This is a program about organization development (OD)—a process that applies a broad range of behavioral science knowledge and practices to help organizations build their capacity to change and to achieve greater effectiveness, including increased financial performance, customer satisfaction, and organization member engagement. Organization development differs from other planned change efforts, such as project management or innovation, because the focus is on building the organization’s ability to assess its current functioning and to achieve its goals. Moreover, OD is oriented to improving the total system—the organization and its parts in the context of the larger environment that affects them. It presents the process and practice of organization development in a logical flow.

Part 1 provides an overview of OD that describes the process of planned change and those who perform the work. It consists of two chapters. Discusses the nature of planned change and presents some models describing the change process. Planned change is viewed as an ongoing cycle of four activities: entering and contracting, diagnosing, planning and implementing, and evaluating and institutionalizing. OD practitioner and provides insight into the knowledge and skills needed to practice OD and the kinds of career issues that can be expected.

Part 2 is composed of eight activities that describe the process of organization development. The first activity in this process: entering an organizational system and contracting with it for organization development work. Other activities go further insight to present the steps associated with the next major activity of the OD process: diagnosing. This involves helping the organization understand its current functioning and discover areas for improvement. In addition, it presents an open-systems model to guide diagnosis at three levels of analysis: the total organization, the group or department, and the individual job or position, review methods for collecting, analyzing, and feeding back diagnostic data. The last activities of this part address issues concerned with the third activity: designing OD interventions and implementing change and intervention design process. It identifies key factors contributing to the successful implementation of change programs. The final activity of the planned change process: evaluating OD interventions and establishing them as a permanent part of organizational functioning.

Parts 3 through 6 present the major interventions used in OD today. Part 3 is concerned with human process interventions aimed at the social processes occurring within organizations. These are the oldest and most traditional interventions in OD such as interpersonal and group process approaches, such as process consultation, third-party interventions, and team building. System wide process approaches, such as organizational confrontation meetings, intergroup relations, and large-group interventions are considered as well.

Part 4 goes through technostructural interventions that are aimed at organization structure and at better integrating people and technology and restructuring organizations; it describes the alternative methods of organizing work activities as well as processes for downsizing and reengineering the organization. An interesting intervention for improving employee involvement will follow. These change programs increase employee knowledge, power, information, and rewards through parallel structures, total quality management, high involvement organizations and describes change programs directed at work design, both of individual jobs and of work groups, for greater employee satisfaction and productivity.

Part 5 presents human resource management interventions that are directed at integrating people into the organization. These interventions are associated traditionally with the human resource function in the organization, concerns the process of performance management, interventions that build human talent and capital in the organization, including coaching, career planning and development, management and leadership development, leverage workforce diversity and improve employee wellness.

Part 6 takes into account strategic interventions that focus on organizing the firm’s resources to gain a competitive advantage in the environment. These change programs generally are managed from the top of the organization and take considerable time, effort, and resources.

The last part which is part 7 is concerned with special topics in OD such as the practice of OD in international settings, organization development in worldwide organizations is aimed at improving the internal alignment of strategy, structure, and process to achieve global objectives. Furthermore, the practice of OD in global social change organizations promotes sustainable development and improves human potential in emerging countries.

• Organizational Development (OD) Specialists and Practitioners

• Human Resources (HR) Professionals at all levels

• HR Business Partners (HRBPs)

• Talent Management Professionals

• Learning & Development (L&D) Specialists

• Training and Development Coordinators and Managers

• Chief Human Resources Officers (CHROs)

• Employee Relations Specialists

• Employee Engagement Officers

• Internal Change Agents and Change Managers

• OD and HR Consultants

• Culture and Transformation Leads

• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Professionals

• Workforce Planning and Strategy Officers

• Organizational Psychologists

• Business Transformation Leaders

• Strategy and Planning Managers

• People and Culture Managers

• Performance Management Specialists

• Internal Coaches and Agile Coaches

• Team Leaders and Department Heads

• Project and Program Managers

• Line Managers with people development responsibilities

• Corporate Communications Managers

• Senior Executives driving organizational change

• Anyone involved in change management initiatives

• Individuals aspiring to move into OD roles

• Professionals responsible for shaping company culture

• Public sector HR professionals managing reforms or restructuring

• Non-profit leaders overseeing people-centric change

• Private sector professionals aiming to improve organizational effectiveness

Plus, anyone who is involved in OD with creating or delivering OD capability as part of their role or anticipates being involved in OD field in the future.

GAFM - Global Academy of Finance and Management

The GAFM was founded in 1996 by the original founders of the Graduate Leadership Society. The Founders of our Standards Board are CEOs, Executives, Professors, and industry experts from around the globe. We desire to raise education standards and ethics in the business and management industries. The Standards Policy Board awards specialized board certifications, designations, and charters in the fields of: finance, accounting, management, and consulting fields to qualified professionals who have completed internationally recognized or accredited exams & education, government recognized degrees and documented management credentials and experience. Since 1996, the Academy has been promoting accredited graduate standards for certification in business, management, law, and finance. Since the inception with the founding of the Graduate Institute of Leadership in 1996, the Academy has been focused on quality assurance with accredited education, exams, assessment, education, ethics, and continuing education. Further, applicants must also have the necessary experience in practice, research or publications in their respective areas of expertise.