Organisation in transformation
Organisational diagnosis: understand recurring problems by looking at how structures, decisions and culture interact, and choose the right next intervention.
When the same problems keep coming back even as people change, it is worth looking at the organisation itself. An organisational diagnosis examines how expectations, roles and routines interact, and how departments differ.
Map recurring situations and decision paths in concrete terms.
Describe patterns in identity, communication, leadership and culture.
Test preliminary findings with key people from different areas.
Agree the right next intervention with those responsible.
Together we look at concrete events and processes: a difficult handover, a decision that keeps being postponed, or a conflict between departments. Conversations and analysis of existing information help us understand the different points of view.
We relate structures, informal rules and decision paths to one another. The diagnosis develops hypotheses about what keeps the observed patterns in place. These are tested with the organisation and give direction for possible change.
You can read an organisation from its recurring decisions and communication patterns.
A diagnosis does not automatically lead to a new organisation chart. Depending on the findings, the focus may be on clarifying roles, decision routines, leadership or learning architectures. We agree with the client which change to tackle first and how to track its progress.
Book an initial callDiagnostics ask why an organisation repeatedly does what it does and why it finds change difficult. The subject of examination is not only structure and processes, but identity, communication and decision routines, culture, leadership and problem-solving patterns. We start with concrete observations and check with long-standing key people which patterns lie behind them.
We look at four areas of tension: external or internal orientation, present and past or future, analytical or value-based decisions, and structure or flexibility. These categories are prompts for conversation, not a fixed typology of the organisation. A questionnaire followed by interviews to validate preliminary findings is possible. The number and selection of participants are agreed to suit the assignment. The aim is a jointly tested view of the organisation from which meaningful levers for the specific need for change can be derived.
A diagnosis is only helpful once it is confronted with the organisation’s experience. Preliminary results are therefore discussed with people from different areas. Where managers experience a decision as clear but employees keep asking questions, a communication routine or unclear responsibility may play a bigger role than the organisation chart.
We ask which patterns occur in which situations and what exceptions there are. The review produces prioritised development questions: are different decision paths, new roles, a culture intervention or a learning architecture needed? The point is precisely the connection between the organisation’s characteristics and possible levers. A diagnosis does not trigger change automatically. The findings are intended to enable those responsible to justify the next intervention with the organisation.
Vorläufige Befunde durch weitere Perspektiven prüfen: Die Methode sieht eine Befragung erfahrener Schlüsselpersonen und anschließende Interviews zur Prüfung der vorläufigen Ergebnisse vor. Beobachtet werden unter anderem Innen- und Außenorientierung, Gegenwarts- und Zukunftsbezug sowie der Umgang mit Struktur und Flexibilität. Diese Perspektiven dienen der gemeinsamen Untersuchung; sie sind keine unveränderlichen Eigenschaften einer Organisation.
Arbeitsergebnisse: Geteiltes Bild der relevanten Organisationsmuster; Geprüfte Hypothesen zu wiederkehrenden Problemen; Begründete Ansatzpunkte für die weitere Entwicklung.
A diagnostic model is a lens for observation. It replaces neither the knowledge of the people involved nor the testing of alternative explanations.
The diagnosis asks several questions that only form a picture together. Where does the organisation draw its orientation from: from relevant environments or mainly from within? Is its perception directed more towards current details and past experience or towards future possibilities? Which standards shape decisions, and how does it deal with the tension between clear structure and flexibility? These perspectives are not used as a psychological test for a company. They direct attention to recurring communication and decision-making events.
A preliminary picture may show, for example, that an organisation works reliably but picks up external signals late. Whether this is actually the case must be tested with people from different areas. That is why an initial survey is followed by further interviews with key players.
We also discuss counter-examples, because they show under which conditions other ways of acting are already possible. For clients, this results in a concrete decision: which lever can best support the current task? Perhaps it takes a different way of coordinating with customers, perhaps clearer decision-making rights or a different leadership routine. The diagnosis names the connection before a measure is defined.
Testing preliminary results with further key people is particularly important. We do not ask whether everyone agrees on a label, but which situations confirm the diagnosis and which contradict it. Only this comparison separates a plausible hypothesis from a robust basis for change. The client can then decide which observed connection should be addressed first.
The diagnostics work with several perspectives on the same organisation. Formal descriptions of structure and processes show what is regulated; interviews, observations and joint evaluations show how the work actually takes place. Contradictions between the two are not immediately judged as errors. They may indicate which informal routines solve problems or create new difficulties.
We formulate hypotheses and test them with the areas involved before measures are derived from them. The result is a commonly understandable description of the starting situation, its patterns and possible starting points. Such a diagnosis can prepare a comprehensive transformation mandate or clarify a narrowly defined interface question. Scope and methods are aligned with the decision for which the organisation needs the insights.
Identity, communication and decision-making routines, culture, leadership and recurring problem-solving patterns, not just structure and processes. We look at four areas of tension: external or internal orientation, present and past or future, analytical or values-based decisions, and structure or flexibility. These categories are prompts for discussion, not a fixed classification of the organisation.
Key people and departments with long experience; who is involved and to what extent depends on the specific question. One option is a questionnaire followed by interviews to validate preliminary findings. Preliminary results are discussed with people from different areas, because managers and employees often experience the same decision differently.
No. Preliminary findings are validated in further interviews and checked against the organisation’s experience. Where managers see a decision as clear but employees keep asking questions, a communication routine or unclear responsibility may matter more than the organisation chart. We also ask about exceptions to the pattern.
A well-founded decision on the next organisational intervention, not an automatic new organisation chart. Depending on the findings, the focus is on clarifying roles, decision routines, leadership, a culture intervention or learning architectures. In the documented logistics project, the organisational diagnosis led to a new leadership structure that was formally adopted; according to the project report, twelve of 13 positions were filled internally during the rollout.
Case study
A multi-stage change process that moved from vague complaints to new leadership routines.
What decision are you facing? Together, we clarify your situation, the people involved and the right next step.
Let’s talk about your situation and what you want to develop in your organisation.