In: Operations Management
what is organizational development and what are some of its techniques
Organizational development, as the name itself suggests is the process of development for the organization in entirety. By definition, its the steps and procedures that are developed to improve the productivity and effectiveness of an organization. A simple example would be the implementation of an Applicant tracking system for the organization or creating a new Project management system. Any change that helps in improving or implementing strategic goals could be termed as organizational development. The objective of organizational development is, to increase inter-personal trust and level of satisfaction amongst employees, confront problems, manage conflict, increase cooperation, and implement processes and procedures to help operations of an organization.
There are numerous organization developmental techniques used today, some of them are:
Survey Feedback: In this technique, a questionnaire is created to gather data and then this data is used for decision making. The questions can range from work quality, condition of work, compensation, and many others.
Team Building exercises: This technique is used to develop an inter-personal component of an organization.
Brainstorming: This technique is used to enhance and promote creative thinking by bringing team leaders together to engage in a discussion to come up with a solution for a common issue.
MOB (Management by objectives): This technique is used to develop managerial performance, indirectly improving team performance. The idea is to develop objective-based goals through which the development can be measured on time.
Sensitivity training: This technique is used by bringing in a different group of employees and to know each other. This way they understand each other's feelings and behavior. Through this technique, organizations can reduce interpersonal conflicts.