Intervention in Organizations
Book: Achterbergh, J., & Vriens, D., 2019. Organizational development: designing episodic
interventions. London: Routledge.
Index
Lecture 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 2
→ Book chapter 1, 5 ................................................................................................................... 2
Lecture 2 + 3. Organizations and their structures – The theoretical background............................ 6
→ Book chapter 2, 3, 4 ............................................................................................................... 6
Lecture 5. Interventions: functional dimension + organizational structure .................................... 17
→ Book chapter 6 ..................................................................................................................... 17
Lecture 6. Interventions: The social dimension............................................................................. 23
→ Book chapter 7 ..................................................................................................................... 23
Lecture 7. Interventions: infrastructural dimension ....................................................................... 28
→ Book chapter 8 ..................................................................................................................... 28
,Lecture 1. Introduction
→ Book chapter 1, 5
Practical issues
8 lectures and 6 seminars
Main idea of the course
Topic of the course: episodic interventions in the structure of organizations
Problems in organizations… Related to the structure of organizations… Solving problems requires a
fundamental structural change… Episodic interventions in structures needed! Ok… but… What are
episodic interventions in structures? And how do you actually conduct them?
Episodic intervention sets out to change a problematic structure to a proper structure. Requires a
separate intervention on organization. You need a model that guides you in your change efforts. The
book build such a model → 3D model. In this model there are three related dimensions.
First dimension is the functional dimension is about changing the problematic structure into a proper
one. Search for what is the problematic structure and what can be the proper structure (For example:
Bureaucratic structure to team-based structure). But thinking about this is not enough, it has to be
accepted by the employees, they should integrate this structure in their routines. This is the second
dimension, the social dimension, this is about acceptance and integration of the new structure. The
third and last dimension relates to this separate intervention in organization. The third dimension is
what is the separate intervention about, who, what technology, is the infrastructural dimension. How
to design the separate intervention organization.
Fit ODD curriculum
ODD highlights: the design and development of the (infra) structure of an organization as a condition
for realizing the organization’s societal contribution.
➔ Intervention in organization: specific type of development. Focus on one part of infra, structure…
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,Relevant concepts 1: Organizations
Organization is a social system delivering a societal contribution in terms of products & services,
positive (work) or negative (unemployment, waste) side effects. (B1) Organizations can positively
contribute to society in three ways: (1) By means of the societal valuable products and services they
provide, (2) By means of providing non-product or non-service related positive side effects such as
employment or well-being of employees and (3) By making sure that negative side effects like pollution
and inequality are avoided.
➔ CSR: valuable products and services, as much as possible positive side effects, avoid/reduce as
much as possible negative side effects.
Social system is a system of interlocking interaction (realizing the societal contribution). They set and
adapt goals and realize these goals.
Interaction relate to 4 basic activities:
1. Performing transformation processes
→ products and services
2. Operational regulation: deal with
disturbances
3. Setting goals: related to
positive/negative side effects etc.
4. Designing conditions: hr/culture,
technology and structure.
These four activities are related to the structure.
Interactions relate to culture. Interaction produce or
reproduce a particular culture (values, norms, basic
assumptions etc.). These have an effect on an
intervention/change.
(B1) Interaction premises = factors like the tasks
members are assigned, the organization’s structure,
the organization goal and culture.
Interactions both produce and are conditioned by
goals, infrastructure and culture. A continues loop.
This is a continuous and experimental relation. Continuous because it doesn’t stop. It is
experimental because if you change goals/infrastructure you don’t know for sure which will help you
to survive, you don’t have that knowledge, you need to think as a hypothesis. Goals and
infrastructures are fundamentally uncertain. (Re)set goals and (Re)design structures.
Relevant concepts 2: Structures (and their development)
Structure is the way tasks are defined and related to each other in a network of tasks
(Organizational) Development is intended, continuous improvement of interaction premises (goals,
infrastructure and culture)
Structural Development is intended, continuous improvement of structure. The change of the structure
is part of the task of the structure itself.
In normal healthy organizational structures enable (continuous) structural development. Current
structure > it might be redesigned > implement changed structure > monitor > it gets
adjusted/accepted > maybe redesign again or have a new current structure.
But sometimes, the structural development cannot longer happen in organizations. Sometimes the
development is inhibited. Sometimes, organizational structures don’t enable continuous structural
development. In such cases a separate change project is required. This is a separate intervention
organization.
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, This is the case when:
1. There are large strategic changes
Example: from country-based units to customer based units. Here, the structural change is
simply too large to be carried out as part of the regular jobs of organizational members –
requires a separate intervention structure.
2. An organization has an self-inhibiting structure. The structure inhibits itself to change itself.
Sometimes a structure is designed so poorly that it blocks structural development. The structure
has become ‘self-inhibiting’. Structural improvement requires separate intervention.
Example: the case of Josef K. He works in a large operational process. Tiny part of the
process and small amount of time for the job. His job depends on many other equally small
jobs. This job is related to many different order types. If things go wrong, Josef has to consult
his manager. This manager only takes care of a small part of the process. The manager itself
is managed by managers etc. It is a complex network of simple jobs. Such organizations may
lose the capacity to change the structure/organization, this is based on the structure itself.
In such organizations: efficient/effective production is problematic. Many dependency relations;
every relation may be a source of errors, operational jobs lack of regulatory power to deal with
errors, dealing with problems depends on managers (takes time/irrelevant solutions), managers
have a limited scope (sub-optimization). And employee well-being is problematic: alienation (don’t
see end-product), stress (can’t deal with errors; need to finish targets) and demotivation
(degrading jobs).
In such structures structural development is also disabled! Improvement not part of operational job
– left to managers, but managers can’t really do this, as they are not involved in the primary
process (difficult to understand problems), caught up in dealing with the many ‘normal’ problems in
these organizations and have a limited scope (aspect/part) – leads to sub-optimization.
In such cases, if structural development cannot be done based on the current structure because
changes are too large of the current structure disables its own development then episodic
interventions are required.
Relevant concepts 3: Episodic interventions
Episodic intervention (in structure) is a deliberate, intentional, comprehensive change of the
structure of the organizations, having its own separate, temporary intervention organization.
Intentional = explicit goal to change structure
Deliberate = based on explicit deliberation
Comprehensive = change of large part/whole structure
Having its own separate, temporary intervention organization = on top of standing
organization, clear beginning/end and with own infrastructure dedicated to structural change.
The overall goal is to solve organizational problems by changing the structure of the organization into
a well-designed structure. A well-designed structure enables efficient/effective processes, maximizes
quality of work and one with the capacity for structural development. And make sure that this structure
is accepted and integrated by members who have to work in int.
Overall goal is actually two related goals:
A functional goal: change the structure of the organizational into a well-designed structure
A social goal: make sure that the changed structure is accepted and integrated by member
working in it.
Episodic interventions (EI) are problematic! More than 60% fail. Often, people lose commitment to the
intervention, EI do not meet the milestones for them, EI become too costly, EI are badly organized, EI
are carried out without knowledge about structures, EI lead to fierce resistance (as their impact is large
and people feel threatened) and many more problems exists… So… it is time for a model that may
guide episodic interventions. In this course a 3D model is presented used for understanding and
guiding EI.
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