This course aims to introduce students to the field of Organisational Development as an applied behavioural science discipline that is dedicated to improving the effectiveness of individuals and groups within organisations using both the theory and the practice of planned change. The module aims to provide students with a conceptual framework of the underlying principles, theories, values, beliefs, and assumptions of Organisational Development to understand why and how individuals, groups and organisations must adapt to their constantly changing local and global environments to survive and prosper.
Given the unique context of South Africa which has been informed by its turbulent past, the module is taught with the assumption that many Eurocentric approaches to Organizational Development do not adequately consider context-based approaches that address the specific needs of South African organizations. The module is thus taught using a critical perspective to understanding Organizational Development as a science that is both theoretically and practically significant with the local context. Students are encouraged to think critically and to reframe and reconstruct taken-for-granted worldviews which reinforce western dominance. Local context is situated at the centre of teaching and learning.
This module attempts to contextualize knowledge production (science) and its’ application in relation to organizations and workers. Student’s will be exposed to various theoretical models of change and historical details that forefront a contextual understanding of change.
In doing so, the module attempts to undertake a systemic understanding of organisations. The module considers the various domains with which organisations intersect (for example, the political, economic, and social domains) and how these intersections, in turn, impact on organisational functioning.
- Teacher: Shanya Reuben
