Harvard University

Extension School

MGMT - 4000: Organizational Behavior

Section 2
Spring 2019

Course time and location:

Monday, 7:40-9:40 PM
Northwest Science Building B108

Instructor:
Ellen Harris, Ed.M. (Organizational Behavior and Development)
MBA and Executive Education Coach, Harvard Business School
Director, Thompson Island Outward Bound Professional
elharris@post.harvard.edu, 617/328-3900 x.114

Appointments: before class, requested via email, in advance

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COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course creates awareness and understanding of human behavior in organizations,

enhancing one’s ability to lead people and increase organizational effectiveness.

Specifically, the course intends to be transformative using practical applications of the

theory. We will explore systems within organizations that facilitate or hinder effective
interactions. Theories/frameworks, case discussions, class discussions, and experiential
Initiative activities are used to create personal learning.

Topics include organizational design and development through Bolman and Deal’s Four
Frames, communication, motivation, international and corporate culture, diversity, equity
and inclusion, group/team dynamics, leadership, power and influence, and change
management. Class sessions and assignments are designed to help students acquire
skills needed to understand and improve organizational relationships and performance.

Most importantly, this class will be highly interactive and participatory, and fun (!), with
the expectation of students (and faculty) having responsibility for sharing their
knowledge, ideas and personal experience to enhance the academic work and offer
practical application of theory.

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COURSE OBJECTIVES

Readings are assigned to give a clear understanding of the important organizational

behavior topics. Cases are assigned to apply the theory to actual examples, and
experiential Initiative activities help put theory into practice. Students will be expected to
explore and reflect on their own experiences, and discuss ways to connect the academic
material to the organizations with which they are most familiar.

Specifically, using Reframing Organizations, this course will explore Bolman and Deal’s
four “frames”—
1. Structural frame: emphasizing goals, roles, formal relationships and the rational
side of organizations
2. Human Resource frame: emphasizing needs, attitudes, fit, skills and the human
side of organizations
3. Political frame: examining power, conflict, alliances, interests to further certain
agendas within a context of scarce resources
4. Symbolic frame: exploring how organizations create meaning and incorporation
through symbols, including rituals and ceremonies.

REQUIRED READING/BOOKS

These textbooks are on reserve at the Lamont Library, available at the Harvard COOP
https://tinyurl.com/300-W19-MGMT-E-4000-2 or the bookstore of your choice:

1. Bolman, L.G. and T.E. Deal, Reframing Organizations, 6th edition. Jossey-Bass:
San Francisco, 2013. (Please only use the 6th and newest edition.)

2. Gulati, Ranjay, Anthony J. Mayo and Nitin Nohria, Management An Integrated

Approach, 2nd edition. Cengage Learning, Boston, MA 2017.

Harvard Business School Cases can be purchased through Harvard Business

Publishing. More information will come in class.

Optional:

Fisher, Roger and William Ury, authors, Bruce Patton - editor, Getting to Yes -
Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. Penguin Books, 1991 (paperback).

Additional readings may be offered, but will not be required.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADES

The expectation is that you have read materials prior to class. The class discussion will
be based on the reading with application to your personal experiences in the workplace
and organizations, and to current events. There may be additional assignments as they
become relevant.

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Grading will be based as follows:

• Class Attendance and Participation, and Reading Synopsis 20% of total grade

Regular attendance is required. If you are unable to attend a class, please e-mail me in
advance, the Sunday before class. If you expect to miss three classes or more, you
must meet with me. The expectation is that students will be fully prepared to engage in
the learning community through discussion and interaction. Thus, students learn from
hearing each other’s opinions, and through student presentation (Reading Synopsis- to
be described in the first class.)

Class participation will be reviewed both for the Reading Synopsis and comments in
class. Quality of participation is not based on volume, but contributions to the body of
knowledge and challenging and stimulating the dialogue. If you wish, you can make an
appointment immediately after the class in which you present to get feedback on your
Reading Synopsis presentation.

All papers for the course must be submitted by the start of class in hard copy
(Arial 11 pt. font, printed double sided, and double spaced, 1” margins)

Any late assignments will result in a lower grade for each day that it is late.

If you will not be attending when an assignment is due, please forward it to a classmate
so they can turn it in, in hard copy, for you. During the first classes there will be time for
students to exchange contact information so as a member of this learning community
students can access information missed if absent.

Most assignments are known in advance and are posted on the Syllabus. Other
occasional and non-graded ones will be given in class. If for some reason you miss the
class and hence the assignment, try to obtain the materials needed from your colleague
students, and feel free to contact me.

• Case Analysis 20% of total grade

Students will be asked to write-up two specific Cases (2 Pages maximum, including
footnotes) during the term. This will give the student the opportunity to fully develop
his/her own understanding of concepts learned; integrating analysis and theory.

