Change is one of the most challenging aspects of our lives. Organizational change management efforts fail to achieve all desired objectives as much as 70 percent of the time. How can people struggle so much with change, but experience and deal with it daily? I have observed and studied change being stonewalled by elements of fear. By looking into how people develop fear and various methods to mitigate it, we help unlock the ball and chain of hesitation and doubt. When there is nothing to fear but fear itself, the collective organization can achieve great victories.
Organizational development (OD) looks at building a reliable foundation to build and maintain great work. Positive OD uses strength-based approaches seeking to unlock the best parts of the organization that diminishes weaknesses. This is not to say that problems are ignored, but they are not what we choose to give life to. OD looks at elements like strategic modeling, strategic thinking, systems thinking, coaching, Appreciative Inquiry, sustainability, consulting, multicultural and global citizenship, and industry-specific content.
Leadership skills are extremely sought-after elements. According to John Maxwell, at its essence leadership is about influencing others. I agree with this simplistic perspective, I just wish the elements that contribute to good quality leadership were also as simple. However, what defines that is one of the reasons this topic is so challenging.
