What is OD?

28/6/2018

‘Organisation Development’s (OD) goal is an inspiring and effective organisation’.

We can view OD as perspective: a way of looking at people and organisations and posing provocative, searching, stretching questions, e.g. ‘When you look at this person, team or organisation, what do you see?’; ‘What are you (and others) noticing and not-noticing?’; ‘What stands out to you (and to others) as important and valuable here – and why?’

We can view it as critically-reflexive: a way of surfacing and testing oft-hidden personal, cultural-systemic and contextual beliefs, values and assumptions, e.g. ‘How are you (or are others) construing this situation, e.g. via metaphor/narrative?’; ‘What enabling or limiting assumptions are we making here?’; ‘Who or what is influencing who or what – and how?’

We can view it as reframing: a way of re-thinking and creating paradigm shifts, e.g. by viewing a situation through different frames (e.g. psychological; political; financial; legal-regulatory); flipping between vantage points, e.g. personal; team; organisation; other stakeholders; shifting the conversation from problem-solving to innovative solutions-focus.

We can view it as co-creative: a radically-relational way of working, high in support and challenge, that engages diverse people and teams in powerful conversations that engender shared focus, insight, energy and action. It involves listening, visioning, influencing and sense-making as collaborative ventures, releasing talent-potential and building trust.

What’s your experience of OD? What has it looked like? What difference has it made?

28 Comments

Jayant Das

28/6/2018 06:14:36 pm

Very powerful insights. Anyone in OD should go through these valuable thought provoking article. Thanks, Nick for sharing.

Nick Wright

28/6/2018 06:15:10 pm

Hi Jayant. Thank you for such encouraging feedback.

Louis Bruhl

29/6/2018 09:57:06 am

Hi Nick. A great thanks for your inspiring insight about OD. I will quote you now when speaking about OD “ Organisation Developpement ‘ goal is an inspiring and effective organization”. Envisionned like you do, under the different views you proposed, OD is not far from being Entrepreneurship in its best and successful way. Thanks for your article.

29/6/2018 10:00:02 am

Thank you, Louis. I borrowed the phrase 'inspiring and effective' from a friend and colleague, Richard Marshall, who has formerly the OD lead for global NGO World Vision. I thought is summed OD up well. I also like World Vision's term 'People & Culture' to describe the OD function.

Ameet Mattoo

29/6/2018 10:01:15 am

Nice "perspective" Nick! In my experience i have used and viewed OD in all the forms you have mentioned and that is what makes it enigmatic and intriguing - takes us and the client system from a liner, mechanistic view of the world to a holistic, systemic view. And everytime the client is willing to tread this path, the results have been phenomenal. Thanks for such a crisp post to describe various facets of OD!

29/6/2018 10:06:05 am

Thanks Ameet. I like your description of OD as 'enigmatic and intriguing'. It can certainly appear and feel like that for people who are used to thinking and working very differently. It reminded me of a former Executive Director I worked with who had a background in finance. He commented, 'I don't understand what you do or how you do it...but whatever it is, it's like magic. Please keep doing it!' I like your comment on the client's willingness to 'tread this path' and I, too, have seen transformational results for clients when they do.

29/6/2018 10:52:06 am

Absolutely! And i find it very challenging to explain to people the methodology - the simplest but a lame answer has been "experience it". That is why willingness of the client to experiment with something new is really what makes a lot of difference.

29/6/2018 10:58:34 am

Hi Ameet. That certainly resonates with my experience too. I think it's one reason why qualities such as presence, relationship and trust are so important for an OD practitioner-facilitator. It's about building enough trust with the client that he/she/they are willing to try an experiment - and to see what happens and what they experience when they do. Taking a similar principle in the coaching arena, you may find this short article interesting, drawing on Gestalt? http://www.nick-wright.com/just-do-it.html

Sophie LEFEBVRE

29/6/2018 10:07:32 am

There are organisations for which this perspective is really result-oriented. Nevertheless, I have driven great projects that completely failed due to a lack of motivation or endorsement from the "client". It is a great and unavoidable tool for those who are ready for change. But it cannot be the sole and only. Systemic understanding of the organisation is not within everybody's reach.

29/6/2018 10:13:53 am

Hi Sophie. Yes, I agree. I think it's one reason why engaging and contracting with the client is so critical, not just at the start but throughout an OD process, whatever form that process takes. In that sense, every interaction with the client should be considered, in OD terms, as an intervention - an opportunity to listen, influence and co-create. Not every client will understand, value or consider an OD approach along the lines I have described as useful or appropriate. I know some OD practitioners who take a more diagnostic, structured approach (e.g. organisation design, systems, programmes etc) and, for some clients, this is what they find easier to appreciate and engage with. Does that make sense?

