Organization development (OD) applies social science knowledge to help organizations change and i... more Organization development (OD) applies social science knowledge to help organizations change and improve themselves. From its beginnings over 70 years ago in group dynamics, action research, and humanistic psychology, the fi eld has expanded enormously to include a diversity of theories and practices aimed at developing organizations at different levels, from jobs, teams, and organizations to interorganization alliances and societal change. Along with this expansive evolution, however, has come increasing confusion and disagreement in defi ning the fi eld's conceptual boundaries, change interventions, and underlying values. This raises fundamental questions about the nature and consequences of OD, which can impede the fi eld's further progress conceptually, empirically, and practically. We clarify some of the major ambiguities and differences in the fi eld today and suggest solutions for moving forward by comparing four pairs of divergent perspectives: (a) development versus change, (b) episodic versus continuous change, (c) planned versus emergent change, and (d) diagnostic versus dialogic OD.
Academy of Management Learning & Education, 2014
We critically assess a common approach to scholarly impact that relies almost exclusively on a si... more We critically assess a common approach to scholarly impact that relies almost exclusively on a single stakeholder (i.e., other academics). We argue that this approach is narrow and insufficient, and thereby threatens the credibility and long-term sustainability of the management research community. We offer a solution in the form of a broader and novel conceptual and measurement framework of scholarly impact: a pluralist perspective. It proposes actions that depart from the current win-lose and zerosum views that lead to false trade-offs such as research versus practice, rigor versus relevance, and research versus service. Our proposed pluralist conceptualization can be instrumental in enabling business schools and other academic units to clarify their strategic direction in terms of which stakeholders they are trying to affect and why, the way future scholars are trained, and the design and implementation of faculty performance management systems. We argue that the adoption of a pluralist conceptualization of scholarly impact can increase motivation for engaged scholarship and design-science research that is more conducive to actionable knowledge as opposed to exclusive career-focused advances, enhance the relevance and value of our scholarship, and thereby help to narrow the much-lamented chasm between research and practice.
would seem that units with more able people will be more successful. Buckingham and Coffman would... more would seem that units with more able people will be more successful. Buckingham and Coffman would argue that this is true if they also have the right talents and they would have a point. A picky point: I wanted an index in the book but there was not one there. What I especially liked about the book was the focus on first-line managers, where I have always believed the organization meets its real employees and real employees meet the organization. I think managers are the key interpretive mechanisms by which organizations communicate with their people and by which people can communicate upwards. While this linking pin role of managers is not stressed here, I think it fits well with the present emphasis on that role and is further enhanced by the details here that more thoroughly flesh out that role. And I just love the focus on individual variability and its preservation and enhancement. In a world where too many organizations view employees as interchangeable parts (what I refer to as the commoditization of people), the clear acknowledgement of the critical nature of individual differences and their usefulness for organizations is simply the kind of rule-breaking that is essential for enhancing both organizational effectiveness and individual self-worth. Treat them as they want to be treated. Go on, break some rules.
Most of the dialogues published in JMI, quite understandably, contain such constructive exchanges... more Most of the dialogues published in JMI, quite understandably, contain such constructive exchanges wholly within the written article. The dialogue presented in this article is designed to be a little different. Rather than contain the whole of a conversation within this article, we want to use this publication to open up a discussion with our article's readers. The dialogue published here is taken from a discussion among the executive committee members, executive director, and assistant executive director of the Academy of Management (AOM). It occurred in June 2002 during the academy's annual executive committee retreat, 1 which took place that year at Boston College. We tape-recorded the discussion and had it transcribed. The executive committee and other members of the board of governors had just learned from results of the AOM membership survey that had been distributed and analyzed that spring by a task force headed by Dick Woodman (Texas A&M University) and Steve Borgatti (Boston College) (http://www.aom.pace.edu/ survey/) that many members of the academy don't feel that the board of governors is very responsive to them. 2 This is a concern, because the board feels that it is trying to be responsive. We know, however, that most of our communication efforts are fairly formal, such as through presidents' columns in the academy newsletter and through publishing highlights of minutes of board meetings on the academy Web site. Maybe there's a better way that the executive committee (if not the board as a whole) can connect with academy members in a less formal fashion. This dialogue represents one such attempt. In this article, we introduce some topics that we discussed at the executive committee retreat during a time that we set apart for reflection, and we present our discussion of each one; the topics were designed to surface a wide range of the participants' experiences and reflections. We also include information in the footnotes section about specific academy responsibilities or activities that should be useful additions to the conversation. We expect that in the conversation, you're going to find some things you agree with, some things you totally disagree with, some things you don't understand, and, perhaps, some new ideas you'd like to engage with us. Thus, we conclude each topic with an invitation to you as readers to add your comments by e-mailing one or more of us. If we receive a note from you, we will forward it to the other participants in this conversation and respond to you. We hope that through this approach, we will be able to involve readers of this journal in our discussion.
