Organizational Behavior

• GSM OB 712: Managing Organizations and People
  This course introduces you to some fundamental concepts, models and frameworks to help you become better acquainted with the organizations for which you work, the teams in which you work, the people with whom you work, and your own personal development. Specifically, this course considers: 1) how to develop yourselves as managers, 2) how to work well within teams, 3) how to assess and manage interpersonal dynamics, 4) how to structure more effective organizations, and 5) how to manage organizational change. Tying all of these elements together, we will devote particular attention to the traits, skills and behaviors that are indicative of good leadership and how organizations and managers can be transformed for better alignment with the business demands of the future.
• GSM OB 713: Managing Organizations and People
  This course introduces concepts, models and frameworks to help you become better managers of the organizations you work for, the teams you work in, the people you work with and your own professional development. Emphasis will be on behavioral science concepts and research findings related to the major challenge managers face ? how to organize individuals in order to fulfill the objectives and strategies of the firm. Topics that will be examined include: the nature and dynamics of the organization (organizational structure and culture, performance systems and metrics, reward systems, selection and socialization); the elements of individual leadership and personal development (power, decision-making, emotional intelligence, career development, developmental needs, feedback, and mentoring and coaching); managing change within organizational contexts (the dynamics and stages of organizational change and the skills and tactics employed by change agents); and the relationships between the firm and the external environment in which it operates. The course objective is to provide analytical skills and strategies, substantive knowledge, and a professional sensibility that will increase your ability to take effective action in firms, agencies and other organizations.
• GSM OB 815: Seminar on Careers: Theory, Research and Practices
  This seminar will examine major theoretical models and research on the process of how careers unfold in and out of organizations. It will examine both the more traditional issues of career dynamics in organizational settings (e.g., internal labor markets, tournament mobility systems, organizational socialization) as well as emergent issues of boundary-less, protean, or "free agent" career processes, such as career transformation, career networks, developmental relationships, adult development, and emotional competencies.
• GSM OB 830: Leading the Mission-Driven Organization
  Mission-driven organizations are created in order to accomplish goals that extend beyond profits for stakeholders and owners. Missions vary, ranging from, among many others; improving health care, providing meaningful work opportunities, educating or protecting youth, safeguarding the planet, eradicating poverty, building sustainable organizations, and enabling spirituality. and enabling spirituality. Such missions occur in the context of various organizations, including non-profit and for-profit, philanthropic and religious, public and private, governmental and non-governmental. This course focuses on leadership theories, frameworks, and practices that take seriously the nature of workers, including both professional staff and volunteers, and their reasons for choosing to work in such organizations. This course is designed to build the capacities of students to use specific tools related to leadership, conflict, and change that are particularly useful in leading mission-driven organizations, and enable them to develop particular insights about specific mission-driven organizations of interest, related to their effectiveness and capacities for change.
• GSM OB 835: Sustainable Business: Profits, Planet, People and Purpose
  The convergence of a number of factors is driving an increase in investment and focus on sustainability. More specifically, high profile corporate scandals, recognition of the finite and increasingly costly resources on our planet, a shrinking globe with far more transparency and increasing consumer power are serving to elevate the imperative of sustainability. That said, there is wide variability in the definition of sustainability, the scope of efforts aimed at sustainability, and the perceived effectiveness of sustainability efforts. This is not surprising given the newness of the field and the attendant absence of theory, frameworks, and uniform measurements to deliver value attributable to these efforts. This class intends to introduce students to the opportunity and challenges facing startups and established companies as they contemplate the import of...and approach to creating a sustainable enterprise. Illustrations of progressive models (e.g. TOMS, GE, Marks & Spencer) will be coupled with case studies, lectures, practitioner speakers and debate to engage students in the nuances and intricacies of this developing field. This class will be taught from the perspective of practitioners and emphasize the real challenges of making operating decisions in an increasingly complex context.
• GSM OB 840: Management Consulting Field Project
  The purpose of this course is to provide students with an in-depth understanding of the management consulting process and its practical application. The course simulates a small consulting firm where students are consultants. Students complete significant fieldwork outside of classroom time. Students explore dimensions of defining and understanding the consulting framework, engagements, work methodology, client relationship management, value creation, developing and delivering presentations and client follow-up. This course includes one primary deliverable: the initiation, scoping and completion of a consulting field project. This class is designed and best suited for second year students who have 3-5 years work experience in the public, private or nonprofit sectors.
• GSM OB 844: Managing Organizational Change
  Change is crucial for the success and survival of organizations. Managing change is central to the role of senior leaders, middle managers and frontline supervisors alike; each needs to understand the change process and develop the skills necessary to engage that process effectively. This course focuses on both the knowledge and the set of skills that enable change to be effectively managed across various organizations and industries. Students will learn about how to be effective agents of change, in the context of different types of roles--tops, middles and bottoms--and organizations. We will explore the nature of both proactive and reactive change, examining the conditions under which such change is successful and the skills necessary to ensure that success. Students will also have the opportunity to learn about themselves as change agents, in the context of considering their own tendencies, skills, and capabilities amidst proactive and reactive change. The course is particularly appropriate for students who wish to develop their leadership and consultation capabilities.
