MANAGEMENT ; Organising in the 21th Century C10/D10, 10 credits Syllabus, course C10/D10 Business Administration (Advanced level) Course code: FEKC84 Responsible Department: The Dept of Business Administration Subject: Business Administration Level: C/D Field of education: Social Science This course is a course at the C/D-level for a BSc- or a MSc-degree at the University of Umeå. The course can also be included in the study programmes in Business Administration and Economics at the Umeå Business School. 1. Resolution to arrange the course The course is established by the Faculty of Social Science at Umeå University and the syllabus was confirmed by the Board of Business Administration on June 6 2002. 2. Objective and contents The courses on management comprising "Strategy and Structure in Organisations", "Leadership and Human Interaction", "Change, Innovation and Learning in Organisations" and "New Perspectives on Management" from a logical coherent whole. The various course modules should therefore be studied in the order presented below. No objection is of course raised to students choosing an alternative order or choosing to study parts of the course only. Economics concerns making choices between different alternatives and the basic thinking behind the management courses is also that both management and co-workers are placed in different choice-situations in their work, for example between specialisation and integration, between conflict and co-operation, between change and allowing things to remain as they are. The different course modules are aimed at throwing light on what these choices are in the management field and what consequences can be expected from any particular choice made for the organisation, its co- workers and for external relations. In order for a company to satisfy the conditions for corporate success, there should be a business idea and an understanding about how it should be realised. One aspect of the idea’s realisation is choosing the "right" organisational structure from the many old and new solutions of offer. This is the theme of the module "Strategy and Structure". Part of the course: "Management - Organisational Design and Leadership". More important than structure is, however, the issue of how people in the organisation can work together towards pre-established goals in an effective way such that people are, at the same time, stimulated and granted opportunities for personal development. This is the theme of the module "Leadership and Human Interaction". Part of the course: "Management - Organisational Design and Leadership". There are, however, no perfect solutions that suit all situations: the conditions for both the company and the enterprise function are changed constantly such that there are permanent demands for adaptation and development. The module "Change" deals with changes prompted by external or internal pressures and how changes in the organisation are implemented and how they affect those concerned. In the module "New Perspectives on Management", finally, the premises and assumptions previously made about enterprise, the firm and its co-workers are subjected to scrutiny from a critical/analytical perspective. The aim is partly to show the relativism of people’s social constructions, and partly to foster a sound degree of scepticism towards what is otherwise taken for granted. Module 1 Change, Innovation and Learning in Organisations (5 credits) The purpose of the course is to give the student an understanding of the nature of change and learning in organisations, and knowledge of theories and methods on change and learning. Change is dealt with from two perspectives - one external and one internal. From the external perspective change is discussed as responses to external pressure. External pressure can emanate from general economic changes in the society, uncertainty, growth, crises, but also from political condi- tions and mimetic processes, that is, fashion. The external perspective answers the question why organisations change. An important part of the perspective is also how actors in the single organisation interpret the external environment. In the second, internal perspective the focus is on how organisations change, that is, the actual implementation of change projects. Organi- sations are in this perspective described as political arenas, where successful change not only requires managerial decisions, but also acceptance of change ideas, motivation and learning. One important basis of successful implementation is the importance of engaging personnel in the change projects to create organisational learning. Organisational learning is thoroughly treated in a special part of the course. Learning is described both from the traditional, cognitive perspective, and from a more modern, constructivist perspective. In a concluding part of the course it is discussed how innovative and learning organisations can be created. Module 2 New perspectives on Management (5 credits) Most of our major organisations are institutions of modernity; they reflect ideals of rationality, efficiency and progress. On the other hand, people in most organisations can refer to numerous instances of irrationality, inefficiency and regress in their daily work. The world, the markets and the individuals that allowed for organisations to become true ‘modern’ phenomena, will not do so in the future. Instead, a number of alternative perspectives on organising have emerged in contemporary research, aspects characterised not so much by their mutual consistency as by their diversity and richness in approaching future life in organisations. Some of them are wellknown critical approaches to the study of social life, while others are truly new, all contributing to our understanding of management in the 21st century. The aim