accounting design system

Designing Interventions

To evaluate the appropriateness of an intervention, OD consultants consider three

questions:

1. Does it fit with the current capabilities of the system (and consultant skills)? 2. Will it adequately address the problem? Some problems cannot be “solved”

with current resources or environmental conditions, but all problems can be

dealt with more effectively—faster, with less effort or resources and better

processes (less conflict or stress involved).

3. Does it increase the system capability for handling and managing future changes?

Interventions can be designed to address individual levels of change—team, group,

functional, or inter-group workings—or for total organizational and systems change.

The criteria that influence effectiveness or most likely to predict success are the

readiness of the organization, its capability, the cultural or context fit between

organization and intervention, and the skills and capability of the change agent or OD

consultant. This last factor can be expanded to include the overall leadership of the

change.

Contextual and Cultural Fit

Interventions must also fit the issue they intend to address. This is the contextual

appropriateness of the change. Activities that address the strategic issues or technology

and structure problems usually do not adequately address change in the human

processes and people management arena. Activities focusing on human processes or

human resource systems and management processes must be supported with attention

to strategy and the technostructural workings of the firm. In this manner, interventions

are categorized as being process focused, technology and structure focused,

strategically focused, or people and management skills focused.

The cultural fit is more difficult to categorize. Taking a highly autocratic culture with a

closed system of communication and decision-making and applying interventions that

are too participative will likely have tremendous problems. For a cooperative and

collaborative organization with highly participative culture, using interventions and

change processes that depend heavily on top-down planning and individual decision

making, while relying on inspirational leadership, can create radical change. However,

will it last? Not likely.

The Challenge of Leadership

The authors of The Leadership Challenge conducted studies related to people at all

levels getting “extraordinary things done” (Kouzes & Posner, 1995, p. 18). In early

studies, they found that vision, involvement, and persistence were three general areas

that needed attention. They expanded these core areas into five practices and ten

commitments.

The first practice is "Challenging the Process." Its commitments are (1) search out

challenging opportunities to change, grow, innovate, and improve and (2) experiment,

take risks, and learn from the accompanying mistakes. The second practice is

"Inspiring a Shared Vision." Its corresponding commitments are to envision an

uplifting and ennobling future and to enlist others in the common vision by appealing

to their values, interests, hopes, and dreams. "Enabling Others to Act" is the third

practice, with the commitments to foster collaboration by promoting cooperative goals

and building trust and to strengthen people by giving power away, providing choice,

developing competence, assigning critical tasks, and offering visible support. Leaders

commit to the practice of "Modeling the Way" by setting the example by behaving in

ways that are consistent with shared values and by achieving small wins that promote

consistent progress and build commitment. The fifth and final practice of "Encouraging

the Heart" includes the commitments to recognize individual contributions to the

success of every project and to celebrate team accomplishments regularly.

Practices Commitments

Challenging the

Process

1. Search out challenging opportunities to change, grow, innovate,

and improve.

2. Experiment, take risks, and learn from the accompanying

mistakes.

Inspiring a

Shared Vision

3. Envision an uplifting and ennobling future.

4. Enlist others in the common vision by appealing to their values,

interests, hopes and dreams.

Enabling others

to Act

5. Foster collaboration by promoting cooperative goals and building

trust.

6. Strengthen people by giving power away, providing choice,

developing competence, assigning critical tasks, and offering visible

support.

Modeling the

Way

7. Set the example by behaving in ways that are consistent with

shared values.

8. Achieve small wins that promote consistent progress and build

commitment.

Encouraging the

Heart

9. Recognize individual contributions to the success of every

project.

10. Celebrate team accomplishments regularly.

Measurement and Feedback

To keep the intervention focused and moving to “right” goals, there must be ongoing

feedback, which can only happen if measures are created to provide feedback (and

provide it at all levels). There should also be an overall evaluation of the total change

process near or at the end of the consulting engagement. Given the iterative nature of

change, any intervention plan needs to include measures that facilitate feedback and

learning during the process and evaluate the overall process for future application or

learning to increase capacity and skill.

Reference:

Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (1995). The leadership challenge (p.18). San Francisco:

Jossey-Bass.