adapt, we won't survive. It is also very amusing to read about the plight of these little penguins and their cooperative effort to solve the crisis of their iceberg population. The illustrations are also well done and very entertaining. I would definitely recommend this book. It's great! It really brings the point home without becoming offensive.

It took me less than two hours to read this book, and it was truly worth the time. Presented in "fable" format about a group of penguins, the story contains a true test of how to deal with change...a change that will come whether you want it to or not.

I work in the media world, and would make this mandatory reading for anyone in that space. Most people in our world even see the iceberg melting, but are hesitant to do anything about it. This book throws out learning principles like Dr. Seuss, with style and effectiveness. Highly recommend.

This bok is a quick read, probably less than an hour. The book talks about how to recognize when change is needed, and how to manage a group through the process of change, but does it in a fun way. The book is a fable, the story of a group of penguins who discover that the iceberg they live on is melting, and have to figure out what (if anything) to do about it.

While it sounds silly, and does contain some humor, sometimes a simple story can convey many important lessons. This is one of those times. In reading the story, I kept thinking back to teams I'd worked on, and seeing similarities between particular colleagues and particular penguins.

As the authors point out at the end, much of the power of this story is in it's simplicity. By stripping it down to the essential details, it's much easier to follow the process. They also point out that if a group of people are all familiar with the story, it gives them a common language to use when dealing with these issues.

This book uses a fable to illustrate the importance of understanding change as a constant, and the need for us to embrace this fact through looking at the broader spectrum.

Although "Our Iceberg" is written in the style of an illustrated children's book, my first reaction to this fable was a bit of confusion. That was especially true of JK's first point, creating a sense of urgency. How does one identify when it's appropriate to do this? The fable conveniently is based on a life-and-death matter facing the penguin colony. But are all changes a company needs to make of the same priority? Isn't there a "cry wolf" effect if you don't modulate the volume on some matters? The book doesn't give any guidance about this.

But the more I thought about the book, the more surprised I was to find some parallels with, of all things, Communism. (NOTE: SOME SPOILERS FOLLOW.) For example:
@ the communal sharing of fish for the Scouts (@102-103);
@ the Heroes Day Celebration (like Heroes of the Revolution) (@102-109; attribution of this idea to a child is also a typical literary trope from Maoist propaganda);
@ the use of saturation propaganda, in the form of slogans and posters all over the iceberg and even underwater (@80-81);
@ the silencing of dissent (No-No, the dissenting penguin) in the form of constant harassment by a team member who followed him everywhere and jabbered at him (@90-91)-- like the techniques used against dissenters during the Cultural Revolution in China;
@ the glorified image of the team of five change leaders, especially the picture @ 55-56, where they have a kind of glow behind them -- very similar to all those Soviet-style pictures;
@ the way the the original Head Penguin becomes a "grandfather figure" for the whole colony (@122) -- much like propaganda posters showing Lenin and, later, Mao similing at children and dandling babies; and even
@ the threatened destruction of the iceberg "from within" due to its own internal weaknesses -- like the Communists said would happen to capitalism (@16-17, and elsewhere), and
@ the new nomadic way of life of the penguins, who would forever be expanding their territory (@117-119)-- like the Marxist-Leninist idea that the Revolution would spread all over the world.
Isn't it ironic then, that this book is being handed out in the hundreds by some CEOs, and even shared with children?

The quashing of dissent is one of the more troubling features of this tale. Thanks to the device of its being a story with an omniscient narrator, we are able to "know" in advance that the prognosis about the iceberg is probably right. Moreover, it's an event based on the laws of physics, and can be demonstrated using physical principles (with the shattered bottle). In real business, we seldom have such a priori knowledge of the rightness of our predictions, nor is that rightness often so neatly demonstrable. This book teaches that we shoud just trust the leader's "visionary" speeches regardless, and that those who don't should be marginalized.

If this comparison is apt, it wouldn't be the first time capitalists have handed out Communist literature within a company. In 1939, the scion of Standard Oil (and future US Vice President) Nelson A. Rockefeller made company executives in Venezuela read Marx's Das Kapital, in order to understand unrest among the company's oil field workers there. (See G. Colby & C. Dennett's "Thy Will Be Done: The Conquest of the Amazon - Nelson Rockefeller and Evangelism in the Age of Oil" (1995) @90.) Unlike the case with "Our Iceberg", though, Rockefeller's goal wasn't to convert his staff to believe what was in the book.

