The text of the ODS On-Line Standard Reports and on the web site for e-MAC Consulting make frequent reference to 47 concepts. These concepts are levels of processes based on the theory of the organizational hologram. There are six Desired Organizational Characteristics, 12 Holonomic Processes, and 29 Leadership Practices.

The six DOCs are properties of an organization that is simultaneously productive, adaptable, and efficiently adaptable. The definition of each DOC is briefly described below the DOC.

DOC1. CLARITY OF DIRECTION

a. The organization has a clearly defined Strategic Direction

b. Every employee, unit, and the organization as a whole knows what must be done and how to get it done

c. The organization has the will and means for maintaining Clarity of Direction.

DOC2. CLARITY OF STRUCTURES

a. The many organizational tasks and their Technological Support Systems are understood

b. Their interdependencies are recognized and understood

c. There is position clarity throughout the organization

d. The Organizational Logic and the Organizational Architecture are congruent

e. The organization has the will and the means to maintain Clarity of Structures.

DOC3. CLARITY OF MEASUREMENT

Throughout the organization:

a. There are clearly defined performance standards which are linked to the work itself and

b. An Organizational Rewards System is linked to the work itself and the Technological Support Systems

c. Each employee and unit is motivated to achieve these standards and those of the entire organization

d. The organization has the will and the means for maintaining this Clarity of Measurement.

DOC4. SUCCESSFUL GOAL ACHIEVEMENT

Given the Strategic Direction, the following three-step process is followed throughout the organization:

a. Deciding what must be done

b. Determining how to get it done

c. Making sure that it gets done successfully

Furthermore,

d. The means and will exist to ensure this process and
Successful Goal Achievement is operating throughout the organization.

DOC5. RESULTS ORIENTED PROBLEM SOLVING

The following seven-step process is followed throughout the organization:

1. Decisions are made at the lowest possible level where the work or problem occurs

2. The best available resources are brought to bear on the problem solving tasks

3. These resources are utilized in the problem solving

4. There is clear identification of the accountable decision maker and those employees who are in support

5. The problem solving process is healthy and non-political

6. The rewards for successful problem solving and for positive results are clearly defined, and

7. The result of the problem solving is an implementable best
decision.

In addition,

a. Results Oriented Problem Solving is working in the organization

b. Results Oriented Problem Solving is working at the unit level

c. The will and means exist to ensure Results Oriented Problem Solving

DOC6. EMPLOYEES ARE ASSETS AND RESOURCES

Given Strategic Direction, the following conditions are met throughout the organization:

a. Employees are a continuing source of contribution as the organization evolves

b. Employees continually contribute knowledge, information and energy to solve the organization's problems and enable it to seize opportunities as it adapts to its dynamically complex milieu.

c. The means and will exist for ensuring that employees are treated as assets and resources throughout the organization.

The twelve Holonomic Processes are the centerpiece of the organizational hologram theory. They describe major processes of adaptation and change, which, when working, enable the organization to manage the many interdependencies impacting its day-to-day operation. Each HP is a verbal phrase signifying the process must be in continual operation if the organization is going to adapt effectively as change occurs.

Each of the twelve Holonomic Processes of adaptation and change are briefly described in their order:

HP1. ESTABLISHING AND MAINTAINING CLEAR STRATEGIC DIRECTION

Establishing:

• The organizational philosophy, vision, mission statement
• The goals for each mission
• The strategies for achieving the goals
• The long range strategic, tactical, and annual operating plans for implementing the strategies
• Establishing organization wide policies, guidelines, and practices.

Maintaining:

• Performing a reality check based upon utilization of operating results
• Making necessary adjustments.

This Holonomic Process is established and maintained across the organization, as a whole, and for each of its units and employees.

HP2. DEFINING AND UPDATING THE ORGANIZATIONAL LOGIC

Defining:

• The tasks
• The task resources and their characteristics-in-use
• The deployed Technological Support Systems
• The interdependencies among all the above, and the positions.

Updating:

• The Organizational Logic
• The deployed technologies as needed to keep them congruent with operating results.

