2. OD interventions are sets of structured activities in which
selected organizational units engage in a series of tasks
which will lead to organizational improvement.
The intervention is the procedure the OD consultant
uses, after diagnosing an organizational
providing feedback to management,
situation and
to address an
organization problem or positive future.
3. Interventions are actions taken to produce desired changes. There are one of
four reasons why there is need for OD interventions:
1. The organization has a problem- some thing is “broken”, and corrective actions
need to be taken i.e. it needs to be “fixed”.
2. The organization sees an unrealized opportunity: something it wants is beyond
its reach. Enabling actions- interventions- are developed to seize the
opportunity.
3. Features of the organization are out of alignment: parts of the organization are
working at cross-purposes. Alignment activities- interventions- are developed to
get things back in tune.
4. The vision guiding the organizational changes: yesterday’s vision is no longer
good enough. Actions to build the necessary structures, processes, and culture
to support the new vision- interventions- are developed to make the new vision a
reality.
• OD interventions are planned sets of actions to change situations
4. Criteria for successful intervention
• Communicate more openly
• Collaborate more effectively
• Take more responsibility
• Maintain a shared vision
• Solve problems more effectively
• Show more respect and support for others
• Interact with each other more effectively
• Be more inquisitive
• Be more open to experimentation and new
• ways of doing things
5. The most successful of them possess three key characteristics:
1. They are based on valid information about the functioning of the
organization, usually collected by the employees.
2. The intervention (under the guidance of the change agent)
provides employees with opportunities to make their own choices
regarding the nature of the problems and their preferred
solutions.
3. Interventions are aimed at gaining the employees personal
commitment to their choices.
6. More Key Characteristics of Interventions…..
Goal Specificity
Programmability
Level of Change
Target
Internal &
External Support
Sponsor
7. OD Intervention Categories
Human Process Interventions
T Groups
Process Consultation
Third Party Interventions
Team Building
Organization Confrontation Meeting
Intergroup Relations
Large-group Interventions
Grid Organization Development
Techno-Structural Interventions
Structural Design
Downsizing
Re-engineering
Parallel Structures
High-involvement Organizations
(HIO’s)
Total Quality Management
Work design
8. Human Resource Management Interventions
Goal Setting
Performance Appraisal
Reward Systems
Career Planning and development
Managing workforce diversity
Employee Wellness
Strategic Interventions
Integrated Strategic Change
Trans organization development
Merger and Acquisition
Integration
Culture Change
Self-designing organizations
13. Robert Blake & Jane Mouton identified the following types of interventions
based on the underlying causal mechanisms:
1. Discrepancy Intervention
2. Theory Intervention
3. Procedural Intervention
4. Relationship Intervention
5. Experimentation Intervention
6. Dilemma Intervention
7. Perspective Intervention
8. Organization Structure
9. Cultural Intervention
14. The following lists show some of the results one can
expect from OD interventions…
Feedback
Awareness of Changing Socio cultural Norms
Increase Interaction and Communication
Confrontation
Education
Participation
Increase Accountability
Increased Energy and Optimism
