ABSTRACT
Organization transformation (OT) constitutes a still small but rapidly growing prominence on the horizon of conscious change. What seems a reasonable positioning of OT? Consider only this casually defined continuum: fine tuning through fundamental redefinition of major concepts and values associated with the label "organization development (OD)." Consider John Adams circumscription of OT, which involves a comparison with OD. Reflecting its academic roots, OD efforts have always been based on theories and the collection and analysis of data. In his catalog of particulars, to illustrate, John Adams emphasizes six OT themes: vision, new perspectives, energy field, leadership, performance excellence, and human empowerment. These themes orient more decisively toward fine tuning than transformation. The chapter recognizes that an incautious emphasis on OT, may lead only to a kind of rechristening, and this possibility has a real down-side potential. Rechristening can create a sense of new and enlarged ownership, and that promises a useful check against OD in-groupiness and narrow protectionism.
