9. PURPOSE, TASKS AND TECHNOLOGY OF ORGANIZATIONAL CONSULTING

plan
The phenomenon of organizational counseling
Forms and stages of the consultation process
Stages of the consultative process
Principles and methods of consulting an organization
The working methods of the organizational consultant
Diagnostic interview
Case Study
Brainstorming (group method of generating ideas)
Innovative game
Heuristic methods
Synectic method
Projective methods
Coaching
Consultant qualification requirements

Comprehensive goal

Know :

• basic concepts of organizational consulting;

• stages and principles of the process of organizational consulting and coaching;

• methods of organizational counseling;

• competences and main areas of activity of the psychologist in the organization in the field of organizational consulting;

• requirements for the consultant psychologist working in the organization.

Be able to :

• use the system of categories and methods necessary for solving organizational and psychological tasks;

• diagnose and solve organizational problems and tasks determined by psychological factors;

• identify problems of a psychological nature when analyzing specific organizational situations, use methods of solving organizational problems that are relevant to the organizational culture and goals of the organization by using organizational consulting technologies.

Own :

• basics of organizational consulting;

• conceptual apparatus in the field of organizational consulting;

• technologies of organizational consulting in work with the organization, group and individual;

• interactive methods, psychological technologies, focused on personal growth of employees.

The phenomenon of organizational counseling

The term consulting has become quite familiar to professionals working in the market. Organizational counseling is a practical area of ​​psychology that studies the psychological problems of managing an organization and using psychological methods that facilitate decision-making, resolve conflicts, and increase the effectiveness of communication among members of an organization. It is customary to talk about consulting as the interaction of a client (organization or manager) and a consultant, ensuring the development of the organization, solving complex non-standard problems in various fields of activity.

Consultants are invited for the following purposes.

1. Obtain an objective (unbiased) assessment of the problems and / or challenges facing the management of the company. Since consultants are not affected by decisions made by company management, they are not related to events that took place in the past and have no personal attachments, they are able to conduct the most objective analysis of the current situation. This, in turn, contributes to the adoption of an optimal solution, minimizing the costs of its implementation and increasing the confidence in the company from shareholders and / or potential investors, as well as personnel working in the organization.

2. Use the knowledge and experience of consultants. Consultants have knowledge and experience in the field of their specialization, accumulated in the process of the company. Therefore, before reinventing the wheel, managers can turn to consultants for help in order to use this experience and prevent mistakes.

3. Attract additional resources to solve specific problems. An organization does not always have free and qualified personnel to solve all problems that may arise in the course of an activity. Companies that seek to reduce costs cannot afford to maintain a significant staff.

4. Obtain prompt and qualified assistance in critical and / or vital situations when it is necessary to rethink the development strategy, management philosophy, develop or change the corporate culture, and carry out the restructuring of the company.

A modern set of consulting services in the West was formed in the 1950–1960s, which are called the “golden age of consulting”. In Russia, consulting as a professional became active only in the early 1990s. Therefore, foreign consulting firms have been working in our market for a long time. These are representatives of the world's "dozens" of management consulting, they work in Russia with their international clients and only individually with large Russian enterprises. These are audit firms that offer primarily audit services, but these firms have management consulting departments. In addition, Western recruitment agencies advertise consulting in the field of advertising business organization, staff recruitment and management. In parallel with the process of reviving entrepreneurship, Russian consulting firms have emerged that provide legal, financial, tax, information, management and other services.

The source of the formation of organizational consulting in Russia went from the sociology of organizations. In 1976, under the Soviet Sociological Association, a section on the sociology of organizations was created, along with other similar sections. Also, the center of organizational counseling in the Soviet Union was Estonia. Estonians, who interacted well with their kindred Finland, largely borrowed from the Finns the experience of organizational counseling. The first people to call themselves management consultants were Estonians (Jaak Leimann, Madis Habakuk, Raul Uksvärav). The rest called themselves sociologists or specialists in the scientific organization of labor, or economists, or even, it was time, experts in administrative law. The first official voicing of this phrase "management consultant" was held on August 19, 1982 in the Pravda newspaper, where the most important, fundamental articles were published. In 1991, the section on the sociology of organizations separated from the Soviet Sociological Association into an independent Association of Management and Organizational Development Consultants (AKUOR). In 1992, the first school of management consultants appeared in the structure of the Academy of National Economy under the Government of the Russian Federation, which began, on a regular basis, twice a year to produce two or a dozen specialists with a state academy diploma. From all these sources, such a direction was gradually formed, which began to incorporate more and more new directions, for example, organizational consulting. Economists and lawyers began to enter this area. According to some estimates, there are now about 10,000 people in Russia who call themselves management consultants.

