Organizational development (OD) has evolved over the past 60 years as an application of behavioural science knowledge and techniques to solving organizational problems. OD started in the 1940s at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). It was also strongly influenced by the work of Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow.  Robert Blake and Jane Mouton are credited for the term - organizational development. Most attribute OD having evolved from two basic sources: the application of laboratory methods by the national training laboratories and the survey research methods pioneered by Kurt Lewin.

Organizational Development is an applied behavioural science that is focused on the organization as a system.

OD is a process used to develop healthy, high-performance, self-renewing organizations and successfully manage change and can be used at all levels of an organization.

OD is an applied behavioural science that is, among other issues, concerned with: the health of the organization, organizational effectiveness, the organization’s capacity to solve problems, the organization’s ability to adapt, change, or of self-renewal and the organization’s ability to create a high quality of life for its employees.

The steps involved in OD are: Oraganisational Needs Identification, Data Gathering and Diagnosis, Feed-backing and Reflection on Interventional Design, Action Planning and Implementation, and Evaluation/Post Implementation.

The effective solution of organizational problems is dependent on a thorough diagnosis. To collect data for an organizational scan, needs assessment or some form of data collection, the following may be used alone or in combination; Interviews, Focus Groups, interview process, Questionnaire, Multi-rater instrument, Fish Bowl, Sullivan Transformational Change model, etc

In all instances, organizations need a skilled person doing the above approaches and using other OD tools. They may sound simple but a skilled interviewer, facilitator and developer of instruments is required and this is often a very difficult competency to find internal to the organization.

Finally, the analysis (determining the gap from where the organization is to where the organization wants to go) must also be in the hands of someone who is experienced in this work. If the organization is to change, the analysis and recommended interventions to bring about organizational change, must be in the hands of a skilled expert.

The OD consultant must also use appropriate and excellent communication techniques to help the organization understand and operate on the data collected. This is therefore, the work of an organizational development consultant.

Once the organizational need is determined and the gap established, then the OD practitioner is ready to design the appropriate interventions. These include a variety of methods and programs. One or more of the following, among others, may be considered;

Team building for effectiveness and high perfomance

Strategy planning and development

Intergroup Problem Solving

Facilitation for development

Future Search

Goal Setting

Whole system performance management

Executive Coaching

OD Process Consulting

Curriculum Development

Get involved in our next OD conference and learn more;

Theme for the conference: “Transforming and Energizing for Sustainable Change: OD practice in Focus”

Topics to be facilitated by our world distinguished OD practitioners;

Facilitation Skills: The new way out

OD Process Development: The competencies change leaders need in Africa.

Facilitating the NTL Model for development consultants and change practitioners.

Coaching model for Africa Leaders.

Whole system transformation: The Theory and Practical Approach

Other takes a ways;

Local economic development potentials in Africa

Leadership Development

The role of technical education in Africa

http://www.ccod.edu.gh