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Reflection on organizational development
Reflection on organizational development
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Introduction
A vision is a statement that paints an idealized picture of what an organization wants to become. Jick (2002) offers a similar definition. He calls it, “an attempt to articulate what a desired future for a company would look like” (p. 142). Although many definitions for vision are similar, the effects visions have on organizations vary. For some the vision is an agent of change, for others it is a source of confusion. The difference lies in certain elements of the vision, and how the leader implements the vision throughout the organization. This paper will look at what makes an effective vision and how it impacts an organization; it will highlight the significance of employee identification, and how a leader can develop and institute a vision in an effective manner. It also takes a look at the current vision of an organization, and offers some recommendations to increase that vision’s effectiveness.
An Effective Vision
Constructing a vision statement is not as simple as scribbling down the first thing that comes to mind. A leader take must include certain elements in the vision to ensure it is effective and contributes to the success of the organization. A few of those elements include long-term, inspiring, and aligned with the values and culture of the organization.
A vision should look beyond the day-to-day operations of the organization and focus on the future. By developing a long-term vision, a leader moves the focus of employees from the daily tasks to the future goal. Deetz, Tracy & Simpson (2000) write, “When an organization has a clear sense of purpose and knows where it wants to go, that gives meaning to what happens day in and day out” (p. 53). A long-term vision impacts the organization by highlighting the contrast between where the organization is and where it needs to go. Jick (2002) argues, “This creates a structural tension between today and tomorrow that seeks a resolution" (p. 144). The organization then succeeds as motivated employees work towards their objectives in order to calm the tension, lessen the gap, and turn the vision into reality.
For a vision to be truly effective, it has to inspire employees to take action. This means it has to reflect a greater purpose that stirs up passion in employees. As an example, Nike’s vision is “to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world” (Nike, 2011). The vision reflects a greater purpose to impact the lives of athletes everywhere, and paints a picture for employees of why their work is important.
Both, vision and mission statements provide purpose to organizations. Therefore, they should set the foundation for the strategic planning process. However, if and organizations strategic direction evolves, leaders should consider revising the organization’s mission and vision
After leaders develop their visions, they must make them convincing, and persuasive or as known as a compelling vision which is known as the vision that people can see, feel, understand and embrace. Therefore the effective leaders will give a rich and colorful image of what the future will be after their visions have been
Is your life at risk and endangered if you are driving with your eyes off the road? Is it safe to walk down a dark and dangerous alley where you cannot see what is in front of you? Would it be a good idea to walk across the street without looking both ways first? The answer to all these questions are no. Why? Because in all three situations, there is a lack of vision. So, one can conclude that vision is of great importance to the visible world. Nevertheless, vision is also equally important in the invisible world. Because the most important things in our lives are invisible, vision into the invisible world is greatly needed to make life richer. The essentials to life: love, happiness, even grief and sorrow, are invisible now and forever, but vision allows us to see these and other intangible things. Vision allows us to draw the invisible world out. Unfortunately, the invisible world has always existed, except we were just too blind to see it, our visions were fogged. Likewise, the narrator from Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man is also blind. He lacks the vision he needs to realize that he is invisible to the world around him because he is naive and inexperienced. His inability to see outwardly parallels the inability to understand inwardly. However, the narrator's travel through the hero's journey is one of success. Although the narrator is invisible because he is naive, unclear of his own identity due to his fogged vision, and he assumes a series of false identities through his journey into the unknown, in the end, the narrator realizes his invisibility and begins to develop his own identity as his vision clarifies.
It focuses on how to formulate and define clearly vision statement (organizational culture), challenging goals (organizational strategy) and gaining respect and trust (Humphreys & Einstein, 2003). The leaders encouraging participations, willing to take risks and acting as role models, who are highly admired, respected and trusted by their followers (Conger and Kanungo, 1998; Howell and Frost, 1989 and Bass & Riggio, 2006). Therefore, the followers will be highly motivated to perform beyond leaders’ expectations (Howell and Avolio,
Answer: “Visions seen only by the leader” (Kouzes & Posner, 2013, p.100). This is a very common obstacle that is both valid and can be overcome. It’s valid because leadership drives vision and purpose. If the leader has not expressed a vision that all can understand or support, the organization will not be successful. This obstacle can be overcome by other leaders within the unit having the courage to identify this failure and address it.
