Organizational development consultants are employed by businesses that are going through a period of change. The change can be positive or negative, welcome or unwelcome. An OD consulting firm can use a variety of approaches to assess a company and develop a strategy for easing transitions.
A successful business makes its employees feel valued, respects diversity and embraces change. When any of these criteria are not met, employee retention, productivity and profits may suffer.
There are several times in a company's life cycle that an organizational consultant may prove worthwhile.
1. When starting a business, organization development consultants determine your needs and how best to fill them.
2. Expansion is a stressful time for employees. Organizational development consultants analyze the strengths and weaknesses within the company and devise a strategy for managing both.
3. During times of corporate upheaval, an OD consultant improves communication skills and works on team building within the company.
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
Choose an organizational development consultant that understands your business
Organizational development consulting firms have specialties. To get the most value for your dollar, choose an OD consulting firm that specializes in your industry.
I recommend: Consultants Mall offers several choices in organizational consulting firms.
Organization Development Network offers a database of organizational consultants that is searchable by state or specialty.
Consider online or workshop-based OD consulting services
In some cases, hiring an organizational development consultant is not practical. There are more affordable options.
I recommend: iSixSigma magazine lists popular workshop-based organizational training programs that focus your staff on quality standards. For those who find SixSigma a little intensive,
Personality Pathways offers many workshops that use Meyers-Briggs and other types of psychological analysis as a way to improve the workplace environment.
Become your own OD consultant with the right software
Organizational development consulting is a highly specialized field, but if you are willing to take on the work yourself, there are several computer programs that allow you to effectively identify the most promotable employees, areas in the company that are at risk of retention problems and key competencies within your teams.
I recommend: Halogen Software offers
eSuccession, and
iCohere offers a web-based program. Both of these programs offer a variety of employee-development, communication-improving and team-building functions at a fraction of the cost of an OD firm.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- Organizational development companies should be willing to provide testimonials from clients in your industry.
- Ask each of the organizational development consultants that you interview how they measure results and what type of guarantee they offer.
- Organization development consultants train managers, work with employees to improve communication skills, and provide reports to department heads on the efficiency of their offices. It is up to you to determine exactly what you want from your OD consultant.
The official source of Organizational Development Consultants is
the Organizational Development Consultants page at Business.com
Featured Vendors
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