Organizational Development Techniques
Organizational development (OD) is the process of improving organizational efficiency through planned change. Its main motive is to enhance the general operating efficiency of the organization.
For organizational development, it’s essential to perform some activities or use techniques at the individual level, group level, and organizational system levels. The 10 important organizational development techniques or activities are mentioned below:
- Counseling and coaching
- Sensitivity training
- Survey feedback
- Formation of team
- Process consultation
- Inter-group development
- Orga izational restrucurung
- Technological changes
- Goal setting
- Quality of work-life programs
These OD techniques are also classified at the individual, group, and organizational levels.
Individual Level OD Techniques
The motive of individual activities is to enhance the talents, ability, and efficiency of people and encourage them for the simplest of labor. The individual-level techniques of organizational development (OD) include counseling and training, sensitivity training, and survey feedback.
Counseling and Coaching
Counseling cares about making interaction with individuals to understand their problems, difficulties, potentiality, prosperity, work and family life, etc. Such interaction facilitates understanding employees and managers and can provide proper guidance.
Similarly, coaching cares about guidance, instruction, and information, and facilitates employees for better performance.
Also Read: Levels of Organizational Behavior Analysis
Sensitivity Training
Sensitivity training involves a change in the behavior of group members through unstructured group interaction. In such training, interpersonal problems of the workgroup are discussed and resolved.
Within the problem-solving process, all the group members participated. They create to interact with group members and also with managers in taking decisions.
Survey Feedback
This activity involves the distribution of questionnaires to the members to understand their perceptions, beliefs, and attitude toward organizational development.
The world of the survey is often a workgroup, department, or whole organization. It facilitates checking out the discrepancy within the perception and behavior of members.
Group Level OD Techniques
The motive of group-level activity is to enhance group-level performance. The group-level techniques of organizational development are:
Formation of Team
The formation of teams having skilled members and the assignment of employment to them is a crucial part of the group-level activity of organizational development.
The team formation process involves some activities like goal setting, performance evaluation, goal clarity, and process analysis. It helps for mutual interaction among group members within the process of doing work. It increases mutual trust, openness, and cooperation among team members.
Process Consultation
This activity cares about the task process to be completed by the group members to realize objectives. It involves consultation with outside experts about procedures for the accomplishment of assigned jobs.
The consultant identifies and suggests major processes to enhance group performance. The workgroup must perform activities in accordance with the suggestions of the consultant.
Inter-Group Development
A crucial part of the group activity is to implement techniques for intergroup efficiency development. All group members got to participate in a problem-solving activity. It facilitates to vary within the attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions that group members have of every other.
Organizational Level OD Techniques
Organizational-level activities emphasize a system of the whole organization. In organizational development, management needs to change the required systems of the organization to improve performance. The organizational-level techniques of organizational development include the following:
Organizational Restructuring
Organizational-level activities emphasize a system of the entire organization. In organizational development, management must change the specified systems of the organization to enhance performance. The organizational-level techniques of organizational development are:
Technological Changes
Technological development is an ever-changing process. It’s concerned with the utilization of machines and methods within the production process.
It’s concerned with modification in working processes from manual to automation, robotics, and computerization. Information technology should be widely used for the assembly and distribution of products and services.
Goal Setting
Management by objectives techniques is often used for goal setting. In MBO, managers, and subordinates close and mutually set organizational goals, prepare plans and implement plans in practice. It emphasizes integrating both organizational and individual objectives of employees.
Quality of Work-Life Programs
The objectives of such programs are to make a positive working environment to satisfy employees. Some steps of quality work life are safe and healthy work environment, development of human potential and capabilities, equitable rewards, etc.
Read Next: What is Organizational Change?