The Nature of OD: Visionary Thinking

"Thinking at 40,000 feet is not what I do, you'll have to come down a little so I can understand." This is a statement I hear often from those I work with. It's my job to think at 40,000 ft. and higher. I am part of a network of people with the same responsibility. We are supposed to spend a great majority of our time in Quadrant 2 (planning), not fighting fires. Yet, often times we find ourselves with hose in hand. We are tasked with eliminating our own jobs as well as others...pushing the accountablity and decision-making to the lowest possible level. That is the vision. The group I am responsible for teaching has an average age that doubles my own. They fought in 'Nam, grew up on farms, own and operate farms, work on cars, and are part of another generation. One I never felt, only heard about. In the workplace they expect the "boss" to tell them what to do, when to do it and how to do it. The team concept is the antithesis of everything they were taught. In addition, those that embraced it and tried to make it work, found it too troublesome. Being visionary is the requirement of any OD team member, and that does not mean seeing into the next five years. It means daring to look into the next ten, twenty, fifty years and striving to make those visions realities in the next five, ten or fifteen, disregarding any and all obstacles, be they cost, organizational structure or future personal advancement opportunities. OD people must be able to think at all levels - from below sea level to 40,000 ft., to the moon and beyond. It is not easy.

• Replying to my own posting by kk, 9/29/98