MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 1 - Case
MANAGING INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOR
Case Assignment
Think about an experience you had where you felt extremely
motivated. In a 3- to 4-page paper, analyze this experience according to the
experiential format below. Each subtitle represents a different section of the
paper. You can use the subtitles as
headings.
Introduction: Discuss the topic of the paper and how you
will approach it. It is best to write this section after you have written the
rest of the paper.
The Experience: Begin with a specific situation/event.
Describe the experience where you felt extremely motivated. Be objective and
focus on just the facts: who, what, where, when, and how.
Reflection: Reflect upon that experience from the multiple
perspectives of other people involved or affected in the experience. Step back
from the situation, look at the experience from your own viewpoint, and the
viewpoints of other parties involved or affected. Look at the circumstances
surrounding the experience from every relevant perspective. Why was the
experience motivating to you? What did others do that increased your
motivation? Was the situation (or would the situation) also be motivating to
others? (Note: Your discussion of theories and models from your module
materials belongs in the following section.)
Abstract Conceptualization: [Important: This Abstract
Conceptualization section is the “heart” of your paper. Use critical thinking
skills to understand and interpret the experience at a deeper, more
generalizable level. Interpret and understand the events you have described by
drawing on the concepts, theories, and models in the background material from
this module. What behavior patterns can you identify in yourself and others
that are similar to the ones described in the material on motivation, values,
and/or goals? How do these concepts and principles explain why you were
motivated? What general principles of motivation can you derive from this
analysis? Apply at least three concepts, theories, and/or models and cite all
references to concepts and ideas that you use from sources. Be sure to cite all
references to concepts, ideas, and quotes you use that come from any outside
source.
Experimentation: Identify ways to respond to the next
occurrence of a similar experience. How are you going to put what you have
learned to use? How will you use this knowledge to motivate yourself and
others? What actions will you take to create a work environment that is
motivating?
Conclusion: Sum up the main points of your analysis and the
key learnings you are taking from it.
Reference List: List all references that you have cited in
the paper using APA formatting.
References include materials from the required background readings as
well as any outside Internet or library sources you used in researching and
writing your paper. If you have APA questions, refer to the optional listings
on the Background page.
Assignment Expectations
Your paper will be evaluated using the criteria as stated in
the Case grading rubric. The following is a review of the rubric criteria:
Assignment-Driven: Does the paper fully address all aspects
of the assignment? Is the assignment
addressed accurately and precisely using sound logic? Does the paper meet
minimum length requirements?
Critical Thinking: Does the paper demonstrate graduate-level
analysis, in which information derived from multiple sources, expert opinions,
and assumptions has been critically evaluated and synthesized in the
formulation of a logical set of conclusions? Does the paper address the topic
with sufficient depth of discussion and analysis?
Business Writing: Is the essay logical, well organized and
well written? Are the grammar, spelling, and vocabulary appropriate for
graduate-level work? Are section headings included? Are paraphrasing and
synthesis of concepts the primary means of responding, or is
justification/support instead conveyed through excessive use of direct
quotations?
Effective Use of Information: Does the submission
demonstrate that the student has read, understood and can apply the background
materials for the module? If required, has the student demonstrated effective
research, as evidenced by student’s use of relevant and quality (library?)
sources? Do additional sources used provide strong support for conclusions
drawn, and do they help in shaping the overall paper?
Citing Sources: Does the student demonstrate understanding
of APA Style of referencing, by inclusion of proper citations (for paraphrased
text and direct quotations) as appropriate? Have all sources (e.g., references
used from the Background page, the assignment readings, and outside research)
been included, and are these properly cited? Have all sources cited in the
paper been included on the References page?
Timeliness: Has the assignment been submitted to TLC
(Trident’s learning management system) on or before the module’s due date?
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 1 - SLP
MANAGING INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOR
The SLP for this course involves making a personal
assessment of a relevant set of skills, focusing on your strengths and
identifying any weaknesses that may have been revealed. You will then create a
plan by which you can "grow" your strengths and shore up your
weaknesses. By the end of the project, you will have a personal management
profile and action plan.
As we have discussed, your values and attitudes interact
with your personality to create a strong effect on your work life. The fit
between an individual's personality and a company's "style" is
essential to job satisfaction. Someone who is risk-averse, for example, would
probably be unhappy at 3M, a company with a reputation for innovation and
risk-taking. Understanding the impact of
your own personality on others helps you build productive work relationships
with peers, subordinates, and bosses, alike.
Refer to the required and optional sources for this module,
and any other materials which will help you in understanding personality styles
and how they affect organizational effectiveness. Remember to follow Trident’s guidelines for
masters-level writing. (See The Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality
Academic Paper.)
Assignment
Click on this link to access and complete the Jung Typology
personality test. After you complete the test, you will want to read the
description, but in order to fully understand what this test measures, you
should also review “Personality Type explained.” Then review the pages on
career choices, learning style and communication skills. Incorporate this
information in formulating your responses to the questions below.
