Types of Intervention

INSTRUCTIONS:

Please review the original post (below) from my classmates. Please read each one of my classmate’s posts and provide a response to each. You can respond with 75-100 words for each classmate’s post. Please start off with the name of the classmate and put all responses on one page (paragraphs separated and double-spaced). This does not require any citations/sources. In each response, provide comments on your classmate’s topic idea and ask a question that prompts your classmate to think more critically about how to explore the research topic in more detail.

Andrew

Identify your selected intervention.
Team building is one of the most recognizable interventions out there. Bierema (2020) states, “Team-building OD intervetions are centered on helping members move through the stages of group development”. One of the most recognizable models of team development comes from Tuckman’s model; Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing (Adjourning being the last stage added later to signify the team disbanding after meeting the specified goal) (Bierema, 2020).
Explain why you chose that type of intervention
I chose this intervention because team building is an essential part of any organization. In order to work efficiently and effectively, teams must be able to perform and work together in a way that maximizes workflow and product output. Scudamore (2016) states, “Effective team building means more engaged employees, which is good for company culture and boosting the bottom line”.
Describe the tools and activities selected to facilitate the interaction
According to Burn (2004), as cited in, Bierema (2020), several approaches OD consultants use towards team building are as follows:
• Engaging in constructive controversy
• Group Goal Setting
• Create a superordinate (shared) group identity
• Persuade members that their contributions are needed, noticed, and valued
• Minimize status differences.
Several organizations such as TeamBonding (n.d.) and Trainers Warehouse (n.d.), offer specific tools that allow for group interactions and team building exercises; these tools include things like TeamBondings beat the box challenge and Trainers Warehouses getting to know you thumball.
Explain how you will use the tools and activities
The thumball is a great tool that allows for group members new to the team to get to know one another. From personal experience I was part of a group not too long ago that had a facilitator that threw one of these balls around to get people engaged. It created a combined sense of engagement as the idea is to pass the ball around and answer the first question you see. We were able to learn a lot from one another while in some cases making jokes from some of the questions on the ball. Overall, it’s a great ice breaker to introduce members of a team to start the forming process of the team building model.
The beat the box challenge is another great tool to give to teams that may also be new to working with one another, or may even be going through some sort of internal conflict. This could be used to play at each individuals strength and re-enforces the idea that everyone has something to contribute towards the team. It’s also a fun way to interact and engage with one another while working towards a common goal. While this may not completely solve interpersonal issues, it will pave a path towards understanding one another each others personal strengths with the value that they add towards the team.
Formulate the desired outcome of the process
The desired outcome is to help the team perform. These activities provide a method and means of brining individuals together to better understand one another and meet a common goal. While these activates may seem mundane, they offer a pathway to take those interactions with on another and build on them in the workplace environment. Even if conflicts already exist, team building may offer a route to begin negotiations to allow for individuals to interact with one another to solve their respective differences. Ellis (2022) explains, “for negotiations to be successful, both sides in a conflict need to agree that they want to resolve the issue by talking. Invariably negotiations requires and element of compromise on the part of all parties”. The best way for negotiations to occur is to allow individuals to get to know one another better, and the previously stated activities allow for distinct avenues to learn more about one another and open up the potential for dialogue to solve active differences.