HP3. ENSURING BEST DECISION MAKING

A best decision meets seven criteria:

• Due diligence indicates that it is workable
• The organization benefits
• As many other stakeholders benefit as possible
• The harm to any stakeholder is minimized
• It is the right thing to do
• It is congruent with the Strategic Direction
• It is best overall for the organization.

Managers, through personal example, rewards, and sanctions, work continually to ensure all employees make best decisions.

HP4. ADAPTING TO ENSURE POSITION CLARITY

A position is clear when:

• The Position Logic is well defined
• The Position Specific Technological Support System is well understood
• The position rewards systems are well defined
• The interdependencies with other positions are known
• The employee understands and is capable of performing the tasks of the position.

Adapting to Ensure Position Clarity includes the processes of changing each of the above as conditions change.

HP5. ENSURING SYSTEMATIC PLANNING THAT IS WORKABLE, INVOLVED, AND
UNDERSTOOD

Systematic Planning is affected as environmental or internal operating conditions change. The planning process involves the organization's environments, its strategic direction, its implementing organizational technology, and its results.

Workable plans can be implemented with a "good stretch effort."

Involved means that all employees, at the levels appropriate to their positions, are part of systematic planning.

Understood means that all employees comprehend the overall plan and their specific roles as it is implemented.

Ensuring means:

• The organization has processes in place for updating and using all aspects of its environments, strategic direction, implementing organizational technology, and results
• These processes are deployed throughout the organization.

HP6. INTEGRATING EMPLOYEE SELECTION, DEVELOPMENT, AND FLOW WITH
THE STRATEGIC DIRECTION

The traditional view of an employee assumed he or she held a traditional job and needed only to know what was necessary to carry out assigned tasks. Eras of fundamental change require a new type of employee. The new employee requires broader knowledge than the traditional one in order to perform satisfactorily. He or she needs to be trained and developed as a resource to remain productive and achieve the Strategic Direction of the organization. What the new employee needs to know goes beyond the narrower tasks defined by his or her position requirements. The new employee must also understand how he or she fits in the organization and more about the interdependencies in which he or she may be involved. The new employee takes responsibility for his or her unit and the organization as a whole and tries to ensure that best problem solving occurs.

Integrating means:

• The hiring and selecting, orientation, and continual training and development of all employees is linked to the Strategic Direction
• The deployed Technological Support Systems.

The quality of all employees is enhanced to support the Strategic Direction.

HP7. NURTURING AND REWARDING OPPORTUNISTIC AND INNOVATIVE
PROBLEM SOLVING

Rapid change creates the need to identify and act upon opportunities as well as innovate new solutions. Recognition of problems and opportunities which "cut across" existing organizational lines is crucial. This Holonomic Process encourages and rewards all employees to seek out opportunities that benefit the organization and to engage in innovative problem solving.

EXAMPLES:

• New product teams
• Quality improvement teams
• Process management teams.

HP8. ENSURING HEALTHY PROBLEM SOLVING THROUGHOUT THE ORGANIZATION

Unhealthy Organizational Problem Solving:

• Who is right is more important than what is right
• Politics is used to make a decision
• Conflict is personalized
• Information sharing is distorted and manipulated
• The object is to assign blame, enhance one's position at the expense of others, or avoid responsibility.

Healthy Problem Solving processes:

• Review and resolution of conflict
• Enhancing the quality of forums/meetings
• Encouraging personal growth, empowerment
• Openness to change.

HP9. SETTING TOUGH AND REALISTIC PERFORMANCE STANDARDS

Setting performance standards:

• Attainable by extra effort throughout the whole organization (including all officers)
• Link rewards and personal stakes of all employees to the success of the organization.

HP10. OPERATING EQUITABLE AND EFFECTIVE REWARDS SYSTEMS

Organizational rewards systems are defined by the intention that employees who produce should share in the organization's results which they help to create by financial rewards and opportunities for non-monetary benefits such as improved quality of work life, career growth, and recognition. There are two sides to any Organizational Rewards System. First, a the organization's commitment to offer competitive compensation and to reward superior performance in such a way that it is tied to organizational success. Second, the employees' understanding of the organizational rewards and the responsibilities for personal performance and for the performance of his or her team and other employees or units with which the tasks are interdependent.

