What does an organizational development manager do?
Organizational Development Managers are human resources practitioners who oversee the evolution of the company. They work on designing and implementing organizational design and strategies that would help push the company towards achieving its vision. They assess the existing policies and guidelines to ensure that they are updated and reflect the current business landscape. Organizational Development Managers also update these policies accordingly. They spearhead change management activities. They create strategies that will help employees adapt to changes that may happen to the company. Their strategies would also set the tone of success of such changes.
Organizational development manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real organizational development manager resumes:
- Develop compelling PowerPoint presentations, manage online sign-ups for seminars, and ensure all paperwork is complete.
- Develop a school-wide leadership program that incorporate leadership theory and practice, social change, emotional intelligence and basic skill development.
- Identify the highest-potential leaders and create new practices that prepare and result in several program participants promotions into executive-level leadership roles.
- Call center operations, HRIS and strategic PMO.
- Develop and facilitate performance management initiatives including defining accountability and measuring results.
Organizational development manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 18% of Organizational Development Managers are proficient in Organizational Structure, Human Resources, and Project Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Business skills, Collaboration skills, and Leadership skills.
We break down the percentage of Organizational Development Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Organizational Structure, 18%
Worked with culturally diverse communities and maintained organizational structure to support organization, including e-mail, phone and in person.
- Human Resources, 8%
Provided support to Managers by offering training and direct coaching on Human Resources Processes and Organizational Development initiatives.
- Project Management, 6%
Project management of survey launch, analysis, employee communication, manager education and intervention support.
- Organizational Effectiveness, 6%
Provided Talent Management and Organizational Development solutions that enhance enterprise-wide organizational effectiveness and performance.
- Organization Development, 6%
Provided expertise and process consultation to businesses on effective change management of organization development interventions in a matrix organization.
- Employee Engagement, 5%
Developed and implemented various Employee Engagement initiatives to include an employee recognition program and buddy system.
"organizational structure," "human resources," and "project management" are among the most common skills that organizational development managers use at work. You can find even more organizational development manager responsibilities below, including:
Business skills. The most essential soft skill for an organizational development manager to carry out their responsibilities is business skills. This skill is important for the role because "training and development managers must understand business operations in order to match training with business goals." Additionally, an organizational development manager resume shows how their duties depend on business skills: "facilitated the implementation of appropriate change management initiatives, guaranteeing the establishing of human capital as a critical business component. "
Collaboration skills. Many organizational development manager duties rely on collaboration skills. "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," so an organizational development manager will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways organizational development manager responsibilities rely on collaboration skills: "designed and implemented team interventions and change management initiatives in collaboration with the human resource business partners. "
Leadership skills. organizational development managers are also known for leadership skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to organizational development manager responsibilities, because "managers are often in charge of a staff and programs." An organizational development manager resume example shows how leadership skills is used in the workplace: "managed organization talent initiatives, leadership, and management initiatives. "
Instructional skills. A big part of what organizational development managers do relies on "instructional skills." You can see how essential it is to organizational development manager responsibilities because "training and development managers need to understand the fundamentals of teaching and lesson planning." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical organizational development manager tasks: "provide feedback to subject matter experts and instructional designers regarding adult learning theory and design principles. "
Communication skills. Another common skill required for organizational development manager responsibilities is "communication skills." This skill comes up in the duties of organizational development managers all the time, as "training and development managers must clearly convey information to diverse audiences." An excerpt from a real organizational development manager resume shows how this skill is central to what an organizational development manager does: "established management development and communications department for division of 1500 associates. "
The three companies that hire the most organizational development managers are:
- KPMG LLP11 organizational development managers jobs
- EPAM Systems4 organizational development managers jobs
- Tenet Healthcare3 organizational development managers jobs
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Compare different organizational development managers
Organizational development manager vs. Director of training
Training directors are responsible for directing the planning, design, and implementation of training programs. They are responsible for assessing and identifying the company's training needs, maintaining a consistent culture regarding training, and managing and directing employee training. Training directors are expected to provide engaging communication about the program to encourage employee participation and emphasize the benefits and value of exercise. They are also expected to establish and maintain good relationships with vendors to provide more training programs.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between organizational development managers and director of training. For instance, organizational development manager responsibilities require skills such as "organizational structure," "organizational effectiveness," "organization development," and "employee engagement." Whereas a director of training is skilled in "customer service," "oversight," "training curriculum," and "cpr." This is part of what separates the two careers.
On average, directors of training reach lower levels of education than organizational development managers. Directors of training are 5.4% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.9% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Organizational development manager vs. Manager & instructor
Training administrators coordinate employees and management training programs. The administrators administer competency or skill assessments, outplacement, career counseling, and other specialized training for employees. They update and organize the training programs for administrative and clerical works. It is also their job to plan and enforce these programs for government agencies, business enterprises, and other institutions. Leadership skills, communication skills, and management skills are necessary for this job.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that organizational development manager responsibilities requires skills like "organizational structure," "human resources," "project management," and "organizational effectiveness." But a manager & instructor might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "course curriculum," "safety procedures," "curriculum development," and "cpr."
On average, managers & instructor earn a lower salary than organizational development managers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, managers & instructor earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $55,999. Whereas organizational development managers have higher pay in the energy industry, with an average salary of $109,905.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Managers & instructor tend to reach lower levels of education than organizational development managers. In fact, they're 10.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for organizational development managers in the next 3-5 years?
Gregory Zobel Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Educational Technology, Education & Leadership, Western Oregon University
Organizational development manager vs. Training administrator
Managers are responsible for a specific department, function, or employee group. They oversee their assigned departments and all the employees under the department. Managers are responsible that the department they are handling is functioning well. They set the department goals and the steps they must take to achieve the goals. They are also in charge of assessing the performance of their departments and their employees. Additionally, managers are responsible for interviewing prospective candidates for department vacancies and assessing their fit to the needs of the department. Managers also set the general working environment in the department, and they are expected to ensure that their employees remain motivated.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from organizational development manager resumes include skills like "organizational structure," "project management," "organizational effectiveness," and "organization development," whereas a training administrator is more likely to list skills in "nursing home," "long-term care," "home health," and "logistics. "
Training administrators earn the highest salary when working in the health care industry, where they receive an average salary of $45,657. Comparatively, organizational development managers have the highest earning potential in the energy industry, with an average salary of $109,905.Most training administrators achieve a lower degree level compared to organizational development managers. For example, they're 8.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Organizational development manager vs. Manager
Even though a few skill sets overlap between organizational development managers and managers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, an organizational development manager might have more use for skills like "organizational structure," "project management," "organizational effectiveness," and "organization development." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of managers require skills like "customer service," "food safety," "financial statements," and "management. "
Managers enjoy the best pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $71,781. For comparison, organizational development managers earn the highest salary in the energy industry.The average resume of managers showed that they earn lower levels of education compared to organizational development managers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 16.0% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 1.4%.Types of organizational development manager
Updated January 8, 2025