The pinnacle of consulting services is management and organizational consulting. Diagnostics of the state of the enterprise is the starting point in the consultation process. Its main goal is to develop a set of activities aimed at improving the quality of management and improving the efficiency of the enterprise as a whole and of each of its employees.

The need for marketing consulting in a competitive environment at the stage of the market economy is quite large. The main areas of consulting are a marketing audit, which includes marketing research on competitor and customer analysis, analysis of the efficiency of the distribution system, sales and efficiency of the company's market positioning, as well as general market analysis (size, growth rate); development of a marketing system in an enterprise and its implementation, which includes developing a marketing system concept, developing a strategy (setting goals), advancing tactical decisions within a specific task (audience modeling, choosing a market segment, product idea and positioning), operational activities and testing in preliminary stages, monitoring, feedback; elaboration of an advertising campaign, which includes checking the effectiveness of promotional events, developing an advertising budget, drawing up a mass media plan, etc.

The newest type of service in this area is optimization of the company's logistics, which allows reducing the costs of moving material flows (raw materials, semi-finished products, finished products, goods) both within the enterprise and to consumers.

Personnel consulting as a separate type of consulting began to develop due to the ever-growing need for highly qualified specialists. The main areas of personnel consulting are recruitment and assessment, personnel audit at the enterprise, development of procedures and human resource management systems, including staff development, career planning, staff training, personnel reserve formation, personnel assessment, development of personnel remuneration procedures and systems, corporate culture.

The listed types of consulting services can be referred to organizational consulting.

An organization can solve its own problems independently, if it has an internal consultant (innovation specialist, management consultancy or organizational development consultant, psychologist), i.e. a professional who knows how to solve problems, is socially adapted and knows how to create an atmosphere of development in an organization. In Soviet times, such specialists became employees of the service of the scientific organization of labor, sociological laboratories, and psychological services. At the moment, consulting work in organizations is conducted by professionals with experience in their own activities in organizations, sociologists, management specialists, economists, etc. Among them, psychologists specialize in problems of organizational development. For a psychologist who sets himself as a professional task - support of an organization, it is important to understand the fundamental differences between psychological counseling and organizational counseling.

In the process of organizational consulting, diagnostics are carried out in order to identify problems in the functioning of a company, determine the best ways, reserves and ways to solve them, as well as take a series of measures, as a result of which the state of the organization changes in the direction desired by the customer. The organization’s management and management are usually required to prepare, implement and / or evaluate organizational changes planned or carried out (change management), to improve the personnel management system, to develop and implement measures to improve various aspects of the organization’s activities, to improve the performance of personnel and organizations in general.

The procedure of organizational consulting is carried out in such a way that, during the consultation process, a management team is formed, personnel are oriented towards finding new development resources, and employees are involved in the change process. As a result, there is also an increase in the effectiveness of the organization as a whole.

Organizational counseling can be focused on achieving the following goals.

1. To promote the development of the organization by improving the quality of leadership and increasing the personal productivity of each employee of the organization.

2. To increase personal competence (managerial and socio-psychological) of managers.

3. Develop effective thinking skills that provide a systematic solution to the problems and tasks of the organization.

4. To create conditions for effective decision making in the field of organizational development.

5. To form communication skills (organization - person, manager - subordinates, employees - employees) necessary for effective interaction between employees.

6. To promote the development of corporate culture and increase the loyalty of the staff of the organization.

7. To promote the psychological well-being of managers and employees of the organization.

Forms and stages of the consultation process

From the point of view of methodology, expert, process and educational consulting is distinguished.

