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ISSUES IN CLIENT-CONSULTANTRELATIONSHIP
Reporter:ROWENA CARPIO
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1. Entry and Contracting
2. Defining the Client System
3. The Trust Issue
4. The Nature of the Consultants Expertise5. Diagnosis and Appropriate Interventions
6. The Consultant as a Model
7. The Dependency Issue and Terminating the
Relationship
8. Ethical Standards in Organization Development
Issues in Client-Consultant Relationship
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Entry and Contracting
Explores the nature of theOrganizations problems
Develops a clear definition of theMutual expectations in the
Client-consultant relationship
Must have confidence in theConsultants ability to guide the
Change process
Support the change effort
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Entry and Contracting
Conditions
Met?Proceed with OD
Do not proceed
Any further
Y
N
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The trust issue
A trusting relationship helps the consultant deal with the challenges
brought by those who are uncomfortable or in disagreement with the
change effort, and the consultants style and values are key factors in
establishing trust and making relationships successful.
The goal of both consultant and client should be to develop a positive
climate for trust. Researchers (Alder, Rosenfeld & Towne, 1980) have
identified the processes in which one person can devalue another, thus
creative a negative climate for trust. One way a person devalues
another is by making a disconfirming response. Thus, OD consultants
should avoid disconfirming response.This type of response involves failing to acknowledge the message from
the receiver or sending a signal suggesting that the other is not worthy
of a reply or simply does not exist.
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Trust
- The willingness of a party to be vulnerable to the
actions of another party based on the expectation that
the other will perform a particular action important to
the trustor, irrespective of the ability to monitor orcontrol that other party
The trust issue
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Values
Attitudes
Moods & Emotions
TRUST
Trust - is a psychological construct, the experience
of which is the outcome of the interaction of
peoples values, attitudes, and moods and
emotions. (Mayer, Davis, & Schoorman, 1995)
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Values
These are general standards orprinciples that are consideredintrinsically desirable ends. (Olson &Zanna, 1993; Rokeach, 1973)
A persons value system, thus guidesbehavior and the interpretation ofexperience by furnishing criteria that aperson can use to evaluate and makesense of events and actions in thesurrounding world.
That value system determines whichtypes of behaviors, events situations, orpeople are desirable or undesirable.
Examples:
Loyalty
Helpfulness
Fairness
PredictabilityReliability
Honesty
Responsibility
Integrity
CompetenceConsistency
Openness
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Whatpeople view asdesirableorideal- thatis,theirinternalizedvalues- conditionstheexperienceoftrustandisupheldasastandardtostriveforinthefuture. (Butler, 1991)
Examples :
An individual whose value system
Emphasizes LOYALTY &HONESTY
Will strive to achieve loyalty
& honesty his/her relationships
With others.
People who are trustworthy tend to view
Others as trustworthy
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Attitudes
The knowledge structures containingthe specific thoughts and feelings peoplehave about other people, groups, ororganizations, and
The means through which they defineand structure their interactions withothers.
(Anderson & Armstrong, 1989;Kruglanski, 1989; Olson & Zanna, 1993)
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The trust issue
Disconfirming Responses
Impervious response - one in which the sender verbally and nonverballybehaves as if the receiver is not present. (Example: When a person
volunteers an opinion, and the group fails to acknowledge by either
continuing as before or changing the topic of discussion.)
Interrupting response - one in which a sender stops the receiver from
making a point by changing the subject or evaluating the receiver;s message
before it is competed. (Example: Higher status persons often interrupt lower
status persons, men often interrupt women)
Irrelevant response - one that does not address the question athand.(Example: A manager may present production figures for the previous
quarter and the group discusses the organizations marketing plan for the
next quarter without acknowledging the information the manager has
provided)
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Disconfirming Responses
The trust issue
Tangential response - acknowledges the receivers message but the
sender also uses the response to change the subject or deflect attention
from the messages central issue. (Example: I often have difficulty
obtaining product information from the marketing department. Reply, Whyare you asking the marketing department? - When the issue is lack of
product information.)
Impersonal Response - one in which the sender assumes an attitude or
role that prevents the sender and receiver from interacting on a personal
level. (Example: When a senior executive replies to criticism by saying, As
a member of the executive staff, I disagree.)
