Getting Ready

In getting ready to do our organizational diagnosis I have enjoyed trying to dig deeper. I compare it to being an archaeologist and looking for evidence of what life is really like in an organization. Or further more what it was like and examining the history of the organization. What is even better is the preparation to go into the organization is looking at all of the initial information that can be gathered before the first hello. With technology at our fingertips we can gather artifacts and symbols from websites, ad, and television commercials. Also doing this type of project one has to be very open minded and let the facts speak to you. Listening and watching become your greatest tools. The mission statement and the language used are also clues to what is really going on in the organization and with the employees.

Determining if this language and behaviors really stand up for what the goal and the culture of the organization is trying to embody is to me a fun exploration. Taking notice of all the small details which could in fact down the line have a huge impact. As mentioned in the previous blog I would like to go into an organization and seeing what good practices are occurring before I set my sight on potential problems. I have also envisioned walking and talking with workers and engaging in friendly dialogue rather than coming in with an overbearing researcher disposition. It will be interesting to see who opens up and how much. I even look forward to comparing how other groups did and what their experience was like. Even discussing in class from the point of gaining entrance into an organization for observation we saw many different variations and we also saw how the organization works just by scheduling appointments. We have to take notice of everything. Maybe it is a mix between and archaeologist and detective gaining facts but looking at the deeper meaning of those facts and how they fit together to paint a story of what can be done in the organization to help it in its attainment of it's goals.