Interview: Stephen Balzac, Author of The 36-Hour Course in Organizational Development

Book Title:
The 36-Hour Course in Organizational Development

Website URL:
http://www.7stepsahead.com

Social Media Links:
Twitter: BusinessSensei
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/stevebalzac

What is your book about?
Take a crash course in one of today’s most important business skills–organizational development!

Change comes fast, and the most successful organizations are prepared to handle it before impact; they act, not react. How are they able to do this? With a solid grounding in organizational development.

The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Course: Organizational Development is a skill-building guide to one of the most important functions in business today. In no time, you’ll be able to recognize patterns of organizational behavior that are detrimental to your organization, and you’ll have the skills to envision and drive the type of change your company needs. Concise, engaging, and filled with quizzes to help you reinforce lessons learned, this crash course offers the knowledge you need to:

* Address problems with your company’s culture
* Hire the best people for your needs
* Set goals and move your team to action
* Motivate your people to envision change
* Institute meaningful change in how your company functions

Change can be your company’s best friend. You just have to manage it with skill. The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Course: Organizational Development puts you on the fast track to face today’s, not yesterday’s, challenges.

What inspired you to write your book?
I consult with organizations on a variety of issues around leadership and motivation. The challenge most businesses face is that they are often missing one or more parts of their organizational structure. This book explains the different parts and how they fit together.

How did you come to do what you’re doing today?
I started out in high tech software engineering. Over time, I became more and more interested in why some companies succeeded and others failed. I started focusing more and more on the organizational dynamics instead of software and found that I enjoyed it.

Can you describe a typical day in your life?
I’m not sure I have typical days!

Some days I’m working with clients. Other days, I’m traveling or sitting at home writing.

What do you most enjoy about what you do?
I feel like I really make a difference to organizations: I help businesses become more successful by enabling people to do their jobs better. The business becomes more profitable and employees enjoy their work more.

Can you share some business tips for our readers?
Everything in your company is connected. If you see different departments focusing only on themselves, that’s a potential problem.

Too little conflict is worse that too much conflict. If there is never any conflict, you’re in trouble!

If you want to build trust, first demonstrate trust.

If you want to build loyalty, first demonstrate loyalty.