OrgDev with Distinction

Dani Bacon and Garin Rouch

The Org Dev podcast is all about Organisational Development, a practice that has the power to transform organisations, shape cultures, and empower individuals. Yet, it's often shrouded in mystery and misunderstood. But fear not, because on this podcast, we pull back the curtain to reveal the inner workings of Organisation Development. We demystify the concepts, unravel the strategies, and delve into the real-life experiences of professionals who are driving real and significant change and innovation within organisations.

  1. 20 HR AGO

    Is Your HR Operating Model Set Up to Win ? with Perry Timms - OrgDev Episode 95

    We'd love to hear from you so send us a message! Why has HR’s operating model barely changed in 25 years – while everything around it has? In this episode of the OrgDev Podcast, we speak with Perry Timms about the uncomfortable truth at the heart of modern HR: we’ve spent decades optimising processes instead of redesigning how HR actually works. As organisations evolve at pace – driven by digital transformation, new workforce expectations, agility, and shifting power dynamics – many HR functions are still operating with models built for a different era. Perry argues that incremental improvement is no longer enough. What’s required is a fundamental rethink of HR’s operating model, its role in organisation design, and its contribution to business value and societal impact. We explore: Why traditional HR structures struggle to support adaptive organisations The limits of efficiency thinking in transformation work Self-managed and freedom-centred work systems The future of HR operating models What “Better Business for a Better World” really means in practice Wish you had a handy recap of the episode? So did we. That’s why each week in our Next Step to Better newsletter, we’re sharing From Pod to Practice – a 2-page visual summary of each episode designed to help you take the learning from the podcast and into your work. You’ll get: ■ Key insights from the episode ■ A reflection prompt ■ A suggested action Sign up now to get From Pod to Practice delivered to your inbox each week: https://distinction.live/keep-in-touch/ About Us We’re Dani and Garin – Organisation Development (OD) practitioners who help leaders and people professionals tackle the messiness of organisational life. We focus on building leadership capability, strengthening team effectiveness, and designing practical, systemic development programmes that help you deliver on your team and organisational goals. We also offer coaching to support individual growth and change. Find out more at www.distinction.live We'd love to connect with you on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/danibacon478 https://www.linkedin.com/in/garinrouch

    1 hr
  2. 3 DAYS AGO

    Clear Leadership, Real change with Gervase Bushe - OrgDev Episode 94

    We'd love to hear from you so send us a message! What if organisations can’t be engineered into better performance — only invited into change? We’re joined by Gervase Bushe, one of the most influential contemporary thinkers in Organisation Development and a leading voice in dialogic OD. For decades, many change efforts have assumed that if we design the right structure, define the right process and implement the right plan, performance will follow. Bushe’s work challenges that assumption. Drawing on his research into dialogic Organisation Development, Clear Leadership and complexity-informed change, he argues that transformation emerges through conversations, shared meaning and shifts in collective attention. We explore what this means for organisational culture, leadership in complex environments, and the future of OD practice. For HR leaders, OD practitioners and senior executives navigating uncertainty, this conversation offers a grounded and practical lens on how meaningful change actually happens. Wish you had a handy recap of the episode? So did we. That’s why each week in our Next Step to Better newsletter, we’re sharing From Pod to Practice – a 2-page visual summary of each episode designed to help you take the learning from the podcast and into your work. You’ll get: ■ Key insights from the episode ■ A reflection prompt ■ A suggested action Sign up now to get From Pod to Practice delivered to your inbox each week: https://distinction.live/keep-in-touch/ About Us We’re Dani and Garin – Organisation Development (OD) practitioners who help leaders and people professionals tackle the messiness of organisational life. We focus on building leadership capability, strengthening team effectiveness, and designing practical, systemic development programmes that help you deliver on your team and organisational goals. We also offer coaching to support individual growth and change. Find out more at www.distinction.live We'd love to connect with you on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/danibacon478 https://www.linkedin.com/in/garinrouch

    1h 11m
  3. 19 FEB

    Design Your Organisation for an AI Driven Future - Omar Morales Microsoft - OrgDev Episode 93

