What is Organizational Behavior Management (OBM)?

Organizational Behavior Management (OBM) is a scientifically proven method for improving performance and achieving sustainable behavior change in organizations. This method combines the principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA) and positive psychology with hard data and a business-oriented protocol. OBM is effective because it answers the question of "how" to change behavior in a systematic way. It is a low-threshold approach that anyone can learn!

OBM - THE SCIENCE OF SUCCESS

The facts are both confrontational and irrefutable. Decades of research show that as many as 70% of change programs fail to achieve all of their objectives.  

 

'Behavior' is always in the top three reasons for failure. That is about the ability to get people to actually DO those things the organization envisions.

 

Three major frustrations regarding behavior change:

 

1. Why don't they do what we agreed?

2. Why don't our behavioral interventions work sustainably?

3. How do we get them to do it anyway?

 

OBM is the evidence-based methodology that has the answer to these questions!

 

Are you interested? Follow a free workshop Organizational Behavior Management!

 

 

The Basics

Used successfully worldwide for over 45 years, OBM has a proven track record of improving organizational performance in every field of business, in hundreds of reported cases. Based on the behavioral science called Applied Behavior Analysis, OBM is the application of this science in organizational settings. Using a 7-step protocol, OBM is targeted to measurably improve performance by focusing on behavior instead of results only. By this it takes a positive stance towards the design and implementation of organizational change. It also helps leaders recognize and avoid the three common pitfalls of behavioral influence, making current leadership only effective in a mere 0.8% of their efforts of changing behavior. A fact that leaves much room for improvement

 

OBM in a nutshell

  • OBM is both a practical and scientific approach to organizational behavior change;
  • It is an evidence-based, fact-driven method;
  • OBM has its roots in the U.S. and has been taught for decades at universities worldwide, including Harvard University, Florida Tech University, and VU University in Amsterdam;
  • It is based on scientific principles that have been proven to work over and over again: Since 1973, over 60,000 studies have been performed, both in laboratories and in organizations;
  • It is increasingly being called “The Science of Success” because OBM has proven to measurably optimize business performances hundreds of times, in a lot of different situations;
  • OBM can be seamlessly integrated with other methods and frameworks like Lean, Six Sigma, ITIL®, Agile, Scrum, DevOps, etc. and it increases their effects;
  • With OBM one can measurably and noticeably increase performances and, when properly applied, can bring out the best in people with a sustained effect;
  • Since the seventies of the 20th century, OBM has bridged the gap between behavioral sciences and business administration through the use of a performance improvement protocol. Every step of that protocol is an important ingredient of the medicine;
  • Even in a small country like The Netherlands OBM has found its use in hundreds of instances in many lines of business and public administration, with over 200 recorded cases at the ADRIBA Institute of VU University;
  • Where many other methods stop at the definition of goals, KPIs, and individual targets, OBM takes it one essential step further: In OBM behavior is made measurable. In the end, it is all about what people really DO to make an actual contribution to a target or not. 
  • At its foundation lies a positive approach in which desired organizational behaviors are reinforced as much as possible by applying positive consequences;
  • The focus is on catching people doing the right things, instead of only criticizing non-compliance or underachievement. Reinforcing behavior through recognition increases the probability that the behavior will occur again because of a biochemical process in the brain.

 

As behavioral scientists like to say: “People love change! As long as they benefit from it themselves.” A fact often forgotten to take into account when designing and implementing organizational change, since in most cases only the organizational benefits are defined. Where many frameworks provide business leaders with structures about the WHY and WHAT, OBM is mostly concerned with the HOW of organizational change.

 

The scientifically proven OBM 7-step protocol:  

1. Specify Performance in terms of both desired results and underlying behaviors;

2. Design, implement, and use a Performance Measurement system to establish (changes in) levels of performance and the gap between end goal and current performance;

3. Analyze both current unwanted behaviors and desired behaviors using the ABC analysis;

4. Organize effective Performance Feedback in both a graphically and verbally appealing way;

5. Set Sub goals to divide the gap between the end goal and current performance in acceptable and attainable steps;

6. Give Rewards for attaining goals and – most of all - Recognition for displaying the desired behaviors leading to the results connected to those goals;

7. Evaluate, adjust & conclude.

 

The protocol is the foundation for a living document, in which progress is made iteratively. Evaluations and adjustments are made frequently in the process, not only afterward. Of course, each step contains several theoretical concepts, practical examples, and checklists for the proper application of the step. If applied correctly, OBM can lead to recorded performance improvements of 400% or higher.

Target audience

OBM is interesting for anyone responsible for achieving goals that are ‘too big to handle alone’ and require the cooperation if others. The higher up the organization OBM is embedded and cascaded down the chain of command, the more successful it can become. Or, in an Agile environment, the more people use it as a way to collaborate with their peers, the more successful the team will become.

  • Leaders and managers at all levels

  • Business consultants, including Lean and Lean Six Sigma consultants

  • Agile / Scrum professionals

  • Occupational safety consultants and SHE experts

  • Executive Coaches 

  • Continious Improvement specialists

  • (Internal) auditors, etc.

Where is OBM already being successfully applied?

OBM is and has been successfully applied in solving numerous performance issues in every possible industry. Some well-known organizations and brands are:

  • Heineken - Food & Beverage Industry
  • Bayer - Pharmaceutical Industry
  • ING - Banking
  • KLM - Airline
  • KPMG Advisory - Consultancy
  • Quint Wellington Redwood - IT consultancy
  • Bioventus -. Pharmaceutical Industry
  • Rabobank - Banking
  • Royal Flora Holland - Auction & Distribution
  • Jumbo - Retail
  • Sogeti Netherlands - IT Consultancy
  • Royal Zeelandia - Food
  • Mammoet - Transportation
  • Mobilis - Infra
  • Vattenfall - Energy
  • T-systems - IT Consultancy

Want to know more about OBM?

We are curious about your (learning) needs and would be happy to tell you more about the OBM methodology and what it can do for you. Or schedule a free online interactive OBM workshop (Demo) for you or your team. 

About us

OBM Academy enables professionals to use Organizational Behavior Management (OBM) to work more effectively on positive behavior change and measurable performance improvement within organizations.

 

Accreditations

OBM Foundation geaccrediteerd partner
OBM  gecertificeerd partner VU ADRIBA

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Contact

OBM Academy

Keizergracht 520h

1017 EK Amsterdam

info@obmacademy.nl

+31(0)34 1496 597

KVK/CoC: 08155394