Equitable: the rewards systems are fair, legitimate, and promote compatibility of interest.

Effective: the rewards systems serve to motivate employees to contribute to the organization's success.

HP11. ENSURING COMPATIBILITY OF INTEREST

To ensure all ships rise and fall with the tide, shares must not be equal, but must be proportional. This is based on the notion of enlightened greed, which means that you succeed by helping others succeed when they help you succeed.

HP12. ENCOURAGING AND REWARDING ETHICAL BEHAVIOR FOR ALL EMPLOYEES

Ethical behavior simplifies decision making, prevents later problems and is strongly motivational. The main idea is to support one's employees by personal example and ethical morals.

The 29 Essential Leadership Practices

LP01. Understanding Environment Changes

Understanding environmental changes is the strategic process that enables the organization to understand and systematically monitor its external environments. This process ensures that the strategic direction makes sense given the actual organization environment, and it seeks to assess the impacts of environmental changes. When working throughout the organization, it ensures that the employees understand the potential and real impacts of external changes.

LP02. Developing and Using the Strategic Direction

Developing and using the strategic direction is the strategic process by which the organization understands and uses its shared strategic direction. This important process assesses the organization's dedication to keeping the strategic direction current, and it insists that decisions are made based on the strategic direction. It ensures that the mission, goals, and strategies driving it are internally consistent and that new technologies selected for the organization are based on the strategic direction.

LP03. Ensuring Unit-Level Strategic Direction

Ensuring unit-level strategic direction is the management process which ensures that employees know, understand, and use their unit level strategic direction. It also ensures that the unit level strategic direction remains consistent with the organizational level direction as it evolves and changes.

LP04. Using Strategic Long Range and Tactical Plans

The process of using strategic long range and tactical plans is the strategic process by which the organization establishes and deploys its long range strategic, tactical, and annual operating plans. It ensures that theses important components are used to guide decision making throughout the organization, and that the tactical and annual operating plans are implementable with effort.

LP05. Updating Organizational Assumptions

Updating organizational assumptions is the strategic process of discussing, updating, and acting upon changes to the organizational assumptions as the organization evolves. The process ensures that the consistency of the assumptions (about strategies, actual environments, the strategic direction, and the basis for organizing) is maintained. The organizational assumptions are the basis of how the organization arranges itself, therefore, they need to be reviewed and updated to maintain a good fit between how the organization is organized and what is needed to keep it succeeding.

LP06. Linking the Organizational Rewards to Performance

Linking organizational rewards to performance simultaneously links the organizational level rewards system to individual performance, the unit performance, and accomplishment of the organization's strategic direction. Each employee understands that his/her total compensation is linked to the success of all three. Success at one level is not enough. Performance at all three levels must be successful. This process ensures consistency between individual rewards and organizational rewards. It ensures employees that the organization is committed to linking individual performance with personal career and financial growth.

LP07. Updating the Organizational Logic

Updating the organizational logic is an administrative process to define the many task processes in the organization. It ensures that the organizational logic is consistent with the organizing assumptions, and that the organizational logic is kept up-to-date. It also ensures that each unit and individual understands their role in the organizational logic and how they relate to other units and individuals. At the job level, individual job logics are derived from the organizational logic.

LP08. Updating the Organizational Architecture

Updating the organizational architecture is an administrative process to ensure that the organization and unit organizational charts accurately mirror how employees actually work together. It ensures that the organizational logic is congruent with the organizational charts, and that the organization keeps these charts up-to-date. Additionally, this process seeks to align the strategic direction with the means developed to implement it at the organizational, unit, and individual level.

LP09. Ensuring Consistency of Organizational Rewards

Ensuring consistency of organizational rewards is the administrative process that enables the organization to professionally manage its organizational level rewards systems so that it applies to all employees and is updated as conditions in the environments change. The process supports and is consistent with the organizational architecture.

LP10. Ensuring Results Consistency with Strategic Direction

Ensuring results consistency with strategic direction establishes a formal set of procedures and processes to ensure the consistent and current measurement of organizational and unit level results. The measurement process is updated as conditions change and it verifies that the results produced are consistent with both the strategic direction and how the organization operates.

