The NTL Handbook of Organization Development and Change: Principles, Practices, and Perspectives, 2nd Edition

CHAPTER SEVENOD MAP^aThe Essence of Organization Development

Ted Tschudy

First named by early practitioners in the late 1950s, organization development (OD) has grown dramatically since the 1960s when a few hundred practitioners and thought leaders gathered for the first meetings of the Organization Development Network. OD, or derivative terminology such as organizational improvement, organizational effectiveness, or performance improvement, is now commonly found on the organization charts of business, government, and not-for- profit organizations. Organization development consulting firms are working in major commercial centers all over the world.

Today’s OD is a maturing practice, characterized by:

• Practice at multiple levels of the system ...