176 PART 2 The Process of Organization Development
The strategy of playing it straight is very consistent with an OD perspective, and thus it is the most widely used power strategy in OD. It involves determining the needs of particular stakeholders and presenting information about how the changes can benefit them. This relatively straightforward approach is based on the premise that information and knowledge can persuade people about the need and direction for change. The success of this strategy relies heavily on the change agent’s knowledge base. He or she must have the expertise and information to persuade stakeholders that the changes are a logical way to meet their needs. For example, a change agent might present diagnostic data, such as company reports on productivity and absenteeism or surveys of members’ perceptions of problems, to generate a felt need for change among specific stakeholders. Other persuasive evidence might include educational material and expert testimony, such as case studies and research reports, demonstrating how organizational changes can address pertinent issues.
The second power strategy, using social networks, is more foreign to OD and involves forming alliances and coalitions with other powerful individuals and groups, dealing directly with key decision makers, and using formal and informal contacts to gain information. In this strategy, change agents attempt to use their social relationships to gain support for changes. As shown in Figure 10.2, they use the individual power base of others’ support to gain the resources, commitment, and political momentum needed to implement change. This social networking might include, for example, meeting with other powerful groups and forming alliances to support specific changes.
This would likely involve ensuring that the interests of the different parties—labor and management, for example—are considered in the change process. Many union and management quality-of-work-life efforts involve forming such alliances. This strategy also might include using informal contacts to discover key roadblocks to change and to gain access to major decision makers who need to sanction the changes.
The power strategy of going around the formal system is probably least used in OD and involves purposely circumventing organizational structures and procedures to get the changes made. Existing organizational arrangements can be roadblocks to change, and working around the barriers may be more expedient and effective than taking the time and energy to remove them. As shown in Figure 10.2, this strategy relies on a strong personality base of power. The change agent’s charisma, reputation, or profes- sional credibility lend legitimacy to going around the system and can reduce the likeli- hood of negative reprisals. For example, managers with reputations as winners often can bend the rules to implement organizational changes. Their judgment is trusted by those whose support they need to enact the changes. This power strategy is relatively easy to abuse, however, and OD practitioners should consider carefully the ethical issues and possible unintended consequences of circumventing formal policies and practices.
Application 10.3 shows how Minnesota’s sexual violence prevention unit recruited external and internal stakeholders into the strategic planning process. They used the social networks of people with clear interests in the subject to support the planning and implementation of change.
Developing Political Support for the Strategic Planning Project in the Sexual Violence
Prevention Unit
Application 10.1 described the beginning of the sexual violence prevention unit’s project to develop a five-year plan for primary prevention. The plan’s unique purpose was to mobilize statewide efforts to prevent sexual violence before it occurs. In this application, the process that the committee used to identify and manage the political stakeholders—
both internal and external—is described.
Identifying and Recruiting Stakeholder Participation
The steering committee interviewed representa- tives from various stakeholder groups, coalitions, and state agencies. The results of the interviews suggested (1) a need for broad involvement, espe- cially from underrepresented groups, such as com- munities of color, immigrant communities, gay and lesbian groups, and youth and (2) a desire among those involved to move from a period of dialogue and education toward taking collective action.
In response to this data, the OD consultant pro- posed a two-day strategic planning retreat for a large group of stakeholders. This format was selected because of the strong desire voiced in the interviews to get to action. The steering com- mittee confirmed this approach was preferable to stretching the planning over weeks of shorter meetings.
The unit administrator was essential in pulling together the list of stakeholders who were invited to participate. The goal was to get as many stake- holders as possible involved, and she knew the majority of people who were active in sexual vio- lence prevention work in the state. The steering committee reviewed and augmented the initial list to create a diverse group of 80 stakeholders to invite to the retreat. This group included people from the many groups, coalitions, state agen- cies, and underrepresented communities across Minnesota.
Invitations to attend the retreat were sent out via email. The OD consultants crafted the invitation and the Health Unit Director sent them out. The steering committee members also contacted per- sonally any invitees they knew and encouraged
them to attend. The Health Unit Administrator was instrumental in communicating with those invited. Follow-up reminders and phone calls were made to ensure that an RSVP was received from everyone invited to attend. In addition, there were regular communications on the progress of the planning effort in newsletters, meetings, and conferences through strong communication chan- nels that were already in place. An important constraint to this process was the nature of the physical facility that was to hold the meeting (see below). The steering committee had to balance the need for broad participation with the limits of the meeting space. One tool they used was to limit participation to the first 50 people who signed up.
This encouraged people to sign up early to secure their space at the retreat.
Because primary sexual violence prevention was a central concern to most of these stakeholders, there was little resistance in terms of interest in participating. Other hurdles, however, had to be addressed, including the costs associated with attending the conference, travel issues, and the time to attend. The Health Department was able to secure funding to cover participants’ costs.
However, the steering committee had to work hard to find a meeting site that was within com- muting distance from many cities but that would was also be able to provide rooms for those travel- ing from the out-state area.