I recognize this analysis might not persuade everyone. You might believe "Our Iceberg" is 100% capitalist all the way, without questioning whether capitalist and Communist glorifications of leadership might have more in common than we'd like to admit. If so, then when you're handed this simplistic fable and told to read it, you might at least pause to consider: why can't modern CEOs emulate Rockefeller's respect for his staff's intellectual level? Is it the respect or the intellectual level that has fallen farther? If you can figure that out, you're probably on your way to identifying some real problems in your organization.

Make no mistake...if you are asked to read this book or "Where's My Cheese?", you can expect some drastic changes in your organization. It's management's way of preparing people for these events.

This change will be in the form of restructuring, layoffs, budget cuts, position eliminations, and anything else associated a "crisis".

You, the reader, also need to make your own choices based on the information available to you and I don't believe this is sufficiently covered in the book. Ultimately, you need to decide for yourself if a different career path or retirement is the best course of action for yourself and your family...and not blindly buying in to the vision of the current management.

I used this for my work team and everyone read it and passed it along. Each person kept trying to figure out which penguin they were.

I want to review this book, but I couldn't, cause I didn't recieve this book yet. Actually Amozone said this book would be delivered by early of JAN/2008, now it's already FEB/2008.
At which section I can submit about checking delivering time or refund ?

Just about evey kind of situation you might encounter managing change in a big company exists in this easy to read book. Makes a great team building exercise having everyone read the book, then discuss all the different personalities one must work with in any change management situation.

This was a simple way of understandng the complexities of a changing market and changing environments. It is geared towards management in larger companies. Entrepreneurs of smaller companies will find it less useful.

Kotter did a fantastic job translating his proven change management process into a format that leaders can understand and use. Through his powerful fable, Kotter tells the story about the phases of leading change and helps us anticipate the roadblocks along the journey. Very well done. Love the useful tools and tips on the website that support it as well...ouricebergismelting.com

Great story, and it gets the point across. In today's business world you must be ready to change or be left behind. This book is elementary on purpose, and rightly so - anyone can read it and get the point.

This is an excellent quick read to get in the mindset of change, thinking outside of the box and working together. Great to provide to a team for upcoming strategic discussion. It is a fun book so that everyone will complete the read prior to any meeting. Recommend highly.

The book is a must-read for anyone involved (leaders, managers, participants, etc) in organizations and/or processes that need change (and who isn't!!). Easy to understand and internalize, but still sufficiently profound to demand a second read.

I have already given mine away ... I might have to buy anther.

Although fables have been written and shared for many centuries dating back at least to Aesop (said to have lived as a slave in Samos around 550 B.C.), it has been only in recent years that the business narrative in the form of a fable has become popular, notably with the publication of Who Moved My Cheese? By Spencer Johnson who wrote the Foreword to this volume, co-authored by John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber. I was amused when noting its subtitle, "Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions," having seen the Luc Jacquet's documentary film March of the Penguins, co-produced by Bonne Pioche and the National Geographic Society, in which the Emperor Penguins and those who filmed them endured (and most of the penguins survived) temperatures around the French scientific base of Dumont d'Urville in Antarctica that fell to -80 ° Fahrenheit.

Kotter and Rathgeber offer a fable in which the central character, an Emperor Penguin named Fred, struggles without much success to convince his colony's Leadership Council that his research statistics indicate "the shrinking the size of their home, the canals, the caves filled with water, the number of fissures, causing by [their iceberg's] melting." If they do not relocate to another iceberg soon....

What happens next is best revealed by Kotter and Rathgeber within their narrative. They are brilliant storytellers who first introduce their lead characters, and create a situation, then identify conflicts that build tension as the plot develops, until its conclusion (sort of). As with George Orwell in Animal Farm, their primary purpose, however, is not to entertain but to instruct. As they explain, "Our goal in writing Our Iceberg Is Melting was to draw upon the incredible power of good stories to influence behavior over time - making individuals and their groups more competent in handling change and producing better results."

Specifically, to use their story to illustrate "The Eight Step Process of Successful Change" that Kotter introduced in his book Leading Change (1996). In a sequel to it, The Heart of Change (2002), he and Dan Cohen examine "the core problem people face in all of those steps, and how to successfully deal with the problem." And the central issue is never strategy, structure, culture, or systems. "All these elements, and others, are important. But the core of the matter is always about changing the behavior of people, and behavior change happens in highly successful situations mostly by speaking to people's feelings." (Those who do that effectively have what Daniel Goleman characterizes as "emotional intelligence.") Kotter and Cohen structure this book around the eight steps "because that is how people experience the process. There is a flow in a successful change effort, and the chapters follow that flow."