* Term Paper 40% of total grade

All students will submit a written term paper exploring and analyzing, using Bolman and
Deal’s four frames, an organization where you have in-depth information. You should
also incorporate models and theories from the Cases, Management text book and class.
You should make a recommendation for the situation if it could be improved or
strengthened. More details and rubric will follow in class.

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Paper topics for the Term Paper will be submitted for approval March 25th. Term
Papers will be due on April 22nd, and should be 7 pages of analysis, 3 pages of
optional exhibits (tables, charts, etc.) including all footnotes. The maximum is 10 pages,
total. Bibliography is not necessary and will not be given credit.)

* Take Home Final Examination: Reflection Paper 20% of total grade

This Take Home Final Exam provides the opportunity to reflect on the topics of this
course. It is due the last day of class, May 13. If you would like it returned to you,
please bring a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE).

GENERAL CLASSROOM COURTESY

We will especially encourage and respect a variety of different views on each topic.
Please make every attempt to arrive on time, and switch off cell phones and pagers.
Laptops, iPads, etc. are not permitted in the classroom, exceptions will be made for
special circumstances when agreed upon in advance.

OFFICIAL HARVARD EXTENSION SCHOOL POLICIES

Accessibility
The Extension School is committed to providing an accessible academic community.
The Accessibility Office offers a variety of accommodations and services to students with
documented disabilities. Please visit https://www.extension.harvard.edu/resources-
policies/resources/disability-services-accessibility for more information.

Academic Integrity
You are responsible for understanding Harvard Extension School policies on academic
integrity (https://www.extension.harvard.edu/resources-policies/student-
conduct/academic-integrity) and how to use sources responsibly. Not knowing the rules,
misunderstanding the rules, running out of time, submitting the wrong draft, or being
overwhelmed with multiple demands are not acceptable excuses. There are no excuses
for failure to uphold academic integrity. To support your learning about academic citation
rules, please visit the Harvard Extension School Tips to Avoid Plagiarism
(https://www.extension.harvard.edu/resources-policies/resources/tips-avoid-plagiarism),
where you'll find links to the Harvard Guide to Using Sources and two free online 15-
minute tutorials to test your knowledge of academic citation policy. The tutorials are
anonymous open-learning tools.

NEW LIBRARY INFORMATION for 2018-2019

There have been quite a few changes with library resources/services and Harvard
Extension School. There is a Library Guide for Harvard Extension that might help with
some of those changes.

https://guides.library.harvard.edu/extensionstudents

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One of the tabs on that guide is about Course Reserves

https://guides.library.harvard.edu/extensionstudents/reserves

Print reserves for HES are now in Lamont Library.

Purpose of Citations
• To give credit to the authors of the source of materials you used when writing
• The enable the reader to follow up on the source materials
• To demonstrate that your paper is well-researched
• Service for the reader

Avoiding Plagiarism

From the Registrar: You are responsible for understanding Harvard Extension School
policies on academic integrity (www.extension.harvard.edu/resources-policies/student-
conduct/academic-integrity) and how to use sources responsibly. Not knowing the rules,
misunderstanding the rules, running out of time, submitting the wrong draft, or being
overwhelmed with multiple demands are not acceptable excuses. There are no excuses
for failure to uphold academic integrity. To support your learning about academic citation
rules, please visit the Harvard Extension School Tips to Avoid Plagiarism
(www.extension.harvard.edu/resources-policies/resources/tips-avoid-plagiarism), where
you'll find links to the Harvard Guide to Using Sources and two free online 15-minute
tutorials to test your knowledge of academic citation policy. The tutorials are anonymous
open-learning tools.

Specifically, about our writing assignments:

“Your research paper is a collaboration between you and your sources. To be fair and
ethical, you must acknowledge your debt to the writers of those sources. If you don’t,
you commit plagiarism, a serious academic offense.
Three different acts are considered plagiarism:
(1) Failing to cite quotations and borrowed ideas,
(2) Failing to enclose borrowed language in quotation marks, and
(3) Failing to put summaries and paraphrases in your own words.”

(Hacker, Diana, A Pocket Style Manual, 5th ed., Boston 2008, p.199)

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 COURSE SCHEDULE
Information listed is what will be covered in class on that day, and should be read in
advance of class.

Class 1 Course Orientation

January 28
Discussion: What is Organizational Behavior?
Review of Course Syllabus/assignments
Introduction of Class Members and this Learning Community

Class 2 Overview of Organizational Frames:

February 4
Structural, Human Resource, Political, Symbolic
Please note: classes 2-6 are foundational regarding theory for this class

Readings:
*Bolman and Deal- Chapter 1: Making Sense of Organizations,
“Introduction: The Power of Reframing,” and Chapter 2 “Simple Ideas,
Complex Organizations”

* Assignments Due: (brought in hard copy to class)

- Biography and Personal Statement of Goals for this Course
- Signature verifying taking Online Tutorial – Citations (at end of
Bio)
- Name card

