Managing the OD Process

Module 6

 In this chapter we examine what leader , organization members and OD practitioners do as they implement and manage organization programs.

The OD Process
OD programs have 3 basic components: diagnosis, action and program management. The process proceeds through Assessment Intervention Implementation Evaluation

 The diagnostic component represents a continuous collection of data about the system, its subunits, it processes and its culture. The action component consists of all activities & interventions designed to improve the organization's functioning. The programme management component encompasses all activities designed to ensure success of the program.

COMPONENTS OF OD PROCESS

System Diagnosis

Actions directed at problem/opportunity No1

Problem/Opportunity 1 Evaluation of effects of actions

Problem solved/Opportunity realized Terminate actions

Yielding "Strengths" 1,2,3,4

Actions directed at problem/opportunity No 2

Problem/Opportunity 2 Evaluation of effects of actions

Problem solved / Opportunity not realized Initiate new actions

Yielding Opportunities 1,2,3,4

Actions directed at problem/opportunity No 3

Problem/Opportunity 3 Evaluation of effects of actions

Problem solved / Opportunity not realized. Redefine problem; Initiate new actions Problem 4 solved; but new, related problem 5 develops, actions are directed at problem 5 Step 4 New actions/ interventions as needed

Yielding Problems 1,2,3,4

Actions directed at problem/opportunity No 4

Problem 4 Evaluation

Step 1 Diagnosis of the state of the organization

Step 2 Actions to correct problems & realize opportunities

Step 3 Evaluation of the effects of Actions/ Interventions

Diagnosis :Focus of clients major concerns

What are strengths? Its problem areas? Its unrealized opportunities? Is there any discrepancy between the vision of desired future & the current situation?

(Diagnosis identifies strengths, opportunities & problem areas)

Program Management Consists of fact finding about the results of the actions.

Focuses on
Did the action have desired effects? Is the problem solved or the opportunities achieved?

Organizational Diagnosis
Organizational Diagnosis has been defined by Harrison as a process of using conceptual models and methods from the behavioral science to assess the organizations current state and find ways to solve specific problems or increase its effectiveness.

Diagnosis Defined
Diagnosis is a collaborative process between organizational members and the OD consultant to collect pertinent information, analyze it, and draw conclusions for action planning and intervention.

Diagnosis thus helps in several ways

To know the status-how things really are To know what are the consequences of actions taken Enhances organizations capacity to assess and change its culture Provides members with insight into dysfunctional aspects of their culture and behavior Provide patterns-basis to develop a more effective organization Ensures organizational engagement in the process of continuous improvement.

Important aspects of diagnosis process

Validity of data
Time required to collect data Cost of data collection Organizational culture and norms Hawthorne effect Confidentiality of data continuous diagnosis is necessary for a planned change.

 Diagnostic tools:
The six-box model. Third Wave Consulting.

The Six-Box Model

Marvin Weisbord in 1976. Tells practitioners where to look for and what to look for in diagnosing organizational problems. 6 critical areas:
Purposes. Structure. Rewards. Helpful mechanism. Relationships. Leadership.

 In the mid 1970's, Marvin Weisbord, an organizational design consultant, created his six boxes model as a diagnostics tool of organizational effectiveness. He identified six key areas in which 'things must go right' and be internally consistent for an organization to be successful. The result of the diagnosis is a prioritized list of ready to be implemented interventions that can drive a change process. The diagnosis involved a ten step process during which the consultant or manager builds a profile of the organization

WEISBORDS SIX BOX MODEL OF DIAGNOSIS

Three levels of Organizational Diagnosis

Organizational Organizational Structure Environmental Factors Organizational Outcomes Distribution of Resources Group Structure, Tasks and Behaviors , relationships, productivity

Group Level

Individual Level

Personal Characteristics Individual Productivity, Satisfaction & Skills

The Six-Box Model

External environment

Purposes
What business are we in? (Vision, competitive advantage/ strategy, priorities)

People practices
Are people enabled and empowered? (Staffing, selection, feedback, conflict, learning, development)

Structures
Leadership
Is someone(s) keeping the boxes in balance?
How do we divide the work? (Power, authority, reporting, org roles)

Helpful mechanisms
Do we have adequate coordinating mechanisms? (Teams, networks, matrixes, knowledge-sharing)

Rewards
Do needed tasks have incentives? (Goals, scorecards, values, behaviors, compensation/rewards)

PHASE I: PRODUCE A HIGH-LEVEL SCAN 1. Draw the boundary between organization and its environment 2. Draw the organization's input/output system by listing - inputs; - outputs; - transformation processes; - feedback mechanisms. 3. Establish issues for the most important output using a satisfaction congruity matrix. 4. Establish issues for the stakeholders of the organization based on their satisfaction level.

PHASE II: FOCUS ON IDENTIFIED KEY ISSUES 5. Purposes

- goal fit: how appropriate is the organization's goal given its environment? - goal clarity: are purposes clear enough to provide guidance to organization members? - goal agreement: to what extent do organization members share the organization's goals?

6. Structure
- draw the organization chart;
- determine the dominant design archetype (functional, product/project/program or hybrid); - assess the rate of change of the environment, technology and departments; - list issues of the formal and informal systems; - discover the rationale of past reorganizations to identify continuous symptoms.

7. Relationships

-assess the quality of relationships between: - Organization members (peers and manager/staff); - Units executing different tasks; - People and their technologies - Systems, equipment and methods. The diagnosis takes into account two factors: - The level of interdependence; - The degree of built-in conflict in relationships.

When interdependence is high and quality of relations is poor, no mode of conflict management suffice; members are required to experiment with new communication styles.

