UNIT-4: ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Introduction: With the changing of technology, market and environment faster and faster, and
organization has to change the members’ attitude, knowledge and its framework in order to adapt the
various challenges. Organization development is a process that promotes the changes. The process of these
changes can be considered as organization development. Organization development is a main technology
which can change the quality of working relationship among the workers.

Meaning : Organization Development is an effort planned, organization-wide, and managed from the top,
to increase organization effectiveness and health through planned interventions in the organization’s
‘processes,’ using behavioural-science knowledge.

Characteristics of OD

 OD focuses on culture and processes,

 OD encourages collaboration between organization leaders and members, particularly important for
accomplishing tasks and are targets for OD activities
 OD focuses on the human and social side of the organization in so doing also intervenes in the
technological and structural sides.
 Participation and involvement in problem solving and decision making by all levels of the
organization are hallmarks of OD.
 OD focuses on total system change and views organizations as complex social systems.
 OD practitioners are facilitators, collaborators and co-learners with the client system.
 OD relies on an action research model with extensive participation by client system members.
 OD takes a developmental view that seeks the betterment of both individuals and the organization.

IMPORTANCE OF ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Organizational development is the use of organizational resources to improve efficiency and expand
productivity. It can be used to solve problems within the organization or as a way to analyze a process and
find a more efficient way of doing it. Implementing organizational development requires an investment of
time and money. But when you understand its importance, you can justify the costs.

Organizational Change : The process of organizational development identifies areas of company

operations where change is needed. Each need is analyzed, and the potential effects are projected into a
change management plan. The plan outlines the specific ways in which the change will improve company
operations, which will be affected by the change and how it can be rolled out efficiently to employees.

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Without organizational development as part of change management, a company would have a difficult time
developing effective change management programs.

Growth : Organizational development is an important tool in managing and planning corporate growth. An
organizational development analysis brings together sales projections and consumer demand to help
determine the rate of company growth. This information is used to alter the company business plan and
plan the expansion and use of company resources such as personnel and the distribution network to
accommodate future growth.

Work Processes: When a company is involved in organizational development, it analyzes work processes
for efficiency and accuracy. Any quality control measures required to attain company standards are put in
place. Evaluators analyze duplicate process, or processes that can be combined for greater efficiency, and
develop and implement detailed plans on how to improve company methods.

Product Innovation: Product innovation requires the analysis of several kinds of information to be
successful. Organizational development is critical to product innovation because it can help analyze each
element of product development and create a method for using it effectively. Some of the processes that
come together in organizational development to assist in product innovation are competitive analysis,
technology development, consumer preferences, target market research, manufacturing capabilities analysis
and patents and trademarks

OD Process:

The process of OD refers to the way OD efforts work for a given objective. The OD process is complicated
and it takes long time to complete the process. The process of OD is composed of:

a) Data gathering and organisational diagnosis,

b) Action intervention, and

c) Process maintenance.

Data collection and diagnosis are an extensive task in the OD process. It involves data collection pertaining
to a problem area. Action interventions are the techniques which are appropriately chosen for use in
implementation stage of the OD process. Process maintenance is a management component which ensures
the on going progress to avail the OD benefits in future.

There are various steps of OD process but the typical process consists of the following steps :

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Initial Diagnosis : If it is recognized that there are some inadequacies within organisation which can be
corrected by OD activities, it is necessary to find out the professional and competent people within the
organisation to plan and execute OD activities. The services of the outside consultants can also be taken to
help in diagnosing the problems and developing OD activities. The consultants adopt various methods
including interviews, questionnaires, direct observation, analysis of documents and reports for diagnosing
the problem.

Data Collection : Survey method is used to collect the data for determining organisational climate and
identifying the behavioural problems creeping in the organisation.

Data Feedback : Data collected are analysed and reviewed by various work groups formed for this purpose
in order to mediate in the areas of disagreement or confrontation of ideas or opinions.

