Organization Development
Organization Development helps organizations improve performance, by focusing on the entire organization as a system of interrelated parts. As change occurs in one element of the organization, its effects will ripple through other areas. Thus change must be managed intentionally, and with an eye toward systemic development.
Following are some of the typical reasons that organizations engage a consultant to do Organization Development:
- Your organization is successful and you want to grow to the next level in terms of professionalism, size & scope, or programmatic reach.
- Your organization has hit a wall and you need to become more proactive and less reactive, remedy poor performance (of the organization or of a program), or address a large budget deficit.
- A major funder or other important external stakeholder has suggested the need for organizational change.
- Leadership succession.
Organization Development projects are defined jointly, by the organization and the consultant. Often this project definition occurs after the consulting begins and the consultant has spent time with the client diagnosing the issues.
Some typical components of Organization Development consulting include:
- Assess client readiness for the project
- Conduct data gathering (data collection and interviews)
- Identify challenges & make recommendations for change
- Report of findings and recommendations
- Ongoing coaching throughout the project
It is extremely important that the Executive Director as well as the members of the board are all supportive of hiring a consultant to do Organization Development.