Being an OD Practitioner in the 21st century is becoming more challenging, and perhaps more important.
Our global and local environments are less predictable and stable. Carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere continue to increase. Petroleum reserves may be peaking Forests are decreasing. World energy usage is increasing. Global population is increasing, though not evenly--European countries are facing a shortfall in their labor force. iPads may become the new novel or newspaper to read on the train. The proportion of college-educated and -employed women world-wide is increasing. Jobs and knowledge are being exported across national borders. Undocumented workers are being imported. Research and technology is improving health care but making it more expensive. Project teams in multi-national corporations work across time-zones, and seldom meet face-to-face. Managers make decisions, but outcomes are hard to assess because the variables are so complex; they get promoted for appearing to be decisive, rather than for making the right decisions. Short-term solutions turn out to lead to unanticipated disasters. Are you confused and overwhelmed? Guess how your clients feel?
We are increasingly aware that our world is changing, and that we need to be intentional about evolving our ways of practicing Organization Development in the years ahead. As the global and organizational environments in which we work continue to change, OD practitioners are called on to be clear about the core values and principles that guide us, while adapting our intervention strategies and developing the appropriate competencies to carry them out effectively.
The growing need is for ways to guide change in the present, while keeping the future in mind. Consider what you are noticing about how our world is changing. What trends are you aware of in your own work experience, reading, media reports, travels? We can put our individual perspectives together like a mosaic, and become more aware of the changing contextual patterns in which we are doing our work. Post your own observations and questions by clicking on Comments.
As Shel Davis, one of my mentors, used to say, "Correct me if I'm right." ; )
And you may be interested in the results of a Delphi study about OD and the future that is speeding toward us.
