Searching for Excellence in Second‐hand Clothes?: A Note

Organisation Development (OD) seems to have become unfashionable in the UK in recent years, with “culture and excellence” and “strategic human resources management” approaches more popular. This is in part due to OD’s naivete over power and politics, its neglect of corporate‐level issues in favour of personal, interpersonal and group issues, and its neglect of the environment in which the organisation is located. However, within OD there has been a continuing focus on mission, strategy and excellence, and on leadership, culture and excellence. Curiously, however, the authors of literature in those areas are not cited in the works of the “excellence” school. An effective approach to managing organisational change requires a perspective that integrates both “mission and strategy” and “personal and team development” approaches. Drawing on work in British Telecom, it is proposed that a focus on individual skills assessment and development, such as that generated by developmental assessment centres, is also required.