Reflections: Towards a Normative and Actionable Theory of Planned Organizational Change and Development

Abstract

A normative and actionable theory of planned organizational change and development is proposed based on fifty years of engagement by the author as a scholar- consultant. Five principles are central features of the theory and practice proposed: (1) Organizations are systems and successful transformations require senior teams to lead a strategic organizational learning process to change the whole system; (2) Six publicly undiscussable and potentially inconvenient truths about organizational and leadership barriers to an effective and human centric organization must be made discussible and changed if the transformation is to be sustained; (3) A five-step process for an honest, collective and public conversation about the six silent barriers and senior team’s plans for change in them is essential for successful and sustained change; (4) Successful change in a large and complex system is a unit-by-unit process with each unit’s leadership team employing the normative five step process proposed; and (5) Successful change requires collaboration with consultants acting as both facilitators of and expert resources to the honest conversation. The relative success of the planned change process proposed is moderated by leaders’ motivation to lead change, openness to constructive conflict, and their possession of human centric values.