Organization Development Research

Interview I
Name: John Paul D’Souza
Designation: Director – Human Resources
Company: Marriott International
Years of Work Experience: 9

Q1. What is the difference between HR and OD, according to you?

A1. As per me, human resources may manage internal concerns such as employee complaints
about harassment or discrimination, one of the main goals of human resources is to ensure
that the firm follows all local, state, and federal standards and to protect the corporation from
responsibility.
While Organizational Development’s goal is to enhance the employee’s performance as per
the organization’s values, strategies, processes and long-term business goals via the use of
assessments and behavioural science.
Q2. In the last 2 years, organizations have had to implement several changes due to
COVID-19. What are some of the changes your organization implemented?
A2. My organization implemented the use of PPE kits in the workplace to mitigate the spread
of COVID-19. The organization also offered paid sick leaves to employees who contracted
COVID-19 or met someone who had. The organization also paid greater attention to
employee mental health which was being affected due to the severity of the pandemic and
took steps to help affected employees through the process.
a. What was your role as an HR professional?
A. My primary role as an HR professional was the recruitment, training and induction of new
employees.
b. Among these changes, think of a change that was successfully implemented. What are
some key reasons that contributed to the success?
A. The paid sick leaves were successfully implemented by the organization as this was
according to government mandates which allowed the organization to pacify stakeholders
about the potential loss of profits.
c. Now, think of a change you struggled most with. What are some factors that led to
such an experience?
A. Bringing employee mental wellbeing to the forefront was a challenge as a lot of
employees were not comfortable disclosing their challenges to a counsellor.
Q3. What are some major changes HRM as a profession is faced with? What skills will
help us (future HR professionals) to prepare for such changes?
A3. HRM has become more fluid over the past two years. HRM professionals need to be
more adaptable in a changing global workforce to handle the post COVID business. A lot of
employees will wish to continue working from home and the HR professionals need to figure
out a way to measure performance metrics for people who are working at the office and at
home to figure out the differences and address it promptly. Strategic workforce planning will
be one of the major skills that all HR professionals will need to adapt to keep up.
HRM as a department is also moving at the core of the business as long-term strategic goals
of a business are decided with input from key HR personnel. In essence, HRM professionals
will need to possess knowledge of stakeholder management as well as design thinking to
keep the organization relevant.
4. In the last two years, organizations have become more sensitive and concerned about
employee well-being and mental health. What steps, if any, have your organization
taken in this direction?
A4. My organization implemented a mental health benefit for all employees where
employees could have free one-on-one counselling sessions in person or through the phone,
video or texts which will be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
5. How is your company dealing with the difficulties of promoting diversity and
inclusion? What policy adjustments have been made?
A5. The organization regularly recruits people from diverse cultural backgrounds to ensure
an infusion of different processes and ideas. Our company has also implemented regular
“Break the Bias” months where employees are encouraged to speak to managers about
possible biases and bring forth ideas for more inclusion among employees. The company has
also started conducting surveys among the employees to understand their feelings about the
workplace and to give the employees an open forum to express their ideas.
6. Measuring employee involvement is both difficult and crucial. So, as an HR
professional, how can you assess such an intervention in the real world?
A6. A primary method of measuring employee involvement in the organization is to
implement the use of performance metrics to keep track. As a very persuasive tool, a linear
performance optimization model can be built, keeping an eye on increasing competitive
advancement as well as global development of the employee as well as the organization.
However, the implementation of this system necessitates that the employees are active
participants in the process and are involved in the goal-setting process. Clarity of goals and
expectations is required when designing a performance optimization tool.
7. How do you notify your staff about the change method before heading to the trial or
initiation phase? Could you provide any examples?
A7. In case of any changes to the methods, the staff are given a heads up during the daily
standup briefings where they are asked about any ideas, they may wish to contribute to the
system to make them feel more involved in the process.
8. What methods do you use to ensure that your development efforts are cost-effective?
A8. The primary method for keeping costs down is by resourcing the work internally. A lot of
employees possess secondary skills which can be utilized by the organization to develop
more cost-effective processes. This, in turn, gives employees a chance to show their skills off
as well as outline potential avenues of growth for others.
Thank you so much for your time!

