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Based on these issues, what OD interventions do you think should be utilized to address the problem this hospital is facing?
Multiple Organization Development(OD) interventions are needed to address the prevailing financial and staff discontentment. These techniques should be effective enough to comprehensively tackle the current organizational setbacks at Gateway Hospital and boost their credibility will all the stakeholders involved. Some of the issues raised give a picture of distorted teamwork, staffing shortages attributed to low salary rewards, and financial crisis, which prevents the hospital from meeting its financial obligations. Fortunately, from the consultants’ findings, these issues can be adequately tackled by adopting several OD interventions.
Team building should be embraced to bridge the differences among the workers. By conducting workshops, members assessments, and in-depth group analysis, teamwork can be easily accomplished. The cohesiveness can be better enhanced if all the involved parties are intentional about working as one intact workforce with a common goal and objective. Similarly, efficiency can also be enhanced through process improvement. This form of intervention looks into how an individual can optimally operate within a given work process to achieve the best results without feeling exploited or taken advantage of (Bakhshandeh, 2021).
Another critical OD intervention is total quality management. This technique considers several problem-solving skills of the affected groups and brings everyone’s idea to the table to effectively tackle the underlying issues (O’Neil, 2020). Through tools such as flowcharts and cause-and-effect diagrams, all parties can be grouped into small teams, and each is assigned different tasks to handle (O’Neil, 2020). The ultimate goal is to harmonize the existing team dynamics and create a conducive platform for employee involvement. As suggested by the consultants, there is a need to address the current cultural leadership structure. Therefore, structural change forms part of the wisest OD interventions to embark on. Such a move would enhance the reporting relationships between personnel at top management and their subordinates and streamline and elevate quality outcomes.
Workforce training can also not be left out when considering the best strategies for OD intervention. When regularly done and with defined goals and objectives, training can prove more than effective in mending the departmental differences and emphasizing team solidarity (O’Neil, 2020). Through the training sessions, workers can have platforms where their grievances are pointed out, and the relevant personnel tasked to address them within the shortest time possible. Consequently, training can be integrated to work hand in hand with other intervention initiatives to jointly meet the ultimate goal of skill enhancement while confronting other issues on the table. Additionally, performance management systems can be adapted to adjunct with training to assist in overall goal setting, performance appraisal, and impactful reward systems for staff members (Bakhshandeh, 2021). Once an appropriate mechanism is specifically identified for an individual, it should be implemented as a measuring tool for that employee’s performance alone.
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How would you proceed if you were the consultant in this case?
The first major step will be to have a crisis meeting with all the working force at Gateway Hospital. The number one agenda on my list would include how workers’ cooperation can be propelled to reflect a positive working environment. I would insist on the best conflict management, dispute solving, and reconciliatory strategies to ensure all workers’ rights are protected and respected. Hence, I would focus on all efforts that aim to improve workers’ cooperation and collaboration. To guarantee a solid team that speaks with unity of purpose, I would encourage efforts geared towards a better, reliable, and common communication channel. A dependable communication network would improve service delivery to patients and boost the already motivated team.
Moreover, I would constantly appeal to the hospital’s top management to create better working environments for its employees. These systems, once implemented, should have positive outcomes, especially in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of workers. More critically, I would challenge the hospital leadership to investigate the numerous financial losses and come up with a more modified decision-making mechanism to cross-examine this vice. The end goal is to be able to prevent future financial woes. All money budgeted should be spent well, and all the transactions accounted for. Ultimately, the money for employee reward and motivation would be available and funds to revamp hospital facilities. Subsequently, there would be an improvement in the overall service delivery at Gateway hospital.
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What skillset do you think the practitioner will need to be effective in this organization?
To effect change in a struggling organization, the practitioner must possess a wide skill set to achieve the desired objectives. First, they need excellent communication skills since their work involves dealing with an extensive group of people within and across the organization. Their level of contextualizing information from different internal audiences should be outstanding in ensuring each employee receives relevant information about their job description. Their communication should encompass openness, honesty and be specific on the organizational mandate to effectively handle any form of change. Secondly, their intervention and planning of organizational activities and diagnosis and evaluation of different departmental information need to be top-notch. All of this demands the practitioner have updated change management knowledge, a wider comprehension scope of change methodologies, and be exceptionally able to implement key change frameworks. These change frameworks can be applied with the help of, for example, different persons, focused groups, and workshops (Bakhshandeh, 2021). Hence, the practitioner needs to be equally a strategic thinker with visionary solutions such as drawing on external resources and strategically aligning them with current and future strategies. Strategic thinking will also entail assessing the impact of projects on employee’s work beforehand and coming up with wholesome plans to mitigate employee resistance or otherwise assist them in embracing new changes (Levitt, 2016). Therefore, their project management knowledge should be guided by relevant intrapersonal and interpersonal skills to enable them to deliver on the best management plans effectively.
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What type of timeline would you establish if you were this consultant?
I would incorporate the project timeline. For team members to be proactive in completing their tasks at set deadlines, then this mode of timeline will prove essential. Not only will it help the project managers visualize their operations, but it also gives an account of whether various team members are meeting their set targets (Levitt, 2016). Additionally, the project timeline incorporates a roadmap timeline where, for example, business success and marketing strategies employed at different stages can be tracked for reliable feedback. Moreover, the chronological arrangement of tasks in the project timeline assists team members in remaining focused on the activities that require their full commitment and cooperation as they anticipate the future outcomes of these activities.
References
Bakhshandeh, B. (2021). Individual intervention: Executive and management coaching. Organization Development Interventions, 77-110. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003019800-5-7
Levitt, G. (2016). Influencing multigenerational team members. Team Planning for Project Managers and Business Analysts, 69-88. https://doi.org/10.1201/b12688-5
O’Neil, P. P. (2020). Sales improvement initiative reveals the need for performance improvement interventions. Advances in Human Resources Management and Organizational Development, 163-178. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-0054-5.ch009