Selection of Interventions : The interventions are the planned activities that are introduced into the
system to accomplish desired changes and improvements. At this stage, the suitable interventions are to be
selected and designed.

Implementation of Interventions : The selected intervention should be implemented. Interventions are to

be implemented steadily as the process is not a one shot, quick cure for organisational malady. At the same
time, it achieves real and lasting change in the attitudes and behaviour of employees.

Action Planning and Problem Solving : Groups prepare recommendations and specific action planning to
solve the specific and identified problems by using the collected data .

Team Building : The consultants encourage the employees throughout the process to form into groups and
teams by explaining the advantages of the teams in the OD process.

Inter-group Development : The consultants encourage the intergroup meetings, interaction etc. after the
formation of groups/teams.

Evaluation and follow up : The organisation evaluates the OD programmes, find out their utility, develop
the programmes further for correcting the deviations. The consultants help the organisation in this respect.

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COMPETENCIES OF OD PRACTISIONERS

Competency 1: Systems Change Expert

Systems Change Leader — who can comfortably work within a whole system and advise on strategies for
organizational change, transformation, and alignment.

Culture Builder — who fosters commitment and engagement based on an environment of trust and
promotes the health and vitality of the organization.

Innovator — who sponsors, develops, and can challenge the organization to create strategies for disruption,
breakthroughs, transformation, and innovation.

Competency 2: Efficient Designer

Efficient Designer — who strives for simplicity and designs strategies, interventions, and processes to
facilitate a desired business outcome with the client and end-user in mind.

Process Consultant — who increases leadership and organizational capacity, facilitates group dialogue and
decision-making by creating a non-threatening environment.

Data Synthesizer — who operates as an integrator connecting multi-stakeholder views and translates salient
information to create clarity and commitment.

Competency 3: Business Advisor

Strategic Catalyst — who thinks strategically, takes initiative, and acts to achieve results tied to the
organization’s goals.

Results-Oriented Leader — who understands and applies the principles of customer service, sets
challenging goals, and measures impact and project return on investment.

Trusted Advisor — who effectively develops trusting relationships and partnerships through integrity and
authenticity and is clear about the outcomes that are important to key stakeholders.

Competency 4: Credible Strategist

Credible Influencer — who empathetically relates to clients, understands their needs, and has the
knowledge to translate the business reality into terms that can be agreed upon and committed to by the
client.

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Collaborative Communicator — who communicates clearly and concisely, and tailors communication in
ways that meet the needs and motivations of client groups at all levels.

Globally Diverse Integrator — who can effectively work within diverse cultures, and creates an inclusive
environment for people of all identities to feel valued, respected, and able to contribute.

Competency 5: Informed Consultant

Exemplary Consultant — who cultivates meaning, working relationships, and commitment with
stakeholders to effect change, and demonstrates an understanding of client expectations, effectively
contracting for goals, outcomes, and resources.

Emotionally Intelligent Leader — who effectively reads stakeholders, seeks out different perspectives, and
uses emotional intelligence to guide appropriate action, and understands and reflects on one’s own personal
values, boundaries, feelings, biases, triggers, and ethics to manage their impact on the work.

Life-Long Learner and Practitioner — who demonstrates leadership in a specialized area of OD, stays up
to date on methodologies and tools, and leverages best practices to drive results in line with the
organization’s needs. The website has about a dozen specific theories listed, including appreciative inquiry,
culture change, diversity and inclusion, organization design, the science of decision making, systems theory,
and team development.”

ETHICAL GUIDELINES TO OD PRACTISIONERS

Responsibility to Self:

 Act with integrity; be authentic and true to myself.

 Strive continually for self-knowledge and personal growth.
 Recognize my personal needs and desires and, when they conflict with other responsibilities, seek
all-win resolutions of those conflicts.
 Assert my own economic and financial interests in ways that are fair and equitable to me as well as
to my clients and their stakeholders.