Given the budget constraints and the diverse needs of this group, there were challenges secur- ing a suitable meeting location. In the end, a Catholic retreat center fit many of the physical requirements of the conference, but presented another set of challenges. For a few stakeholder groups, there were negative perceptions about the perceived role of the church in sexual violence, the location lacked air conditioning, and there was no handicap access.
The planners of the project were also able to build on several efforts that the health department had pre- viously used to gain stakeholder involvement. For several years, the department hosted a forum called the Sexual Violence Prevention Action Council. This
application 10.3
178 PART 2 The Process of Organization Development
group had been engaged in education and dialogue on the issue. Diverse stakeholders were already coming together around the issues and had adopted a framework developed by the Prevention Institute called the “Spectrum of Prevention.” Without this foundational work, it would have been risky to attempt to get stakeholders aligned around a strate- gic plan in a two-day meeting.
Finally, another tool the steering committee initi- ated for gaining involvement was an online sur- vey. This survey was sent to all invitees so that even those who could not attend the retreat would have a voice in the planning. The survey was also sent to others who were not invited to the retreat and people were encouraged to pass the survey on to other stakeholders who might be interested in this plan. Close to 100 people responded to the survey. A majority of respondents provided con- tact information and volunteered to help with the plan implementation.
Conducting the Meeting
Fifty invitees were able to attend the planning retreat. Using a large-group process over two days, participants worked together to create the framework of a strategic plan. Part of the planned agenda was to have stakeholders sign up for an action team toward the end of the two days. The dilemma faced during the session was in trying to get both focused strategies and a very diverse group of stakeholders to take action. Actions would need to occur both at the state level and within individual communities. The steering com- mittee was not sure, going into the meeting, that team sign-up process would work. They agreed to meet during lunch on the second day to review
the work and determine how to move the group toward action.
During the lunch meeting, the group decided that the strategies were not clear enough to cre- ate teams at the meeting. While the group was concerned about losing people’s action commit- ment, they believed it was more important to have teams that made strategic sense and utilized limited resources well. After lunch, the strategies and success indicators were posted on the wall.
Consultants then used a multivoting process to identify six priorities for action.
Following the retreat, the OD consultants devel- oped a proposed structure for action around these six priorities and sent this to the steering committee members for review. Their feedback was incorporated into an action structure that was included in the written strategic plan. Health department staff members then took over the planning and launching of these teams.
Sustaining Momentum
When the strategic planning project had begun, the head of the sexual violence prevention unit had left the organization, and the position had gone unfilled throughout the project. Just prior to the retreat, a well-known state leader in sexual violence work, Patty Wetterling, agreed to fill the position. Seventeen years earlier, Wetterling’s young son had been abducted in their small Minnesota town and was never found. Her work in establishing new laws regarding abductions as an advocate and state legislator, as well as a run for the U.S. Senate, made Wetterling a perfect choice to provide statewide leadership in imple- menting the strategic plan.
Activity Planning
Activity planning involves making a road map for change, citing specific activities and events that must occur if the transition is to be successful. It should clearly identify, temporally orient, and integrate discrete change tasks, and it should explicitly link these tasks to the organization’s change goals and priorities. Activity planning also should gain top-management approval, be cost effective, and remain adaptable as feed- back is received during the change process.
An important feature of activity planning is that visions and desired future states can be quite general when compared with the realities of implementing change. As a result, it may be necessary to supplement them with midpoint goals as part of the activity plan.42 Such goals represent desirable organizational conditions between the current state and the desired future state. For example, if the organization is implementing continuous improvement processes, an important midpoint goal can be the establishment of a certain number of improvement teams focused on understanding and controlling key work pro- cesses. Midpoint goals are clearer and more detailed than desired future states, and thus they provide more concrete and manageable steps and benchmarks for change. Activity plans can use midpoint goals to provide members with the direction and security they need to work toward the desired future.
Commitment Planning
This activity involves identifying key people and groups whose commitment is needed for change to occur and formulating a strategy for gaining their support. Although commitment planning is generally a part of developing political support, discussed above, specific plans for identifying key stakeholders and obtaining their commitment to change need to be made early in the change process.
Change-Management Structures
Because organizational transitions tend to be ambiguous and to need direction, special structures for managing the change process need to be created. These management structures should include people who have the power to mobilize resources to pro- mote change, the respect of the existing leadership and change advocates, and the interpersonal and political skills to guide the change process. Alternative management structures include the following:43
The chief executive or head person manages the change effort.
A project manager temporarily is assigned to coordinate the transition.
A steering committee of representatives from the major constituencies involved in the change jointly manage the project.
Natural leaders who have the confidence and trust of large numbers of affected employees are selected to manage the transition.
A cross section of people representing different organizational functions and levels manages the change.
A “kitchen cabinet” representing people whom the chief executive consults with and confides in manages the change effort.
Learning Processes
Most organization changes involve the acquisition of new knowledge and skills that support new behaviors. Research at the Center for Effective Organizations suggests that change can be implemented more quickly when leaders consciously design learning
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Desired Future State Transition
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Organization Change as a Transition State