Business Administration C5 New Perspectives on Management, 5 credits Syllabus, course C5 Business Administration, 5 credits (Advanced level) Course code: FEUC02 Responisble Department: The Dept of Business Administration Subject: Business Administration Level: C Field of education: Social Science This course is at advanced level in a Bsc- or a Msc-degree at the University of Umeå. The course is intended for exchange students within particular exchange programmes This course is a part of the course MANAGEMENT ; Organising in the 21th Century C10/D10, 10 credits http://www.fek.umu.se/svl/lwc29.txt 1 Resolution to arrange the course The course is established by the Faculty of Social Science at Umeå University and the syllabus is confirmed by the Board of Business Administration June 6, 2002. 2 Objective and contents The courses in management consist of "Strategy and Structure in Organi- sations", "Leadership and Human Interaction in Organisations", " Organi- sations - Change, Innovation and Learning" and "New Perspectives on Management". 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 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 course "Strategy and Structure in Organisations". 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 course "Leadership and Human Interaction in Organisations". 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 course "Organisations .-.Change, Innovation and Learning" 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 course "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. 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 organi- sations. Some of them are well-known critical approaches to the study of social life, while others are truly new, all contributing to our under- standing of management in the 21st century. The aim of the course is to reach an understanding of alternative frame- works 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 hyper-competition and cultural diversity. The course begins with an overview of existing problems of managing organi- sations in post-modern 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 short-term 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 indivi- duals 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. 3 Prerequisites Students are reguired 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. Students are expected to participate actively in lectures, seminars and case analyses and presentations, given oral and written presentations on a number of occasions. Guest lectures might be used in examination. 5 Examination Attendance at seminars and case presentations are required to pass the course. A written comprehensive examination (tentamen) is also required. The quality of the case studies and the oral presentations can be a part of the grading. The following grading system will be used: Pass with distinction (Väl godkänd, VG), Pass (Godkänd, G) and Fail (Underkänd, U). For exchange students the ECTS grading scale will be used upon request. 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. 6 Utilization et cetera Autumn semester Organisations - Change, Innovation and Learning, (September - October) New Perspectives on Management, (October - November) Spring semester Strategy and Structure in Organisations, (January - February) Leadership and Human Interaction in Organisations, (February - March) Timetable other courses, see http://www.fek.umu.se/svl/lwcourse.html 7 Readings and other material, Business Administration C5, 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) UMEÅ UNIVERSITY Faculty of Social Sciences Department of Business Administration S-901 87 Umeå, Sweden www.fek.umu.se