Organizational Development Role and Function Essay

Organizational Development and Change Management

In delineation, organizational development is an endeavor that is planned, organization-wide and managed from the top of the entity to increase organization efficacy and proper status through planned interventions in the processes and practices of the organization. Organizational development plays a fundamental role in facilitating organizational change. Organizational development is the use of organizational resources to develop effectiveness and increase productivity. It can be used to resolve difficulties within the organization or as a way to examine a process and find a more effective way of doing it. The process of organizational development ascertains areas of company processes where change is required. Each need is examined, and the possible effects are planned into a change management plan. Imperatively, the plan shapes the precise ways in which the change will advance and enhance company practices and operations, which will be impacted by the change and the manner in which it can be instigated in an efficient manner to employees. Devoid of organizational development as part of change management, a corporation would experience a significantly hard time developing effective change management programs (Cummings and Worley, 2016).

The two fundamental and critical aspects of organizational development (OD) that facilitate successful organizational change to take place and promote lasting success are goal setting and employee development (Rothwell, 2010). With regard to goal setting, it is imperative to know the objectives of the organization beyond the basic surface level. This encompasses setting targets for improvement for every strategic objective. Every member of the team ought to have the information essential to set personal or team goals that work into the strategic objectives of the organization. The advantage to this is that organizational change is properly understood by all members of the organization. Lasting success is attained because every team member has strategic objectives that facilitate the achievement of the organizational objectives in the long run (Rothwell, 2010). The second aspect is employee development. This organizational development element provides staff members with the prospect to work to their greatest potential. Employee development is imperative to successful organizational change because employees obtain learning, coaching, and development. When employees are trained, they obtain the knowledge, competence and skills necessary for effective implementation of the change aspects instigated into the organization (McLean, 2006).

A fitting example of successful organizational change is the case of Nokia. With the introduction of mobile phones in the market, Nokia experienced a great deal of market domination. However, with the advancement of technology and entry other players in the market, the company was forced to…