Deck 3: Leadership and the Role of the Change Agent

Question 1

With the development of new and varied intervention approaches, the role of the organisation development (OD) professional needs to fall along the entire continuum from client-centred to consultant-centred.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Organisation development (OD) professionals have expanded their traditional values and expertise in response to:

A)research improving the use of OD principles in their profession
B)globalisation's challenge to OD practitioners' common set of humanistic values
C)the problem of practitioners' having similar training, skills and knowledge
D)the highly competitive demands that modern organisations face
E)all of the above

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Dependency is an ethical dilemma that is unlikely to be experienced by external organisation development (OD) practitioners.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Although there is no consensus among researchers, it is clear that all types of organisation development (OD) practitioners need the full range of foundation and core competencies.

Question 5

In theory, there are three kinds of organisation development (OD) practitioners.

Question 6

According to the recent research findings, core competencies of organisation development (OD) practitioners include:

A)knowledge of organisation design
B)organisation research
C)system dynamics
D)theories and models for change
E)all of the above

Question 7

Some researchers suggest that cognitive intelligence is more important for OD professionals than emotional intelligence.

Question 8

Based upon two dimensions - the degree of emphasis upon effectiveness and morale - which of the following is NOT identified as one of the types of consultant roles?

A)cheerleader
B)analyser
C)persuader
D)pathfinder
E)motivator

Question 9

Internal consultants are always:

A)located in the human resources department
B)members of the organisation
C)serving line departments
D)serving staff departments
E)accepted less quickly by organisation members

Question 10

There is no significant difference between internal organisation development (OD) practitioners and external OD practitioners.

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT one of the 'core' skills of an organisation development (OD) practitioner?

A)intrapersonal skills
B)interpersonal skills
C)consultation skills
D)social skills
E)general knowledge of OD

Question 12

During the entry process, external consultants are disadvantaged in comparison to internal consultants because they:

A)tend to be younger than internal consultants
B)have less experience than internal consultants
C)do not have the same level of understanding of organisation development (OD) techniques
D)are not able to select the clients they want to work with
E)may not have the same congenial relationship with the organisation and their pay may be at risk

Question 13

Most organisation development (OD) professionals have not had specific training in OD.

Question 14

The marginal role is regarded as dysfunctional in contemporary settings.

Question 15

Much of the current literature supports the notion that an effective organisation development (OD) practitioner should be good at intrapersonal skills, interpersonal skills, general consultation skills and analytical skills.

Question 16

A clear disadvantage of being an external organisation development (OD) practitioner is the tendency to be overly cautious when diagnosing the organisation's problems.

Question 17

Practitioners of organisation development (OD) often specialise in fields related to OD such as:

A)information technology
B)business strategy
C)total quality management
D)reward systems
E)all of the above

Question 18

The ability to design and execute an intervention is not as important as most other skills needed by organisation development (OD) practitioners.

Question 19

Much has been written about the effectiveness of internal-external consulting teams.

Question 20

Which of the following is NOT identified in research as being characteristic of successful change agents?

A)problem-solving ability
B)being uncompromising
C)empathy
D)goal-setting ability
E)imagination

Question 21

To help firms manage external relationships, practitioners need to:

A)only use social skills
B)understand different and competing values for judging the organisation's effectiveness
C)ignore these competing values
D)use more expertise-based interventions
E)use more power-oriented interventions

Question 22

Technical ineptitude occurs when the:

A)client attempts a change for which they are not ready
B)client is ready for change but doesn't attempt to change
C)organisation development (OD) practitioner implements interventions but is not ready
D)OD practitioner is ready for change, but doesn't implement chosen interventions
E)OD practitioner refuses to provide services to a client.

Question 23

What are the possible ethical dilemmas organisation development (OD) professionals might encounter when they work with a client system?

Question 24

Briefly explain the merits and demerits of recruiting both internal and external consultants to a single team.

Question 25

The joint values of humanising organisations and improving their effectiveness:

A)are supported equally by all members of the organisation development (OD) profession
B)can always occur simultaneously
C)often pose a value dilemma for OD practitioners
D)are impossible to achieve, so efficiency should be maximised
E)are impossible, so people's satisfaction should be maximised

Question 26

An internal-external consultant team can be effective if it:

A)probes difficult issues
B)questions the status quo
C)has a working knowledge of internal agents
D)takes time to develop the consulting team
E)uses the referent power of external agents

Question 27

Ethical behaviour based on value and goal conflict may occur when:

A)the organisation development (OD) practitioner is an internal practitioner
B)OD practitioners refuse their services
C)the purpose of the change effort is not clear
D)OD practitioners perform a marginal role
E)the organisation is not ready for technological change

Question 28

Briefly explain different consulting styles identified in the consultant style matrix.

Question 29

Contrast the role of the internal consultant with that of the external consultant.

Question 30

Who does the term 'OD practitioner' apply to?

Question 31

Coercion occurs when organisation members are:

A)excluded from an organisation development (OD) intervention
B)prevented from choosing an OD intervention
C)prevented from gaining self-reliance
D)forced to participate in an OD intervention
E)prevented from solving their own problems

Question 32

Why is marginality now seen in a more positive light? What personal qualities does a practitioner need to take on a marginal role? Discuss.

Question 33

What knowledge should OD practitioners have about OD theory?

Question 34

In newer approaches to organisation development (OD), the consultant should:

A)sometimes take on a modified role of 'expert'
B)always adopt the role of the 'expert'
C)never adopt the role of the 'expert'
D)always adopt a modified role of 'expert'

Question 35

What types of issues typically cause organisations to consider an OD process?

Question 36

There is increasing evidence that an organisation development (OD) career:

A)can be stressful and sometimes lead to burnout
B)requires so many skills it may be difficult to establish a career as an individual consultant
C)is beset by accreditation problems making it difficult to be acknowledged as a professional
D)is rewarding and most often leads to practitioners earning very high incomes
E)all of the above

Question 37

A useful role of the marginal organisation development (OD) practitioner is to:

A)have differing goals
B)successfully straddle the boundary between two or more groups
C)have differing value systems
D)have differing behaviour patterns
E)be mostly dysfunctional

Question 38

Misuse of data occurs when organisation development (OD) practitioners:

A)encounter ethical dilemmas, despite excellent entry and contracting processes
B)leak inappropriate information
C)act in ways contrary to their own value system
D)claim that an intervention will produce results that are unreasonable
E)pursue different goals

Question 39

Misrepresentation is likely to occur:

A)when using T-groups
B)where the consultant is coerced into making untruthful representations to management
C)during the entering and contracting phases of planned change
D)where value conflict occurs with the person who provides the contract
E)when senior managers do not understand their needs

Question 40

One of the disadvantages of internal consultants is their:

A)lack of understanding of the organisation
B)access to information
C)potential loss of objectivity
D)lack of training
E)excessive dependence on one client

Question 41

Why is professional ethics so important in change management? Use supportive examples.