Organisational Self-Renewal
Organisational Development deals with a total system — the organization as a whole, including its relevant environment — or with a subsystem or systems — departments or work groups — in the context of the total system.
Parts of systems — for example, individuals, cliques, structures, norms, values, and products — are not considered in isolation; the principle of interdependency — that change in one part of a system affects the other parts — is fully recognized. Thus OD interventions focus on the total cultures and cultural processes of organizations. The focus is also on groups, since the relevant behavior of individuals in organizations and groups is generally a product of the influences of groups rather than of personalities.
The objective of OD is to improve the organisation’s capacity to handle its internal and external functioning and relationships. This includes improved interpersonal and group processes, more effective communication, and enhanced ability to cope with organisational problems of all kinds. It also involves more effective decision processes, more appropriate leadership styles, improved skill in dealing with destructive conflict, as well as developing improved levels of trust and cooperation among organisational members.
For Practical Application purposes
These objectives stem from a value system based on an optimistic view of the nature of humans — that we, in a supportive environment are capable of achieving higher levels of development and accomplishment. Essential to organization development and effectiveness is the scientific method — inquiry, a rigorous search for causes, experimental testing of hypotheses, and review of results.
Self-managing work groups allows the members of a work team to manage, control, and monitor all facets of their work, from recruiting, hiring, and new employees to deciding when to take rest breaks.
Team Members assume personal responsibility and accountability for outcomes of their work. Team Members monitor their own performance and seek feedback on how well they are accomplishing their goals.
Team Members manage their performance and take corrective action when necessary to improve their and the performance of other group members. Team Members seek guidance, assistance, and resources from the organization when they do not have what they need to do the job. Team Members help members of their work group and employees in other groups to improve job performance and raise productivity for the organization as a whole.
The ultimate aim of OD practitioners is to “work themselves out of a job” by leaving the client organization with a set of tools, behaviors, attitudes, and an action plan with which to monitor its own state of health and to take corrective steps toward its own renewal and development. This is consistent with the systems concept of feedback as a regulatory and corrective mechanism. To this end, OD scholars and practitioners use tools such as simulations with their clients, to be used in workshops and classroom settings.
a six-box model for understanding organizations:
The organization members are clear about the organization’s mission and purpose and goal agreements, whether people support the organization’s purpose.
How is the organization’s work divided up? The question is whether there is an adequate fit between the purpose and the internal structure.
Between individuals, between units or departments that perform different tasks, and between the people and requirements of their jobs.
To diagnose the similarities between what the organization formally rewarded or punished members for.
Is to watch for blips among the other boxes and maintain balance among them.
What must the organization attend to in order to survive and thrive – procedures such as planning, control, budgeting, and other information systems
*Weisbord
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