Board commitment to OD work
One big challenge which VESEEHC faced in its organizational development work was getting the board to engage in these activities. “They thought they knew all they needed to know,” says Art Carter. “So, we brought on an additional consultant to take the board through a strategic planning and training process which helped them see the importance of OD from another perspective.” At the same time, the staff didn’t fully understand the process of organizational development. “It takes time to get ‘buy-in,’ ”explains Dr. Carter. “People needed to hear from [not just the executive director] but outside consultants about the importance of the work.
Initially we did not use the term ‘organizational development’ with the staff. We talked about the organization from the staff perspective and spoke of what it means to function at maximum potential.”