Page 84 - DMGT520_ORGANIZATION_CHANGE_AND_DEVELOPMENT

Unit 6: Components of OD – Operational and Maintenance

6.1 The OD Process Notes

The OD process involves the following steps:

6.1.1 Diagnosing the System, its Sub-units and Processes

Organisation development is at heart an action programme based on valid information about
the status quo, current problems, and opportunities, and effects of actions as they relate to
achieving goals. An OD programme thus starts with the diagnosis and employs data collecting
and data analyzing throughout.
According to Beckhard diagnosis involves two areas:
 First area is the diagnosis of the various sub-systems that make up the total organisations.
 The second area of diagnosis is the organisation processes that are occurring which includes
decision making processes, communication patterns and styles, relationship between
interacting groups, etc.

In practice the OD consultant collects the detailed information of the target group and the
processes. They pay special attention to the organisational processes like strategic management,
long range planning, vision, mission formulation, organisational learning, etc. Continual
diagnosis is thus necessary in any planned change effort as it helps to compare the gap between
actual and desired conditions.
The success of the OD programme depends on the result of the diagnostic activities which are
important as to how the information is collected and what is to done with the information, etc.

Notes The information can be collected from the various sources like interviews,
questionnaires, organisations records and so on.
The action component includes planning actions, executing actions and evaluating the
consequences of the actions are integral part to the organisation development. This emphasis on
action planning and action taking is a powerful feature of OD and in some respect very
distinguishing. There exist always a difference between learning and practicing.
OD problem solving interventions tend to focus on real problems central to the organisation’s
needs rather than on hypothetical problems that may or may not fit the member’s needs.

Action programmes in OD are closely linked with explicit goals and objectives. Attention is
given to translating goals into observable, explicit and measurable actions and equal care is
given to ensuring that actions are relevant to and instrumental for attaining goals.
Diagnosis, action taking and goal setting are all linked in OD programmes. Diagnostic activities
precede action programmes; that is fact-finding provides a foundation for action. Actions are
continuously evaluated for their contribution to goal accomplishment.

Notes Organisation development is a continuous process of setting goals, collecting data
and about the status quo, planning and taking actions based on hypothesis and on the data,
and evaluating the effects of action through additional data collection.

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