Based on what I’ve learned in these last two courses, I believe
that Organizational Development (OD) is not some fad business trend like a new
diet. Unlike other business practices
that have lived and become extinct, OD in itself is a practice in continuous
transformation. In my opinion, the
ideology of OD is based on the whole idea of transformation, adaptation and
change, therefore, it is only natural that the OD practice also evolve to meet
current environmental changes. Because
of this I believe it will be an evolutionary trend that will survive the rapid
changes of this modern era.
I liken OD practitioners to a kind of psychologist for the
organizational psyche in that they try to understand the “thinking” of the
organization, how it’s “mind” works, and how to make it better. When I first began my leadership program, I
honestly believed that I was going to be learning some straight-up-no-nonsense
boring management concepts. In fact,
other students I knew had chosen management programs and many confessed that the
courses were dry. Leadership and the
concepts of organizational development are beyond anything I imagined. To me these fields are more related to
humanities, social work, counseling, communications and international
relations. Personally, I feel that the
OD profession allows “soft-skilled” individuals such as myself, to contribute
in the business industry. In fact,
looking at my past experiences professionally, I feel that I have been
practicing many of the OD practices that I’ve learned in this course and just
wasn’t aware of it. Going back to my
previous statement about the OD professional acting as the psychologist for the
organization, I feel this alone makes this profession so valid and
exceptional. In viewing the organization
as an entity, I also think we can apply the Johari Window model to further
validate the need for OD’s (Brown, 2011). In the case of an organization, we can see how
an OD would assist an organization in uncovering its blind area. Being that the OD is a force outside of the
organization, it is able to see a bigger picture. Also, untainted by emotional and personal
attachments, the OD has a more unbiased view of the areas that need
improvement. I don’t imagine the OD
field becoming obsolete, instead, I see it as a field that adapts easily to
changes. The difference I see between the
OD field and other management trends that have come and gone is that other
management trends might have been more rigid or more organization-focused. OD has the advantage of being people focused
first, and then organization-focused second.
Essentially the difference is working from the inside out.
I read an interesting article entitled 7 views on the future of O.D.
Four OD experts share their experiences and thoughts on what they
describe as an “often misunderstood field” ("7 views of," 2012). Some of the points that are made in the
article further endorse the OD profession as one with longevity and not just a
passing trend. One thing the article
mentions is that technology is making the pyramidal style of management, or
top-down, more difficult to maintain. As
businesses become flatter and rely more on collaboration of groups and people,
the OD profession becomes more relevant. The article stresses that OD practitioners are
“soft-skill oriented which biases the
field in the eyes of the left-brain, operational executives” (2012). As long as businesses keep transitioning to
this new flatter model of operating, OD’s will continue to be necessary in
guiding these transitions. Another
statement straight out of this article is that “social media is forcing
companies to make ‘soft’ changes and they’ll need OD to do it”. I fully agree with this statement since social
media is not something that businesses can ignore and can be very messy and dangerous platforms to play in.
OD’s can help organizations leverage
this new way of managing business.
To close, I envision OD practitioners as the individuals or groups
that will be guiding businesses into the technological era and teaching them
how to adapt and transform to the changing environment of business. With globalization in full swing and
technology evolving faster than many can keep track of, OD seems to be a
profession that is armed for the long ride.
References
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