GMGT 2070, Introduction to Organizational Behaviour Asper School of Business Winter Term, 2014-2015 GMGT 2070 – INTRODUCTION TO ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR Section A04 & A05 Professor: Dr. Alyson Byrne

Class Time: Section A04: Thursday - 10:00-12:45 (103 Drake) Section A05: Thursday - 2:30-5:15 (117 Drake)

E-mail: [email protected]

Office Hours Wednesdays 2:45-4:45

Office: 418 Drake Centre

Course website: http://universityofmanitoba.desire2learn.com

Phone: (204) 474-6406 Course Summary and Objectives While an understanding of accounting, finance, marketing and strategy are necessary for a successful career in business, being able to manage, lead and motivate the people and teams within an organization is even more crucial. No man is an island, and unless you plan to live your days on a deserted island, chances are you will be working with, for, and leading other people. The primary objective of this course is to understand how individuals and groups behave within organizations. Specifically, organizational behaviour examines how individuals and groups engage, react and interact with others in organizations. These behaviours are influenced by the attitudes, values, and beliefs of the individual, as well as circumstances within the organization. In this course, we will draw on theories of social psychology to understand how and why individuals and groups behave the way they do and how it impacts organizations. In this course, we will cover topics such as motivation, personality, employee attitudes, decisionmaking, leadership and negotiation. Over the duration of this course, we will examine some of the key aspects of organizational behaviour. We will draw on course readings, lectures, cases, and experiential exercises to examine the frameworks from social sciences that are fundamental to understanding organizational processes and teach you how to apply these frameworks to a variety of particular situations. My goals are that when you leave this class, not only do you understand the fundamentals of theory and research in organizational behaviour, but you also know how to apply much of these evidence based findings to your own working environment.

 

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Required Course Materials Course Textbook Langton, Robbins, & Judge (2011). Fundamentals of Organizational Behaviour, 5th Edition. Toronto: Pearson. • Access codes not needed; feel free to buy a used copy or share a copy with a classmate • A copy of the text will be on 3-hour reserve at Cohen Library (Drake Centre) • Online textbook rental is available through the U of M bookstore website Case Package Materials A number of the in-class exercises require all students to pay a licensing fee. You pay for these materials at the bookstore, and receive proof of purchase. Much of this class will involve experiential exercises and you must present your access code and original receipt to obtain materials. Due to copyright protection, cases cannot be e-mailed or posted on the course website and all materials are distributed in class. Additional Readings Certain weeks will contain additional readings beyond the textbook. They are free to you (they are paid by the university’s Access Copyright license), and are made available on Desire2 Learn. Course sections There are multiple sections of GMGT 2070 offered each term. Any section of 2070 will prepare you equally well for further coursework in organizational behaviour and build many of the same skills. Some classes even use the same textbook or have similar assignments. However, these sections may differ from one another in a number of important ways. The focus, specific topics, structure, exercises, grading criteria, assigned readings, and content of evaluations are not necessarily the same between my sections and those taught by Prof. Neville or other instructors. You cannot attend different instructors’ course sections from week to week. And, since this class often uses in-class activities completed in pairs or groups, you may not attend the Thursday afternoon section if you’re enrolled in the Thursday morning section (or vice- versa). Please attend the class sections for your section only. If you are not able to attend your scheduled class for a legitimate reason one week, please consult the policy on absences later in the syllabus. Instructional Methods and Expectations The primary teaching methods used for this class will be class discussions, group exercises and lecturing regarding the class readings, theories and concepts. I will also use teaching aides such as videos, cases, articles and media. I will try to limit the amount of lecturing that I do per class, as I believe that you will gain a greater understanding of the material through active participation. Through active participation, you will have the opportunity to apply the course concepts in a real manner. Active participation will be practiced in both class exercises as well as class discussions and you are expected to participate in both. With regards to class discussions,

 

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you are expected to share your thoughts about the readings, questions about the course concepts, doubts about ideas, and any relevant personal experiences or examples that you have seen that either support or debunk the topics that you read about. As a note for both discussions and exercises, the more you participate, the more interesting the class will be. My goal is to have a classroom climate that is supportive, inclusive, and conducive to learning and discussion. In order to capitalize on a class where much discussion takes place, I will highly encourage discussion, while expecting that you will each show respect for others’ points of view. At times you may disagree with each other, but please show your disagreement while simultaneously suppressing personal attacks. Throughout the semester, you will have many opportunities to debate ideas, develop your critical thinking skills and to practice supporting your arguments in front of your peers. I also want to encourage you to use the numerous opportunities throughout the course to develop your teamwork skills. Organizational recruiters are frequently seeking candidates that are “team players” who know how to work in diverse groups and this course should help you develop these types of skills. I commit to coming to class fully prepared and I expect the same from you in return. Much of this class is discussion and group activity based; therefore it is critical that you come to class ready to actively participate. This means having read the assigned readings and having completed any assigned tasks. Regarding attendance, the numerous team exercises that we will do throughout the course require full participation of the class, so your absences will jeopardize the learning experiences of your entire class. I highly discourage absences in this course for that reason. Finally, I expect a two-way system of open communication. I will be honest with you and I will communicate regularly about any concerns I have with the course. In return, I expect the same from you. If you have any questions or concerns about the course, please come see me. I have regularly scheduled office hours and I am available by e-mail. If you choose to contact me via email, I will respond within 1 business day. Further details regarding classroom policies and expectations are provided later in this syllabus. Assessment The purpose of this course is to provide you with a deeper understanding organizational behaviour, and I have purposely chosen assessments that I believe will foster this understanding. A note about writing: Clear and concise communication is a goal that you should strive to attain on all assignments. Good ideas are only as good as the ways in which they are communicated. Please ensure that your ideas are not masked by poor writing. Poor writing will be penalized if it impedes understanding of the concepts you are attempting to communicate. A note about deadlines: You are expected to submit your assignments and complete the exams by the deadlines indicated. I do NOT accept late assignments. I also do NOT give make-up exams. All assignments (e.g., projects, class preparation assignments) and exams should be turned in on time to receive credit. The only exception will be for those rare cases of documented emergencies (i.e., documented illness, family emergencies). This policy may sound harsh, but it