LP11. Ensuring Successful Goal Achievement

Ensuring successful goal achievement ensures systematic problem identification throughout the organization. Once a problem is identified, a plan --- supported by tough and realistic performance standards --- is developed to solve the problem. The plan is crafted to the organization's specific situation and it is aimed at achieving the strategic direction. The problem solving process involves deciding what to do and how to do it. It fosters successful goal achievement. Additionally, an accountable manager audits and reviews progress toward the goal and ensures that project plans are implemented.

LP12. Ensuring Compatible Interests of Results

Ensuring compatible interests of results links performance and rewards among individual employees, the employees' unit, and the organization as a whole. It recognizes that within the organization, individuals rise and fall together, that is, gain and pain is shared as profits increase and decrease respectively. As part of this process each employee's personal goals, within the organization, are consistent with achieving the strategic direction.

LP13. Using Tough and Realistic Standards

Using tough and realistic standards is the basis for individual rewards. The standards are based on the strategic direction and reinforce unit activities and the work performed by individuals. They ensure development at the employee level by supporting the growth of an employee's skills as the organization continues to evolve.

LP14. Ensuring Job Performance Standards

Ensuring job performance standards involves setting performance standards that must be attained if the employee is to remain employed and receive average total compensation. A formal set of procedures exists to measure job performance and the outcome of the performance evaluation affects job rewards.

LP15. Applying Total Compensation Process

Applying total compensation process ensures that individual job performance, unit success, and organization success play a role in changes in employee compensation. Differences in total compensation are based on actual differences in individual performance. This process is ensures a good fit among personal goals, strategies, and commitments, and the organization's strategic direction.

LP16. Integrating Job with the Organization

Integrating job with the organization ensures that each employee understands how his/her job logic fits into the larger organizational logic form which it was derived. Furthermore, this process ensures that employees are well suited for the jobs they hold based on skills, education, training and development, and commitment. The job logic is consistent with achieving the organization's strategic direction and makes sense given the formal organizational architecture.

LP17. Ensuring Compatible Interests

Ensuring compatible interests strives to achieve harmonious interests as a matter of policy among the organization's employees, units, clients, customers, and suppliers. The organizational rewards systems and human resource policies foster and support working together to ensure unit and organization success. Employees view these policies as fair, reasonable, and ethical. Furthermore, the policies ensure individual rewards systems are consistent with the organizational rewards systems. They help employees replace "lone wolf" mentality and recognize that unit and organization level success depend on working together.

LP18. Developing Employees

Developing employees is the administrative process that encourages employees to go beyond specific job requirements, to exhibit initiative, and to actively prepare themselves for skills and knowledge beyond current job specifications. Additionally, this process ensures that employees are involved in making plans at their level within the organization, their knowledge, the strategic direction, and their roles in implementing the plans.

LP19. Aligning employees with the Strategic Direction

Aligning employees with the strategic direction ensures that, when employees are assigned jobs or promotions, such assignments are based on achieving the strategic direction. Furthermore, how the organization hires, selects, orients, and trains its employees is determined by the evolving strategic direction. Employees are hired and trained to go beyond current job assignments and their personal goals are aligned with the strategic direction.

LP20. Encouraging Best Decision Making

Encouraging best decision making fosters decision making compatible with the interests of the organization. It ensures that management uses best decision making to lead and direct the organization. It educates and trains employees about the principles driving the organization. This important process asks and enables employees to take responsibility for making best decisions and participation in the process is supported by the organizational rewards systems.

LP21. Ensuring Ethical Decision Making

Ensuring ethical decision making encourages employees to do the right thing in their decision making. This important leadership process discourages employees from engaging in behavior that is legal but unethical. It encourages them to adhere to ethical standards. And --- most importantly --- it rewards them for being ethical.

LP22. Using Organizational Forums

Using organizational forums is the management process that establishes and deploys a systematic series of normal meetings, throughout the organization, to communicate and share information. Forums are arenas for problem solving, information sharing, and the sharing of information as a means to conduct and update operations. Forum participants consistently work to improve the quality of the forums.