Ambiguous response - carries more than one meaning and thus becomes
difficult to interpret clearly. (Example: Who will decide how my job will be
redesigned? Response: That will be taken under consideration and you
will be notified at the appropriate time.)
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The trust issue
Disconfirming Responses
Incongruous response - gives mixed or conflicting messages to the
receiver. (Example: A manager may say, Tell me more about your ideas on
job design. while at the same time not looking at the employee, but
rummaging through her papers.)
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The nature of the consultants expertise
Many organizations have discovered that hiring a consultant to lead an
organization development effort is far more complex than hiring a lawyer for
legal consultation or an economist for financial forecasting.
Unlike other types of consultants, people who
will serve as organizational change agents need
to have a broad range of competencies, that,
unfortunately, do not come automatically with
prestigious academic or business credentials,
When the wrong consultant is hired, organization development programs often
fail to get started or stall midway through the process. To guide an OD
intervention all the way to successful completion requires a special set of
knowledge, skills, and abilities
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The nature of the consultants expertise
McBer and Company hasdeveloped a competency modelthat lists some critical skills for asuccessful OD consultant. By
modifying the list to include
competencies essential tosuccess in a specificorganization and dropping
unnecessary competencies, acompany can develop its ownOD consultant competency
model
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The nature of the consultants expertise
McBer and Company Competency Model for OD Consultants(Source: Cripe, 1993)
Interpersonal skills competencies
ability to express empathy
positive expectations of people
genuineness
Diagnostic skills competencies knowledge of the principles of
individual and organizational
development variables and
systems
ability to collect meaningful data
from individuals and organizational
systems through such means asinterviews, surveys, and
observations
ability to draw conclusions from
complex data and make accurate
diagnoses
Initiation skills competencies
ability to influence and market skills and to
identify and persuade prospective internal
customers to use services
ability to make presentations in a concise,
interesting, and informative manner ability to engage in problem solving and
planning, and to make recommendations and help
customers with problem solving, goal setting, and
planning to improve organizational performance
Ability to manage groups and group dynamics
Organization skills competencies ability to design adult-learning curricula and
organizational development exercises
ability to administer such resources as
personnel, materials, schedules and training
sites
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The nature of the consultants expertise
The Ideal Consultant(Source: Bader & Stitch, 1993)
The ideal external consultant has the following qualities :
Listens, but does not sell
Fits into the organization and embraces its mission and
culture
Teaches the internal professional staff and helps them
achieve independence
Provides good customer service
Protects confidentiality
Challenges assumptions Is a recognized expert
Provides perspective and objectivity
Celebrates with the internal staff
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The consultant as a modelFour Sets of Characteristics
(Porras & Robertson, 1993)
1.
InterpersonalCommunication
skills, including
- Listening
- Empathy
- Ability to
support,Nurture and
Influence
others
2.
Theory-basedProblem-solving
Capabilities -
Including
- knowledge of
Theory &
methodsOf change
- Ability to
Link this
Knowledge with
Organizational
realities
3.
EducationalSkills, including
- ability to create
Learning
Experiences
- Ability to model
Appropriatebehavior
4.
Self-awareness
Including
- Ability to
Recognize
Ones own
Feelings
- Ability toHave a clear
Understanding
Of ones own
Needs and
motivations
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Ethical issues in
Organizational developmentEthics
Ethical
dilemmas
Code of ethics
Issues or practices that should influence the
decision-making process in terms of doing the right
thing. It reflects the morals - what is considered
right or wrong - of a society. (Smither, 1996)
Problems for which there are no clear or agreed
on moral solutions
A set of professional practice guidelines that
are meant to ensure moral behavior.
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Ethical issues in
Organizational development
As an OD professional, I commit myself to supporting and acting in accordance with the following ethical guidelines:
Responsibility to self
Act with integrity; be authentic and true to myself.
Strive continually for self-knowledge and personal growth
Recognize my personal needs and desires and, when they conflict with other responsibilities, seek all-win resolutions of
those conflicts
Assert my own economic and financial interests in ways that are fair and equitable to me as well as to my clients and their
stakeholders.
Responsibility for professional development and competenceAccept responsibility for the consequences of my acts and make reasonable efforts to ensure that my services are properly
used; terminate my services if they are not properly used and do what I can to see that any abuses are corrected.
