Organizational Development: A Manual for Managers and ... - FPDL
Organizational Development: A Manual for Managers and ... - FPDL
Organizational Development: A Manual for Managers and ... - FPDL
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or involved in the implementation process - had a better chance to be implemented in a way that<br />
guarantees expected results.<br />
However, there is no single recipe <strong>for</strong> making decisions in an organization. The decision as a<br />
process also creates a trajectory, usually one of many available. It is better, in general, if the<br />
decision-making process is rational - but humans are not very rational creatures, are they?<br />
In any case, a decision may be rational or not only with respect to the visible trajectories that are<br />
under consideration, <strong>and</strong> in relation to the data available, or to the set of assumptions that were<br />
taken in account. Certain decisions may seem to be ‘wrong’ because things happen to turn in an<br />
unfavourable direction (this possibility may be understood at the time the decision was made, but<br />
the corresponding probability seemed low); or, something entirely unpredictable might happen.<br />
However, a rational decision remains rational even in the face of loss, <strong>and</strong> an irrational decision<br />
remains irrational even if it turns out well. Rationality works as a general rule <strong>for</strong> decision making.<br />
In principle, it provides more chances to survive than any other alternative; of course, there are no<br />
guarantees. Rationality relates to a controllable part of causality. This part is to a certain degree in<br />
the h<strong>and</strong>s of the manager. Another part remains in the h<strong>and</strong>s of fate. That is why it is never<br />
enough to make a seemingly rational decision - nobody knows what will actually happen during<br />
implementation.<br />
Implementation<br />
Implementation is a course of actions <strong>and</strong> related events. Actions should be organized in time –<br />
first as an action plan, then as an implementation process.<br />
To elaborate <strong>and</strong> optimize an action plan one should figure out ‘a battle field’ – a whole l<strong>and</strong>scape<br />
of development on a given level <strong>and</strong> in a given respect. Two commonly used <strong>and</strong> helpful practices<br />
at the preliminary planning stage are: <strong>for</strong>ce field analysis, <strong>and</strong> stakeholders’ analysis.<br />
Any external or internal factors may be considered as vectors with a certain direction <strong>and</strong> strength<br />
(or value). The direction of each vector may coincide with the trajectory that is to be followed to<br />
reach a goal, or not. In any case, the projection of the vector to the trajectory will be positive,<br />
negative or neutral. Vectors with positive projection on the given trajectory are called driving<br />
<strong>for</strong>ces. Vectors with negative projection are constraining <strong>for</strong>ces. See Picture 20.<br />
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