Customer Reviews

Productive Workplaces: Organizing and Managing for Dignity, Meaning, and Community (The Jossey-Bass Management Series)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

as assigned reading in a HRD graduate course PW proves to be a great resource and an enjoyable read. mr. weisbord opens his tool box and lets you choose from a wide array of tools to apply directly to HRD situations. he also shares his triumphs and his tragedies allowing the reader a better understanding of how he arrived at the pinnacle of his profession. i'm not given to a great deal of emotion or "warm fuzziness" but mr. weisbord's writings and experiences are so powerful i found myself totally absorbed. best of all mr. weisbord cuts to the chase and presents his material in a concise manner. a rare find when compared to the techno-babble double-speak crap most business writers are churning out...

The original Productive Workplaces was a wonderful overview of the past, present, and future of OD. I read it many times and recommended it to many consultants, who ALL enjoyed it. The updated book is also a joy to read and filled with gold nuggets of wisdom from this OD pioneer. The original book was way ahead of it's time and this "revisited" version is still visionary in many ways.

It is still hard to believe that Mr. Weisbord can tell such a compelling tale about the developments in the field while at the same time staying so grounded in the practical aspects of consulting and facilitating.

Productive Workplaces by Marvin R. Weisbord is a classic text on the evolution or organization development and, in Weisbord's words, organizing and managing for dignity, meaning and community. Those familiar with Weisbord's style will enjoy reading his narrative of the individuals and events that led up to the field of organization development as we now know it. In Part One, Weisbord takes the reader through the history of Frederick Taylor, Lewin, McGregor, Trist, Emery, and others who contributed to the evolution of the productive workplaces in which many of us are now fortunate enough to dwell. In Part Two, Weisbord translates theory into practice as he describes methods by which the workplace might be transformed. Finally, in Part Three, Weisbord encourages the reader to explore new and evolving theories, thereby continuing the growth and evolution of the field. Productive Workplaces is a classic that should not be missed by anyone even slightly interested in the field of organization development or workplace effectiveness. I am currently using it as a textbook for a graduate-level OD course and finding it to be invaluable.

This book really puts together the evolution of theory on organizational change. Weisbord makes a compelling case for getting the system into one room to develop solutions that will be supported. Guidelines for actual interventions are not detailed how-tos. History and principles sections are excellent.

This is an enlightening and well written book on the evolution and development of organisational development. The book is concise with minimal unnecessary fluff. The author presents a compelling case for improving workplace productivity through dignity, meaning and community. From reading this high quality book, managers should be able to work collaboratively with employees to make the workplace interesting, humane and productive.

This is a fantastic book which is recommended reading for those with an interest in the practical application of organizational development techniques and approaches. It has loads of accessible, relevant and important information that makes it indispensable for those involved in change management and human resources management. It is also necessary reading at the best MBA programs

This is my all-time favorite book on the history and philosophy of Organization Development. I recommend it to every person who comes to me for an informational interview and it's required reading for all staff and interns at our consulting firm, Community At Work.

The book covers the history of Organizational Development as well as current happenings. It is a very detailed and somewhat difficult read, but very educational.

The book arrived in excellent condition and in a timely manner. I would say that it might be better if it were called Reproductive Workplaces Visited. Pretty dry, but if you are looking to make your workplace more productive then this is the book for you.

Marvin's book not only provides a wonderful historical context to OD, it provides great clarity into what the focus of OD should be - bringing Dignity, Meaning & Community to our working lives. In the first part of the book, he looks back at the key pioneers, from Taylor to Trist & Emery, and demonstrates how each added to dignity, meaning & community in their own way. It becomes very clear how "open systems" thinking evolved, and how the various philosophies therein should be applied. In the second part of the book, Marvin focuses in on practical applications of OD approaches and techniques, culminating with a very insightful, real-world case. Throughout, the themes were clear and consistent, and the messages powerful.

This book is an absolute "must read" for anyone interested in OD as a profession, as well as for anyone interested in dramatically improving workplace productivity through dignity, meaning & community (and avoiding draconian cost cutting).

Recommended to me by a change management consultant as the best book available on the subject.

The opening chapters deal with the historical leading lights of workplace efficiency and organisational design. This is interesting and informative.

Later chapters outline Weisbord's ideas on work design, organising a business, guidelines for ree-organising and generally shaking down an organisation. It can be a litle tedious to winkle out the ideas, but some of them are worthwhile.

Final chapters provide guidelines on consulting and helping people through a major change. Applied common sense proven in action makes this section the most worthwhile part of the book.

A book worth reading, but not essential. My expectations were perhaps a little too high.