Source: http://www.odnetwork.org/odnc/whatis.

htm

WHAT IS ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT?

Organization Development (OD) is the process of improving organizations. The

process is carefully planned and implemented to benefit the organization, its
employees and its stakeholders. The client organization may be an entire company ,
public agency, non-profit organization, volunteer group - or a smaller part of a larger
organization.

The change process supports improvement of the organization or group as a whole.

The client and consultant work together to gather data, define issues and determine a
suitable course of action. The organization is assessed to create an understanding of
the current situation and to identify opportunities for change that will meet business
objectives.

OD differs from traditional consulting because client involvement is encouraged

throughout the entire process. The ways in which people communicate and work
together are addressed concurrently with technical or procedural issues that need
resolution.

WHY IS ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT IMPORTANT?

Profitability, productivity, morale and quality of work life are of concern to most
organizations because they impact achievement of organization goals. There is an
increasing trend to maximize an organization's investment in its employees. Jobs that
previously required physical dexterity now require more mental effort. Organizations
need to "work smarter" and apply creative ideas.

The work force has also changed. Employees expect more from a day's work than
simply a day's pay. They want challenge, recognition, a sense of accomplishment,
worthwhile tasks and meaningful relationships with their managers and co-workers.
When these needs are not met, performance declines.

Today's customers demand continually improving quality, rapid product or service

delivery; fast turn-around time on changes, competitive pricing and other features that
are best achieved in complex environments by innovative organizational practices.

The effective organization must be able to meet today's and tomorrow's challenges.
Adaptability and responsiveness are essential to survive and thrive.

WHAT DO ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANTS DO?

OD consultants custom tailor established social science theory and methods to

organizations seeking to improve profitability, productivity, morale and/or quality of
work life. Examples of activities which are facilitated by OD consultants are:

TeambuildingGoal SettingGroup FacilitationCreative Problem solvingStrategic

PlanningLeadership DevelopmentManagement DevelopmentCareer Management
Conflict ResolutionDevelopmental EducationInterpersonal CommunicationHuman
Resources ManagementManaging Workforce DiversityOrganization Restructuring
High Involvement Work TeamsSociotechnical Systems DesignTechnical Training
Total Quality Management

Often described as "change agents," OD consultants come from varied backgrounds

with experience and training in organization development, organization behavior,
psychology, education, management and/or human resources. Many have advanced
degrees and most have experience in a variety of organizational settings.

There are both internal and external OD consultants. An internal OD consultant is a

full-time employee with a given organization. External consultants may be self-
employed or on the staff of a consulting firm. "Externals" work with one or more
clients contracting for specific projects.

WHO DO ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANTS SERVE?

OD consultants work with all levels of employees. Examples include:

· The Board of Directors, CEO or Vice Presidents -- during changes in corporate

strategy, mission, leadership development, technology or organization structure.

· Middle Managers -- within specific areas or across functions to identify sources of

conflict and barriers to performance, or help build a broader vision and more effective
leadership.

· First-line supervisors -- improve operations and employee involvement, establish

high involvement work teams, improve organizational communication, install
statistical process control (SPC) develop supervisory training or new reward systems.

· Line workers -- to facilitate job redesign improved performance, teambuilding or

improvement in the work environment.

WHAT TO EXPECT:

You can expect an organization development consultant to conduct an OD project in a

timely, cost-effective, well-coordinated and ethical manner.

In reaching an agreement or written contract with a consultant, you may want to

discuss these kinds of questions:

· What approach will be taken?

· Strategy for implementation? Anticipated schedule? How results will be measured?

· Project team members?

· Resources to be made available to the consultant?

· Pricing of consultant's services; payment schedule?

· Confidentiality?

OD SERVICES

Organization Development (OD) consultants provide services to improve

organization effectiveness and/or individual employee effectiveness. The purposes are
to increase productivity, work satisfaction and profit for the client company. The
strategies appearing below "Organization" and "Employee" Effectiveness are defined
to help you become an informed user of OD consultant services.

Organization Effectiveness

Consultants apply organization effectiveness strategies such as those shown below

when there are needs for assessment, planning, growth, quality improvement,
teamwork and other organizational changes.