29/6/2018 10:47:27 am

Thank you Nick for your comment and your insight. For my part I have experienced various approaches and assessed that for the vast majority, regarding SME, the understanding of the process analysis is the key to success. Our capacity to embrace the system from its different aspects facilitates interactions and as a consequence the understanding of the client. Patience is also a key factor.

29/6/2018 10:48:46 am

Thanks Sophie. Do you have an example from experience of 'process analysis' that you could share here? I would be interested to hear more.

29/6/2018 11:11:09 am

Nick, my job is both based on the classical approach of organisation understanding (results, KPI, and value stream mapping) ADDED with either "organisation constellation" or systemic communication channels. As a consequence, in a process analysis, I pay attention to "matters left unsaid", underline them, make them come to light, put them into words so as to make them being understood as a cause or a consequence of time and money losses. The rest of the job is to re-align the system. I hope this explanation could be of any interest :)

29/6/2018 11:14:15 am

Hi Sophie. I understand the principle. I wonder if there is an actual case example from experience that you could share: what the issues were, how you approached them in practice, what happened as a result?

1/7/2018 02:48:05 pm

As promised... context : successful business for years willing to export, improve its communication/image, and organise some production process. Issue : internal reluctance for change.
1st step : improving of the financial situation and the main flows = classical approach with specific internal communication about the projects. This is re-framing
2nd step : studying the relationships within the company = systemic approach : communication channels mapping, underlining the quality of the communication and feedback. Discrepancies between reality and what is thought to be become readable (from the Elliot Fox chart and the Organisation Theory by Eric Berne - borders/structure/authority/dynamic) Then "organisation constellations" enabled people to represent a role/process/position and expressed what they felt about the situation. Change options were designed by the whole "team". (The new system is the refexion of this job. I can also use tools from collective intelligence).
3rd step : analysing and measuring the most favourable change option + communicating the decision.
Results : financial stability, international development, HR reorganisation, new brand image

1/7/2018 02:49:22 pm

Thanks Sophie. That's a great case example, illustrating multiple possible dimensions to an OD approach.

Lyn Alba de Juárez

29/6/2018 10:20:15 am

Great post Nick. Thanks. My reflection on your first question is: coaching SHOULD be part of a wider ODStrategy if organizational change is the issue. In my experience it’ s not the way all leaders, Human Resources or top management view it.
I have been involved in changing culture in small organizations and creating paradigm shifts but in huge organizations my contribution can be seen only in personal or team impact.
For example, from transforming autocrat leadership to a more collaborative one, has been the type of transformations I’ve seen.

29/6/2018 10:39:48 am

Thanks Lyn. I think you express well how, in principle, coaching and OD can harmonise as part of the same organisational change process. I agree too that coaches often find themselves dealing with individual or team issues in relative isolation without, necessarily, reference to wider organisational change issues or strategies to address them. On that vein, you may find these related short pieces interesting?

http://www.nick-wright.com/what-is-really-going-on-here.html
http://www.nick-wright.com/blog/micro-macro
http://www.nick-wright.com/blog/do-no-harm

Jaiveer Rathor

29/6/2018 12:50:28 pm

Actually OD cannot be done without training or vice versa

And

Your write is spot on

29/6/2018 12:50:56 pm

Thanks Jaiveer. There are aspects of OD that can be done without training, e.g. coaching, facilitation or consultancy, but training often forms an important part of an OD strategy. Likewise, training can be done independently of an OD strategy but often achieves greater impact if done in the broader context of the latter, if that makes sense.

Engr.Dhahi Al-Shibli

1/7/2018 02:43:36 pm

OD (organisation development) very important to help the organization where the weaknesses point.

1/7/2018 02:45:35 pm

Hi Engr.Dhahi. Yes, and OD can help organisations discover and create strengths too.

Dhruba Jyoti Goswami

1/7/2018 02:44:21 pm

Thanks Nick for this thought provoking insight.

1/7/2018 02:46:27 pm

Thank you, Dhruba. You're welcome.

Rachel Landers

3/7/2018 10:11:37 am

Thanks Nick, what a good insight and reminder to look at the big picture and making the everyday more pushing past consistently problem-solving to being more innovative solutions-focused.

3/7/2018 10:13:38 am

Thanks Rachel. On the solutions-focus theme, you may find this related short piece interesting? http://www.nick-wright.com/blog/solutions

Damien Boehm

5/7/2018 12:04:32 pm

Do you have some more information on organisation development’? I’m enjoying reading about this.

5/7/2018 12:12:22 pm

Hi Damien. Have a glance at 'Organisation Development' by Mee-Yan Cheung-Judge and Linda Holbreche (2015) for a good introduction to and overview of the field.

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