• Introduction
• The eight steps of the design process
• Adaptation of the design process to the Client’s requirements

The eight steps of the design process

The OrgCon design process consists of six steps, where an OrgCon consultant is the facilitator of the process:

1. The OrgCon process begins with identifying the organizational unit for analysis.  It could be the whole of a firm or a public organization, or only a part of an organization such as a division, department, agency, or team.  The organizational unit can be large or small, but it requires a clear delineation of its visions, goals, boundary and environment, i.e., what it does, and what is on the inside and what is on the outside.
2. With the organization defined, a design team needs to be chosen.  This design team includes individuals from the organization that are vital to the design process. It may be the management team or a special design task force, and it may also include some knowledgeable individuals from outside the organization.  Implementation must be considered from the beginning; the design team must be able to implement changes or be important to the implementation of changes resulting from the design process.  
3. The organizational design team is briefed by the consultant on the OrgCon process, the OrgCon technology, and the purpose of the interviews and plenary session.  In the first meeting, the OrgCon logic is presented and discussed with the design team to develop an intuitive understanding of the OrgCon design process.  
4. The members of the executive group are then interviewed individually by the consultant using the sixty-eight questions in the OrgCon questionnaire.  The consultant translates the OrgCon vocabulary into concepts and meanings relevant for the particular organization under consideration. The validity of the data inputs depends upon a clear and common understanding of the questions and the meaning of the responses in the current context.  Frequently, an individual gains great insight about his/her organization during this query phase of the OrgCon process.
5. Analysis of the OrgCon input data profiles from the individuals.  The OrgCon software tool is used to analyze each individual profile and then examine the similarities and differences among the input data and the implications for design changes. 
6. Then follows a Plenary Session, which is a presentation to the design team and the executive group of the data analysis and the implications for design changes.  Here, there is an emphasis on common understanding of issues and the implications for design and change in the organization.  At the same time, differences in interpretation and understanding of the organization and its challenges are highlighted and discussed.  The goal is to achieve a common understanding about the organization, its challenges and possible changes for the future. If differences remain they are further analyzed, and the outcome is presented to the executive group alone for further consideration and final resolution.
7. Based on the results from the Plenary Session decisions are made on stratgy and design as well as on the change process.

8. The details of the lower level organizational design process are usually a bottom up process. Key people within the various organizational units are asked to design the work processes inside and between the unit and the external and internal units.

 The figure shows a three day OrgCon design process for an executive team of five persons.