ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT - TECHNIQUES FOR CHANGING ATTITUDES



INTRODUCTION
In the history of the world, man has always have one thing in mind, to achieve success in all life endavours such as economic social, political and even religious endavours and for man to do these, he must engage in one organization or another (formal or informal organizations). Professor Paugh Shaughnessy (1976:11) organization is the study of the structure, function and performance of group and individuals within the organization. Professor Umoh S. M. sees organization, as the utilization of human resources and carries series of pressing problems.


BRIEF HISTORY OF ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT 
The history of organization, is as old as man’s existence, but it’s (organization) development can be dated back to (1878). Kurt lewin (1878) is widely recognized as the founding father of organization development, although he died before the concept became current in the mid-1950s. From lewin came the idea of group dynamics and action research which underpins the basic organization process as well as providing it’s collaborative consultancy or clients. Kurt lewin played a key role in the evolution of organization as it is known today. Before the World War II lewin conducted an experiment with collaborative change process where he used (himself and a client group) based on a three step process of planning, taking action and increasing results. This was the fore runner of action research and became an important element of organization development. Lewin participated in the beginning of laboratory training, or (T. groups) and after his death in 1947, his close associates helped to develop a survey research methods at university of Michigan. Douglas Micgregor and Richard bechard while consulting together at general mills in the 1950s, the two coined the term organization development to describe innovative bottoms-up change effort that fit no traditional consulting categories (Weishard 1987 p. 112).

WHAT ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT ENTAILS (A TECHNIQUES FOR CHANGING ATTITUDES)
Organization Development (OD) is a deliberately planned efforts to increase an organizations relevance and viability. (vasudevan) has referred to organization development as, future readiness to meet change, thus a systemic learning and development strategy intended to change the basic of beliefs, attitudes and relevance of values and structure of the current to better absorb disruptive technologies shrinking or exploding market opportunities and ensuing challenges and choas. organization development is the framework for a change process designed to lead to desirable positive impact to all stakeholder and the environment. organization development can design intervention with application of several multi-disciplinary methods and research besides traditional organization development approaches.

The purpose of organization development is to (address perenial evolving needs of successful organization) a concerted collaboration of internal and external experts in the field to discover the process an organization can use to become more stakeholder effective. Organization development is an ongoing systematic process of implementing effective organization change.Organization, development is known as both a field of applied behavioural sciences focused on understanding and managing organizational change and as a field of scientific study and inquiry. It is inter-disciplinary in nature and draws on sociology, psychology and theories of motivation, learning and personality. organization development is a growing field that is responsive to mainly new approaches including positive adult development.

CHANGE AGENT                            
A change agent in the sense used here is not a technical expert skilled in such functional areas as accounting, production and finance. The change agent is a behavioural scientist who knows how to get people in an organization involved in solving their own problems. A change agent main strength is a comprehensive knowledge of human behaviour supported by a number of intervention techniques. The change agent can be either internal or external in an organization. An internal change agent is usually a staff person who has expertise in the behavioural science and the intervention technology of organization development. Beckhard reports several case in which line people have been trained in organization and have retuned to their organization to engage in successful change assignments. In the natural evolution of change mechanism in organization, this would seem to approaches the idea arrangement qualified change can be found in some university faculties or they may be private consultants associated with organization such as national training laboratories institute for applied behavioural science. The agent may be staff or line member of the organization who is schooled in organization development theory and technique. In such a case, ‘the contractual relationship is an in house agreement that should probably be explicit with respect to all of the condition involved except fee.

ACTION RESEARCH                        
Wendell French and Cecil Bell defined organization development at one point as “organization improvement through research. If one idea can be said to summarize organization development’s underlying philosophy, it would be action research as it was conceptualized by Kurt lewin and later elaborated and expanded by other behavioural scientists. Concerned with social changes and more particular with effective, permanent social change Lewin believed that the motivation to change was strongly related to action: if people are more likely to adopt a new ways “Rational social management”, proceeds in a spiral of steps, each of which is composed of a circle of  planning, action and fact-finding about the results of action”

CONCLUSION
While there are many different organization development techniques, they are all aimed at accomplishing the following objectives
(a)     Increasing the levels of support and trust among participants
(b)     Increasing open confrontation of organizational problems
(c)     Increasing the openness and authenticity of organizational communication.
(d)     Increasing personal enthusiasm and self-control.
This emphasis on the ‘people’ aspect of organization does not mean that practitioners, don’t try to bring about change in organization structure, policies or practices: they often do, but the typical organization development program is aimed at changing the attitudes values, and beliefs of the employees so that the employees themselves can identify and implement such organizational changes.

REFERENCES
Wesibord, Marvin (1981) Productive Workplace: Organizing and     Management for dignity, meaning and community    Jossery-Bass Publishers, San Francisco.
Richard Arxid Johnson (1976) Management systems and society and Introduction pacific palisades Califosia:       Goodyear Publishers pp 223-229.
Newton Margulies (1972) organizational development: values,         process and technology New York, MacGraw hill Book Co.      pp.3.
Richard Beckhard (1969) organization development: strategies,        and models reading, mass address Wesley p. 114.        
Wondel L. French: Cecil Belc: Organization Development:     Behavioural science intervention for organization improvement. Engle wood cliff, Nowjersey, Prentice Hall.
Bradford D. C. and Buke, Ww (eds) (2005) Organization         Development San Francisco Pfeiffer.
Bradford D. C. and Burke WW.(eds) 2005, Reinventing           Organization Development.     

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