Expert advice. The task of the consultant is to carry out diagnostics and prepare a plan and program for the development of the organization, prepare a managerial or organizational decision based on the consultant’s knowledge. The consultant acts as a carrier of expert knowledge, which will be applied to the specific situation in the organization. The consultant works independently of the staff, being guided by the norms established in a particular professional activity. The essence of it is to collect the necessary information for issuing recommendations and informing the client about what and how to do about the problem entrusted to him.

Examples: development of a business plan for the customer; development of personnel motivation and incentives; development of personnel evaluation system; development of an in-house training system.

Process counseling. The task is to prepare an organization's development program, staff in particular, in the course of collaboration with the organization’s employees. Diagnostics and accounting of corporate culture, analysis of norms and requirements for personnel, traditions, values ​​of the organization are assumed. The project is created and implemented with the participation of the main professional groups and their representatives, the management staff of the organization.

Examples : developing an organization development strategy; formation of corporate culture; development of standards of organizational behavior.

3. Training counseling provides training for the solution of important tasks for the organization. Training can be specialized, aimed at the formation of competences in highly specialized areas (courses in acquiring accounting knowledge, mastering computer programs, training in logistics, etc.). Special training is most often conducted in the form of lectures, seminars, less often - in the form of trainings. Technological trainings provide a clear system of skills and abilities, without addressing the personal aspects of running a business. Business psychological training - great attention is paid to the specifics of communication, since business is always communication between people, regardless of whether it is a sale, presentation or negotiation.

Examples: the formation of socio-psychological competence of managers; client training or sales training, business negotiation training, leadership training and conflict management.

A consultant psychologist, working with organizations, may accompany a project. Such a model of the work of a psychologist in an organization can be called a “support model”. In this case, the psychologist is responsible for solving such problems as:

- motivation of staff for inclusion in project work;

- creation of conditions for the negotiation process (an important condition for the development and implementation of the project is agreement of the main positioners on who, how and for what is responsible; analysis of the nature of resistances and development of technologies for their removal).

In other words, in order for the project to be developed and implemented, it is necessary to “pack” it competently, fill it with personally meaningful meanings for the staff, i.e. increase its appeal.

Example: the development and implementation of quality management systems in many enterprises in the early stages causes resistance, and even active opposition. Therefore, already on ethane of setting the strategic task “Implementing a quality management system in organization X”, competent psychological diagnostics of the situation in the organization, assessment of the degree of motivation of top management and personnel, analysis of organizational culture, and identification of the root causes of resistance are needed. Similar work is being done in reforming enterprises, introducing quality and environmental management systems, developing development strategies, developing a corporate culture, and organizing in-house training.

The differences between the forms of counseling are removed in the concept of "integrative counseling", when in the conditions of modern consulting in business a combination of approaches is necessary.

From the point of view of the localization of counseling, it can be internal and external (tab. 9.1).

Table 9.1

Features of internal and external counseling

A. I. Prigogine as the first basis for identifying types of consultants introduces a degree of specialization in solving client organization problems.

Specialists are responsible for solving specific problems. There are consultants specializing in paperwork and workflow. There are specialists in motivation, personnel audit, personnel certification. They own well-developed technologies for the production of these works and can provide services to a fairly large number of clients in a short time. Solving problems in the field of marketing, advertising and become the subject of more and more in-depth specialization. Thus, the specialist solves a limited set of tasks, his advantage in deep knowledge of his subject, in providing services of the highest quality in a narrow field.

Дженералисты не стремятся к прямому решению задач. Они предлагают методы их решения. Но зато этих методов у них такое большое количество и разнообразие, что они покрывают потребности клиента. Среди этих методов есть универсальные, пригодные для самых разных задач: групповая и межгрупповая работа, игровые и фасилитационные методы, модерация и т.д. Есть методы специальные, приемлемые только для небольшого количества задач, например: сценарный метод, технология повышения клиентной ориентации и методы командообразования, разработки стратегии и пр. Преимущества "дженералистов" в очень широком охвате взаимосвязанных проблем организации, в комплексном их решении, в возможностях длительной работы с одной и той же организацией. Ограниченность их в недостаточной их осведомленности в специальных областях.

