Instructor ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR OBHR E-110 Spring 2009, Thursday, 5:30 7:30, Maxwell Dworkin, Room G135 Christina Dunn Finegold (617) 496-3054 Christina_Dunn@harvard.edu Office hours: before or after class or by appointment Course website: http://isites.harvard.edu/k48752 Linda Miklas (617) 495-2134 Linda_Miklas@harvard.edu Office hours: before or after class or by appointment Course Description This course deals with human behavior in organizations. Conceptual frameworks, case discussions, and skill-oriented activities are applied to course topics which include: motivation, learning and development, group dynamics, leadership, communication, power and influence, change, diversity, organizational design, and culture. Class sessions and assignments are intended to help participants acquire skills and analytic concepts to improve organizational relationships and effectiveness. Course Objectives To gain a solid understanding of human behavior in the workplace from an individual, group, and organizational perspective. To obtain frameworks and tools to effectively analyze and approach various organizational situations. To integrate course materials with your own workplace experiences. To reflect upon your own beliefs, assumptions, and behaviors with respect to how individuals, groups, and organizations act in order to expand your options of approaches and increase your own effectiveness. Required and cases from Harvard Business Online. You can order the required materials for the course at http://harvardbusinessonline.hbsp.harvard.edu/relay.jhtml?name=cp&c=c26438 Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In, second addition, Roger Fisher, William Ury, Bruce Patton. Penguin Group, Inc., 1991. Available at the Harvard Coop or www.amazon.com. Various readings on reserve at Grossman Library (listed below with specific class dates). Class Requirements and Grading Class Participation (20%) A large part of the learning will come from our classroom discussions and exercises. It is important that you come to class prepared to discuss the readings, assignments, your own related experiences, and to engage with your peers in class exercises. Equally important is your ability to listen actively to others contributions, monitor the timing and amount of your OBHR E-110 Page 1
contributions, take responsibility for moving discussions forward, and foster an atmosphere of mutual respect. Class Assignments (30%) There will be three class assignments in which you will prepare a short paper or case analysis using concepts from the course. Details will be distributed in class. Team Project (20%) Class members will be divided into teams of 5-6 to design and deliver a 30-40 minute presentation and discussion on an area of organizational behavior. Presentations will be given in the final class meetings. As part of the assignment, team members will evaluate their team process and the contribution of their fellow teammates. Details will be distributed in class. Personal Reflection Papers (30%) You will be asked to keep a journal throughout the semester on what you re learning about yourself through each of the topics, the approaches and behaviors you ve utilized in the past, what your related strengths and areas for improvement are, how you re integrating this knowledge into your current approaches and behaviors, and how this is impacting your effectiveness. You will submit 2 brief journal summary papers (1-2 pages each) during the semester (each is worth 5% of total grade), and a comprehensive journal summary paper (8-12 pages) near the end of the semester (which is worth 20% of total grade). OBHR E-110 Page 2
Tentative Course,, and Assignments Introduction Class 1 (Jan. 29): Organizational Behavior and Course Introduction Introduction to Organizational Behavior Introduction of Class Members Overview of Course Syllabus and Assignments Aligning Span of Attention: The Goal of Organization Design, Robert Simons (HBS) Individual Class 2 (Feb. 5): Personality, Perception and Motivation Personality Perception and Attribution Motivation Employee Motivation: A Powerful New Model, N. Nohria, B. Groysberg, and L. Lee (HBS) Inner Work Life: Understanding the Subtext of Business Performance, T. Amabile and S. Kramer (HBS) Class 3 (Feb. 12): Performance and Performance Management Job Design Performance Management Rewards Handouts from Week 2 OBHR E-110 Page 3
Class 4 (Feb. 19): Learning and Professional Development Adult Learning Workplace Learning Professional and Career Development What Managers Should Know About How Adults Learn, Edward Prewitt (HBS) Managing Oneself, Peter Drucker (HBS) Journal Summary #1 Group/Team Class 5 (Feb. 26): Group Dynamics and Teamwork Why Teams? Stages of Team Development Team Building Team Performance Project Teams assigned The Three Essentials of an Effective Team, Jim Billington, (HBS) Make Your Good Team Great. Judith A. Ross (HBS) Class 6 (March 5): Leadership Leadership and Management Leadership Styles Emotional Intelligence What Leaders Really Do, John Kotter (HBS) What Makes a Leader?, Daniel Goleman (HBS) Discovering Your Authentic Leadership, George, Sims, McLean, and Mayer (HBS) Leadership Paper OBHR E-110 Page 4
Class 7 (March 12): Power and Influence Forms of Power Effective Influence Empowerment Politics Exercising Influence, Linda Hill (HBS) Tactics for Changing Minds, Lauren Keller Johnson (HBS) Topic for Team Presentation Class 8 (March 19): Information, Communication and Decision-Making Keys to Effective Communication Barriers to Communication Listening Skills Technology and Communication Decision-Making Models Yo, Listen Up: A Brief Hearing on the Most Neglected Communication Skill, David Stauffer (HBS) The Hidden Traps in Decision Making, John S. Hammond, Ralph L. Keeney, and Howard Raiffa (HBS) Case Analysis Class 9 (April 2): Conflict and Negotiation Conflict Management Modes Negotiation Strategies Creating Win/Win Solutions Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In, Fisher/ Ury/ Patton Journal Summary #2 OBHR E-110 Page 5
Organizational Class 10 (April 9): Leading and Managing Change Dynamics of Change Strategies for Leading and Managing Change Overcoming Resistance to Change Change Immunity Map Implementing Change, Todd Jick (HBS) The Real Reason People Won t Change, Keagan and Lahey (HBS) Class 11 (April 16): Valuing Diversity Why Diversity Matters Dimensions of Diversity Managing a Diverse Workforce Organizational Systems and Diversity Making Differences Matter: A New Paradigm for Managing Diversity, Thomas and Ely (HBS) Making Diversity a Business Advantage, Andrew Park (HBS) Experience of Being Other Class 12 (April 23): Organizational Design and Development Organizing for Performance Organizational Design Organizational Development Organizational Assessment Tools Talent Management Designing Organizations for Performance: The Alignment of Design and Strategy, Robert Simons (HBS) OBHR E-110 Page 6
Class 13 (April 30): Organizational Culture Understanding Organizational Culture Managing Organizational Culture Frames from Which to View Culture Culture Change What is an Organization s Culture?, Clayton Christensen (HBS) What s Your Company s Culture?, Tom Krattenmaker (HBS) When Your Culture Needs a Makeover, Carol Lavin Bernick (HBS) Journal Summary Paper Class 14 (May 7): Team Presentations Team Evaluation* *Your team evaluation is due on the night of your team presentation. Class 15 (May 14): Team Presentations Team Evaluation* *Your team evaluation is due on the night of your team presentation OBHR E-110 Page 7