Strive to achieve and maintain a professional level of competence for both myself and my profession by developing the full
range of my own competence and by establishing collegial and cooperative relations with other OD professionals.
Recognize my own personal needs and desires and deal with them responsibly in the performance of my professional roles
Practice within the limits of my competence, culture, and experience in providing services and using techniques.
Practice in cultures different from my own only with consultation from people native to knowledgeable about those specific
cultures.
Responsibility to clients and significant to others
Serve the long-term well-being, interests, and development of the client system and all its stakeholders, even when the
work being done has a short-term focus.
Conduct any professional activity, program or relationship in ways that are honest, responsible, and appropriately open.
Establish mutual agreement on a contract covering services and remuneration.
Deal with conflicts constructively and avoid conflicts of interest as much as possible.
Define and protect the confidentiality of my client-professional relationships.
Make public statements of all kinds accurately, including promotion and advertising, and give service as advertised.
Ethical Guidelines for OD Professionals
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Responsibility to the profession
Contribute to continuing professional development for myself, other practitioners, and the profession.
Promote the sharing of OD knowledge and skill
Work with other OD professionals in ways that exemplify what our profession says we stand for.
Work actively for ethical practice by individuals and organizations engaged in OD activities and, in case of questionable
practice, use appropriate channels for dealing with it.
Act in ways that bring credit to the OD profession and with due regard for colleagues in other professions.
Social responsibility
Act with sensitivity to the fact that my recommendations and actions may alter the lives and well-being of people withinmy client systems and the larger systems of which they are subsystems.
Act with awareness of the cultural filters which affect my view of the world, respect cultures different from by own, and be
sensitive to cross-cultural and multicultural differences and their implications.
Promote justice and serve the well-being of all life on Earth.
Recognize that accepting this Statement as a guide for my behavior involves holding myself to a standard that may be more
exacting than the laws of any countries in which I practice, the guidelines of any professional associations to which I
belong, or the expectations of any of my clients.
(Source: The Organization Development Institute, 1994)
Ethical issues in
Organizational development
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Ethical issues in
Organizational development
Value Issues
Do the values - principles & ideals
believed to be of greatest importance
bf the change agent, match those of
The organization & its members?
Should the consultant attempt to
change the values of the organization
& its members, or should she decline
to serve as consultant?
If key members of the organization
have values that differ from the
others, should the consultant take
sides?
How?
Concern with maximizing personalfinancial gain, i.e., making money,
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Ethical issues in
Organizational development
Value Issues - How to deal
Consultant must be aware of her personal values
Consultant must be aware of her own motives for
consulting in general & for suggesting particular
strategies and solutions
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Ethical issues in
Organizational development
Contractual Issues -
Who is the consultants primary client - theManager who brought her to the organization,
Or the organization as a whole?
Is the consultant free to leave the organization
when she feels that an insolvable conflict exists?
H
ow are conflicts in values andapproaches to the problem
to be solved?
How responsible is the consultant for any
unforeseen and damaging side effects
of the OD effort?
Ethical problems concerning contractual
issues that are not spelled out in the contract
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REFERENCES
Alder, R.B., Rosenfeld, L.B., & Towne, L. (1980). Interplay: The process ofinterpersonal communicatin. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Bader, G. & Stich, T. (1993). Building the consulting relationship. Training &
Development, 55-60
Bandura, A. & Walters, R.H. (1963). Social learning and personality. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Cripe, E.J. (1993). Why Volvo kissed Renault goodbye. Business Week,
54-55
French, Wendell L., Bell, Cecil H. and Zawacki, Robert A. (2000).Organization Development andTransformation, Managing
Effective Change. Singapore: McGraw-Hill Book Co.
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Mayer, R.C., Davis, J.H., & Schoorman, F.D. 1995. An integrative model of
organizational trust.Academy of Management Review, 20: 709-734.
Porras J.L. & robertson, P.J. (1993). Organizational development:
Theory, practice, and research. Handbook of industrial and
organizational psychology, Vol. 4. Palo Alto: ConsultingPsychologists Press.
Smither, R. D., Houston, J.M. and McIntire, S.A. 1996. Organization
Development Strategies for Changing Environments. New
York: HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
REFERENCES
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