Action Research - An assessment and problem solving process aimed at improved

effectiveness for the entire organization or specific work units. The consultant helps
the client organization identify the strengths and weaknesses of organization and
management issues and works with the client in addressing problem opportunities.
(Some form of action research is generally applied as a foundation for other
consulting strategies.)

Conflict Management - Bringing conflicts to the surface to discover their roots,

developing a common ground from which to resolve or better manage conflict.
Consultants serve as facilitator in a conflict situation or train employees to better
understand and manage conflict.

Executive Development - One-on-one or group developmental consultation with

CEO's or VP's to improve their effectiveness.

Goal Setting - Defining and applying concrete goals as a road map to help an
organization get where it wants to go. (Can also be applied to employee
development.)

Group Facilitation - Helping people learn to interact more effectively at meetings

and to apply group guidelines that foster open communication, participation and
accomplishment.

Managing Resistance to Change - Helping clients identify, understand, and begin to

manage their resistance to planned organizational change.

Organizational Restructuring - Changing departmental and/or individual reporting

structures, identifying roles and responsibilities, redesigning job functions to assure
that the way work gets done in the organization produces excellence in production
and service.

Project Management - The general management of specific work, blending diverse

functions and skills, usually for a fixed time and aimed at reaching defined outcomes.

Self-Directed Work Teams - Developing work groups to be fully responsible for

creating a well defined segment of finished work.

Sociotechnical Systems Design - Designing and managing organizations to

emphasize the relationship between people's performance, the workplace environment
and the technology used to produce goods and services in order to effect high level
productivity.

Strategic Planning - A dynamic process which defines the organization's mission and
vision, sets goals and develops action steps to help an organization focus its present
and future resources toward fulfilling its vision.

Teambuilding - Improving how well organization members help one another in

activities where they must interact.

Total Quality Management - Through work process analysis, teambuilding, defining

quality and setting measurable standards, the consultant assists the organization in
becoming more cost effective, approach zero-defects and be more market-driven.

Employee Effectiveness

Consultants use employee effectiveness strategies such as those below when there are
needs for employee improvement in skill, commitment and leadership.

Career Counseling - Focused attention on goal setting, career selection and job
seeking help individuals make career decisions.

Coordination & Management of Multi-Disciplinary Consultants - One or several

different technical specialists team up with an OD consultant to design and install new
equipment, work processes, work methods, or work procedures.

Creative Problem Solving - Organization members use practical problem solving

models to address existing problems in a systematic, creative manner.

Customer Service Training - Creating interpersonal excellence in public contact

positions where the individual and the organization are expected to meet or exceed
customer expectations.

Developmental Education - Training in basic math, reading, writing and grammar.

Interpersonal Communication Skills - Increased skill in exchanging needed

information within the organization and providing feedback in a non-threatening, non-
judgmental way.

Human Resource Management - Managing the function of hiring, compensation,

benefits and employee relations toward systematic goals of the organization's morale
and productivity.

Labor Relations - Facilitation of conflict, planning and problem-solving among

management and workforce union representation.

Leadership Development - Training in select areas which change managers to

leaders. Includes visioning, change management and creative problem solving.

Management Development - Training in various management skill areas with

particular focus on performance management, communications and problem solving.

Outplacement - Providing individual and group job search skills and services to
employees who have been affected by corporate downsizing. Typically paid for by the
employer.

Sales Training - Training in the art of selling a product or service.

Stress Management - An individual growth workshop designed to arm and activate

healthy responses to stress. It enables participants to maximize positive stressors and
minimize the negative, both for themselves and others.

Technical Training - Training in a specific technical area, such as computers.

Time Management - An opportunity for individuals and organizations to effect higher

levels of productivity with the time they are allotted.

Training Evaluation - Systematic controlled inquiry grounded in sound statistical

practice, assessing on-line training effectiveness and/or business impact. Assessment
focuses on course relevance, transfer and cost value.

Workforce Diversity - Facilitating understanding between groups toward the goal

where differences among people in an organization become the strengths for
competitive advantage, productivity and work satisfaction.