FUNDAMENTALS OF ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT

Concept of Organization Development

• OD is a process of planed change

• Aims at enhancing congruence between organization, structure, strategy people & culture.

• Helps to develop creative solutions & self renewing capacity.

• OD is a long term effort.

• Led & supported by top management.

Concept of Organization Development

• Visionary process- • Future of the organization• Empowerment process- • Towards leadership behavior• Learning process- • Interacting, listening, self examining• Problem solving process-• Identifying cause• Ongoing collaborative management of

organization’s culture – • Significance of the involvement.

Concept of Organization Development

• Intact work team configuration-• Effective performance & high job

satisfaction• Utilizing consultant facilitator role-• Professional OD practitioner.• Theory & technology of applied behavioral

science- • Understanding & predicting behavior• Action research- • Collaboratively problem solving

Approaches to OD • Laboratory training ( sensitivity training)• T- groups• Consists of 10-16 participants along with 1-2

trainers.• Participants are strangers to each other• Meeting once or twice a day 1 hr. without any fixed

agenda.• Slowly interactions starts through role plays,

situations, cases.• Trainers job is to observe & give feedback to the

participants.• Trainer act as a change agent- ( should avoid

criticism ) • Conducted away from the job• Changed perception after the training program

Objectives of sensitivity programs

• According to Strauss & Sayles

• To give more self awareness

• Insights into group dynamics

• To Improve interpersonal skills

• To develop collaborative relationship

• To bring improvement in organizational functioning.

T group-Constitution

• Cousin t-group –• Includes people working in the same organization

who may not know each other. Ex Different departments, plants etc

• Cluster-t group –• People from the same organization, sharing direct

working group relationship with each other.• Family-t group –• Members of an intact work team• Stranger-t group-• People belonging to different organizations

Approaches to OD

• Survey research & feedback• People comprising a unit of analysis such as work

groups, departments or organization are surveyed.• Opinion is collected & forwarded to the designer of

the questionnaire.• Cause of problem is identified• External consultant is hired for survey to get

unbaised feedback.• Effective in implementation of changes in the

organization, strategic shifts in structure, policies etc

Survey feedback

Approaches to OD

• Action Research• Consists of following steps• Preliminary diagnosis• Collection of data• Feedback about the data• Development of action plan• Implementation of action plan• Versions of Action research• Diagnostic- Root cause• Participant- participants are involved in the process• Empirical – Based on observation• Experimental - Based on experiments

Approaches to OD

• Tavistock Sociotechnical & Socioclinical Approach• Aimed at helping groups & organizations• Set up in London in 1920 by Dr. Crichton-

Miller• Pioneer in providing psychological

treatment to emotionally disturbed individuals.

• Provided family therapy• Northfield experiment –Every soldier had to

be a member of group.• Provided insight in human behavior

Nature of Organizational development

• OD is an interactive ongoing program• Experienced based & emphasizes goal

setting & planning.• Persistent efforts• Consists of series of actions & reactions• Effective feedback loop to monitor the

reactions• Preparedness for change• Effective solution to problem• Improves the efficiency

Nature of Organizational development

• OD is a form of applied behavioral science• Applies psychological, sociological, social

anthropological concepts.• OD as a normative re-educative strategy of

change• Aims at improving effectiveness• Attempts to change beliefs that hinder them

from becoming more productive.

Strategies for bringing change

• Introduced by R. Chin & K. Benne• Empirical rational • Assumes that people are rational in their

behavior & are interested to adopt changes.• Normative re-educative strategies • Change can be brought about by re-

educating so that they give up old norms.• Power-Coercive• Change through power

Implication of normative re-educative strategies

• Client suggests the desired improvement & change

• The change agent & the agent defines problem , develop solutions.

System perspective towards OD

• Emphasizes on interrelatedness, connectedness, Interdependence & their interactions.

• Realistic picture can be viewed.

• Detail evaluation of recent events & forces to implement the change in the system.

Data based approach to planned change

• Emphasize on data• Familiarity of employees with the methods

of data collection.• Helps in understanding strengths &

weaknesses.• Helps to identify individual differences.• Identification of functional/ dysfunctional

data.• Decisions are taken on the basis of facts

Approaches to OD

• OD is experienced based.• Involvement in the learning through experience.• Questions based on the experience are asked.• OD emphasizes goal setting & planning• Structured learning activities to improve goal setting• Clear, specific & measurable, realistic goals.• MBO• Goal setting - Action plan - Decision towards

achieving goal• Focus on intact work team• Better results than strange groups• Improves the relationships, processes, & task

performance

OD Process

• Diagnosis of system & problem identification

• Critical evaluation of results

• Solution to problem

• Identifying new issues & preparing action plan

Component of OD process

• Diagnostic component• Action or intervention component.• Identifying learning aspect/ action aspect• Learning followed by action• Action followed by learning ( Deficiency model)• Action taken are directed towards achievement.• Action or intervention component• Corrective action for improvement• Process maintenance component.• Focuses on managing the conflict during

implementation.• Responsible for the success of OD program

Client-Consultant relationship

• Entry & contracting• Preliminary discussion with executives• Discussion on important matters.• Agreeing on terms • Psychological or financial contract.• Defining the client system• Views entire organization as client• Consultant becomes Interested in improving

effectiveness• Mutual trust between client & consultant• Information should be kept confidential• Understanding about good guy- bad guy syndrome

• Nature of the client’s expertise

• A consultant should give the client the range of options to choose.

• Consultant should play the role of facilitator—educator instead of content expert

• Proper diagnosis & use of appropriate interventions

• Careful application of consultants expertise

• Determining the depth of the intervention

• Depends upon the knowledge passed on by the consultant on various conceptual models.

• Depends on effective & lasting solutions

• Problem solving

Client-Consultant relationship

Client-Consultant relationship

• Risk of being influenced by the clients organization culture

• Consultants involvement in some dysfunctional characteristics.

• Acquaintance to the culture.• Ability of the consultant to be a model• Consultant should give constructive

feedback• Should be able to convey right meaning• Should be supportive & encouraging

Client-Consultant relationship• Consultant team as a microcosm (representation)• Should project the team as a cohesive & effective

unit.• Should be able to build credibility.• The quality of the team reflects the quality of

diagnosis.• Action research & OD process• Use of feedback-Loop in the various interventions &

stages.• Use of questionnaires & interviews• Dependency & termination of contract • Excessive dependency on consultant & decision of

termination• Consultant should play the role of facilitator

Client-Consultant relationship

• Ethical dilemmas in OD consulting• Misuse of data by consultant• Confidentiality• Forcing for sensitive information• Falls information about the expertise• Falls promises• Distortion of the data• Implementations of OD for the client• Better understanding• Resolves conflict• Develop expertise & knowledge • Aligns the informal organizations with formal • Brings overall effectiveness