Responsibility for Professional Development and Competence:

 Accept responsibility for the consequences of my acts and make reasonable efforts to ensure that my
services are properly used; terminate my services if they are not properly used and do what I can to see
that any abuses are corrected.

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 Strive to achieve and maintain a professional level of competence for both myself and my profession
by developing the full range of my own competence and by establishing collegial and cooperative
relations with other O. D. professionals.
 Recognize my own personal needs and desires and deal with them responsibly in the performance of
my professional roles.
 Practice within the limits of my competence, culture, and experience in providing services and using
techniques.
 Practice in cultures different from my own only with consultation from people native to or
knowledgeable about those specific cultures.

Responsibility to the Profession:

 Contribute to continuing professional development for myself, other practitioners, and the profession.
 Promote the sharing of O. D. knowledge and skill.
 Work with other O. D. professionals in ways that exemplary what our profession says we stand for.
 Work actively for ethical practice by individuals and organizations engaged in O. D. activities and, in
case of questionable practice, use appropriate channels for dealing with it.
 Act in ways that bring credit to the O. D. profession and with due regard for colleagues in other
professions.

Responsibility to Clients and Significant Others:

• Serve the long-term well-being, interests, and development of the Client system and all its stakeholders,
even when the work being done has a short-term focus.

• Conduct any professional activity, program or relationship in ways that are honest, responsible, and
appropriately open.

• Establish mutual agreement on a contract covering services and remuneration.

• Deal with conflicts constructively and avoid conflicts of interest as much as possible.

• Define and protect the confidentiality of my client-professional relationships.

• Make public statements of all kinds accurately, including promotion and advertising, and give service as
advertised.

Social Responsibility:

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 Act with sensitivity to the fact that my recommendations and actions may alter the lives and
well-being of people within my client systems and the larger systems of which they are
subsystems.
 Act with awareness of the cultural filters which affect my view of the world, respect cultures
different from my own, and be sensitive to cross-cultural and multi-cultural differences and
their implications.
 Promote justice and serve the well-being of all life on Earth.
 Recognize that accepting this Statement as a Guide for my behavior involves holding myself
to a standard that may be more exacting than the laws of any countries in which I practice, the
guidelines of any professional associations to which I belong, or the expectations of any of my
clients.

ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT DIAGNOSIS

Organizational Diagnosis is an effective way of looking at an organization to determine gaps
between current and desired performance and how it can achieve its goals.
In recent years organizational diagnosis has evolved from a technique used as part of the
organizational development process to a major technique in its own right.
Effective diagnosis should be an organic process in that as you start to look at an organization and its
structures and what it does and does not do, change starts, as change progresses so does the ‘now’
performance and as such the diagnosis process also needs to re-start.

The Diagnostic Cycle

The purpose of a diagnosis is to identify problems facing the organization and to determine their
causes so that management can plan solutions.
An organizational diagnosis process is a powerful consciousness-raising activity in its own right,
its main usefulness lies in the action that it induces.
The major steps of a diagnostic cycle include
 Orientation
 Goal setting
 Data gathering
 Analysis/ Interpretation
 Feedback
 Action Planning