    We'd love to hear from you so send us a message! What does organisation development look like when AI, complexity and constant transformation become the norm rather than the exception? In this episode of the OrgDev Podcast, we’re joined by Omar Morales, Head of Organisation Development at Microsoft, to explore how organisations design for adaptability, leadership resilience, and sustained performance in fast-moving environments. Drawing on nearly two decades of global experience across organisation development, HR strategy and transformation, Omar shares practical insight on operating model design, leadership team effectiveness, systems thinking, and building OD capability at scale. If you’re working in organisation development, HR, leadership, or organisational transformation - particularly in the context of AI and evolving business models - this conversation offers grounded perspectives on how to translate strategy into action while keeping people, performance and organisational effectiveness connected. Wish you had a handy recap of the episode? So did we. That’s why each week in our Next Step to Better newsletter, we’re sharing From Pod to Practice – a 2-page visual summary of each episode designed to help you take the learning from the podcast and into your work. You’ll get: ■ Key insights from the episode ■ A reflection prompt ■ A suggested action Sign up now to get From Pod to Practice delivered to your inbox each week: https://distinction.live/keep-in-touch/ About Us We’re Dani and Garin – Organisation Development (OD) practitioners who help leaders and people professionals tackle the messiness of organisational life. We focus on building leadership capability, strengthening team effectiveness, and designing practical, systemic development programmes that help you deliver on your team and organisational goals. We also offer coaching to support individual growth and change. Find out more at www.distinction.live We'd love to connect with you on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/danibacon478 https://www.linkedin.com/in/garinrouch

    43 min
  4. 13 FEB

    Understanding Complexity with Dave Snowden - OrgDev Episode 92

    We'd love to hear from you so send us a message! How to apply complexity thinking in your organisation If we can’t reliably predict what will happen in our organisations, can’t control outcomes in any simple way, and can’t even agree on what’s true – how do we lead? That’s the territory explored in this conversation with Dave Snowden. We move beyond tidy change models and into the realities of uncertainty, distributed knowledge and contested meaning. This episode challenges the instinct to simplify too quickly, offering a more grounded way to think about judgement, intervention and action in complex systems. From Cynefin to estuarine mapping, the discussion examines what it really means to make sense of the present before attempting to shape the future — and why leadership in complexity is less about control and more about creating the conditions for coherence to emerge. Wish you had a handy recap of the episode? So did we. That’s why each week in our Next Step to Better newsletter, we’re sharing From Pod to Practice – a 2-page visual summary of each episode designed to help you take the learning from the podcast and into your work. You’ll get: ■ Key insights from the episode ■ A reflection prompt ■ A suggested action Sign up now to get From Pod to Practice delivered to your inbox each week: https://distinction.live/keep-in-touch/ About Us We’re Dani and Garin – Organisation Development (OD) practitioners who help leaders and people professionals tackle the messiness of organisational life. We focus on building leadership capability, strengthening team effectiveness, and designing practical, systemic development programmes that help you deliver on your team and organisational goals. We also offer coaching to support individual growth and change. Find out more at www.distinction.live We'd love to connect with you on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/danibacon478 https://www.linkedin.com/in/garinrouch

    48 min
  5. 23 JAN

    Essential Guide to High Growth and Strategy with Rupert Morrison - OrgDev Epsiode 91

    We'd love to hear from you so send us a message! Strategy is one of the most overused words in organisational life – and one of the least well understood. In this conversation with Rupert Morrison, we explore what strategy actually means, who really owns it, and why so many organisations struggle not with ambition, but with focus. We talk about why strategies so often turn into shopping lists, why prioritisation is harder than it looks, and how pace, culture, and execution collide once a strategy meets the real world. It’s a practical, grounded discussion about making strategy simpler, sharper, and genuinely useful – without pretending the work itself is simple. Wish you had a handy recap of the episode? So did we. That’s why each week in our Next Step to Better newsletter, we’re sharing From Pod to Practice – a 2-page visual summary of each episode designed to help you take the learning from the podcast and into your work. You’ll get: ■ Key insights from the episode ■ A reflection prompt ■ A suggested action Sign up now to get From Pod to Practice delivered to your inbox each week: https://distinction.live/keep-in-touch/ About Us We’re Dani and Garin – Organisation Development (OD) practitioners who help leaders and people professionals tackle the messiness of organisational life. We focus on building leadership capability, strengthening team effectiveness, and designing practical, systemic development programmes that help you deliver on your team and organisational goals. We also offer coaching to support individual growth and change. Find out more at www.distinction.live We'd love to connect with you on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/danibacon478 https://www.linkedin.com/in/garinrouch

    1h 8m
  6. 16 JAN

    Stop Educating Start Learning - The Secret to Performance with Nick Shackleton-Jones OrgDev Episode 90