Stages of the consultative process

Highlight the main stages of the consultation process.

entrance – встреча с руководством, оценка готовности к изменениям, выявление мотивации на сотрудничество с консультантом, проверка соответствия заявленной проблемы реальности, понимание возможностей для построения рабочих отношений, ориентация в ценностях руководителя и его команды. Клиент оценивает опыт организации, предоставляющей консалтинговые и образовательные услуги, знания, предлагаемую технологию. На этом этапе уточняется техническое задание, видение результата, ответственность сторон, гонорар, формируется доверие между психологом и заказчиком. Важные задачи, которые на этом этапе должен решить консультант: выработать кредит доверия; оправдать цену; отстроиться от конкурентов; предоставить значимые рекомендации третьей стороны и публикации. Методы: диагностическое интервью, диагностический семинар, учебно-информационные мероприятия, беседы. По итогам диагностики консультант готовит коммерческое предложение, в котором представлены цель, задачи, предполагаемый график работы, планируемые результаты, организационные и финансовые условия, список привлеченных для консалтинга специалистов.

A contract is a process during which the basic norms of interaction between a consultant and a client are formed, the purpose and objectives of the work are indicated. Goals must be realistic (i.e. achievable); specific (to the external observer it should be clear what exactly the desired result will manifest itself); measurable (by what signs it can be judged that the goal has been achieved); verifiable (it should be clear whether there is a movement towards this goal) and attractive (so that the customer and the client want to achieve them).

Diagnostics - collecting material, its analysis, discussion and presentation of results. At this stage, interviews, questionnaires, testing, analysis of documents, participation in events, financial, marketing, etc. are used. analysis. When working with organizations, it is necessary to use the competencies of different specialists (marketer, financier, systems analyst, methodologist, etc.). This allows a three-dimensional view of organizational reality, a systematic approach to the question of its development. The organizational form allowing to do this is an innovative seminar as a group method of diagnosing the real situation. To identify the organizational context, the consultant may use special diagnostic procedures developed by A. I. Prigogine, which involve staff in analyzing the real situation.

Данные процедуры носят рефлексивный характер, т.е. освобождают консультанта от необходимости ставить "диагноз организации". Они вовлекают клиснта(ов) в исследование своей организации.

Планирование изменений предполагает определение вариантов решения проблем и планирование деятельности по ее решению. На этом этапе обозначаются возможности и ограничения организации и конкретных подразделений в решении проблемы, определяются цели, методы и конкретные пути разрешения проблемы. Среди технологий, которые могут быть использованы на этом этапе: системный и структурно-функциональный анализ, сценарный метод (А. И. Пригожин), технология решения сложных слабоструктурированных задач (В. С. Дудченко), SWOT- анализ. При формировании общего видения желаемого будущего хороший эффект дают использование метафор, проективные рисунки, эвристические методы.

Реализация предполагаемых изменений – создание штаба и групп развития, которые дорабатывают полученные на предыдущем этапе результаты.

Отчет консультанта о содержании, методах и результатах работы.

Оценка эффективности предполагает использование рефлексивных процедур, анализ объективных изменений, произошедших в организации.

Эффективность консультирования определяется достижением определенных договором консультирования целей. Для клиента можно выделить прямые и косвенные результаты консультирования, причем важны как количественные, так и качественные показатели (ведь в силу специфики консультационной деятельности количественные показатели не всегда поддаются оценке). Эффективность консультирования не всегда имеет денежное выражение. Часто это квалифицированная, аргументированная поддержка действий руководства или удержание его от ошибок. Можно провести сложный расчет финансовой эффективности от применения консультаций, так и получить положительный ответ на вопрос, лучше ли стала работать организация после того, как пригласили консультанта, даже если это трудно выразить количественными характеристиками.

Показатели консультирования. Можно выделить прямые результаты консультирования. Например: снижение издержек, увеличение рентабельности, освоение новых видов продукции и т.д.; изменение стиля и методов работы, создание, изменение структуры производства и управления и т.п.

Косвенные результаты консультирования. Например: привлечение внешнего капитала, рост курса акций (если это не являлось целью консультирования) и т.д. Обучение клиента, установление новых контактов и др.

Принципы и методы консультирования организации

Организационное консультирование опирается на следующие методологические принципы.

