HR405 – Organizational Behaviour
Master of Science in Human Resource Management and Organizational Behavior
Core Course
HR405 – Organizational Behaviour
Course Unit Code: HR405
Type Of Unit: Core
Level of Course Unit: Second cycle
Year of Study: First/second year
Semester: On demand
Number of ECTS Credits: 6
Class Contact Hours: 28
Mode of Delivery
Face to Face
Prerequisites
None
Course Objectives
Most of us spend many years of our lives at work, performing a multiplicity of roles (as managers, subordinates, team-members etc.), in multiple industry settings (services, manufacturing, etc.) and types of organizations (small or large, start-ups or established, family-owned or multinationals, public or private). The aim of this course is to open up the “black box” of organizations and take a reflective look at the inside: How do organizations function, and why? What sort of problems do they usually face, why, and how do they cope with them? How do they influence individual behavior, and vice versa? Also, how do individuals and teams function within organizational settings, and why? What makes them happy and productive as well as passionate about their work? How do they interact with fellow workers, with higher-ups and subordinates? How do they influence others and exercise effective leadership? And most importantly, how can organizations build on their human capital and their intangible assets for greater competitive advantage, sustainability and growth? All the above questions (and more) are the focus of the academic discipline of Organizational Behavior (OB). OB is specifically concerned with: (a) the study of human behavior (at the individual and the group level), within formal organizations (micro-OB) and (b) the study of the behavior of organizations as social entities (macro-OB). The objective of this course is to make you familiar with the basic principles of OB and help you understand organizational phenomena so that you may be able to influence them effectively. The course will heavily rely on experiential learning, i.e., group exercises, videos, and case studies.
Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key concepts, theories and trends that relate to the effective management of people and organizations.
- Integrate theoretical knowledge and/or analyze and interpret related data and information to solve complex problems and exercise judgment on issues that relate to the effective management of people and organizations.
- Apply organizational behavior theories, models and concepts to critically evaluate management practices in different contexts and provide recommendations for improvement.
Course Content
Course Features
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
Lectures; in-class discussion and group exercises; case study discussion and analysis; discussion and analysis of training videos; online quizzes (moodle)
Assessment methods and criteria
10% Online completion (moodle) of quiz on pre-reading material (case study)
90% Final written exam
Language of Instruction
English
Work placement(s)
Not applicable
Readings
Suggested Textbook:
1. McShane, S. & Von Glinow, M. 2015. Organizational Behavior: Emerging Knowledge, Global Reality (7th Global Edition). Singapore: McGraw-Hill.
Pre-readings:
Please read the following case study and watch the following videos before first class.
Case studies:
A case study about Google – “Keeping Google ‘Googley’” – is available from the program administration office.
Video links:
Google:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ANgEo40VSE&index=22&list=RDQMRWDohNGKEXs
Box Inc:
Inc. Magazine.
Southwest Airlines:
Further readings:
Adler, P. 1999. Building better bureaucracies. Academy of Management Executive. 13: 36-46.
Bartlett, A. & Ghoshal, S. 1990. Matrix Management: Not a structure, a frame of mind. Harvard Business Review, 68: 138-145.
Bernstein, E., Bunch, J., Canner, N., & Lee, M. 2016. Beyond the holacracy hype. Harvard Business Review, 94: 38-49.
Brockbank, W., Ulrich, D., Younger, J., Ulrich, M. 2012. Recent study shows impact of HR competencies on business performance. Employment Relations Today, Spring 2012, 1-7.
Cameron, K. S. & Quinn, R. E. 2006. Diagnosing and Changing Organizational Culture, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Deci, E. L., R. M. Ryan. 2000. The “what” and “why” of goal pursuits: human needs and the elf-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227-268.
Ford, R., & Randolf, W. 1992. Cross-functional structures: a review and integration of matrix organization and project management. Journal of Management, 18: 267-294.
Funder, D. 2001. Personality. Annual Review of Psychology, 52: 197-221
Garvin, D. 1993. Building a learning organization. Harvard Business Review, 71: 78-91.
Greenwood, R., & Miller, D. 2010. Tackling Design Anew: Getting Back to the Heart of Organizational Theory. Academy of Management Perspectives, 24: 78-88.
Groysberg, B., Lee, J., Price J., Yo-Jud Cheng, J. 2018. The leader’s guide to corporate culture. Harvard Business Review, 96: 44-52.
Goleman, D. 2000. Leadership that gets results. Harvard Business Review, 78: 78-90.
Hammond, J., Keeney, R., & Raiffa, H. 2006. The hidden traps in decision making. Harvard Business Review, 84; 118-126.
Herzberg, F. 2003. One More Time – How do you Motivate Employees?, Harvard Business Review, Motivating people series.
Katzenbach, J., Steffen, I., & Kronley, C. 2012. Cultural change that sticks. Harvard Business Review, 90: 110-117.
Katzenbach, J. & Smith, D. 2005. The discipline of teams. Harvard Business Review, 83: 111-120.
Kerr, S. 1995. On the folly of rewarding A, while hoping for B. Academy of Management Executive, 9: 7-14.
Kotter, J. 2001. What leaders really do. Harvard Business Review, 79: 85-96.
Latham, G. P. 2005. Work Motivation Theory and research at the dawn of the twenty-first century. Annual Review of Psychology, 56: 485-516.
Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. 2004. What should we do about motivation theory? Six recommendations for the twenty-first century. Academy of Management Review, 29: 388-403
McClelland, D., & Burnham, D. 2003. Power is the Great Motivator. Harvard Business Review, 81: 117-126.
Nohria, N., Groysberg, B. & Lee, L. 2008. Employee motivation. Harvard Business Review, 86: 78-84.
Piccolo, R. & Colquitt, J. 2006. Transformational leadership and job behaviors: the mediating role of core job characteristics. Academy of Management Journal, 49: 327-340.
Schein, E. 1983. The role of the founder in creating organizational culture. Organizational Dynamics, 12: 13-28.
Schneider, B. 1987. The people make the place. Personnel Psychology, 40: 437-451. Toegel, G. & Conger, J. A. 2003. 360-degree assessment: time for reinvention. Academy of Management Learning and Education, 2: 297-311.
Ulrich, D., & Brockbank, W. 2005. The HR Value Proposition. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Press.
Weiss, J. & Hughes, J. 2005. Want collaboration? Accept – and actively manage – conflict. Harvard Business Review, 83: 93-101.
Journal articles can be downloaded from the EBSCO electronic database.
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