The Palgrave Handbook of Organizational Change Thinkers, 2020
Warren G. Bennis was an intellectual pioneer in group dynamics, planned change and organization d... more Warren G. Bennis was an intellectual pioneer in group dynamics, planned change and organization development, and leadership. He was both a scholar and university administrator with diverse interests in how the applied social sciences can serve the betterment of people, organizations, and society. Warren's research and writing laid the foundation for how we think about team development and the role of democratic forms of organizing in adapting to turbulent environments. His work on planned change and organization development helped to define these applied fields and point the way for their growth and progress. Warren's research on leadership transformed how we define leaders versus managers and how we understand what leaders do to develop people and organizations. It showed that the core of leadership is creating trustworthy relationships with self and others.
... for managing the service business, from developing and implementing strategy to measuring ...... more ... for managing the service business, from developing and implementing strategy to measuring ... masterful service companiessuch as American Airlines, IBM, McDonald's, and Federal ... as customer-contact employees performing both operations and marketing functionscan blur ...
In this paper, we ask whether organizational researchers care about what they study? The reason f... more In this paper, we ask whether organizational researchers care about what they study? The reason for this inquiry is the problem repeatedly identified that organizational researchers have created a ...
Employee involvement is a popular approach to improve organization performance. It moves decision... more Employee involvement is a popular approach to improve organization performance. It moves decision making downward in the organization so employees can make decisions and solve problems as quickly a...
1. General Introduction to Organization Development. Part I: OVERVIEW OF OD. 2. The Nature of Pla... more 1. General Introduction to Organization Development. Part I: OVERVIEW OF OD. 2. The Nature of Planned Change. 3. The Organization Development Practitioner. Part II: THE PROCESS OF ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT. 4. Entering and Contracting. 5. Diagnosing Organizations. 6. Diagnosing Groups and Individuals. 7. Collecting and Analyzing Diagnostic Information. 8. Feeding Back Diagnostic Information. 9. Designing Interventions. 10. Managing Change. 11. Evaluating and Institutionalizing Interventions. Cases: Kenworth Motors. Peppercorn Dining. Sunflower Incorporated. Initiating Change in the Manufacturing and Distribution Division of PolyProd. Evaluating the Change Agent Program at Siemens Nixdorf (A). Part III: HUMAN PROCESS INTERVENTIONS. 12. Interpersonal and Group Process Approaches. 13. Organization Process Approaches. Cases: Lincoln Hospital. Ben and Jerry's. Part IV: TECHNO-STRUCTURAL INTERVENTIONS. 14. Restructuring Organizations. 15. Employee Involvement. 16. Work Design. Cases: City of Carlsbad (A). C&S Wholesale Grocers. Part V: HUMAN RESOURCE INTERVENTIONS. 17. Performance Management. 18. Developing Talent. 19. Managing Workforce Diversity and Wellness. Cases: Employee Benefits at HealthCo Sharpe BMW. Part VI: Strategic Change Interventions. 20. Transformational Change. 21. Continuous Change. 22. Transorganization Change. Cases: Fourwinds Marina Leading Strategic Change at DaVita. Part VII: SPECIAL APPLICATIONS OF ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT. 23. Organization Development in Global Settings. 24. Organization Development in Health Care, Family Businesses, School Systems, and the Public Sector. 25. The Future of Organization Development. Integrative Cases: B.R. Richardson Timber Products. Black & Decker International.
This text focuses on the use of organisation development, which is a process that applies behavio... more This text focuses on the use of organisation development, which is a process that applies behavioural science knowledge and practices to help organisations achieve greater effectiveness. Other paradigms, including organisation tranformation, are also discussed in order to give a balanced perspective on the challenges of being an agent.