1. Принцип системности. Организацию можно изменить, лишь работая с ней, как с целостной системой, на всех ее уровнях и во всех подразделениях. Изменение в работе какой-либо подсистемы, например, маркетинговой службы, службе управления персоналом может внести дисбаланс в состояние организации в целом. Причина заключается в рассогласовании при изменениях устоявшихся связей, отношений и взаимодействий. Консультирование затрагивает все стороны жизни организации, ее взаимоотношения с внешней средой, способы взаимодействия внутри предприятия (отношение руководства к персоналу и др.).

Понимание системности в жизни организации обязывает консультанта ответить на следующие ключевые вопросы:

А. Какие ценности лежат в основе работы организации? В организации есть три генеральные ценности, которые взаимосвязаны между собой (управляемость, инновационность и клиентность). Управляемость как ценность находит свое проявление в согласованности целей и действий и реализуемости решений. Инновационность – есть способность организации порождать новшества и осуществлять нововведения (проявляет себя через открытость нововведениям, проактивное управление и качество управленческой воли). Клиентность – это соответствие организации потребностям рынка и привлекательность ее продуктов для клиентуры. При проведении диагностики организации важно выявить те приоритетные ценности, которые лежат в основе деятельности организации. В ином случае, возможно противоречие между замыслами консультанта и той организационной реальностью с которой он работает. Для разных этапов консультативной работы важна опора сначала на инновационность, потом управляемость и, как следствие – клиентность.

Б. Какова стратегия организации, тот генеральный план действий, определяющий приоритеты стратегических задач, ресурсы и последовательность шагов по достижению стратегических целей?

В. Какова организационная структура как совокупность управленческих подразделений, между которыми установлена взаимосвязь, призванные обеспечить реализацию различных видов работ, функций и процессов для достижения определенных целей?

Г. Какая система управления сложилась в организации? Под системой управления имеется в виду совокупность человеческих, материальных, технических, информационных, нормативно-правовых и других компонентов, связанных между собой так, что благодаря этому реализуется функция управления.

Д. Каков стиль управления как интегральная характеристика индивидуальных особенностей личности руководителя, а также чаще всего применяемые ею способы управленческой деятельности?

Е. Каков состав работников – необходимое количество и качество специалистов, вовлеченных в работу организации и какова сумма их умений и навыков?

2. Принцип изменения. Любая организация, которая стремится быть конкурентоспособной, существует в режиме развития, который необходимо обеспечить кадрами, способными решать текущие и перспективные задачи. В этом смысле консультирование организации может носить реактивный (обеспечивать функционирование организации) и проактивный характер (т.е. ориентироваться на те задачи, которые ставит перед собой организация на ближайшее и отдаленное будущее).

3. Принцип позитивного подхода. Внешние или внутренние консультанты, менеджеры по персоналу, психологи, опираясь на возможности персонала, а не его ограничения (трактовка проблемы как возможности) более успешны в достижении целей развития персонала и организации в целом.

4. The principle of action research and counseling activities. Counseling involves the identification of real practical problems of professional activity, their research, finding solutions. That is why the movement from action to new knowledge, rather than informing about the difficulties that arise, seems more reasonable. At the stage of diagnostics, at the stage of ensuring organizational changes, it is important for the consultant to take the position of the organizer of a reflective environment that encourages independent decision-making. Expert advice has significant limitations, especially in the field of work with staff.

5. The principle of the uniqueness of the organization. Consulting programs are built taking into account the uniqueness of the organization, its history and positioning in the market, features of the organizational culture, experience in developing and training personnel (successful or unsuccessful).

6. The principle of manufacturability. In modern organizational and consulting psychology, in the practice of management consulting and organizational development, a whole range of effective technologies has been developed (various types of games, case analysis, methods for activating personal resources, project training, trainings, etc.). Therefore, the work of a consulting specialist is technologically advanced and the methods used by the consultant can be mastered by others.

The working methods of the organizational consultant

Organizational counseling involves the use of sophisticated counseling tools. In domestic practice, the initial positions of Russian authors of consulting technologies are known.

