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What is OD?
The Profession of OD Has Been Changing
The nature and needs of organizations are changing dramatically. Correspondingly, the profession of organization development (OD) has been changing to meet the changing needs of organizations. Therefore, it may be most useful to consider several definitions of organization development.
A Standard Definition of OD
For many years, the following definition was perhaps the standard definition for OD. The following definition was developed in 1969 at a time when an organization was considered to be much like a stable machine comprised of interlocking parts.
"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 behavioral-science knowledge." (Richard Beckhard, "Organization development: Strategies and Models," Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1969, p. 9.)
New Definitions of OD
Today's organizations operate in a rapidly changing environment. Consequently, one of the most important assets for an organization is the ability to manage change -- and for people to remain healthy and authentic. Consider the following definition of OD:
"Organization Development is the attempt to influence the members of an organization to expand their candidness with each other about their views of the organization and their experience in it, and to take greater responsibility for their own actions as organization members. The assumption behind OD is that when people pursue both of these objectives simultaneously, they are likely to discover new ways of working together that they experience as more effective for achieving their own and their shared (organizational) goals. And that when this does not happen, such activity helps them to understand why and to make meaningful choices about what to do in light of this understanding." (Neilsen, "Becoming an OD Practitioner", Englewood Cliffs, CA: Prentice-Hall, 1984, pp. 2-3.)
OD Practitioners: "Organizational Physicians"?
The system of organizations is very similar, if not the same as, the system of human beings -- after all, organizations are made up of humans! Therefore, when trying to understand the field of organization development, it might be useful to compare aspects of the field of organization development to aspects of the field of medicine.
For example, the study of the theories and structures of organizations (often in courses called "organizational theory") is similar to the study of anatomy and physiology of human systems. Similarly, the study of organizational behavior is similar to the study of psychology and sociology in human systems. Finally, the study and field of organization development compares to the study and field of medicine regarding human systems. That is, in OD, practitioners might work in a manner similar to "organizational physicians" intending to improve the effectiveness of people and organizations by:
- Establishing relationships with key personnel in the organization (often called "entering" and "contracting" with the organization).
- Researching and evaluating systems in the organization to understand dysfunctions and/or goals of the systems in the organization ("diagnosing" the systems in the organization).
- Identifying approaches (or "interventions") to improve effectiveness of the organization and its people.
- Applying approaches to improve effectiveness (methods of "planned change" in the organization).
- Evaluating the ongoing effectiveness of the approaches and their results.
"Linear" to "Integral" OD?
Note that the above-mentioned, "linear" approach to organization development is coming under fire. Not all organization development practitioners appreciate terms such as "diagnosing" an organization, "interventions" to improve effectiveness, etc.
Primary, Current Definition of OD
Many experts agree that the following definition of OD represents the major focus and thrust of today's OD practitioners:
"Organization development is a system-wide application of behavioral science knowledge to the planned development and reinforcement of organizational strategies, structures, and processes for improving an organization's effectiveness." (Cummings and Worley, "Organization Development and Change," Sixth Edition, South-Western Publishing, 1997, p.2.)
What OD Consultants Do
Organization Development is about planning and managing change at the individual, group and organizational levels to enable organizations to become more effective and humane.
Organization Development services include:
- Action Research
- Appreciative Inquiry
- Teambuilding
- Goal Setting
- Group Facilitation
- Future Search Conferences
- Creative Problem Solving
- Strategic Planning
- Learning Organizations
- Knowledge Management
- Leadership Development
- Management Development
- Process Consulting
- Open Space Meetings/Conferences
- Career Development
- Conflict Utilization
- Interpersonal Communication
- Diversity
- Organization Design
- Socio-technical Systems Design
- Whole Systems Change
Often described as "change agents," OD consultants come from varied backgrounds with experience and training in applied behavioral science, cultural anthropology, organization development, organization behavior, psychology, adult education, social work, 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 organizational system. External consultants may be self-employed or on the staff of a consulting firm. External consultants work with one or more client systems contracting for specific projects to enhance organizational system performance and human relationships.