of the module is to reach an understanding of alternative frameworks of organising as expressed in a number of theoretical perspectives, thereby enabling the student to analyse and manage new forms of organi- sations in environments characterised by hypercompetition and cultural diversity. The module begins with an overview of existing problems of managing organisations in postmodern society, an overview not directed towards existing solutions, but rather towards their causes and consequences. These problems include e.g. changing values among individuals, non- orthodox ways of organising and rapid technological development. As potential ways of handling these problems, different theoretical perspectives are offered. First, the perspective of the individual is assumed; what are the values of tomorrow’s workforce and what do these values imply for the organising principles of tomorrow? How can individuals handle their identity and social belongings in times characterised by shortterm relations and ‘projectification’ (i.e. the tendency to organise work as portfolios of separate projects)? Second, the gender perspective is used in order to investigate how individuals relate to each other and how values and norms are shaped in organisations depending on what managers expect from different categories of individuals. Third, an ethical perspective is analysed in order to find a framework on how individuals and organisations can relate to each other in an environment characterised by cultural and moral diversity. Fourth, the issue of power is discussed. The question is if the new forms of organising identified in popular literature rest upon a different notion of power, or if they are just new forms of exercising the same ways of dominating. Fifth, the post-structural critics of modern society are discussed; will post-modern society be different in terms of the conditions for individuals to live their lives, or will new structural limitations emerge as the old ones disappear? The course ends by comparing the different perspectives, emphasising the responsibility of students of becoming conscious individuals interested in developing people, businesses, organisations and themselves in the 21st century. Teaching disposition The core topics of the course will be covered through seminars, case studies and lectures. The students will be demanded to make oral and written presentations on several occasions. Students are expected to participate actively in lectures, seminars and case analyses and presentations. Examination Attendance at seminars and case presentations are required to pass the course. A written examination (tentamen) is required to be taken on each module. The following grading system is used: Pass with distinction (Väl godkänd), Pass (Godkänd), and Fail (Underkänd). To receive the grade Pass with distinction on the course, the student must have achieved at least 75% of the total of points on the separate modules or the equivalent Grades on the course are awarded when students have passed all examinations and compulsory course elements. 3. Prerequisites Students are required to have a minimum of 30 credits from the A- and B- level courses in Business Administration for entry to the course. Exchange students require a minimum of 40 credits from the A-and B-level courses in Business Administration for entry to the course. It corre- sponds to 60 ECTS-credits in basic courses in Business Administration (Management,Accounting,Financial Investments,Cost Accounting and Marketing) 4. Teaching methods The core topics of the course will be covered through seminars, case studies and lectures. The students will be demanded to make oral and written presentations on several occasions. Students are expected to participate actively in lectures, seminars and case analyses and presentations. Guest lectures might be used in examination. 5. Examination Attendance at seminars and case presentations are a minimum requirement for passing the course. The quality of the case studies and the oral presentations will be a part of the grading in each module. A written comprehensive examination (tentamen) will be a part of the examination in module 1. When a student has failed an examination on two occations, he or she has a right to have another grading teacher. A written request should be handed to the director of studies no later than two weeks before the next examination opportunity. The following grading system will be used: Pass with distinction (Väl godkänd, VG), Pass (Godkänd, G) and Fail (Underkänd U). Swedish-speaking students should for additional information in this and the next section refer to the syllabus "Företagsekonomi C10/D10" confirmed by the Board of Business Administration 2001 or later. Further information about "muntan" can also be obtained from the student counsellor. 6. Utilisation et cetera In cases where there are applicants from the ERASMUS exchange programme, the course language will be English. Otherwise, parts of the course may be taught in English. Information on language aspects can be obtained from the student counsellor. 7. Readings and other material Module 1 Change, Innovation and Learning in Organisations (5 credits) Starkey, Ken., How organizations learn London : Routledge : International Thomson Business Press 1996 ISBN 0-415-12610-X (hft.) Dept of Business Administration, Article Compendium. (Studentexpeditionen) Module 2 New Perspectives on Management (5 credits) Clegg, S.R. & Hardy, C. (eds), Studying Organization. London: Sage 1999 ISBN 0-7619-6045-7 (hft.) Thompson, P. & McHugh, D., Work Organisations: A Critical Introduction. Palgrave Publishers Ltd 2002, 3rd ed ISBN 0-333-94991-9 (hft.) Dept of Business Administration, Article Compendium. (Studentexpeditionen) (Studentexpeditionen http://www.fek.umu.se/svl/lwexpen.html)