Make a Positive Impact on Your Organization
In the Organization Development and Knowledge Management (ODKM) program, students become effective organizational interveners allowing them to make a positive impact on their organizations. The curriculum is designed with a threefold approach to learning through Knowing, Doing, and Being.
- KNOWING: Students build knowledge through learning organization development theory and research
- DOING: Graduates become proficient in how to intervene through practical application of OD principles, experiential learning, and skill building
- BEING: Throughout the program, students explore self as an instrument of change through inner development, mindfulness, and reflective practice
Organization development (OD) is an interdisciplinary social science drawing from organizational behavior, industrial/organizational psychology, management and business, leadership, group dynamics, qualitative and quantitative research, and sociology scholarship. OD as a discipline focuses on enabling a system to fully see itself. With the insight gained from being able to see a system as it is, an organization is then equipped to make change and improve processes with the aim of creating a humane environment that works for everyone.
Under the umbrella of organization development, students will become well-versed in organizational studies, knowledge management, and coaching, all of which are disciplines within the field of OD and highlighted in the ODKM program. Additionally, the program is grounded in an appreciative approach to organization development, building on the positive aspects of a system, i.e. what is already working, in lieu of a deficit approach, which is focused on fixing what does not work.
What is Organization Development?
Organization Development (OD) is the planned process of change in an organization’s culture through the utilization of behavioral science, technology, research, and theory (Burke, 2014). It is also a long-range effort to improve an organization’s problem-solving capabilities and its ability to cope with changes in its external environment with the help of external or internal behavioral scientist consultants (French & Bell, 1999).
How is Organization Development relevant in today’s world?
Over the past 25 years technology has increased the speed of change in organizations and our collective human capacity to keep up with the speed of change has lagged. The current state of organizations has resulted in existential human and organizational crises that are unsustainable. We do not currently have the collective capacity to manage the sheer amount of information and complexity in the workplace of today.
Specific organizational challenges include:
- Unmanageable stress and burnout
- Permanent white water (Vaill, 1995), disorientation, and a lack of grounding
- Increasing complexity, volatility, and ambiguity
- Post-pandemic fragility and heightened anxiety AND human capital shortage and hybrid work environment
- Fewer resources with more demand
As organizational life has changed and continues to evolve rapidly, different skills, knowledge, and development are needed as well. The Organization Development and Knowledge Management (ODKM) program supports the development and effectiveness of professionals interested in making a positive difference in organizational life by equipping them with the knowledge, skills, and present-moment awareness to navigate today’s complexity.
What is Knowledge Management?
Knowledge Management (KM) is the process of capturing, developing, and effectively using organizational knowledge. (Davenport, 2000)
What is coaching?
Coaching refers to an intentional conversational process in which the coach uses inquiry, feedback, and resources in support of the client’s self-directed learning, to increase their self-awareness and capacity to manage relationships and navigate their environments. (Potter, 2017, p. 2)
What other theoretical and practical disciplines does the ODKM curriculum draw from?
- Change management
- Leadership
- Systems theory, management, and thinking
- Industrial/organizational and positive psychology
- Social justice
- Quantitative and qualitative research
- Mindfulness
- Organizational learning
- Human and adult development
- Facilitation
- Human-centered design
Email us: schar@gmu.edu
Call: 703-993-8099
Key Program Features
- No GRE or GMAT required to apply.
- In-state tuition for Virginia residents; equivalent rate for D.C. and Maryland residents
- Cohort program
- Executive schedule (classes on Friday evenings and Saturdays)
- 33 credit hours over five semesters, usually completed in 20 months
- Live hybrid format (all class materials is presented live and synchronously with no recorded classes; some classes are virtual, some classes are in-person)
- Experientially-based curriculum (i.e. learning by doing)
Equipping Graduates to Navigate Today’s Working World
Graduates will leave the program with the ability to positively contribute to improving organizational culture, climate, and team environments, ultimately supporting organizations in moving toward more connected, humane, and transformative social enterprises. Skills you will gain include:
- Organizational and Societal: systems thinking, knowledge management processes, organizational analysis and diagnostic tools, appreciative inquiry, action research, facilitation, design thinking, dialogical organization development, and organizational transformation
- Group: coaching skills, dialogue, change conversations, and process work
- Individual: analytical skills, emotional intelligence, mindfulness, appreciative intelligence, and reflection
Testimonials
“Hundreds of times since graduating, I’ve been asked to bring people together to make meaning – never those words but that’s all it is – and no other program primes you for that. MBA stuff – that’s all on LinkedIn Learning. ODKM is a professional accelerator and innovation incubator.”
Cory McConnell, Class of 2011, Director of Quality and Knowledge Management, Evoke Consulting
"You don't 'learn' about OD, you become it! My transformational journey through ODKM resulted in a new sense of awareness, mindfulness, and way of being. The program prepared me to work collaboratively with teams and clients to assess, diagnose, and design sustainable organizational and system solutions. Through experiential learning in ODKM, I developed an ability to deeply listen, reframe, and apply an appreciative lens to see new possibilities in any situation."
Lea M. Pickett, Class of 2020, Deputy Director Workforce Development, EnCompass LLC
Curriculum
The curriculum of the ODKM program is developed to provide theoretical grounding in interdisciplinary organizational studies while also providing practical application of that theory. Students take two courses per semester, while also engaging in the Learning Community throughout their time in the program. See a detailed list of courses.
A Path to Becoming a Coach
As part of the program, students enroll in two required courses focused on coaching. The classroom hours can be used in partial fulfillment of the coach education hours required for certification by credentialing bodies such as the International Coach Federation and the European Mentoring and Coaching Council.
Program Schedule
Each semester, most students enroll with the cohort in two courses. The courses are scheduled on Friday evenings (5 -10 p.m.) and Saturdays (9 a.m. - 6 p.m.) every two to three weeks of the semester. During the scheduled weekend, students will take one of the classes on the Friday evening and then the other class on Friday. View the current semester schedules.
Practitioner Faculty
With George Mason University's prime location in the Washington, D.C. area, Schar School students gain access to leading scholars and practitioners who bring real-world experience to the classroom, providing you with the mentorship and skill sets needed to advance in your career. The Schar School has 80+ faculty members, as well as hundreds of adjunct faculty, allowing students to gain access to a variety of perspectives and subjects through elective courses.
Current Student Resources
BLOG: Sensebreaking Leadership
ODKM faculty member Stacey Guenther invites us to break with our traditional ways of thinking about leadership.
ODKM News and Info
VIDEO: What is Organization Development?
ODKM program director and professor Tojo Thatchenkery explains what organization development is.
VIDEO: The 3 Ds of Organization Development
ODKM faculty member John Hovell breaks organization development into three different types of OD, the 3 Ds, which he names as diagnostic, dialogic, and dynamic.
VIDEO: OD’s Relevance in Today’s World
ODKM program director and professor Tojo Thatchenkery explains how organization development remains more relevant, if not more so, in today’s working environments.
VIDEO: Knowledge Management
ODKM faculty member John Hovell discusses what knowledge management is.
VIDEO: How OD and KM Work Together
ODKM faculty member John Hovell explains how organization development and knowledge management work together to improve how an organization functions.