How many cuts can we make?
There is no limit to this. Depending on the structure of the organisation and the physical locality of branch offices this will be determined in a first interview and appropriate recommendations will be made.

What are the comparisons normally made?
The comparisons are threefold:

• Vertical (comparing top-, middle-and frontline-management as well as employees
• Horizontal (comparing branch offices, different sites, groups doing the same jobs in different environments
• General (comparison between sexes, age groups)

How generic is the recommendations and findings?
Every single organisation is different. Generic recommendations and findings are tailored to the specific organisation. Every time the diagnostic is used for the same organisation the there will be differences purely because changes do take place.

What is the difference between a survey and a diagnostic?
A survey gives an overall or blanket finding. A diagnostic pinpoints the development areas and the strengths of the company. A good analogy is the one about seeing a medical practitioner: giving the good doctor your symptoms she will venture a preliminary opinion (the survey) but she will immediately qualify this by advising to wait for the blood tests etc. (the diagnostic) because this will indicate exactly what needs to be done and where you have how much of a problem. It will also eliminate the areas where you do not have problems.

What industries can use the diagnostic?
It is equally effective in all environments. If there are people working as a group the diagnostic will be effective. Even more so if they are not working as a group!

Will the interventions change our systems?
Only in the sense that you will find people managing the systems rather than systems managing the people. A basic example will be the guy who needs to assemble 5 thingamadoos per day will now be motivated to do more rather than clocking off early.

Are there other similar diagnostics?
There are lots of surveys going round but very few diagnostics.

What does M4P stand for?
The 4 M's are measure, manage, motivate and maximize the P factor (people).

Who does the interventions?
You have 2 options (and they can be combined in a multitude of ways):

• You can do it yourself.
• OD21 consultants can facilitate the process on your behalf.

Who runs the process?
On OD21's side the initial interview, all the planning, the running of the diagnostic, the interpretation of the diagnostic, the writing of the report, the feedback to the individual groups (cuts) and the final session with management is done by the 3 directors of OD21. The interventions as such are managed by one director but implemented by the most suitable consultant we have for the specific intervention. This can vary from management coaching to communication training and we believe in the best horse for the course.

What if people won't do it?
OD21 has never experienced this. If the first explanation of why it is expected of them to do it, is done well they buy into the advantages it holds for them. In larger organisation's we do have an attrition rate but if the percentage will in any way impact on the validity we will do the necessary interventions to counter this.

Why do it over time?
Several reasons for this:

• It levels out the mood swings people can have
• It avoids taking employees out of their jobs for longer than 5 minutes a day
• People can focus for two to five minutes and give the best possible answers
• The information gathered is more reliable because individuals are less likely to be influenced by previous answers.

How can all the information be gathered by slightly more than a 100 questions?
The research allows the same questions to cover more than one area but they are grouped together in specific combinations and weighted to create cohesion within the outcomes.

How long do we have to wait for the report?
It depends on the number of cuts made but under normal circumstances never longer than 2 weeks from completion of the questionnaire.

Are the questions related to the person's individual behavior style or more specifically related to the workplace?
The questions are combined and weighted to address specific issues. The questions are aimed at organisational issues and not as much on personal assessment. In combination however the questions will reflect personal attitudes such as commitment, loyalty, stress, compassion, creativity, open mindedness, respect for others etc.