This article was published by Dominik Godat in eO&P – A journal of the Association for Management Education and Development:
Abstract
The solution-focused approach contributed a great deal to the organisational development of a Swiss company. Techniques such as ‘solution talk’, awareness of resources, abilities and possible next steps – as well as finding out what works – helped the company to move from a problem-oriented, stuck situation in October 2009 to a dynamic organisation with a culture of appreciation by July 2010.
This case study is about a Swiss company with around 200 employees that merged with another in 2009. When I first met the CEO in October 2009, he explained they were in the middle of this merger and facing numerous problems. Together, these problems had led to a near standstill and the employees were under constant pressure. They had worked with different organisational developers in the past, but were not satisfied, because their expert models didn’t fit the company’s needs. The CEO invited me to help him solve these problems.