Class 3 The Structural Frame

February 11
Readings:
* Bolman and Deal-Chapter 3: “Getting Organized,” and
Chapter 4: “Generic Issues in Restructuring”
* Handout: How to prepare a Case Study

February 18 President’s Day – NO CLASS

Class 4 The Human Resource Frame (Guest Lecturer)

February 25
Readings:
* Bolman and Deal-Chapter 6: “People and Organizations,” and
Chapter 7: “Improving Human Resource Management”

Class 5 The Political Frame (Guest Lecturer)

March 4
Readings:
* Bolman and Deal-Chapter 9 “Power, Conflict and Coalition,” and
Chapter 10: “The Manager as Politician”
* Case: Rob Parson at Morgan Stanley

Optional Reading:
* Gulati, Mayo, Nohria-Chapter 14, “Power and Influence” pages 358-376.
* Assignment Due: HBS Case: Rob Parson (A) write-up

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Class 6 The Symbolic Frame
March 11
Readings:
* Bolman and Deal- Chapter 12: “Organizational Symbols and Culture,”
and Chapter 13: “Culture in Action”
* Reminder—Term Paper Topic due next class

March 18 Spring Break – NO CLASS

Class 7 Personality and Perception

March 25
Readings:
* Gulati, Mayo, Nohria- Chapter 13, Knowing Yourself, p. 334-353.
* Maccoby, M. (2004). “Narcissistic Leaders: The Incredible Pros, the
Inevitable Cons,” Harvard Business Review. Jan. 2004, Vol. 82(1), p.
92-101.
* Cuddy, A. (2013). “Connect, then Lead”, Harvard Business Review.
July – August 2013, p. 55-61.

* Assignment Due: Term Paper Topic (1 page outline)

* Bring Myers-Briggs Type Indicator results to class

Class 8 Motivation and Communication

April 1
Readings:
* Gulati, Mayo, Nohria-Chapter 18: “Motivation,” Chapter 19:
“Communication”, pages 455-505
* Case: Nordstrom: Dissension in the Ranks (A)

Optional:
* Ordóňez, Lisa D., Maurice E. Schweitzer, Adam D. Galinsky, and Max H.
Bazerman (2009): “Goals Gone Wild.” Harvard Business School. Working
paper 09-083, January 2009.

* Assignment Due: HBS Case: Nordstrom write-up

Class 9 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

April 8
Readings:
* Gulati, Mayo, Nohria-Chapter 8: “Organizational Culture”, pages 207-
222
* “The Parable of the Ups and Down” and “Valuing Differences”

* Possible additional assignment from Guest Speaker

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Class 10 Ethics and Decision Making
April 15
Readings:
* Bolman and Deal-Chapter 19: “Reframing Ethics and Spirit”
* Gulati, Mayo, Nohria-Chapter 3: “ Ethics and Corporate Social
Responsibility,” pages 61-82 and Chapter 15: “Decision Making”,
pages 381-401

*Assignment Due: The Milk Shake Case, (no write up-for class
discussion only)

Class 11 Group/Team Dynamics

April 22
Readings:
* Bolman and Deal-Chapter 5 “Organizing Groups and Teams”
* Gulati, Mayo-Nohria-Chapter 17: “Leading Teams”, pages 431-450

Optional:
* Hackman, J.R. & Couter, D. (2009). The HBR interview: Why Teams
Don’t Work. Harvard Business Review. May 2009, p.95-102.

* Assignment Due: Term Paper

Class 12 Leadership -Frameworks and Concepts

April 29
Readings:
* Bolman and Deal-Chapter 17: “Reframing Leadership”
* Gulati, Mayo, Nohria: Chapter 12: “Leadership in Organizations” pages
309-328.

Optional:
* Zaleznik, Abraham (1977), “Managers and Leaders: Are they
Different?” Harvard Business Review. May-June 1977, p.67-78.

Class 13 Conflict and Negotiations

May 6
Readings:
* Gulati, Mayo, Nohria-Chapter 16: “Conflict and Negotiation” pages
405-426.
* Cuddy, A. (2010) “Fake It Till You Make It”, Harvard Business School,
Working Knowledge, 20 Sep 2010, http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6461.html
(Also available as a TedTalk)

* Take Home Final Exam/Reflection Paper will be given in class

Optional:
*Fisher and Ury: Getting to Yes

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Class 14 Change and Transformation in Organization
May 13
Readings:
* Bolman and Deal-Chapter 18: “Reframing Change in Organizations:
Training, Realigning, Negotiating and Grieving”
* HBS Case: Kim, W.C. and Mauborgne, R. (2003), “Tipping Point
Leadership”

Optional:
*Gulati, Mayo, Nohria- Chapter 11: “Organizational Change”, pages 283-
302

* Assignment Due: Take Home Final Exam/Reflection Paper

Please Note:

* Syllabus topics and dates may change according to work travel schedule and possible
guest speaker availability. Additional information and materials may be given in class.

I look forward to learning together over the semester!

EH 1-28-19