• GSM OB 847: Leading High Performance Teams and Project Groups
  This course introduces the challenges of leading and participating in teams and project groups. It emphasizes the role of leadership in composing teams, motivating members, and creating an environment in which teams and their members grow in capacity over time. This course will use cases, experiential exercises, and group projects to help students gain both knowledge of team dynamics and the skills to shape them.
• GSM OB 848: The Leadership Challenge
  This course examines the essence of leadership; its relationship to managing; and the behaviors, attitudes and perspectives that distinguish leaders. Leadership is considered in a variety of ways: leadership in crises, at the top, in the middle, and in groups. Case studies, students' past experiences, instruments, and other learning activities provide opportunities for students to assess and develop their leadership talents.
• GSM OB 853: Negotiations
  This course uses the theory and research on effective negotiating strategies to build students' understanding of, and skills for, managing differences and negotiation situations. The course considers, among other topics, the issues of negotiating across functions, between levels, across national and cultural differences, over race and gender differences, and between organizations. Students examine: 1) problems of influence and self-defense in highly competitive "hardball" negotiations; and 2) the art of using differences for creative problem-solving and "mutual gain" outcomes. The emphasis is on developing practical skills for effective negotiations that can be applied to concrete situations. Students should be prepared to learn from their own experiences and practice in this course.
• GSM OB 915: Seminar on Careers: Theory, Research and Practices
  This seminar will examine major theoretical models and research on the process of how careers unfold in and out of organizations. It will examine both the more traditional issues of career dynamics in organizational settings (e.g., internal labor markets, tournament mobility systems, organizational socialization) as well as emergent issues of boundary-less, protean, or "free agent" career processes, such as career transformation, career networks, developmental relationships, adult development, and emotional competencies.
• GSM OB 918: Seminar in Micro Organizational Behavior
  Micro organizational behavior is the study of individual behavior and social processes in organizations. The goal of this doctoral course is to familiarize students with major conceptual frameworks, debates, and developments in the field of micro organizational behavior. This course will review the key literature in the study of individual behaviors, interpersonal relations, and group dynamics in organizations. The readings and discussions will focus on core topics in the field, such as personality and individual differences, work attitudes, motivation, leadership, groups, and socialization. This course is required of all first year doctoral students in Organizational Behavior and is open to other doctoral students with permission.
• GSM OB 923: Field Studies Seminar
  As management researchers seek to understand questions of 'how' and 'of what ' in addition to the more traditional question of 'how many,' qualitative methods are taking a central place in our field's methodological practice. One indicator is the publication of qualitatively based articles by major journals in the sub-disciplines of organizational behavior, information systems, strategy, accounting and marketing. This doctoral-level seminar has two objectives: to explore the range of methodological practices and processes associated with conducting and composing high quality qualitative research, and to draw particular attention to the important processes of observing, discovery, justification and writing.
• SMG OB 221: The Dynamics of Leading Organizations
  Sophomore requirement. This is an experiential learning-based course that studies what people think, feel and do in organizational settings, focusing on individual, interpersonal, group and organizational processes. The primary objective is to help students understand and manage organizational dynamics as effectively as possible. This is done through: analysis of readings; reflecting on hands-on, real-time experiences in organizations and in teamwork here; practice opportunities in class sessions, creative applications and team exercises; and papers written by students and teams. The readings, discussions and lectures provide students with abstract knowledge about organizational behavior processes and structures; the semester-long "OB Team" experiences, working together as an intact team to address real-world problems, will provide skill-building opportunities to help manage one's own and others' behavior in teams and organizations in the future. Major topics include personality, motivation, team dynamics, leadership and organizational change. SMG students must take concurrently with SM411. 4 cr.
• SMG OB 441: Human Resource Management
  Required for Organizational Behavior concentrators. Introduces students to the field of human resource management (HRM). Emphasizes the strategic importance of effective human resource management to the success of any organization. Specific topics covered include: job design and workforce planning, recruiting and selection, training and development, performance management and rewards, employee and labor relations, and retention. Particular attention is paid to the ways in which organizations' strategies and practices around these issues contribute to the strategic objectives of the organization. Individual and group projects enable students to develop skills in making decisions from both the human resource manager's and the general manager's perspectives. 4 cr.
• SMG OB 442: Leading High Performance Teams and Project Groups
  Provides an opportunity for students to develop an in-depth understanding of creating, leading and maintaining high performance teams - and in particular, project groups that have clearly defined goals and deliverables. Students will learn to structure and organize high performance teams, develop and practice team interventions, and use teams effectively in organizational contexts. 4 cr.
• SMG OB 444: International Management
  Examines the many dimensions of managing people in the global organization. Topics include understanding and valuing cultural differences, cross-cultural communication, managing cross-cultural teams, and career management in global organizations. 4 cr.
• SMG OB 448: Negotiations
  Focuses on the problems and possibilities of effective negotiations, conflict management, and power and influence at work and in other settings. Emphasizes developing both intellectual knowledge of approaches to negotiation, conflict and organizational influences and practical skills in applying that knowledge to various situations. 4 cr.
• SMG OB 460: The Leadership Challenge
  Required for Organizational Behavior concentrators. Explores the nature of leadership in theory and practice. Emphasizes the perspective that leaders are needed at all levels in organizations. In addition to studying leaders, this course uses self-assessment as an initial step in creating a plan for personal leadership development. Students practice leadership by designing and executing a team community service project. 4 cr.
• SMG OB 498: Directed Study: Organizational Behavior
  

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