1. V.S. Dudchenko - integration of psychology, sociology, philosophy, ontosynthesis.

2. A. I. Prigogine - from the standpoint of sociology (methodology of organizational development).

3. T. Yu. Bazarov - in terms of optimizing the personnel management system.

4. G. P. Shchedrovitsky - from the standpoint of methodology, psychology and its philosophical understanding.

5. N. V. Klyueva from the standpoint of integration of counseling, in-house training, adult education (andragogy), project approach and innovative methodology.

6. L. M. Krol, E. M. Purtova - from the standpoint of organizational and social psychology.

7. M. Melia - from the standpoint of integration of psychology, organizational development and coaching.

The method of consulting is understood as a general scheme (action plan), formed on the basis of the generalized experience of effective consultations of this type, which allows to develop an appropriate program of action. Methodical support of the consultant is an important component of the effectiveness of its activities. There is a class of methodological tools that are widely distributed in advisory practice. You can divide them into three groups.

1. Problem-solving technology ensuring the formation of effective thinking tools, which, in turn, are tools for developing an organization (for example: developing strategic plans, building an organization’s competitiveness, building effective personnel (marketing) policies, etc.).

2. The technology aimed at the development of effective communications, enhances the efficiency of joint activities, contributes to the formation of loyalty and involvement in changes in the organization, forms the skills to build effective communications.

3. The technology providing personal growth is focused on actualization of personal resources of employees, stimulates the need for self-development, contributes to the removal of personal problems.

Each technology includes a consultant’s working methods (Table 9.2).

The basis of the methods used by the consultant is his ability to establish contact with the person or group. The consultant should be able to listen to the client, ask questions that contribute to the development of the client's view of the situation.

There are six categories of advisory influences, depending on their goals and content. Authoritarian include prescriptive, informing,

Table 9.2

Consultant’s working methods and focus

confrontational effects. Facilitators include cathartic, catalytic and supportive effects.

The prescriptive focus focuses on client behavior outside the framework of consultative interactions. Informative impact provides the client with knowledge, information and meanings. The confrontational effect is intended to make the client aware of any restrictive attitudes or behavior. The cathartic effect of its purpose is to help the client to show emotions, to give way to repressed feelings. The catalytic effect is focused on stimulating self-knowledge, learning and problem solving. The supporting influence is oriented towards the confirmation of the significance and value of the client’s personality, his qualities, attitudes or actions. Authoritarian types of influence are more archived: the consultant takes responsibility for the client and on his behalf (directing the behavior, giving instructions and increasing the level of awareness).

Facilitating types of impact are focused on greater customer autonomy and acceptance of responsibility for the organization and yourself (helping to update and find organizational solutions, promoting self-learning).

The choice of one or another type and type of influence largely depends on the type of the client’s personality (as well as the type of the consultant’s personality) and the specifics of his situation. The correlation of authoritarian and facilitating types of influence is mainly related to the topic of power and control: the consultant controls the client completely, control is divided between the consultant and the client, the client is completely autonomous.

Diagnostic interview

Because, how competently the consultant will carry out the initial diagnosis of the problem field of the customer and the customer depends on the success of all further work. The initial formulations that the customer gives can be transformed in the course of the interview if the consultant skillfully asks questions, stimulates the activity of the customer, develops his analytical skills. It is important to form self-confidence already at this stage, to briefly talk about your work experience. If necessary, name the organizations with which consulting projects have been implemented (if the management of these organizations have agreed). The diagnostic interview is aimed at clarifying the main task that the customer puts to the consultant (the customer is the one who sets the primary task and pays for the services of the consultant, the client is the one with whom the consultant works directly). This interview refers to non-standardized. It takes place in a free form, variations are possible in the sequence of questions asked. The interview may change the format depending on the situation arising in the process of diagnosis. The consultant does not conduct a survey, he actively interacts with the respondent, problematizes his judgments. The interview program is general in nature and contains mostly open-ended questions and involves detailed answers. Therefore, it is important, as in psychological counseling, the stage of establishing contact and trust. For this, in addition to the adjustment, friendly attitude, it is necessary to say about the results of diagnostics, what will be reflected in the report (list of problems and identified relationships between them, what problem should be solved, etc.,) and pay attention to the contribution that each respondent will be presented in a report in a generalized, impersonal form.

