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INVESTING
IN PEOPLE
'The only irreplaceable
capital an organisation possesses is the
knowledge and ability of its people. The
productivity of that capital depends on how
effectively people share their competence with
those who can use it!' (Andrew Carnegie)
'Organisations
... are nothing more than networks of human relationships. If these
networks do not function effectively, there
is nothing with which to perform the tasks to be
accomplished.' (Edgar H. Schein: '
Process Consultation')
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The importance of Organisation
Development
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Because
finance, plant and specialised skills are so
important, it is easy to forget that the most
important factor contributing to the success of
an organisation is its people — not only the people employed
by it and
their families, but also those
who trade with it. The organisation's effectiveness depends on the ways in which
the people relate to one
another. Difficulties with production, marketing,
finance, engineering, technology, the law, health
and safety often prove to be 'people problems' at root.
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What Organisation
Development is
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Organisation Development is a self-perpetuating process of
change, directed by the organisation's people. It involves new ways of looking at
old problems, challenging both complacency and disaffection.
It is
more than team building
because it aims to integrate each team with every
other team.
Unlike re-structuring, planned and
directed by external consultants, improvements are proposed, discussed and carried
out by the organisation itself. Because it is the
organisation's people who plan and carry out
Organisation Development, the process need not involve sudden
major disruption.
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The first step
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Every organisation
is unique and there is no standard method of
improving its effectiveness. But development begins with an open-minded survey to reveal
the organisation's undiscovered 'people' assets and ways in which these
might be put
to good use. Often, the people who
constitute the organisation know what the causes of its problems are —
but may not know that they know! The consultant's task is to help them
discover what they thought they didn't know.
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If you hear people in the organisation
saying,
there is a need for Organisation Development.
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