The new definition of "Organization Development is the attempt to influence the members of an organization to expand their candidness with each other about their views of the organization and their experience in it, and to take greater responsibility for their own actions as organization members. The assumption behind OD is that when people pursue both of these objectives simultaneously, they are likely to discover new ways of working together that they experience as more effective for achieving their own and their shared (organization) goals. And that when this does not happen, such activity helps them understand why and to make meaningful choices in light of this understanding." Neilsen, "Becoming an OD Practitioner", Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Prentice-Hall, 1984, pp. 2-4.
For our purposes in class, we will also use some of the "old" definition of OD: "Collaborating with organizational leaders and their groups to create systemic change and root-cause problem-solving on behalf of improving productivity and employee satisfaction through improving the human processes through which they get their work done." The Center for Human Systems; http://chumans.com/skills7.htm.
In both seminar and practicum settings we will be considering the issue of organizational change within either K-12 or higher education. Please begin by reading from the URL listed below.