Fred follows "The Eight Step Process of Successful Change" (without identifying it as such, of course) and achieves at least some temporary success but Kotter and Rathgeber leave no doubt in their reader's mind that change is a never-ending process rather than an ultimate destination. Precisely the same barriers that Fred encounters are certain to reappear when the Leadership Council is called upon to consider other proposed changes when the colony seems threatened. In many (if not most) organizations today, their decision-makers are facing one or more meltdowns of various kinds (sales, profits, ROI, attrition of valued employees, client and/or market share, etc.). What Kotter and Rathgeber recommend in their business fable is, effect, a framework by which to understand and then respond effectively to whatever challenges may appear, challenges that require changes of what is done and (especially) how it is done, so that these organizations can succeed "under any conditions."

I presume to offer a specific suggestion when concluding this brief commentary: Purchase a copy of this book for each of several key people and then bring together to discuss it in ways and to the extent that Fred and his colony are relevant to the given enterprise...but don't stop there. Take full advantage of this opportunity to formulate, together, a plan by which to institutionalize "The Eight Step Process of Successful Change." To repeat, beneficial change is an on-going, never-ending process and has one requirement more important than any other: adapt or perish.

Although fables have been written and shared for many centuries dating back at least to Aesop (said to have lived as a slave in Samos around 550 B.C.), it has been only in recent years that the business narrative in the form of a fable has become popular, notably with the publication of Who Moved My Cheese? By Spencer Johnson who wrote the Foreword to this volume, co-authored by John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber. I was amused when noting its subtitle, "Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions," having seen the Luc Jacquet's documentary film March of the Penguins, co-produced by Bonne Pioche and the National Geographic Society, in which the Emperor penguins and those who filmed them endured (and most of the penguins survived) temperatures around the French scientific base of Dumont d'Urville in Antarctica that fell to -80 ° Fahrenheit.

Kotter and Rathgeber offer a fable in which the central character, an Emperor Penguin named Fred, who struggles without much success to convince his colony's Leadership Council that his research statistics indicate "the shrinking the size of their home, the canals, the caves filled with water, the number of fissures, causing by [their iceberg's] melting." If they do not relocate to another iceberg soon....

What happens next is best revealed by Kotter and Rathgeber within their narrative. They are brilliant storytellers who first introduce their lead characters, and create a situation, then identify conflicts that build tension as the plot develops, until its conclusion (sort of). As with George Orwell in Animal Farm, their primary purpose, however, is not to entertain but to instruct. As they explain, "Our goal in writing Our Iceberg Is Melting was to draw upon the incredible power of good stories to influence behavior over time - making individuals and their groups more competent in handling change and producing better results."

Specifically, to use their story to illustrate "The Eight Step Process of Successful Change" that Kotter introduced in his book Leading Change (1996). In a sequel to it, The Heart of Change (2002), he and Dan Cohen examine "the core problem people face in all of those steps, and how to successfully deal with the problem." And the central issue is never strategy, structure, culture, or systems. "All these elements, and others, are important. But the core of the matter is always about changing the behavior of people, and behavior change happens in highly successful situations mostly by speaking to people's feelings." (Those who do that effectively have what Daniel Goleman characterizes as "emotional intelligence.") Kotter and Cohen structure this book around the eight steps "because that is how people experience the process. There is a flow in a successful change effort, and the chapters follow that flow."

Fred follows "The Eight Step Process of Successful Change" without identifying it as such, of course, and achieves at least some temporary success but Kotter and Rathgeber leave no doubt in their reader's mind that change is a never-ending process rather than an ultimate destination. Precisely the same barriers that Fred encounters are certain to reappear when the Leadership Council is called upon to consider other proposed changes when the colony seems threatened. In many (if not most) organizations today, their decision-makers are facing one or more meltdowns of various kinds (sales, profits, ROI, attrition of valued employees, client and/or market share, etc.). What Kotter and Rathgeber recommend in their business fable is, effect, a framework by which to understand and then respond effectively to whatever challenges may appear, challenges that require changes of what is done and (especially) how it is done, so that these organizations can succeed "under any conditions."

