The University of Manchester

ORGANISATION DEVELOPMENT MODULE

OD interventions aimed at improving organisation performance Submission deadline: 9th July 2012
By Kiarie N. Mututho
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1.

Within the context of your employing organisation or another organisation with which you are familiar, produce a proposal for a suitable OD intervention aimed at improving some aspect of organisational performance. Justify your chosen approach and critically discuss the strategic and practical issues involved in overcoming resistance and securing commitment from all parties.

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Number of words – 3749
INTRODUCTION
This paper aims at proposing OD interventions for improving organisational performance with the multiplier effect of improved organisational preparedness for environmental demands and changes. The organisation is an educational institution offering kindergarten, primary, secondary and adult as well as accelerated learning programs. The organisation is based in the heart of the Republic of South Sudan, a new and developing economy. The process consultation approach has been proposed for the purpose and the justification for adopting it, minimised resistance to change among them, given. For the proposal, OD represents Organisation Development. The proposal addresses the OD interventions at all stages from diagnosis through to evaluation and termination of the contract. Possible causes of resistance to the proposed change are also highlighted and ways to overcome them discussed. a cost-benefit analysis is done to justify the implementation of the interventions.
Seidman and McClaury(2009:27) argue that the greatest challenge for an OD process is making as many people as possible to ‘quickly and completely embrace change....’ this realisation thus calls for well planned change addressing real tangible need that benefits all the concerned persons in the organisation.
The presenting problem constitutes the need to avoid stagnation and to cope with the current changing educational and technological trends within the country and globally. Being an educational institution, there is an inherent need to keep abreast with these trends to avoid obsolescence and the inertia that may develop when everything is seemingly going on well.
Kerttula, and Takala, (2012:233) point out “...that there were no shortcuts to change. It takes place through the thinking and actions of the people starting from the understanding of the measures required for the change.” To understand the measures, then the problem must also be well understood and internalized.
Among the proposed outcomes of the OD intervention are improved performance and possibly a change in the organisation culture. Others include the institution and perpetuation of a culture of reading amongst all stakeholders and a general improvement in the organisation health. A change in the organisational culture will be of particular essence as
Levin and Gottlieb (2009:32) point out that “... organisational culture can pose an insurmountable obstacle to implementing strategic change in organisations.” But when
“...attended to systematically and guided to support and reinforce desired strategic goals, culture can accelerate the achievement of desired results and enable optimal levels of
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performance.” So this proposal, in other words, seeks to recommend changes that affect organisational culture too. Levin and Gottlieb(2009:33) further caution that it is impossible to have a cultural overhaul but rather, specific cultural attributes that no longer are useful in addressing emergent business challenges or future strategic aims need to be targeted for change or elimination”
To achieve the aims stated above Beckhard and Harris’s ‘standard model of planned change has been proposed as it offers a simple and understandable approach with “sophisticated” yet practical guidelines on the management of planned change. The model is not clear on