 

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is meant to encourage everyone to submit assignments and exams on-time and to guarantee that those people who made sacrifices to turn in their assignments and exams on time are not penalized. The course assessment is broken down as follows: Assessment Mini-Assignments In-class Participation Group Case Project Individual Analysis Final Exam Research Bonus Total

Percentage of Course Grade 15% 10% 20% 25% 30% 2% 102%

Due Date Ongoing throughout term Ongoing throughout term March 5th, 9:30am submitted via D2L April 8th, 10pm submitted via D2L TBA

Ongoing throughout term

Mini-Assignments (15% of course grade) A number of the class exercises and cases that we will be doing throughout the term require brief, out of-class assignments to help with your pre-class preparations and/or post-class reflections. The nature of the assignments varies but unless otherwise noted, you will be asked to submit your exercise preparation assignments as per the time noted in the class schedule. Examples may include reading an article or news story before class and preparing your answers to discussion questions, responding to online survey questions about topics in the class, explaining an idea about the week’s readings, or applying something learned in the previous week. All details and expectations will be announced in class and on the course website. These assignments will be assessed at one of four levels: check-plus (a “wow!” effort; highly impressive & ideal,), check (completed thoroughly & effectively,), check-minus (completed, but minimally; little effort), or zero (not submitted or completely inadequate). There are 5 mini assignments throughout the semester. In class participation (10% of course grade) This course is largely experiential and requires a commitment from each student to come to class ready to engage. This means both participating actively in class and in your assignments. As such, 10% of your course grade will be evaluated on how prepared you are when you come to class and how well you participate in class exercises and discussions. In-class involvement means participating in group exercises, offering your thoughts and opinions during discussions, taking a point of view in red/green questions and contributing to in-class activities. Note participating well does not mean talking all the time – quality is preferred over quantity   Group Case Project (20% of course grade) All students will be randomly assigned to a group of 6 students to complete a group case analysis. The case is Jielang Phone Home A, B, and C, and it describes a manufacturing operation in Dongguan, an industrial city in China’s Pearl River delta. The case takes the perspective of both the manager and the line worker. The case is found in your casebook. You will be asked to diagnose the situation and provide recommendations. Your focus should be on suggesting improvements or changes that will improve employee well-being and satisfaction,

 

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while simultaneously enhancing productivity and performance. Your analysis should be based on concepts drawn from the course materials. Your group will submit two deliverables. The first is a report (maximum 10 pages of text and 10 pages of exhibits and appendices) that summarizes your analysis, recommendations, and implementation place. The second deliverable is a 10minute video presenting a summary of your analysis and recommendations to Precision ElectroTek’s management. The video should involve all group members and should be uploaded to D2L. Each deliverable is worth 10%. This case project will have a peer-evaluation component that will be completed by each group member privately and uploaded to D2L. Each group member will rate your teammates’ efforts on the entire project. Individuals who did not give 100%, as per the group’s evaluations, will see this reflected in their project grade. Individual Analysis (25% of course grade) You will submit an individual paper that reflects on one element of your Jieliang team’s dynamics. You will choose one topic from the course (e.g., personality, culture, motivation, conflict, ethics, etc.), and describe how this topic was meaningful to the performance and cohesion of your team. You must develop a set of recommendations to guide future teams to address the issues you describe. This assignment requires you to apply material and concepts from your course readings, and requires you to read and apply research on the topic from highquality academic journals. A detailed outline of the expectations for this assignment will be provided in Week 9. Final Examination (30% of course grade) The final examination is a 3-hour exam. The exam will cover all the readings, class exercises, cases, and group presentations. The format will be a mix of multiple-choice, short-answer, case and essay questions. Details about the exam will be provided in class. Research Bonus (An additional 2% can be gained) You may earn a 2% bonus in the course by participating in research being conducted by Asper School of Business faculty. Details will be provided early in the term. Grading The numeric grades earned in this course correspond to the following letter grades:

 

Letter Grade

Percentage

GPA

A+

90-100%

4.5

A

85-89%

4.0

B+

80-84%

3.5

B

75-79%

3.0

C+

70-74%

2.5

C

60-69%

2.0

D

50-59%

1.0

F