Brittany

Identify Your Selected Intervention and Explain Why You Chose That Type of Intervention
After reviewing Chapters 6, 7, and 8 of Organizational Development: An action research approach, the intervention type I chose is executive coaching (Ch7.2, 2020). Executive coaching is a form of leadership and management development used by OD consultants to influence individuals of organizations, as well as teams. I chose executive coaching because it helps the individual or team see their position and contribution to the organization more clearly. For example, “they (coaches) help the coachee connect his or her work with that of the broader organization (values clarification can also help make this connection)” (Bierema, Ch 7.2, 2020). A key element of executive coaching is that the OD consultant must be knowledgeable and hold credentials to be taken seriously by the stakeholders and individuals. In the video How can you influence others, the speaker informs the viewer of the importance of holding credentials when trying to influence groups or individuals (2020). Therefore, the OD consultant must maintain credentials to be viewed as a respected and informed coaching professional. If not, it is the responsibility of the OD consultant to recommend a certified executive coaching professional. Within executive coaching are a few different types of coaching models. For example, career coaching, life coaching, organizational/management coaching, performance coaching, and leadership coaching are the most common forms of executive coaching (ATD, n.d.). I believe the most successful form of executive coaching is leadership coaching. According to ATD, leadership coaching “provides coaching for those looking to grow and develop leadership skills, regardless of whether they are an individual contributor, manager, or senior manager” (n.d.). If I was an OD consultant, I would coach every team to view themself as a leader, even if their job title doesn’t indicate they are. Regardless of job title, everyone is a leader and should want to strive for continuous improvement, growth, and learning.
Describe the Tools and Activities Selected to Facilitate the Interaction and Explain How You Will Use the Tools and Activities
The tools and activities used to facilitate executive coaching are as follows; establish entry, set expectations, establish accountability, establish a baseline, identify areas of improvement, help coachee solve their problem, share directed feedback, and end coaching when the goal is reached (Bierema, Ch 7.2, 2020). These 8 steps are supported by utilizing the ADKAR analysis tool during coaching. For example, “ADKAR is a coaching tool to make sure that the people or employees involved in the process support and believe in the change” (Athuraliya, 2022). ADKAR is an acronym for awareness, desire, knowledge, ability, and reinforcement (Athuraliya, 2022). Whoever is identified as the executive coach must be able to establish an entry for the reason for coaching by spreading awareness of the issue. The coach must also set expectations, accountability, and a baseline for coaching. This is supported by steps 2 and 3 of ADKAR; influence the desire to improve and support learning (knowledge). The final steps of executive coaching are helping the coachee solve their problem, sharing direct feedback, and ending coaching once the individual has reached the baseline. This is accomplished by the OD consultant/coach helping the employee improve their abilities by sharing positive and constructive feedback. Lastly, coaching is reinforced until the individual has reached their goal, or until the stakeholder’s concerns are addressed.
Formulate the desired outcome of the process
The desired outcome of executive coaching is when the coachee(s) can identify when they are falling behind in their leadership skills and can recognize when additional coaching is needed. Another outcome of executive coaching is when the employee can sustain the coaching. For example, “the coach should move toward ending the coaching engagement and ensure the coachee has the capacity to maintain the change” (Bierema, Ch 7.2, 2020). When establishing baselines at the beginning of executive coaching, an important element to consider is to plan for the outcome by establishing benchmarks. The anticipated outcomes of executive coaching are increased personal awareness, increased appreciation, and increased intentionality (Scenti, 2021). I believe executive coaching is the most structured approach to OD intervention because it has a beginning point and a defined ending point. The OD consultant/coach can identify the improvements by measuring the outcomes.

Laura

Identify your selected intervention and why you chose that type of intervention.
I have chosen the individual intervention type focusing on leadership development. Leadership development is my passion, so I am seeking a business leadership degree. In my quest to develop my leadership skills, I have learned that I receive more satisfaction in developing others than in my accomplishments. In our text, Bierema (2020) stated that leadership development is often considered more focused on the individual than on the organization, and this is aligned with my ideals of a strong servant-leader model in which the needs of the individuals or the community must align with the goals of the organization (Daft, 2018). My experience has taught me that strong leaders can lead in any situation and have the skills to quickly assess a position’s requirements and self-manage their education to meet any challenge.
Describe the tools and activities selected to facilitate the interaction and how you will use them.
Leadership development is focused on self-awareness and emotional intelligence. One can develop skills essential to good leadership, such as social awareness, by seeking self-awareness. An ODC can use a beneficial exercise to develop these awareness skills: “values clarification and integration” (Bierema, 2020, pg. 7.1). Values clarification and integration is the exploration of an individual’s values and values and how those values affect their behavior. Contradicting values between leaders and organizations can create a negative work environment and job dissatisfaction. However, when a leader’s values are aligned with their organization’s values, morale and productivity will increase. According to the value-based leadership theory, “values are an integral part of a leader’s effectiveness” (Weiss pg. 5.1).
Another effective tool is the emotional intelligence assessment. As mentioned earlier, self-awareness is the first step to leadership development as a leader must recognize their strengths and weaknesses to identify how they affect others. This assessment is a readily available tool, such as on the Psychology Today website. For a more immersive experience, I recommend the book Emotional Intelligence 2.0by Travis Bradberry and Jean Greaves.
Formulate the desired outcome of the process.
The desired outcome would be to encourage the individual to seek out their paths of leadership by confirming that their values are aligned with their goals. Whether to advance in the leadership ladder within their company or become a model leader to others, a leader must seek improvement and enlightenment. Good leaders should constantly request feedback from their peers, leaders, and organization and take accountability for their actions. In so doing, they will be transformational leaders who can effectively lead in any situation and become exemplary leadership models to others.