What does an organizational development consultant do?
An organizational development consultant is primarily responsible for performing research and analysis to help businesses determine ways to optimize processes and workforce. Their responsibilities also include assessing the company's existing operations and systems, evaluating employees' progress, devising strategies to boost productivity and efficiency, creating new programs for training and development, providing advice on various aspects, and sharing expertise in acquiring the right talents during hiring processes. Furthermore, as a consultant, it is essential to lead the development efforts, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Organizational development consultant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real organizational development consultant resumes:
- Lead experiential learning in supervisory skills, conflict management, leadership, team building and organization process effectiveness.
- Establish course conventions, program management best practices and instructional strategies for eLearning and mobile learning content development.
- Develop an in-depth diversity train-the-trainer program for facilitators that provide legally-based fundamentals, facilitation skills, facilitator assessment, and testing.
- Implement a behavioral interviewing training program for to increase ROI with recruiting.
- Develop several forms and trackers to improve the OJT experience for agents and allow coaches to be more efficient and effective.
- Develop and facilitate performance management initiatives including defining accountability and measuring results.
Organizational development consultant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 13% of Organizational Development Consultants are proficient in Human Resources, Project Management, and Professional Development. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Problem-solving skills, and Time-management skills.
We break down the percentage of Organizational Development Consultants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Human Resources, 13%
Provided organizational development, training and development, sales and marketing, and human resources strategies for corporations and organizations.
- Project Management, 13%
Delivered performance improvement consulting services including needs assessments, talent review processes, leadership development, coaching and project management.
- Professional Development, 12%
Promote cultural change through effective daily communications with targeted audiences to clarify and reinforce rationale for mandatory and consistent Professional Development.
- Instructional Design, 9%
Managed the corporate training function including operations, vendor sourcing and management, instructional design, facilitation and established metrics methodology.
- Organization Design, 8%
Evaluated needs and facilitated divisional meetings focused on strategic planning, organization design, and process redesign.
- Development Solutions, 8%
Define requirements for design and implementation of learning processes and utilize technology to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of development solutions.
Common skills that an organizational development consultant uses to do their job include "human resources," "project management," and "professional development." You can find details on the most important organizational development consultant responsibilities below.
Business skills. A big part of what organizational development consultants do relies on "business skills." You can see how essential it is to organizational development consultant responsibilities because "training and development managers must understand business operations in order to match training with business goals." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical organizational development consultant tasks: "consulted with business unit leaders and global hr representatives to implement competency-based selection, performance management, assessment and leadership development. "
Collaboration skills. A commonly-found skill in organizational development consultant job descriptions, "collaboration skills" is essential to what organizational development consultants do. Organizational development consultant responsibilities rely on this skill because "training and development managers need strong interpersonal skills because delivering training programs requires working in concert with staff, trainees, subject matter experts, and the organization’s leaders." You can also see how organizational development consultant duties rely on collaboration skills in this resume example: "contributed and lead organizational change management initiatives through collaboration, planning and execution. "
Leadership skills. Lastly, "leadership skills" is an important element of what an organizational development consultant does. Organizational development consultant responsibilities require this skill because "managers are often in charge of a staff and programs." This resume example highlights how organizational development consultant duties rely on this skill: "acted as internal organizational development consultant providing work team consults, leadership assessments and development, and performance management training. "
See the full list of organizational development consultant skills
The three companies that hire the most organizational development consultants are:
- Stantec7 organizational development consultants jobs
- University of Maryland Medical System4 organizational development consultants jobs
- FedEx3 organizational development consultants jobs
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Compare different organizational development consultants
Organizational development consultant vs. Team trainer
A team trainer is responsible for developing the skills of employees by implementing new strategies and techniques to increase operational efficiency and maximize productivity. Team trainers conduct skill-up training sessions, adhering to the business' and clients' needs, and provide engaging and interactive discussions for the participants, evaluating their progress through a series of activities and practical applications. They also handle training budgets, creating comprehensive reports to ensure that all the training materials meet the budget goals.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an organizational development consultant are more likely to require skills like "human resources," "project management," "professional development," and "instructional design." On the other hand, a job as a team trainer requires skills like "excellent guest," "work ethic," "strong work ethic," and "guest service." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
On average, team trainers reach lower levels of education than organizational development consultants. Team trainers are 25.0% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 3.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Organizational development consultant vs. Trainer
A trainer is responsible for instilling knowledge and process techniques for a specific business role. Duties of a trainer include facilitating engaging classes, identifying areas of improvement and opportunities for the learner, evaluating skills and attending to the learner's challenges, organizing training materials and scheduling training sessions, and submitting timely reports to the management on progress. Trainers are required to have excellent public communication skills and extensive product knowledge to provide effective learning methodologies and maintain strategic project management.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real organizational development consultant resumes. While organizational development consultant responsibilities can utilize skills like "human resources," "project management," "instructional design," and "organization design," trainers use skills like "pet," "bonds," "powerpoint," and "customer service."
Trainers earn a lower average salary than organizational development consultants. But trainers earn the highest pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $51,822. Additionally, organizational development consultants earn the highest salaries in the insurance with average pay of $88,440 annually.trainers earn lower levels of education than organizational development consultants in general. They're 18.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 3.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Organizational development consultant vs. Certified trainer
A certified trainer is responsible for creating a customized fitness program for clients to improve their body functions, including their cardiovascular stability, balance, flexibility, and overall wellness for a healthy lifestyle. Certified trainers determine the clients' fitness goals, monitoring the clients' progress, and adjusting training plans as needed. They also monitor their clients' food intake, encouraging them to follow strict diet procedures to maintain nutritional standards and practice health disciplines. A certified trainer must have excellent communication and critical-thinking skills and extensive knowledge of the fitness industry.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an organizational development consultant is likely to be skilled in "human resources," "project management," "professional development," and "instructional design," while a typical certified trainer is skilled in "safety procedures," "food safety," "customer service," and "food preparation."
When it comes to education, certified trainers tend to earn lower degree levels compared to organizational development consultants. In fact, they're 20.8% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 2.6% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Organizational development consultant vs. Facilitator
A facilitator is responsible for assisting a group event or program, ensuring that the participants coordinate well. Facilitators also monitor that the objectives of the event are smoothly delivered and organized. An effective facilitator requires having strong communication and leadership skills to manage the participants' concerns and inquiries, including active participation in group discussions and designing engaging activities and processes. Facilitators also assist with planning and finalizing the timetable and setting the specific house rules and regulations for everyone's compliance.
Types of organizational development consultant
Updated January 8, 2025