I presume to offer a specific suggestion when concluding this brief commentary: Purchase a copy of this book for each of several key people and then bring together to discuss it in ways and to the extent that Fred and his colony are relevant to the given enterprise...but don't stop there. Take full advantage of this opportunity to formulate, together, a plan by which to institutionalize "The Eight Step Process of Successful Change." To repeat, this is (or at least should be) an on-going, never-ending process as is the process of natural selection in the business world: adapt or perish.

A trully inspiring book. It gives you with and incredible simple and enteraining story the basics to manage a succesful busines.

Our organization is currently going through a structure change in one of our divisions. We are using this book as pre-work to attending our training on the change. We've found that having the book as a reference tool has really helped our team leaders relate better to the various stages of change that their team members (and themselves) are going through.

Not only is this book informative but it is also light-hearted, funny and thus, easy to read. Not one person in our organization has said that they did not enjoy reading the book and that they couldn't relate to a character in the book. I would highly recommend it to any organization preparing their team members or team leaders for change.

Kotter & Rathgeber produced an amazing book in a very simple way to make people get deep into the story and to realize the things that happen in their lives, sometimes, without any attention. This book allows people to re-think about theirselves, where they are living and the most important, how to deal with changes. I'm pretty much sure, within all skills, the most important in the past, presently and forever will always be how to lead changes. And this is the right book for learning.

This book was entirely too elementary. I was expecting some insight into managing change, not a grade school level story.

Found it to be both entertaining and educational, it's a perfect balance of real world application packaged in an easy to read book. I would pickup Leading Change for more information on the items that are discussed in this book.

Excellent and fast read. Anyone in a leadership position will love this book. All of the key characters in your organization are exemplified on the "ice".

I have great respect Kotter, which is why I bought this book. But after I read it I wondered what in the world he had in mind. I felt insulted reading it. It really is a book aimed at little kids. If you are an adult manager go back and read Kotter's primary opus.

This book is an excellent and powerful message to understand and manage change especially in turbulent times of the current century. Prof Kotter's earlier books on the theory of understanding and managing change might appear a little overwhelming for an ordinary reader. This book fills the void since the entire concept and framework is brought out in the form of a simple and interesting story of a colony of penguins residing on an iceberg oblivious of the fact that their home is actually melting. If they do nothing about it, their sweet and comfortable home for decades could soon break into pieces and all of them would be easy prey for their predators in the icy waters of Antarctica. The book certainly deserves praise for taking this situation forward and to bring it to a happy ending where the penguins learn to migrate to newer and safer icebergs, using the eight step framework of change.

However, we need to ask a broader question on the root cause of why the iceberg is melting in the first place. While it is a good setting to narrate a story around penguins, the point is that we humans are responsible for the irresponsible plundering of earth's natural resources that has led to global warming. In the story of penguins, the colony migrates to another iceberg. Does this mean that we humans should, taking the analogy further, prepare ourselves to migrate to another planet? My point is that Prof Kotter should now look deeper into the question of "Why change if we collectively behave well?" One needs to embrace change caused by technology, globalization and the better aspects of progress. But if change, especially the kind that is painful and tragic in nature is caused by human wrongdoings and the sufferers are a totally different section of society or a continent, Prof Kotter's current prescription and methodology may not work.

Despite these comments, this book deserves a 5 Star rating for what it intends to convey.

I have brought this audio book after I read a ad in a news paper about this book. I think I have expected a lot better content from this. This book can be used as a good source to give funny names to people at your work, but its not a great source to learn about change management.

I dont think I have learned anything from this book.

This penguin based fable is cute, quick to read, and conveys the steps and issues that are common to organizational change initiatives - but does it add anything to the knowledge base? Well, no! When I first saw the book's title, sub-title (Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions) and the lead author (Kotter) I was hoping for a strategic discussion on how to help an organization drive continuous change before the urgency becomes evident. You know, Kotter on staying ahead of the curve - everybody's strategic iceberg really is melting these days. This was more than the authors intended to accomplish, even if the sub-title indicated otherwise. The book is recommended for organizations needing a discussion on the issues and steps involved in a change initiative.

This is a must read for anybody who is going through change in a company, or life for that matter. It is a very easy read with big font and one could easily finish reading the whole book in a day.

A cute little fable with penguins as the main characters who are dealing with drastic change - their home on an iceberg is melting. Each of the characters represent how we humans deal with change.Penguins Toob

John Kotter has successfully written a tale of change management incorporating leadership with a fun, simple twist around perceptions. The story line is simplistic and easy to read, yet invokes passion about each character. The charismatic leaders of the penguins, his strong willed chief of staff, the energetic analytical newbie and the relates to everyone member.

