Chapter 1 of the book I'm revising to be a third edition discussed 'what is organization design?' Ploughing on with writing chapter 2 and helped by the comments to my blog last week on Change Management or Organization Development (many thanks to those who commented) has reinforced my view that the three disciplines organization development (ODV), change management (CM) and organization design (ODS) are neither mutually exclusive, nor collectively exhaustive in their approach to organizational design, change and development. They are not a good example of the MECE principle.
However, to leave practitioners adrift in the reality of the messy confusion of the three is not particularly helpful. So, I've now reached the point of discussing the nature of the relationship between them aiming to steer a tricky course between over-simplification and what a colleague dismissed as 'existentialism'. (I think I'd strayed into either jargon or academic theorizing in the meeting where he called that out).
To simplify it a bit, consider a Venn diagram with three sets: ODV, CM, ODS. They intersect as follows: CM + ODV, ODV + ODS, ODS + CM, ODS + CM + ODV (See graphic).
This representation suggests that there is both overlap and distinction in elements of each of the sets. This makes it easier to talk about the three fields from numerous different angles e.g. discussing which theories intersect, where the same tool can be used by all three sets, what is only in one set. I can imagine a three-way discussion with a 'true believer' representing each one of the three sets debating with the two other 'true believers' on what belongs – theories, tools, approaches - in one set over another and where the common ground amongst the three sets is.
Thus, the Venn diagram representation both clarifies the scope of the three fields and brings some risks that commenters on the blog bring up (I've edited some of them a bit – I hope that's ok).