LP23. Ensuring Healthy Problem Solving

Ensuring healthy problem solving is a leadership process driven by three purposes: First, the object is not to pick winners and losers. Second, ensuring what is right is more important than identifying who is right. Finally, leadership ensures that the problem solving process is not political. Healthy problem solving is practiced to resolve conflict. And when conflict cannot be resolved at one level, the organization's conflict resolution process brings the unresolved issues to next higher level for review and resolution. The object of the process is to make a best decision.

LP24. Ensuring Results Oriented Problem Solving

Ensuring results oriented problem solving is a general problem solving process described by seven characteristics: (1) decisions are made at the lowest possible level; (2) the best available resources are brought to bear on problem solving; (3) these resources are utilized; (4) there is a clear identification of who is the accountable manager and who is in support; (5) problem solving is healthy; (6) rewards for the problem solving are clearly defined; and (7) the result is an implementable best decision. In KIP24, the organization supports and consistently applies Results Oriented Problem Solving. In addition the focus of problem solving is to make something happen with a positive impact on the organization's success.

LP25. Nurturing and Rewarding Innovation

Nurturing and rewarding innovation is a problem solving process for encouraging and rewarding all employees to seek opportunities that benefit the organization and to encourage innovation. Typically this process is applied to group projects cutting across internal organizational boundaries. In KIP25, employees are encouraged to seek opportunities for innovation and to believe that this is their right and their responsibility. Furthermore, for such projects, the organization establishes a one-time reward to the project team based on anticipated results which is distributed according to each employee's contribution. Following successful implementation of the solution, additional rewards, based on actual results, are publicly distributed to members of the team.

LP26. Ensuring Quality

Ensuring quality consists of processes to ensure that the organization's products/services meet the customers' quality standards. The organization actively supports its products/services to meet customers' needs; makes every effort to ensure that the customers properly use its products/services; avoids providing products/services that fail to meet customer requirements; works to eliminate and/or prevent situations in which employees fail to meet the quality standards set for them; and finally, the organization seeks to improve the quality of its administrative task processes.

LP27. Ensuring Improvements in Technology

Ensuring improvements in technology is the forward-looking strategic process of keeping abreast of relevant new developments in process and production technologies and in information systems. It consists of processes to select such new technologies to meet customers requirements and to improve the organization's competitive position.

LP28. Managing the New Technologies

Managing the new technologies is the process of integrating new technologies (process and product technologies and information systems) with changes in the organization means and in its applications. The organization listens to problems and searches for opportunities to ensure consistency among its organization means, its technologies and their application. Finally, the organization regularly monitors the results produced by the introduction and application of the new technologies.

LP29. New Technology Integration

New technologies integration is the planning process of integrating advances in new process and product technologies and information systems. In new technologies integration, the development of the organizational means is integrated with how the organization manages its applications and how it applies these new technologies. Furthermore, new applications are integrated with changes in the organizational means and the new technologies.

 

The 29 Leadership Practices, or LPs, were not part of the original theory of the organizational hologram. They emerged naturally from the consulting based on it. Each LP is constituent of one or more Holonomic Processes. While the Holonomic Processes are the core of the theory, they are relatively more complex sets of related processes. The LPs break these HPs down into more manageable and implementable core processes.

Because each LP is constituent of one or more Holonomic Process and each Holonomic process is constituent of two Desired Organizational Characteristics (DOCs), the LPs are the bricks that make up the whole of the analytical pyramid. In addition, the known relationship defines the interdependence among the macro levels of the analytical pyramid. This allows us to use methods such as linear programming and causal-chain analyses in HALO services.

The 29 LPs are coherent sets of items in the HALO Survey instrument. Each HALO item belongs to one and only one LP. Thus, the LPs form a set partition of the 147 items on the ODS instrument.

For more information on interdependence, please check these references:

1. Mackenzie, K. D. (1986). Organizational design: The organizational audit and analysis technology. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Co., Chapter 8.
2. Mackenzie, K. D. (2001). The organization of organizations. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 9 (2), 116-148.
3. Mackenzie, K. D. & Hollensbe, E. C. (2002). "Thompson, James David (1920-73)". In International Encyclopedia of Business and Management, Vol. 5, London, UK: International Thompson Publishing, 4869-4874.