Questions for diagnosis

I. General characteristics of the task.

1. The formulation of the problem, the basis for its formulation.

2. Who and how set the task?

3. How big is the task?

4. How unique is the task?

5. What and who will help and hinder its decision?

6. What happens if you refuse to solve it?

Ii. Characteristics of the situation.

1. Where and when did the situation arise?

2. Who are the key players in the organization?

3. What is the essence of the problem situation?

4. Possible causes of the situation?

5. The main functions of the organization (products, market niche, the advantages of the organization and its limitations on the market ...).

6. Technical and economic characteristics of the organization.

7. Age and level (stage) of development of the organization.

8. The number and characteristics of staff.

9. General characteristics of the environment.

10. Directions of development of the situation in the organization.

Iii. The objectives of the participants of the situation.

1. Relationships of different categories (levels of management) to the situation.

2. The main objectives of the participants of the situation.

3. Who is interested in what outcome and why?

4. What do key figures do in a situation?

5. What does the customer want and why?

Iv. Content making.

1. What solutions of the problem were proposed and by whom?

2. Who participated in the solution of the problem?

3. Who were the proposed changes?

4. What and who prevented the solution of the problem?

5. What solutions are considered good? Why?

6. What decisions are considered erroneous? Why?

7. Did the decisions address deep-seated causes?

V. Organization of the decision.

1. Who should solve the problem?

2. Who should be involved in the decision?

3. How and with whom to work for success in the decision.

During an interview, it is important to concentrate not on the reasons, but on identifying the root causes of the unfavorable situation, to appeal to the facts (what is this?).

A productive scheme proposed by A. I. Prigogine (Fig. 9.1) appears.

Group discussion is a way of organizing the interaction of group members, which allows you to compare opposing positions, see the problem from different

Fig. 9.1. Scheme of the interview (by A. I. Prigogine)

parties, to clarify the mutual position, which reduces the resistance to the perception of new information, eliminate emotional bias. The method allows you to train group members to analyze real situations, instills the ability to listen and interact with other participants, shows the ambiguity of solving most problems.

In order to conduct a discussion as efficiently as possible, the following is necessary.

1. Determine the topic and purpose of the discussion.

2. Prepare participants, inform about its topic and goals in advance.

3. Formulate questions, ideas, theses that are submitted for discussion.

4. Determine the scope of the discussion.

5. Introduce participants to the general discussion.

6. Record disagreements on the discussion thread, if any.

7. Inform about the form of presentation of materials (charts, oral presentations, drawings).

8. Prepare for the moderator (define your own line of behavior, discussion forms, plan, schedule, procedure).

9. To give a qualitative analysis of the work of the group.

Rules of discussion.

1. Speak on your own behalf ("I think," not "we think"),

2. Work on the "overall result."

3. Do not go into globalism.

4. Listen carefully to each other.

5. Criticize not people, but ideas.

6. The goal is not to win, but to come to the best solution.

Example: a consultant is tasked with building staff loyalty and creating the conditions for developing corporate standards of behavior. One of the fragments of the work may include a discussion, during which the group discusses the norms of organizational behavior recorded in the handout, develop their attitude towards them.

Case Study

In the literature, the method of analyzing specific situations is also called a " case-study ". The analysis of situations stimulates an appeal to the experience and experience of others, a striving to consolidate or acquire theoretical knowledge to get answers to the questions discussed in the situation. The main objectives of the method are:

- practicing group problem analysis and decision making skills;

- examination of knowledge gained during the theoretical course (at the end of the training program).

Group members are involved in the discussion of the real situation, which in turn forms an active position. They deal with concrete, not fictional facts or events. In this method, the group plays a big role, because the ideas and decisions generated during the discussion are the result of collective efforts. The method can be used individually.

Variants of presenting material to group members:

- a detailed version of the description of the situation (up to 40 s.);

- abridged version;

- filmed a movie or video;

- A typical case of professional activity, which offers leading;

- the case proposed by one of the participants;

- a case arising during a group discussion;

- analysis of the decision taken in any situation.

After describing the situation, its discussion can occur in a group. The discussion process should be limited in time. You can begin to analyze the situation in an individual form, in microgroups, and then combine the solutions into a group-wide discussion.

Analysis of the situation is carried out as follows.

1. What happened? Where?