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 Implementation
 Monitoring/ Measure
 Evaluation
PURPOSE OF ORGANISATIONAL ANALYSIS
The organizational analysis may be done for different purposes. These include:
1) Enhancing the general understanding of the functioning of organizations (i.e.
educational or research purposes.)
(The direct beneficiary is the researcher or the analyst rather than the organization). Such a study
may aim at enhancing the understanding of human behavior through a study of it in an
organisation, or to enhance the understanding of the society as reflected in organizational life.
2) Planning for growth and diversification
An analysis or a diagnostic study may be necessary for planning growth, diversification,
expansion, etc. The organizational analysis may reveal the strengths that could be used for
growth and diversification, weak spots that need to be removed in the new plans, the precautions
to be taken, structural dimensions to be kept in mind, etc. Several insights may be provided on
structure, people, systems, styles, technology, etc. that have implications for growth.
3) Improving Organisational Effectiveness or Planning General Improvements
Organizational Analysis may be used also for improving the general efficiency of an
organization. On the basis of a diagnosis made out of the analysis action steps could be initiated
in terms of toning up administration, introducing new management systems and processes,
reduction of wasteful expenditure, introduction of time savers, change of personnel policies to
enhance employee motivation, restructuring of some parts, training, elimination of unwanted
structures and teasers, improvements in general health of the organisation etc.
4) Organizational Problem Solving
Whenever some subsystems departments, units, etc. fall sick or start creating problems a
diagnosis may be undertaken with a view to identify the source of the problem and take
corrective action. A sick unit, a bottleneck, a communication block, a poor performing
department, frequently occurring conflict between two departments, repeated failures of a
management system or an organizational process, a frequent violation of an organizational norm,
fall in discipline, reduction in output absenteeism, increase in conflicts, etc. can all lead to the
need for an organisational diagnosis of a part of the organization or the entire organisation.

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ORGANISATIONAL LEVEL DIAGNOSIS

Organizational Level
An organization is considered an open system when it is impacted and influenced in many ways
by the environment in which it exists. In order to function properly, the external environment
must be taken into consideration at all times. The organization must understand the environment
to respond to it effectively while accomplishing its mission. This type of organization can be
diagnosed at three different levels: Organizational, Group and Individual.
The Organizational level is looked at in three phases: Inputs, System Designs and Outputs. First,
the practitioner wants to look at the inputs which require them to understand the general
environment and industry structure. Secondly, it is necessary to look at the design components
which consist of technology, strategy, structure, human resource systems, and measurement
systems that exist internally. This creates a process through which the organization arrives at its
goals or outputs. This is seen in organizational effectiveness, productivity, and stakeholder
satisfaction. Once the practitioner and the key stakeholders review this information, they have a
useful starting point to determine how well the organization is functioning.

Group Level
The second level of diagnosis would be on the Group level. On this level the focus would
primarily be on the input of organizational design. This speaks to how the organization is
designed to function within the general structure of the organization with a greater focus on its
inner workings. The internal systems have key components that need to be observed such as task
structure, goal clarity, team functioning, group composition, and group norms. The Group level
gives the practitioner a closer look at what the culture is, how communication flows, and how
well each component is aligned with the overarching design of the organization. The outputs
examined in this case are team effectiveness, quality of work life, and performance.
Observations on this level must consider whether or not the group design is properly aligned and
embedded in the larger group. It is very important that each segment of the organization is in
sync and balanced with the other so that all the components of the system flow properly for the
most effective results.

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Individual level
Individual jobs have specific designs to accomplish specific tasks that need to be performed
through certain processes. Characteristics of individuals working these jobs will be effective
based on the level of skills, maturity, education, and experience with the jobs. In addition,
individual needs and expectations have to be considered on the Individual level of diagnoses.
Individual growth levels can be a factor in self- direction, learning, and motivation when it
comes to the job fit. Inputs on the Individual level focuses on organizational design, group
design and personal characteristics. Design components consist of skill variety, task identity,
task significance, autonomy, and feedback.
Skill variety is the degree to which a job requires a range of activities and abilities to perform the
work. Task identity measures the degree to which a job requires the completion of a relatively
whole, identifiable piece of work. Task significance identifies the degree to which a job has a
significant impact on other people's lives. Autonomy indicates the degree to which a job
provides freedom and discretion in scheduling the work and determining work methods.
Feedback speaks to the degree by which the job provides employees with direct and clear
information about the effectiveness of task performance. The Individual level of diagnosis is
important to ensuring that the right people are fitted to the right job which in turn promotes good
attitudes and work environments that are conducive to productivity. Ultimately, the goal is to
create opportunity for individual effectiveness, job satisfaction, performance, and personal
development.

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