Session Summary

Session Number:196
Session ID:S61
Session Title:Approaches to Fostering Organizational Change in a Pluralistic World: Conversations with the Authors
Short Title:Authors on fostering change
Session Type:Showcase Symposium
Hotel:Hyatt West
Floor:LL2
Room:Regency Ball D(N)
Time:Tuesday, August 10, 1999 3:40 PM - 5:00 PM

Sponsors

MC  (Anthony Buono)abuono@lnmta.bentley.edu (617) 891-2529 
ODC  (Rami Shani)ashani@calpoly.edu (805) 756-1756 

General People

Chair Chisholm, Rupert F. Pennsylvania State U., Harrisburg rfc1@psu.edu 717-948-6052 
Chair Quinn, Robert E. U. of Michigan REQuinn@UMich.edu 734-998-8199 
Discussant Schein, Edgar H. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Scheine@mit.edu 617-253-3636 

Submissions

Developing Self-Managing Organizations 
Presenter Purser, Ronald E. San Francisco State U. Rpurser@sfsu.edu 415-338-2380 
Network Development 
Chair Chisholm, Rupert F. Pennsylvania State U., Harrisburg rfc1@psu.edu 717-948-6052 
Organizational Culture 
Chair Quinn, Robert E. U. of Michigan REQuinn@UMich.edu 734-998-8199 
Public Organizations 
Presenter Sims, Ronald R. College of William and Mary RRSims@Dogwood.Tyler.WM.edu 757-221-2855 

Abstract

Several environmental factors are causing important changes in organizations in the late 20th century. These include strong international competition, rapid and pervasive technological change, rising expectations for involvement in workplace decisions by highly educated groups of employees, and demands for high quality products and services coupled with pressures to control costs. The growing importance of knowledge and an emerging set of post-industrial beliefs and values reinforce other pressures for change. The changes in organizations, in turn, will lead to new OD thinking and practice. And, in fact, these changes in OD have already begun to show up. The proposed symposium will identify, present, and provide a forum for discussing and advancing understanding of new or modified approaches by focusing on four new books. Topics of books cover large scale interventions to achieve "full employee participation", developing network organizations, a strategy and methodology for developing organizational culture, and OD to develop effective public organizations. Symposium design calls for a high degree of interactivity among authors and other participants.