Mar 28, 2024  
2016-2017 Undergraduate Academic Catalog 
    
2016-2017 Undergraduate Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

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MS 344 - Organizational Behavior and Leadership Development

3 lecture hours 0 lab hours 3 credits
Course Description
The course examines organizations and the interactions among individuals and groups. Students will explore the challenges of managing people in organizations in terms of the interaction between human beings and the organizational contexts within which they work. Further, individual differences of human behavior will be compared and contrasted to differences in organizations. The course has three areas of focus. First, fundamental concepts of organizations are introduced, including form, structure and culture. Second, individual characteristics and behaviors are examined, including perspectives, attitudes, personality and judgment. Third, the principles of groups and group dynamics are presented, including formation, development, processes and leadership. The goal of the course is to prepare students to effectively manage resources, both human and technical. (prereq: sophomore standing)
Course Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  • Identify the potential advantages of organizational behavior knowledge
  • Describe how focusing on the human element can contribute to organizational and managerial effectiveness
  • Explain how individual differences influence the behavior of people in organizations
  • Apply the eight-step guide to ethical decision-making when faced with an ethical dilemma
  • Enhance creative problem-solving ability
  • Choose an appropriate motivational model for a given situation
  • Have the necessa5ry information to resolve many workplace conflicts
  • Summarize barriers to effective communication and how to overcome them
  • Explain how to overcome cross-gender and cross-cultural communication problems
  • Pinpoint several potential problems with group effort and know how to prevent them
  • Differentiate between leadership and management
  • Identify and describe a variety of political and influence tactics
  • Explain how managers can control dysfunctional politics
  • Identify and define the foundation concepts of organization structure, including the informal structure
  • Describe several strategies for bringing about organizational change
  • Describe why people resist change and how to manage such resistance
  • Identify and explain key dimensions of cultural differences
  • Recognize organizational conditions favoring knowledge management
  • Specify methods for sharing information within an organization

Prerequisites by Topic
  • None

Course Topics
  • None

Coordinator
Kristin Shebesta



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