While a comprehensive model for organizational learning (OL) remains elusory, the wide web of scholarly conversation and debate has spurred rich insight into the central questions of how and what people learn in organizational settings. This paper is aimed at exploring some of those debates, with a view to identifying a complementary set of factors …
With organizations and their environments in a state of constant flux, organizational development scholars have been challenged to create and practice methodologies that enable fast, yet comprehensive change. In answer to the call, a wide range of large-group change techniques has emerged to promote whole-systems adaptability. While the technologies differ in their focus and approach, …
Exploring the Roots of Large-Group Change Techniques Read More »
With organizations and their environments in a state of constant flux, organizational development researchers have been challenged to develop methodologies that enable fast yet comprehensive change. In response, a wide range of large-group change techniques has emerged, including future search, open space, simu-real, and search conference.
Large group interventions are designed to help people collaborate effectively by thinking and acting from a whole-systems perspective. “Whole systems” refers to the way an organization operates internally through its processes and externally through its relations to customers and other stakeholders. There are a number of core values underpinning all whole-systems change methodologies.
How can the CEO and HR department find their common ground? CEO Paul Johnson advises that organizations can’t save their way to greatness – they grow their way to greatness. This requires developing a clear strategy and investing in good tools to make it all happen: your people. Ultimately, this is how the CEO and …
In 2007, a variety of groups in New Brunswick interested in the viability and success of the province got together to create a plan for sustainable economic renewal. Faced with massive emigration, erosion of their natural resource-based economy, and poor academic standings, New Brunswick was ready for change. “Maritime provinces are at a crossroads”, commented …
We spoke to an educational dream-team about best practices in facilitating learning – and harnessing new knowledge to help overcome an organization’s most pressing challenges. Sharing their views are Allyson Thomson of the Ontario Ministry of Finance; her executive sponsor Assistant Deputy Minister Marion Crane; and Queen’s IRC Facilitator Brenda Barker Scott. Allyson Thompson, Senior …
Françoise Morissette is an Queen’s IRC Facilitator, accredited coach, and Organizational Development consultant. In the following Q & A she discusses how executives who sponsor education for their employees can ensure that valuable knowledge actually gets applied in the workplace. Do executive sponsors typically get good returns on their educational investments in employees? A lot …
The Don Wood Lecture in Industrial Relations was established by friends of W. Donald Wood to honour his outstanding contribution to Canadian industrial relations. Dr Wood was Director of the Industrial Relations Centre from 1960 to 1985, and the first Director of the School of Industrial Relations, established in 1983. The lecture brings to Queen’s …
Dealing with Work-Life Issues in the Workplace: Standing Still is Not an Option Read More »
He is a major mover in organization development and, we are proud to say, a Queen’s IRC Facilitator. Marvin Weisbord is also author of the seminal books “Productive Workplaces and Future Search: An Action Guide to Finding Common Ground in Organizations and Communities” (co-authored with Sandra Janoff). A “future search” is a planning meeting that …
Exploring “The Whole Elephant” and Finding Common Ground Read More »
It is a simple truth that people have an organic connection to the space in which they live and work. No matter how hard a host may try to steer his or her guests to the formal living room, everyone eventually ends up in the kitchen, and as they do, the real party begins. The …
The new executive director of a nonprofit organization realizes that a failed merger has left the place in chaos. What should she do to put things right? Experts offer their advice on the best path forward.
This paper explores the relationship between worker cooperation with technical change and international competitiveness. It outlines the reasons why worker cooperation is important, how it is (and is not) obtained, and assesses the likelihood that Canadian companies can achieve it. The conclusions are not entirely pessimistic. While it is often very hard to create a cooperative attitude where there was none before, there have been some remarkable success stories.
Although telecommuting – defined here as working at home using electronic communications technology linked to the employer's central office – has been under way in Canadian organizations to varying degrees for some time, it is only in the last few years that it has been formally implemented in some Canadian companies. There is every indication that telecommuting will become much more prevalent in North America during the next ten years.
This paper examines the relationship between stressful working conditions and union members' dissatisfaction with their union. Few studies to date have examined this relationship and existing studies report contradictory findings. That is, some studies find that stressful work is associated with satisfaction with the union while other studies find either no relationship or that stressful work is associated with dissatisfaction with the union.
High organizational commitment has consistently been associated with lower employee turnover, decreased absenteeism, longer job tenure, and in several studies, enhanced performance. These aspects of employee behaviour are of strategic concern to organizations. This paper brings the extensive academic knowledge of organizational commitment together in one essay for use by organizational practitioners.
This paper examines employee involvement initiatives in order to determine what firm-level factors have contributed to the slow development of such programs in Canada. Six cases studies were analyzed and several hypotheses were formulated about the conditions necessary for employee involvement programs to succeed. An examination of the factors which influence the firm-level players revealed that several obstacles exist which may prevent these conditions from being realized.
This summary report provides some of the first results of the analysis of the data contained in the Working with Technology Survey for the 224 respondents who responded to the questionnaires in both 1985 and 1991. Comparisons of establishments' behaviour across the two time periods provides many valuable insights both into tech change and its impacts on workers, and into organizational change. More detailed survey results will be reported later in the course of the Human Resource Management Project.