Interview II
Name: Aviva Sequeira
Designation: Human Resource Manager
Company: Hyatt Hotels Corporation
Years of Work Experience: 6

Q1. What is the difference between HR and OD, according to you?

A1. HR focusses on measures to maximize employee efforts to bring out good for the
company whereas Organizational development focuses on developing employees' potential to
align employees with company values and goals. 

Q2. In the last 2 years, organizations have had to implement several changes due to
COVID-19. What are some of the changes your organization implemented?
A2. Due to the Covid-19 scenario, the employees were made to take mandatory leaves for
two days every month post-April 2020. Training programs to prepare the hotel against
COVID-19 and any other transmittable diseases. The house-keeping staff was provided with
in-depth sanitization training. Another change was the automation program for order taking
and order generation system of our restaurant. 

a. What was your role as an HR professional? 

A. My role included smooth management of new policies brought up by the company.
Though, I found it challenging in understanding the motive behind this mandatory policy of
leaves. However, our subordinates look to us for answers, therefore we must emphasize their
difficulties. After this new policy was implemented, my subordinates communicated their
concerns to me during our weekly meeting. I grasped the problem and stressed with them,
attempting to alleviate their concerns.
b. Among these changes, think of a change that was successfully implemented. What are
some key reasons that contributed to the success?
A. The hotel staff was prepared to cope with the COVID-19 situation. Since the hospitality
industry was badly struck in terms of revenues, it stood as the biggest motivation for the
employees for obvious reasons.

c. Now, think of a change you struggled most with. What are some factors that led to
such an experience? 
A. I was worried about whether I would be able to cope with new technology and work
productively. The automation program failed as it didn’t meet desired results, hence it was a
failure. The main attribute to this failure was the middle-level managers were not involved
and hence there was a gap in understanding the objectives. Even though human errors were
reduced there was a problem in implementation, more time was consumed than before to
order logging and we were failing in deliveries and guests were unhappy, hence, we returned
to the older process. 

Q3. What are some major changes HRM as a profession is faced with? What skills will
help us (future HR professionals) to prepare for such changes?
A3. The hostel industry was hit by COVID-19 and hotels had to lay off several employees to
cope with the effects of COVID. The situation got worse during the second wave and the
hotel was on the verge of closing down temporarily and permanently. The situation made the
staff anxious about their employment and job security. The important skills at my level for
change implementation were active listening and emotional intelligence. After this new
policy was introduced, my subordinates expressed their fears to me in the weekly meeting, I
understood the situation and emphasized with them and tried to nullify their fears.

4. In the last two years, organizations have become more sensitive and concerned about
employee well-being and mental health. What steps, if any, have your organization
taken in this direction? 
A4. Yes, the COVID-19 times were hard for our industry and our hotel suffered a lot in terms
of revenue. However, our employees’ mental health has been our greatest priority, so, our
hotel conducted counseling sessions for the better mental health of our employees. Our hotel
regularly conducted group activities, wherein, our staff would get together and speak their
heart out. 

5. How is your company dealing with the difficulties of promoting diversity and
inclusion? What policy adjustments have been made?
A5. 
Requested to skip to next question

6. Measuring employee involvement is both difficult and crucial. So, as an HR

professional, how can you assess such an intervention in the real world?
A6. The team members were more relaxed post the two days leave plan queries were resolved
and the impact was positive in terms of the employee well-being. It was not measurable but
employees worked more freely. Implementation of change in HR policy on short notice that
too a one-way communication from top to bottom. Having a grievance redressal mechanism
for the employees during the change Implementation program.

7. How do you notify your staff about the change method before heading to the trial or
initiation phase? Could you provide any examples?
A7. It was a one-way communication via a team meeting from the senior VP, a call was put
up on an urgent basis for 15 min,1500 employees were conveyed about the new HR policy.  

8. What methods do you use to ensure that your development efforts are cost-effective?
A8. After the intention behind the HR policy was known all the employees started utilizing it.
As employees were mandated to take leave for 2 days the manpower was scheduled
accordingly so as there would be any delay in deliverables. In each team, the manager
coordinated with the HR department to ensure the same. No specific metrics were used to
measure impact but employees expressed their gratitude towards the organization. During the
pandemic employee health was monitored ensuring their safety. Yes, feedback was taken
from my subordinates by me, and practice them if I found them valuable.
Thank you so much for your time!