Organization development (OD) applies social science knowledge to help organizations change and i... more Organization development (OD) applies social science knowledge to help organizations change and improve themselves. From its beginnings over 70 years ago in group dynamics, action research, and humanistic psychology, the fi eld has expanded enormously to include a diversity of theories and practices aimed at developing organizations at different levels, from jobs, teams, and organizations to interorganization alliances and societal change. Along with this expansive evolution, however, has come increasing confusion and disagreement in defi ning the fi eld's conceptual boundaries, change interventions, and underlying values. This raises fundamental questions about the nature and consequences of OD, which can impede the fi eld's further progress conceptually, empirically, and practically. We clarify some of the major ambiguities and differences in the fi eld today and suggest solutions for moving forward by comparing four pairs of divergent perspectives: (a) development versus change, (b) episodic versus continuous change, (c) planned versus emergent change, and (d) diagnostic versus dialogic OD.
Academy of Management Learning & Education, 2014
We critically assess a common approach to scholarly impact that relies almost exclusively on a si... more We critically assess a common approach to scholarly impact that relies almost exclusively on a single stakeholder (i.e., other academics). We argue that this approach is narrow and insufficient, and thereby threatens the credibility and long-term sustainability of the management research community. We offer a solution in the form of a broader and novel conceptual and measurement framework of scholarly impact: a pluralist perspective. It proposes actions that depart from the current win-lose and zerosum views that lead to false trade-offs such as research versus practice, rigor versus relevance, and research versus service. Our proposed pluralist conceptualization can be instrumental in enabling business schools and other academic units to clarify their strategic direction in terms of which stakeholders they are trying to affect and why, the way future scholars are trained, and the design and implementation of faculty performance management systems. We argue that the adoption of a pluralist conceptualization of scholarly impact can increase motivation for engaged scholarship and design-science research that is more conducive to actionable knowledge as opposed to exclusive career-focused advances, enhance the relevance and value of our scholarship, and thereby help to narrow the much-lamented chasm between research and practice.
would seem that units with more able people will be more successful. Buckingham and Coffman would... more would seem that units with more able people will be more successful. Buckingham and Coffman would argue that this is true if they also have the right talents and they would have a point. A picky point: I wanted an index in the book but there was not one there. What I especially liked about the book was the focus on first-line managers, where I have always believed the organization meets its real employees and real employees meet the organization. I think managers are the key interpretive mechanisms by which organizations communicate with their people and by which people can communicate upwards. While this linking pin role of managers is not stressed here, I think it fits well with the present emphasis on that role and is further enhanced by the details here that more thoroughly flesh out that role. And I just love the focus on individual variability and its preservation and enhancement. In a world where too many organizations view employees as interchangeable parts (what I refer to as the commoditization of people), the clear acknowledgement of the critical nature of individual differences and their usefulness for organizations is simply the kind of rule-breaking that is essential for enhancing both organizational effectiveness and individual self-worth. Treat them as they want to be treated. Go on, break some rules.
Most of the dialogues published in JMI, quite understandably, contain such constructive exchanges... more Most of the dialogues published in JMI, quite understandably, contain such constructive exchanges wholly within the written article. The dialogue presented in this article is designed to be a little different. Rather than contain the whole of a conversation within this article, we want to use this publication to open up a discussion with our article's readers. The dialogue published here is taken from a discussion among the executive committee members, executive director, and assistant executive director of the Academy of Management (AOM). It occurred in June 2002 during the academy's annual executive committee retreat, 1 which took place that year at Boston College. We tape-recorded the discussion and had it transcribed. The executive committee and other members of the board of governors had just learned from results of the AOM membership survey that had been distributed and analyzed that spring by a task force headed by Dick Woodman (Texas A&M University) and Steve Borgatti (Boston College) (http://www.aom.pace.edu/ survey/) that many members of the academy don't feel that the board of governors is very responsive to them. 2 This is a concern, because the board feels that it is trying to be responsive. We know, however, that most of our communication efforts are fairly formal, such as through presidents' columns in the academy newsletter and through publishing highlights of minutes of board meetings on the academy Web site. Maybe there's a better way that the executive committee (if not the board as a whole) can connect with academy members in a less formal fashion. This dialogue represents one such attempt. In this article, we introduce some topics that we discussed at the executive committee retreat during a time that we set apart for reflection, and we present our discussion of each one; the topics were designed to surface a wide range of the participants' experiences and reflections. We also include information in the footnotes section about specific academy responsibilities or activities that should be useful additions to the conversation. We expect that in the conversation, you're going to find some things you agree with, some things you totally disagree with, some things you don't understand, and, perhaps, some new ideas you'd like to engage with us. Thus, we conclude each topic with an invitation to you as readers to add your comments by e-mailing one or more of us. If we receive a note from you, we will forward it to the other participants in this conversation and respond to you. We hope that through this approach, we will be able to involve readers of this journal in our discussion.
