April 2008
Host: Centrica
Theme: Leaders v Leadership and Transitions for Leaders
June 2008
Host: Cancer Research UK
Theme: Net Gen / Generation Y – What do Leaders Now Need to Know about the Next Generation of Leaders?
We had a fascinating session talking about Generation Y or N GEN at the Learning Value Network led by Laura Heath last week. Questions discussed included:
- what do leaders need to do to release engagement and contribution from Gen Y?
- impact on traditional career development, Talent management
- how do you measure employee satisfaction in Gen Y world?
- how can we learn from new ways of organising from old craft guilds or movie making as temporary complex organisations which appeal to Gen Y?
- what difference does it make to OD? This last question we decided to take as next times topic? Is OD dying? What is the new OD for Net Gen and social networking world?
Ian Gee from Nokia has suggested a YouTube video which he felt encapsulated the old OD view and was brave enough to describe as “self serving claptrap” which you might be interested in watching:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
September 2008
Host: Nokia
Theme: Is OD Dying? What is the new OD for the N-Gen and Social Networking World?
In September’s LVN meeting we had a fascinating and provoking discussion in which we addressed the topic of “Is OD Dying? What’s the new OD?” and we agreed that there was potential for further exploration with a real issue e.g. acquisition and integration. From our discussion we developed some themes around current and future OD assumptions.
Recognising the challenges of defining OD any way – “the art of ensuring an organisation supports its strategy and purpose” was one attempt! - we listed some potential differences:
| “Current OD assumptions” |
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New OD assumptions? |
Client centred
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OD practitioners taking a leadership role rather than purely going with client need?
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Stand outside the system?
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Stand in and out at the same time
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Control in organisations as a way of managing anxiety – need for structure
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Finding different ways to hold anxiety in ORG 3.0 and other new ways of organising?
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OD interventions must have a targeted outcome
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No known outcome; emergent and experiment to identify intended and unintended consequences
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Roots in group relations, significance of psychological contract
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New roots in ethnography, anthropology and phenomenology
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Episodic, guru centred events, with the mystique of the expert
Rescuer?
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In a world where leaders have more OD experience a shift to joint ownership. Less centred on events and facilitation, more working through and with others, nudging, influencing
Not part of the drama cycle
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Hierarchical organisations with grading systems and sense of fairness, performance systems, one mode across organisation
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Network organisations, each person negotiates their own worth – e.g. music business – added value of people need to live up to this! Different modes for different functions
Modes of organisation like film industry that come together at short notice, have guilds of workers who have loyalty and reward structures, rather than one organisation
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Face to face Conferences, networks – US and UK influence – different schools of thought and tendency to one mode…
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Where is the R&D for OD now?
- new technologies, use of video, podcasts, simulations
- how to use eclectic mix of OD approaches
What is OD for India and China?
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Individual Leadership and talent development as a key focus – Often OD label has disappeared, Talent, Leadership and OD or Org Effectiveness
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How can teams and organisations experiment with different modes e.g. LEGO concept, play with user generated designs for own team What is development needed by N GEN?
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From baby boomer and GEN X as leaders – work hard, head down talent development - what are their assumptions about organisations?
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N GEN, GEN Y – what are the assumptions they have about organisations? “Why I don’t want to work like you or for you? “ Paid volunteers
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Global organisations, increasing complexity
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What does future hold? Move away from global?
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November 2008
Host: Universal Music
Theme: Acquisition and Integration - What are the Variety of OD Approaches, Old and New – that we might take?
We had a lively discussion on the integration issues associated with mergers and acquisitions and OD ‘s role.
Key themes
- value of integration teams
- comparison of different merger / acquisition processes
- focus on speed in the Compaq / HP merger and benefits of use of FASTSTART process with all management teams – working on cultural differences, strategy for 30, 60, 90 days, focus on new merged culture... however a lesson of whether this was then followed through enough
- need for change agents with tools to support the process
- acquisitions – Groups who regularly acquire smaller organisations – use 80:20 rule; 80% stays independent, 20% non-negotiable that has to be group, only going ahead if mgmt team really wants to do it, leave alone at first, set a milestone ahead in a year’s time of joint goals
- Another experience of working with a hi tech acquisition was the benefit of getting a new acquisition to hear from a previous one what it was like, warts and all, as part of planning how to make it work well
- Why is OD often not in early enough as part of “clean room” stage of mergers?
- On line simulations for virtual working and organisation design, using ideas from games e.g. World of Warcraft and guild masters
- BCG shared a new questionnaire on Integrating Cultures – Human Due Diligence which is available if interested, linked to the workshop in Integrating Working Cultures held on 2 December.
We moved on to discuss implications for OD of current times / recession and how to get an experience of how people really experience change in organisations
We also proposed a new immersion / discovery experience for next time – either at a school or a prison, to meet in a different environment (comparison made to Record label executives immersing themselves in Burger King for a week to understand their customers).
In the meantime, those present committed to do some research on their own or in pairs – in their own organisations, or in other very different environments e.g. working with homeless – what change really means and to gain insights on how OD can really add value? More to follow on this in New Year. Ian Gee shared a link as part of looking outside what we normally do, to other methods.
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