Chapter 16The Challenge and the Future for Organizations

Learning Objectives (part 1 of 2)Understand basic issues in using OD as approach to planned change.Recognize ways of maintaining, internalizing, and stabilizing change program.

Learning Objectives (part 2 of 2)Identify some of the future trends and problems facing the OD practitioner.Understand process of terminating practitioner-client relationship.

Company of the Future (part 1 of 2)Company of the future will attract and retain talented employees by developing different kind of workplace. Powerful mission is magnet and motivator.Culture that values learning is key.

Company of the Future (part 2 of 2)Core reality is old saying that a companys people are its most important asset.Collaboration essence of the organization.Create flexibility, resiliency, speed, and creativity.

The Future OrganizationA constantly changing organization.An organization that is flexible and able to quickly change.Higher educational levels mean increase in motivational needs.Change is never ending.

Monitor and Stabilize Action Programs Feedback.Stabilize the change.Evaluate the OD program results.

Feedback of InformationInformation returned to participants.Commitment reinforced by feedback.Program effectiveness measured by degree problems corrected.

Stabilization of ChangeAcceptance and adoption of change.Guard against fade out.Reinforcement necessary.Continue assessment of change during later periods.

Evaluation of OD Programs(part 1 of 2)Evaluations important for 3 groups:Key decision makers.OD participants.OD specialists.

Evaluation of OD Programs(part 2 of 2)Three factors determine evaluation process:Training of OD specialist.Cooperation of organization members.Willingness of decision makers to pay for evaluation.

Termination of Practitioner-Client RelationshipTermination of relationship final stage of OD.Relationship ends when practitioner or client believes little more can be accomplished.Disengagement will likely call for gradual reduction of practitioners help.

Developing Self-Renewal CapacitySelf-renewal means building innovation into organizations values.Self-renewing organization constantly able to innovate.

Termination and Disengagement from Client SystemClient and practitioner agree on reduced involvement.Involvement does not drop to zero, but may continue at low level.The door always open for further work.

Conditions Supporting ODs SuccessOrganization under pressure to improve.Change begins at top of organization.Top management actively participates.New ideas developed at several levels.Innovation and experimentation used to develop solutions.

OD in Practice: War of Warehouse Stores (part 1 of 3)Costco and Sams Club warehouse stores both started in 1983.Some Analysts say Costco pays workers too much compared to competition such as Sams Club. But some analysts look at productivity figures and not just hourly wages.

OD in Practice (part 2 of 3)Costco CEO Sinegal says, Paying your employees well is not only the right thing to do but it makes for good business.Business Week magazine ran the numbers on the two warehouse stores and found underlying results of 2 strategies.

OD in Practice (part 3 of 3)

Emerging Issues and ValuesOD is a growing, developing, and changing field of study.OD still in transition, which makes it difficult to define what is an OD intervention.

Is OD Fad or Discipline?OD has over 40 years of background history.OD appears to be primary method for helping organizations adjust to change.Managers may use interventions as quick fixes.OD required even more as rate of change increases.

Dilemmas for OD PractitionersSome question OD because ill-defined.Lack of evidence for some OD interventions.No accreditation program of OD practitioners.OD overemphasizes human interventions.Difficult for OD to deal with distrust, power, and conflict.

Future Trends in OD Organization transformation (OT).Shared vision.Innovation.Trust.Empowerment.Learning organization.Reengineering.Core competencies.Organizational architecture.

Macrosystem Trends in ODImpact of culture change.Total resource utilization.Centralization vs. decentralization.Conflict resolution.Interorganization collaboration.

Interpersonal Trends in ODMerging line and staff functions.Resource linking.Integrating quality and productivity.Diversity.Networking.Rewarding.

Individual Trends in ODIntrinsic worth.Change in individuals.Effects of thinking.Health and fitness.Interdependence.

The Future of ODOD will deal with changing workforce, global competence, and transformation.OD is expanding and vital technology.Need for more studies on OD interventions.OD needs to deal effectively with external systems and power-coercive problems.

Our Changing World: No Job Is Safe - Never Will Be (part 1 of 4)What you will be doing in future will constantly change.The career you are preparing for now will likely not be career you pursue for much of your life.

Our Changing World (part 2 of 4)Career suggestions include:Avoid jobs that can be broken down into repeatable steps. Search for jobs that require flexibility, problem-solving, creativity, and lifetime of learning.Work that relies on complex communication skills will probably not be outsourced.

Our Changing World (part 3 of 4)Additional career suggestions:Jobs that require frequent interactions with other people will flourish. Employees with good people skills and employees with multicultural teams will have advantage.Get a college education and then keep going to college.

Our Changing World (part 4 of 4)Warren Bennis, OD practitioner, says: No job is safe. Never will be. The half-life of any particular skill is, at most, five years. And thats on the long side. What will keep you alive? Be curious, be willing to learn, have a moral compass and know what gives your life meaning.

Key Words and ConceptsFeedback - required to determine whether to modify, continue, or discontinue activities.Individual trends - future trend of OD that focuses on personal level.

Interpersonal trends - future trend of OD that focuses on team and group dynamics.Macrosystem trends - future trend of OD that focuses on organizational system.Reconfigurable - an organization that is flexible and able to change.

Self-renewal - building innovation and commitment to change into organizations values.Stabilizing the changes - preventing deterioration of the change efforts and reverting to previous behaviors.