A Model for Organizational Development:

Organization development is a continuing process of long-term organizational improvement

consisting of a series of stages; the emphasis is placed on a combination of individual, team,
and organizational relationships.

The primary difference between OD and other behavioral science techniques is the emphasis
upon viewing the organization as a total system of interacting and interrelated elements.
Organization development is the application of an organization-wide approach to the
functional, structural, technical, and personal relationships in organizations. OD programs
are based upon a systematic analysis of problems and a top management actively committed to
the change effort. The purpose of such a program is to increase organizational effectiveness by
the application of OD values and techniques. Many organization development programs use
the action research model.

Action research involves collecting information about the organization, feeding this
information back to the client system, and developing and implementing action programs to
improve system performance. The manager also needs to be aware of the processes that should
be considered when one is attempting to create change. This section presents a five- stage
model of the total organization development process. Each stage is dependent on the preceding
one, and successful change is more probable when each of these stages is considered in a
logical sequence.
Stage One: Anticipate a Need for Change:
Before a program of change can be implemented, the organization must anticipate the need
for change. The first step is the manager's perception that the organization is somehow in a
state of disequilibrium or needs improvement. The state of disequilibrium may result from
growth or decline or from competitive, technological, legal, or social changes in the external
environment. There must be a felt need, because only felt needs convince individuals to
adopt new ways. Managers must be sensitive to changes in the competitive environment, to
"what's going on out there."
Stage Two: Develop the Practitioner-Client Relationship:
After an organization recognizes a need for change and an OD practitioner enters the system, a
relationship begins to develop between the practitioner and the client system. The client is the
person or organization that is being assisted. The development of this relationship is an
important determinant of the probable success or failure of an OD program. As with many
interpersonal relationships, the exchange of expectations and obligations (the formation of a
psychological contract) depends to a great degree upon a good first impression or match
between the practitioner and the client system. The practitioner attempts to establish a pattern
of open communication, a relationship of trust and an atmosphere of shared responsibility.
Issues dealing with responsibility, rewards, and objectives must be clarified, defined, or
worked through at this point.

The practitioner must decide when to enter the system and what his or her role should be. For
instance, the practitioner may intervene with the sanction and approval of top management and
either with or without the sanction and support of members in the lower levels of the
organization. At one company, OD started at the vice-presidential level, and by using internal
OD practitioners the OD program was gradually expanded to include line managers and
workers. At another company, an external practitioner from a university was invited in by the
organization's industrial relations group to initiate the OD program.
Stage Three: The Diagnostic Phase:
After the OD practitioner has intervened and developed a working relationship with the
client, the practitioner and the client begin to gather data about the system. The collection of
data is an important activity providing the organization and the practitioner with a better
understanding of client system problems: the diagnosis.
One rule of operation for the OD practitioner is to question the client's diagnosis of the
problem, because the client's perspective may be biased. After acquiring information
relevant to the situation perceived to be the problem, the OD practitioner and client together
analyze the data to identify problem areas and causal relationships. A weak, inaccurate, or
faulty diagnosis can lead to a costly and ineffective change program. The diagnostic phase,
then, is used to determine the exact problem that needs solution, to identify the forces
causing the situation, and to provide a basis for selecting effective change strategies and
techniques. Although organizations usually generate a large amount of "hard" or operational
data, the data may present an incomplete picture of organizational performance. The
practitioner and client may agree to increase the range or depth of the available data by
interview or questionnaire as a basis for further action programs.

One organization, for instance, was having a problem with high employee turnover. The
practitioner investigated the high turnover rate by means of a questionnaire to determine
why the problem existed, and from these data designed an OD program to correct the
problems. The firm's employees felt it had become a bureaucratic organization clogged with
red tape, causing high turnover. OD programs have since reduced employee turnover to 19
percent, compared with 34 percent for the industry.
At a major food company, a new executive vice president needed to move quickly to improve
the division's performance. With the help of an external practitioner, data were gathered
by conducting intensive interviews with top management, as well as with outsiders, to
determine key problem areas. Then, without identifying the source of comments, the
management team worked on the information in a 10-hour session until solutions to the major
problems was hammered out and action plans developed.

Stage Four: Action Plans, Strategies, and Techniques:

The diagnostic phase leads to a series of interventions, activities, or programs aimed at resolving
problems and increasing organization effectiveness. These programs apply such OD techniques
as total quality management (TQM), job design, role analysis, goal setting, team building, and
inter-group development to the causes specified in the diagnostic phase (all of these techniques
are discussed in detail in subsequent chapters). In all likelihood, more time will be spent on this
fourth stage than on any of the other stages of an OD program.

Stage Five: Self-Renewal, Monitor, and Stabilize:

Once an action program is implemented, the final step is to monitor the results and stabilize the
desired changes. This stage assesses the effectiveness of change strategies in attaining stated
objectives. Each stage of an OD program needs to be monitored to gain feedback on member
reaction to the change efforts. The system members need to know the results of change efforts
in order to determine whether they ought to modify, continue, or discontinue the activities.
Once a problem has been corrected and a change program is implemented and monitored,
means must be devised to make sure that the new behavior is stabilized and internalized. If this
is not done, the system will regress to previous ineffective modes or states. The client system
needs to develop the capability to maintain innovation without outside support.