Overview Throughout the history of organizational literature, many researchers have suggested that change initiatives must originate at the leadership level to be successful (Bennis, 1999). However, history has shown that the majority of change initiatives fail, especially when imposed by top management (King and Peterson, 2007). This article will examine why this dichotomy exists, what the role of senior management should be in a change program, and how senior leaders can use key leverage points to increase their chances of successful change implementation. The evolution of organizations and its impact on change. The invention of modern management by theorists such as Frederick Taylor was founded at a time when many manufacturing organizations existed in the United States. These companies sought semi-skilled employees, such as production line workers, who could perform systematized tasks requiring little brain power and training (Denning, 2010). The predominance of manufacturing organizations gave rise to efficiency-focused theories in which operations and changes within organizations could be more easily planned and controlled (Shafritz, Ott, & Jang, 2011). These theories suggest that it is the role of top management to create, identify, and implement the changes that need to occur within an organization (Robbins & Judge, 2010). In the 20th century, Taylor's management approach was less effective for services. organizations based on qualified employees (Denning, 2010). Management and change approaches used during the manufacturing boom are less successful in a time when the global environment and workforce are changing (Denning, 2010). Steven Denning (2010), author of The Leader's Guide to...... middle of article ......Robbins, SP & Judge, TA (2010). Essentials of Organizational Behavior (10th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Shafritz, JM, Ott, JS, Jang, YS (2011), Classics of Organization Theory. Boston, MA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. Shanker, M. and Sayeed, O. (2012). Role of transformational leaders as change agents: leveraging organizational climate effects. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 47(3), 470-484.Simon, SS (2011). The essentials of employee engagement in organizations. Journal of Contemporary Management Research, 6(1), 63-72. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/920826469?accountid=11243Sirkin, H.L., Keenan, P., Jackson, A., (2005). The hard side of management. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing. Retrieved from: http://www.changeleadershipgroup.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/HardSideChangeMgmt.pdf