Vision statements are long-range goals of an individual or business. These goals describe core competencies that provide competitive advantage (De Kluyver & Pearce, 2011). Creating a personal vision statement involves envisioning the future from different points in time. Looking at a few months ahead out to a few years covers this area. The goal is to picture the desired goal for the future and evaluate the present to see what changes are needed to achieve the goal. The future self is directly connected to the present self as they are both a part of the entire person (Peterkin, 2003).
Visionary leadership as its name suggests involves having a vision. In chapter about Transformational Leadership, the author said that a transforming leader “had a clear vision of the future state of their organizations.” (Northhouse 2013) As we learn from week one, leaders are visionary, they are able to inspire their followers. In order for leaders to inspire others, they might be able to internalize the vision for themselves. First step to creating a new vision for the school, the leader must understand why there is a need for the school and he or she must agree with it. Second, the leader must be able to see the needs of the organization, the leader must be able to have a person touch (also known as Authentic Leadership) with its members in order to be be able to see the true needs of the organization. As the leader creates the vision, it should be “simple, understandable, beneficial and energy creating”. (Northhouse 2013) The author of the textbook follows to say that “vision originates from both the leaders and the followers”. (Northhouse 2013)
My vision is to have a plan for where my life is heading, to be able to adapt to the inevitable changes that arise, and keep my values in tact that help me to live a meaningful and valued life.
Inspire a Shared Vision- leaders believe that they can make a difference in getting others excited and drafting them into their dream and the future possibilities.
Andy Stanley begins with the origin of a vision. Stanley (1999) contends, “Visions are born in the soul of a man or woman who is consumed with the tension between what is and what could be” (p. 17). According to Stanley, a vision is the ability to see what is possible in light of the present reality. A leader will not a have a vision for an organization if he is content with the status quo. Conversely, it is out of discontent that a vision is birth within a leader’s heart.
Each one of us lives in our own unique world of perception. As individuals, we may experience life in an entirely different way through our senses and life experiences. Therefore, perception can be tricky since it is very personal to each one of us. According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, perception has three meanings; (1) “the way you think about or understand someone or something,” (2) “the ability to understand or notice something easily,” and, (3) “the way that you notice or understand something using one of your senses” (2014, para. 1). C.S. Lewis said, “What you see and what you hear depends a great deal on where you are standing. It also depends on what sort of person you are” (n.d., para. 11). In other words,
Vision and mission statements play a vital role in the strategic planning of an organization. Aguinis (2013) states defining an organization’s current and future identity are a key component of the strategic planning process. Strategic planning creates a blueprint to chart an organization’s goals and to aid in the division of resources to properly achieve the established goals (Aguinis, 2013). Properly communicating the goals and identity of an organization are essential if employees are to completely understand their purpose and mission to the organization. A review of the vision and mission statements for Harley Davidson reflects certain insights into the identity of the organization but also reflects some areas of improvement in adequately including the eight characteristics of an ideal mission statement.
All employees have a vision and idea about the future it helps everyone deal and reach their goals in difficult times. At times transformational leaders may tend to depend on their passions and fail to realize reality and
Visual perception and visual sensation are both interactive processes, although there is a significant difference between the two processes. Sensation is defined as the stimulation of sense organs Visual sensation is a physiological process which means that it is the same for everyone. We absorb energy such as electro magnetic energy (light) or sound waves by sensory organs such as eyes. This energy is then transduced into electro chemical energy by the cones and rods (receptor cells) in the retina. There are four main stages of sensation. Sensation involves detection of stimuli incoming from the surrounding world, registering of the stimulus by the receptor cells, transduction or changing of the stimulus energy to an electric nerve impulse, and then finally the transmission of that electrical impulse into the brain. Our brain then perceives what the information is. Hence perception is defined as the selection, organisation and interpretation of that sensory input.
As a leader it is important to have a vision and a goal, but it is even more crucial to have followers who trust in your vision and goals. Trust is developed by displaying positive energy and attitude. Having a goal and a vision helps an organization move into the future. Without a goal or a vision an organization is going nowhere. It is bound to fail. The six steps of goal setting are vision, goals, objective, tasks, timeliness, and follow-up. Creating a mental picture of how the organization will look like in the future is the vision. When an organization has a vision, it is looking for change, growth, and improvement for the future. This vision of the future is challenging the present processes at an organization. This challenge is the first step in the process of great leadership. Leadership starts with a vision. Even Thomas Edison had a vision, a theory that gave us the light bulb. When setting goals, it is important to make sure that they are realistic, attainable, improving the organization, and having as many people involved as possible. Goal difficulty, goal spe...