8. Rewards
- What the organization needs to reward;
- What the organization pays, both in real terms and psychologically; - What circumstances make the organization members feel rewarded or punished. Weisbord used Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Herzberg's two factor theory to diagnose the fit between the formal reward system and perceived reward system.

9. Leadership
For managers to act effectively, the leadership style needs to fit the informal organization's behaviour. Leadership's main tasks are to scan the environment, set goals and align the internal organization to fulfill the defined objectives.

10. Helpful mechanisms

Mechanisms are helpful when they:
- assist in the coordination or integration of work; - assist in monitoring the organizations work; - help deal with issues from scanning and diagnostics activities. Mechanism cuts across the other five boxes. Mechanisms are formal and informal, helpful and unhelpful.

Third wave consulting

About ten years after the six-box model appeared, weisbord wrote an article titled toward third wave managing and consulting, in which he reconsiders diagnosis & interventions. Third wave refers to the assertion (statement) by Alvin Toffler that the world has progressed through the agricultural revolution (the first wave) & the industrial revolution (the second wave) & is poised on the brink of an information & technological revolution (the third wave). Weisbord believes this requires new paradigm for managing & consulting. He prefers to focus on wellness, to help people achieved their desired futures & to create work places that have meaning & community. This means a stage manager of events to help people do what they are trying to do.

Weisbord identifies four useful practices for the third wave consultant 1 assess the potential for action (committed leadership, good business opportunities, energizes people) 2 get the whole system in the room 3 focus on the future 4 structure tasks that people can do for themselves

THE ACTION COMPONENTS: OD INTERVENTION

OD intervention is a set of structured activities in which selected organizational units engage in a sequence of tasks that will lead to organizational improvement. Interventions are actions taken to produce desired changes. Conditions the need for OD intervention:
The organization has a problem. The organization sees an unrealized opportunities; something it wants is beyond its reach. Features of the org. are out of alignments The vision guiding the org. changes

The nature of OD intervention Dual aspects of OD interventions learning and action. OD development interventions tend to focus on real problems rather than hypothetical problems. Developing skills and knowledge to solve real problems.

Analyzing discrepancies
A useful model for thinking about diagnosis & interventions could be termed discrepancy analysis-examine the discrepancies or gaps b/w what is happening & what should be happening, & discrepancies b/w where one is & where one wants to be. Discrepancies define both goals & problems. It requires study & action to eliminate the gaps. Any managers primary task is discrepancies analysis-the study of problems & opportunities or study of discrepancies b/w where one wants to be.

The Program Management Component

Managing OD program means the difference b/w success & failures. The aim is provide guidelines to help ensure success in managing OD program. Phases of OD program: Warner & Burke describes the following phases of OD 1. Entry 2. Contracting 3. Diagnosis 4. Feedback 5. Planning change 6. Interventions 7. Evaluation

Entry represent initial contact b/w consultant & client. Contracting involves establishing mutual expectations reaching agreement on expenditure of time, money, resources & energy. And generally clarifying what each party expects to get from the other & give to the other. Diagnosis is the fact finding phase. Which produces a picture of the situation through interview, observations, questionnaires, observation of org. documents & information. Feedback represents returning the analyzed information to client system.

Planning change involves the clients deciding what action steps to take based on the information they have learned. Plans for action are selected & developed. Intervention implements set of actions designed to correct the problems or seize the opportunities. Evaluation represents assessing the effect of the program. Was it successful? What change occurred? Are we satisfied with the results?

A model for managing change

Cumming & Worley identified 5 sets of activities required for change management. 1 motivating change 2 creating a vision 3 developing political support 4 managing the transition 5 sustaining momentum

Motivating change Creating readiness for change Overcoming resistance to change

Creating a vision
Mission Valued outcomes Valued conditions Midpoint goals

Effective change management

Developing political support Assessing change agent power Identifying key stakeholders Influencing stakeholders

Managing the transition Activity planning Commitment planning Management structure Sustaining momentum Providing resources for change Building a support system for change agent Developing new competencies & skills Reinforcing new behaviors

The first step is getting people to want change. Cumming & Worley suggest 3 methods for creating readiness to change 1. Sensitize people about the pressures for change 2. Show discrepancies b/w the current state of affairs & future state of affairs. 3. Communicate positive, realistic expectations for the advantages of change. Overcoming resistance to change is achieved through three methods 1. Dealing empathetically with feelings of loss & anxiety 2. Providing extensive communication about the change efforts 3. How it is proceeding & encouraging participation by org. members in planning & execution change.

Creating a vision provides a picture of future & shows how individuals & groups will fit into the future. Well defined vision reduce uncertainty, serve as a goals to energize behavior. Developing political support is critical in successful change efforts. Powerful individuals & groups must be convinced that change is good for them. Managing the transition also important. Beckhard & Harris propose that change efforts move through 3 states The current state The transition state The desired future state And suggest 3 activities Activity planning: involves specifying the sequences of events Commitment planning: involves getting support & commitment from key players. Management structure: involves setting up parallel learning structures to initiate, lead, monitor & facilitate the change. Cummings & Worley model list several methods for sustaining momentum to complete & stabilize the change

Creating parallel learning structures

It is a device for introducing & managing change in large bureaucratic org. Bushe & Shani developed what they call the generic parallel learning structure intervention process. The generic parallel learning structure intervention process. Pahse1 initial definition of purpose & scope Pahse2 formation of a screening committee - reexamining the need for change - creating a vision statement - defining boundaries, strategies, expectations & rewards Pahse3 communicating to org. members Pahse4 formation & development of study groups - selecting & developing internal facilitators - selecting study group members - study group development - establishing working procedures & norms

Pahse5 Phase6 Phase7 Phase8

the inquiry process identifying potential change experimental implementation of proposed change system wide diffusion & evaluation