    We'd love to hear from you so send us a message! This week on the OrgDev Podcast we’re joined by the brilliantly provocative Nick Shackleton-Jones, a guest who never fails to challenge how organisations think about learning. Nick brings energy, clarity and a healthy dose of disruption as he unpicks why so much workplace learning fails to change behaviour and what actually works instead.  He shares a rallying cry of resources not courses along with stories about simulations and onboarding that genuinely sets people up to succeed. This is a lively, thought-provoking conversation packed with practical insights. If you’ve ever felt frustrated by tick-box training, overloaded programmes or learning that looks good on paper but goes nowhere in practice, this episode will give you plenty to reflect on and experiment with. Wish you had a handy recap of the episode? So did we. That’s why each week in our Next Step to Better newsletter, we’re sharing From Pod to Practice – a 2-page visual summary of each episode designed to help you take the learning from the podcast and into your work. You’ll get: ■ Key insights from the episode ■ A reflection prompt ■ A suggested action Sign up now to get From Pod to Practice delivered to your inbox each week: https://distinction.live/keep-in-touch/ About Us We’re Dani and Garin – Organisation Development (OD) practitioners who help leaders and people professionals tackle the messiness of organisational life. We focus on building leadership capability, strengthening team effectiveness, and designing practical, systemic development programmes that help you deliver on your team and organisational goals. We also offer coaching to support individual growth and change. Find out more at www.distinction.live We'd love to connect with you on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/danibacon478 https://www.linkedin.com/in/garinrouch

    55 min
  7. 15 JAN

    Organisation Development Pro Tips for Improving Performance - Part 2 - OrgDev Episode 89

    We'd love to hear from you so send us a message! Top tips from leading Organisation Development and Design Experts This is part 2 of a special highlights episode. This year has been a big one for us. We recorded 44 episodes, and the podcast reached listeners in 109 countries. Our guests joined us from as far afield as California, Spain and Australia – as well as Austria, the Netherlands and Sweden, and together we covered a broad spectrum of practice – from neuroscience and psychological safety, to systems thinking, agility, self-organising teams, imposter syndrome, and organisation design. What we’ve pulled together here is a curated set of highlights from those conversations. Wish you had a handy recap of the episode? So did we. That’s why each week in our Next Step to Better newsletter, we’re sharing From Pod to Practice – a 2-page visual summary of each episode designed to help you take the learning from the podcast and into your work. You’ll get: ■ Key insights from the episode ■ A reflection prompt ■ A suggested action Sign up now to get From Pod to Practice delivered to your inbox each week: https://distinction.live/keep-in-touch/ About Us We’re Dani and Garin – Organisation Development (OD) practitioners who help leaders and people professionals tackle the messiness of organisational life. We focus on building leadership capability, strengthening team effectiveness, and designing practical, systemic development programmes that help you deliver on your team and organisational goals. We also offer coaching to support individual growth and change. Find out more at www.distinction.live We'd love to connect with you on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/danibacon478 https://www.linkedin.com/in/garinrouch

    31 min
  8. 9 JAN

    Organisation Development Pro Tips for Improving Performance - Part 1 - OrgDev Episode 88

    We'd love to hear from you so send us a message! op tips from leading Organisation Development and Design Experts This is a special highlights episode.This year has been a big one for us. We recorded 44 episodes, and the podcast reached listeners in 109 countries. Our guests joined us from as far afield as California, Spain and Australia – as well as Austria, the Netherlands and Sweden, and together we covered a broad spectrum of practice – from neuroscience and psychological safety, to systems thinking, agility, self-organising teams, imposter syndrome, and organisation design. What we’ve pulled together here is a curated set of highlights from those conversations. The video is divided into four chapters, so feel free to dip in where your interest takes you, or watch it end to end. Looking ahead, next year is shaping up to be just as strong. We’ve got conversations lined up with leading practitioners including Dave Snowden, Gervase Bushe, and Rupert Morrison, and we’re really looking forward to sharing their insights with you. Wish you had a handy recap of the episode? So did we. That’s why each week in our Next Step to Better newsletter, we’re sharing From Pod to Practice – a 2-page visual summary of each episode designed to help you take the learning from the podcast and into your work. You’ll get: ■ Key insights from the episode ■ A reflection prompt ■ A suggested action Sign up now to get From Pod to Practice delivered to your inbox each week: https://distinction.live/keep-in-touch/ About Us We’re Dani and Garin – Organisation Development (OD) practitioners who help leaders and people professionals tackle the messiness of organisational life. We focus on building leadership capability, strengthening team effectiveness, and designing practical, systemic development programmes that help you deliver on your team and organisational goals. We also offer coaching to support individual growth and change. Find out more at www.distinction.live We'd love to connect with you on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/danibacon478 https://www.linkedin.com/in/garinrouch

    36 min

About

The Org Dev podcast is all about Organisational Development, a practice that has the power to transform organisations, shape cultures, and empower individuals. Yet, it's often shrouded in mystery and misunderstood. But fear not, because on this podcast, we pull back the curtain to reveal the inner workings of Organisation Development. We demystify the concepts, unravel the strategies, and delve into the real-life experiences of professionals who are driving real and significant change and innovation within organisations.

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