John walks through his 8 steps around change and how to handle the cynics, pessimists, perception is reality, traditions and multiple generations effectively and clearly. It is easy to associate yourself, your leadership teams and staff with every character in the book. He writes a powerful message that does not end with their success, yet shows how the penguins must continuously change and improve to survive. An easy read and one that is designed to reinforce his Heart of Change book, not as a new concept.

The book is short and the contents sweet. A copy was loaned to me and I wanted to pass on the favor. Change is hard for everyone and so is the ability to convince others of the merits of leaving the old ways - even when they are dangerous - to try new ways. The author used a theme of leadership by successful exploration. A good story especially for working adults.

This quick read provides a great overview on how to create lasting change in your organization. It's the kind of book that you can share with your manager, customer, teammates, or even your family. Even though Our Iceberg Is Melting: Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions provides a great deal of information, it will only really leave you hungry for more. Reading Leading Change by the same author will provide a good follow-up to this book. All-in-all, this is a must read for those wanting to bring about lasting change in their organization.

This book is a disappointment from an eminent social scientist with an otherwise sterling career.I have a problem with books that use animals as human beings (no matter how cuddly) and crude metaphors to simplify reality. I find them insulting. Most change projects fail not because people fail to follow an eight step process but because of the shear complexity of the change itself, and because leaders tend to simplify and reduce complexity to mechanistic steps that fail to capture individual nuances and respond to individual needs and defenses.

From a scientific standpoint Kotter should be ashamed. The book is reductionistic and violates one of the most cherished principles of the scientific method. If managers believe they are penguins and their organizations are icebergs, I heartily recommend this book to them.

I highly recommend this book for anybody or any organization who needs,is facing, is sensing, carries a desire for REAL. . .C H A N G E! If you liked "Who Moved My Cheese"...you'll LOVE this book. It's change on the NEXT LEVEL that is a MUST sequel in reading. I have given away over 25 copies of this book to my leadership, team memebers and friends...it is helping bring CHANGE in an organiztion that knew no change for over 20 years. One of those "TRUE NORTH" READS...on CHANGE. Don't buy ONE copy of this book. . .you'll need at least two. They tend to disappear from your shelf once you start talking about it. DON'T READ IT...CONSUME IT!!

We used this easy to read story that drives home the need for change as a warm up for our transformation teams. Our employees shared the books (30+) with each other and became a must read for transformational thinking within our Mills. The story is told by the penguins as their need for survival is at hand; reasoning for change is pointed out in such real examples of the fear for change, language of negativity, and the search for possibilities. Leaders wanting to focus attention on transformation that must happen to survive, need to get 'Our Iceberg Is Melting' for all their employees to read.

Our Iceberg is Melting is a quick read that will help those, especially in the business world, grapple with change. Reading it twice will help draw out more from most discussions groups.

Perhaps the most simplistic business fable yet. It's nothing more than "Who Moved My Cheese" for dummies. If you're manager in a fast-changing business, and have people working for you who are unable to comprehend "Cheese", I'd suggest you either buy them this book, or screw-up the courage to fire them.

My favorite part of John Kotter's classic, Leading Change, is the cover image of a penguin leaping across a space between two blocks of ice while 10 other penguins look on from the side the penguin leaped from. Here is one case where you can tell the book by its cover.

Obviously, that wonderful image penetrated deeply into the consciousness of Holger Rathgeber in designing this penguin-based version of how a leader might deal with the problem in Who Moved My Cheese? (changing conditions affect survival)? If you miss that connection to Who Moved My Cheese? there's a foreword by Spencer Johnson to make it clearer.

The Emperor Penguins have lived on an iceberg in Antarctica for many years. They planned to always live there. But Fred had a different idea: The iceberg was melting in a way that meant the possibility of a catastrophic collapse in mid-Winter. The rest of the book explores how Fred's knowledge is translated into useful action for the 268 penguins that lived in the colony.

The fable naturally draws on John Kotter's famous eight steps for leading change which I have paraphrased below into seven to make them easier to understand:

1. Get peoples' attention.
2. Establish a change-leading team.
3. Agree on the results you want.
4. Allow needed changes.
5. Show regular progress.
6. Stay focused.
7. Build new habits that will serve you well after the change is done.

