Individually, a person might mostly act rationally and sensibly. Yet an organization manned by such individuals can act in less than sensible ways owing to group dynamics, personal conflicts and other factors. Organization development is essentially change management to change this situation.
Definition of Organization Development
The traditional definition of organization development as a top down exercise to improve the effectiveness and health of the organization through planned interventions (Beckhard, "Organization development: Strategies and Models") is undergoing change. These days, the emphasis is on changing the behavior of the people in the organization by using the knowledge accumulated by behavioral sciences such as psychology, sociology, and even political science.
The goal is to influence the members of the organization so that they are more candid about their views of their organization and feel more responsible for their own actions as organization members (Nielsen, "Becoming an OD Practitioner").
Organization development involves a change in organizational culture so that it can respond quickly to evolving business environments of fast changing technology, markets and other external factors.
OD is also Management Development
One key problem with organizational functioning is related to group dynamics. People feel several kinds of pressures in a group, and face many problems while trying to work effectively. For example, the norms of the group might be different from a member's personal ones causing an internal conflict, and roles might not be clear and tasks might be left undone because nobody knows who is responsible. Identifying and tackling such problems is what we call management development. OD goes about this task by focusing in a major way on the people.
Developing the organization to act quickly, rationally and sensibly as a cohesive entity will definitely have a major impact on all aspects of its operations. Strategic planning, for example, can benefit from information on the ground which will become available to people at the top. This might not be the case in an organization where field people do not feel responsible or encouraged to pass on such information upwards.
Training, leadership development, two-way communications, business process re-engineering, quality management and other critical aspects of effective management and performance tend to benefit from the minimization of personal conflicts and increased feelings of responsibility in the organization. The people in the organization become a real "human resource" instead of a warring group.
Organizational Development Requires Excellent Change Management
Real OD can happen, however, only if:
- There is a clear recognition that the existing organization has a problem.
- Top level managers are committed to identifying real problems and tackling these.
- Competent guidance from outside consultants, or insiders with knowledge of behavioral science and organizational systems as also sufficient influence, is available.
- A clear action plan is developed through field data collection and analyzing the data sitting with people in the organization.
- The action plan is implemented in a sustained manner through needed interventions such as training, and group dynamics and task oriented sessions.
- The results are monitored and adaptations are made to the plan development and implementation exercises based on the feedback.
Ultimately, the organization should find itself equipped to act as an integrated entity able to adapt constantly to changing environs, even without the support of an outside consultant. Organization development is a never ending process in a rapidly changing scenario, and the process can be seen as completed only when the organization can do it on its own.
Organization development is a process that equips organizations to work as a cohesive, cooperative entity pursuing a shared vision without being distracted by internal conflicts and organizational problems. OD becomes particularly relevant in a scenario of constant changes, such as those caused by mergers, restructuring and outsourcing, among other developments.
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