Reflection On OD

A few months back I attended a conference on the New OD at the Labor College sponsored by NTL Institute. NTL is the birthplace of OD and is one of the most reputable venues for learning about OD. As a graduate intern, I had the privilege of attending a two-year program at NTL in the mid 1970's.

I have been interested for the past three years about a new approach to OD that I find refreshing and illuminating. My own practice was based on the diagnostic approach -- the original paradigm that saw the organization as a set of problems to be solved. Problem solving tends to focus on what is not working, and not what is already working. It is painfully slow and always asks people to look backward to yesterday's causes.

The new paradigm (Appreciative Inquiry) sees the organization more as a mystery to be embraced and appreciated. As such, the new approach uses a dialogic approach to development.

Human systems, I am taught, grow in the direction of what they presently ask questions about. Therefore, conversations about positive core strengths bring to life, give meaning and enable organization members and stakeholders to share best practices. The focus of the conversations can run the gamut from achievements to strategic opportunities, from organizational learning to core competencies, from leadership capabilities to social capital, from vision of positive futures to strategic advantage.

The essence of Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a narrative process of positive change. It follows a 4-D cycle: Discovery (what gives life), Dream (what might be), Design (what should be the ideal), Desitiny (how to empower, lean, and adjsut/improvise). These phases lead to appreciating -- envisioning -- co-constructing -- sustaining.

The reasons why this approach to OD has not be adopted more widely, in my view, are many. One might be that its practitioners see it as the one and only approach to change, when we all know that it all depends. Another might be that the diagnostic approach could be better suited to some situations.

I learned early in my career that one sure way to fail as a practitioner is to be seduced by a methodology or to become its devote'. OD is not a religion, in my view. It is a body of knowledge that if effectively harnessed can bring about positive change in today's organizations.

As Steven Covey has taught us, let's start with the end in mind. And then, we need to ask ourselves what is the best way (more efficient, more effective or both) to develop a specific organization by considering its unique culture, its strategy, and its overall capabilities.

Wise OD practitioners ( and there are many)use more than one approach and they select the most appropriate one based on the circumstances on the ground, and not in the textbook.

I encourage you to read more about Appreciative Inquiry. It has a lot to offer.