Seminar in the International Master’s Program “Development Management”

The seminar for doctoral students was designed to be practice-oriented and suitable for everyday use. The participants of the one-week course came from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ghana, Tajikistan, Brazil, Colombia, Zimbabwe and other countries of the Global South and were united by their interest in learning more about organizational development and applying what they had learned in this seminar in their respective contexts.
In teaching the basics of systemic organizational development and process consultation, we rely on the cycle of experiential learning and offer a mixture of concrete experience in exercises, individual reflection, tandem and group work, concept work in plenary sessions and transfer into practice. With a broad portfolio of methodological and specialist knowledge and 20 years of professional experience in international cooperation, our trainer makes the wealth of her experience available. She supports the students in deepening their learning and in transferring it to their respective systems of origin by direct interaction in the learning process and numerous practical examples.

The participants got to know organizational effectiveness and the basics of the “classic” and systemic understanding of organizations and dealt with the dynamics of change processes and the typical roles of those involved and affected in them. They then developed own change architectures in small groups and reflected on them together with the group and the trainer. The last module focused on the topics of attitude , working methods, and the relevant communication principles applied in the role of the systemic consultant. In a short excursion, our trainer playfully simulated the principles of agile working with the students and doctoral candidates and evaluated them together.
With the mix of theory and impulse inputs on the one hand and customized role plays and other exercises for self-awareness on the other, we place a focus on experience. The participants take responsibility for their own learning and development and thus gain a deeper and more sustainable understanding of the content. And it’s real fun!

left picture – check-in exercise
right picture – On the topic of attitude: Three counseling models according to Ed Schein