Fables are difficult to write. I admire John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber for taking a crack at it.

But if you pay attention to the facts, you'll find that their story doesn't quite make sense. Emperor Penguins live on the pack ice that forms seasonally. As the pack ice retreats, they simply move to the edge. Seldom would they stay on an iceberg. Why? Because the ice breaks up when the youngsters are old enough to swim to the main ice pack. If you read science articles, you'll also learn that what is more likely to threaten a penguin community is that their iceberg drifts into an area where the winter freeze isolates the colony too far from the open sea. The penguins have to walk to the sea rather than dive in to get food.

Also, most icebergs are going to eventually release into warmer seas and melt that way rather than be split by freezing water as described in this book.

If you look at the leadership, it's also very male dominated. The story would be more realistic if it included more male-female interaction.

The problem of survival in the face of the environment seems more akin to what a town council might face in deciding to relocate away from a leaking dam that what a business organization might face.

I could go on, but I'm sure you see the point: A better fable could have been written (even if it had to involve penguins).

I also compared the book to Leading Change and The Heart of Change. Unless you are only able to learn by reading fables, both of those books are much better on this subject.

My suggestion is that you let the iceberg melt and read about how people lead instead in Dr. Kotter's other excellent books.

I used this book as a part of a book study with the senior staff at my company. It was very useful in setting the stage for discussions of how our business must change over the next 6 months. I encourage its use also with staff who are facing change.

I really liked the format of the book. Using the examples of birds to simulate different types of personalities and how look at change was terrific. I also started using the illustrations to think through processes I use on the job and how to be more efficient. Thanks!

I really liked the format of the book. Using the examples of birds to simulate different types of personalities and how look at change was terrific. I also started using the illustrations to think through processes I use on the job and how to be more efficient. Thanks!

There are six main characters in this story. These six characters make up the leadership team charged with helping the penguins find a solution to their melting iceberg problem. Why is only one of these team members a female? The fable isn't bad, and the 8 steps are worth considering, but this 5-1 ratio turned me off from the get-go. Tell me I'm not the only one bothered by this.

There are six main characters in this story. These six characters make up the leadership team charged with helping the penguins find a solution to their melting iceberg problem. Why is only one of these team members a female? The fable isn't bad, and the 8 steps are worth considering, but this 5-1 ratio turned me off from the get-go. Tell me I'm not the only one bothered by this.

Easy to read. Easy to understand. And, easy to apply.

Ah, the latest tool selected by the President of the company I work for. Was used in a presentation to upper management, but I figured I'd better check it out. As I learned from my experience with "The 360 Degree Leader: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the Organization", these kinds of books are better as CDs. Great for the commute, especially on the way into work to get you in the mindset.

Years ago when I was a student hit by the initial waves of change happening in urban India, I was given a book by one of my all time gurus..a book that tells the story of a seagull that wanted to fly - Jonathan Livingstone Seagull by Richard Batch. I am not sure if it is a coincidence or my guru realized that we are going into an increasingly changing world and to face it we need to be armed with lessons to be different and face all kinds of difficulties to achieve what we want. It has changed the way I thought and reacted.
When we reached the thick of change being a part of the evolving software industry in India I faced the situation of inability to understand the change that may come and react to the same. I found Spenser Johnson's Who Moved My Cheese?.
While going through the blues of middle management and not finding which way will bring deliverance I found an all time classic Sidhdharth by Herman Hesse.
Now when I am moving into my first level leadership role and learning the lessons of working on strategies and handling large groups of people to achieve business success I was hit by the challenge of changing people to orient them towards the expected performances - in a nutshell demanding excellence from the team. This needs change of mindset which can be achieved only with a strong action plan..I started reading Leading Change and started looking at the eight step process to achieve the same. That is the time I found this new book `Our Iceberg Is Melting'. This book reflected the eight step process in a subtle way to impact each reader even without knowing the eight step process. In addition, it has provided lessons of different behaviour patterns of leadership and each one leading to different success. Each character Louis, Alice, Buddy, Fred and the Professor represent five different characteristics required to make a complete personality. Each one of us need to be level headed and show ability to take responsibility like Louis at the same time we also need to be go getters like Alice. The humility of Buddy, Inquisitiveness of Fred and the Intellect of the Professor will make each one of us a complete personality.
I am now looking at using this in my next team training program to measure its impact on the teams. Gem of a book a must read for each one of us irrespective of what we are doing.