The Palgrave Handbook of Organizational Change Thinkers, 2020
Warren G. Bennis was an intellectual pioneer in group dynamics, planned change and organization d... more Warren G. Bennis was an intellectual pioneer in group dynamics, planned change and organization development, and leadership. He was both a scholar and university administrator with diverse interests in how the applied social sciences can serve the betterment of people, organizations, and society. Warren's research and writing laid the foundation for how we think about team development and the role of democratic forms of organizing in adapting to turbulent environments. His work on planned change and organization development helped to define these applied fields and point the way for their growth and progress. Warren's research on leadership transformed how we define leaders versus managers and how we understand what leaders do to develop people and organizations. It showed that the core of leadership is creating trustworthy relationships with self and others.
... for managing the service business, from developing and implementing strategy to measuring ...... more ... for managing the service business, from developing and implementing strategy to measuring ... masterful service companiessuch as American Airlines, IBM, McDonald's, and Federal ... as customer-contact employees performing both operations and marketing functionscan blur ...
In this paper, we ask whether organizational researchers care about what they study? The reason f... more In this paper, we ask whether organizational researchers care about what they study? The reason for this inquiry is the problem repeatedly identified that organizational researchers have created a ...
Employee involvement is a popular approach to improve organization performance. It moves decision... more Employee involvement is a popular approach to improve organization performance. It moves decision making downward in the organization so employees can make decisions and solve problems as quickly a...
1. General Introduction to Organization Development. Part I: OVERVIEW OF OD. 2. The Nature of Pla... more 1. General Introduction to Organization Development. Part I: OVERVIEW OF OD. 2. The Nature of Planned Change. 3. The Organization Development Practitioner. Part II: THE PROCESS OF ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT. 4. Entering and Contracting. 5. Diagnosing Organizations. 6. Diagnosing Groups and Individuals. 7. Collecting and Analyzing Diagnostic Information. 8. Feeding Back Diagnostic Information. 9. Designing Interventions. 10. Managing Change. 11. Evaluating and Institutionalizing Interventions. Cases: Kenworth Motors. Peppercorn Dining. Sunflower Incorporated. Initiating Change in the Manufacturing and Distribution Division of PolyProd. Evaluating the Change Agent Program at Siemens Nixdorf (A). Part III: HUMAN PROCESS INTERVENTIONS. 12. Interpersonal and Group Process Approaches. 13. Organization Process Approaches. Cases: Lincoln Hospital. Ben and Jerry's. Part IV: TECHNO-STRUCTURAL INTERVENTIONS. 14. Restructuring Organizations. 15. Employee Involvement. 16. Work Design. Cases: City of Carlsbad (A). C&S Wholesale Grocers. Part V: HUMAN RESOURCE INTERVENTIONS. 17. Performance Management. 18. Developing Talent. 19. Managing Workforce Diversity and Wellness. Cases: Employee Benefits at HealthCo Sharpe BMW. Part VI: Strategic Change Interventions. 20. Transformational Change. 21. Continuous Change. 22. Transorganization Change. Cases: Fourwinds Marina Leading Strategic Change at DaVita. Part VII: SPECIAL APPLICATIONS OF ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT. 23. Organization Development in Global Settings. 24. Organization Development in Health Care, Family Businesses, School Systems, and the Public Sector. 25. The Future of Organization Development. Integrative Cases: B.R. Richardson Timber Products. Black & Decker International.
This text focuses on the use of organisation development, which is a process that applies behavio... more This text focuses on the use of organisation development, which is a process that applies behavioural science knowledge and practices to help organisations achieve greater effectiveness. Other paradigms, including organisation tranformation, are also discussed in order to give a balanced perspective on the challenges of being an agent.
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