Include the actual results in an appendix at the end of your
paper. (Note: This appendix requirement will likely increase your paper’s
Turnitin similarity score; however, your professor is aware of this.)
Prepare a 2- to 3-page essay that addresses the following:
How does my personality type affect my career and
effectiveness at my job?
Discuss:
What did the test reveal about you?
What can you infer from this test about your strengths and
weaknesses?
How does what you have learned from your module background
materials about your personality type affect your motivation? Is this limited
to a specific type of situation?
What specific steps can you take to increase your strengths
and build up weaknesses?
Refer to at least two module readings plus any other
materials to help you in understand personality styles and how they affect
organizational effectiveness. Complete the assessment according to the
guidelines. Include the actual results in an Appendix section as the last page
of your paper.
Follow the writing guidelines and other sources listed under
the Optional Materials heading on the Module 1 Background page.
SLP Assignment Expectations
Your paper will be evaluated using the criteria on the SLP
rubric (see the rubric for more detail): Assignment-Driven, Critical Thinking,
Business Writing, Effective Use of Information, Citing Sources, and Timeliness.
You can find the rubric under Assessments>Rubrics at the
top of the page.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 2 -
Case
MANAGING GROUPS AND TEAMS
Assignment Overview
Group Dynamics and Teams
We will continue our experiential approach to the study of
Organizational Behavior by engaging in a personal applied case on the topic of
group dynamics and teams. As in Module 1, use the following outline to
structure your 4- to 6-page paper. You may use the subtitles as headings for
your paper.
Introduction: Discuss the topic of the paper and how you
will approach it. It is best to write this section after you have written the
rest of the paper.
Concrete Experience: Begin with a specific situation/event.
Describe an experience with a group or team that was meaningful to you. It may
have been an extraordinarily good experience – or it may have been an
experience that did not work out very well at all! The important point is that
it should be an experience which you would like to understand better. Be objective
and focus on just the facts: who, what, where, when, and how – as if you were
composing a newspaper article.
Reflective Observation: Reflect upon that experience from
multiple perspectives of persons involved or affected in the experience. Step
back from the situation, look at the experience from your own viewpoint, and
from the perspective of all other parties involved or affected. You want to
look at the circumstances surrounding the experience from every relevant point
of view. Why did you behave the way that you did? Why did others behave the way
that they did? Did others have the same positive (or negative) experience?
Explain. (Note: your discussion of theories and models from your module
materials belongs in the following section.)
Abstract Conceptualization: (This Abstract Conceptualization
section is the “heart” of your paper.) Use critical thinking skills to
understand and interpret the experience at a deeper, more generalizable level.
Interpret and understand the events you have described by drawing on the
concepts, theories, and models in the background material from this module.
Explain how they apply to your experience. For example, what behavior patterns
can you identify in yourself and others that are similar to the ones described
in the material on communication, teams, and conflict management? Does the
model of Force Field Analysis (home page) help you better understand why people
behaved the way they did? Be sure to apply at least three concepts, theories,
and/or models and cite all references to concepts, ideas, and/or quotes that
you use from any outside source.
Active Experimentation: Identify ways to respond to the next
occurrence of a similar experience. What have you learned about the way groups
work from this analysis? What have you learned from your mistakes? How are you
going to put what you have learned to use? What actions will you take to build
more effective work teams in your job?
Conclusion: Sum up the main points of your analysis and the
key learning you are taking from it.
Reference List: List all references that you have cited in
the paper using APA formatting. References include materials from the required
background readings as well as any outside internet or library sources you used
in researching and writing your paper. If you have APA questions, refer to the
optional listings on the background page.
Assignment Expectations
Your Case paper will be evaluated using the criteria on the
assignment rubric (see the rubric for more detail): Assignment-Driven, Critical
Thinking, Business Writing, Effective Use of Information, Citing Sources, and
Timeliness.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 2 - SLP
MANAGING GROUPS AND TEAMS
Communication Climate
Communication is the grease which makes relationships in
organizations run smoothly, and by extension, directly affects the
effectiveness of the organization itself. Communication climate refers to the
mood or tone of interpersonal communications and determines in great part how
people feel about each other and how they carry out their work activities. Thus,
communication climate has a great deal of influence over the organizational
climate or general atmosphere of the work environment. Read the following blog
about what it is like to work in a defensive climate:
Dukes, A.J. (2012). Defensive v Supportive Climates in the
Workplace. Retrieved from
http://scom320class.blogspot.com/2012/07/defensive-v-supportive-climates-in.html
As you can see from this blog entry, defensive climates
create a situation where employees do not raise work concerns or communicate their
needs. They are careful about what they say and guard their opinions.
Frequently they exhibit low motivation.
Supportive climates, on the other hand, encourage employee
participation and engagement, an open exchange of information, and constructive
conflict. Employees who work in supportive environments often exhibit greater
organizational commitment, an attitude cited as highly desirable in Module
1.
The Communication Climate Inventory was developed as a means
of measuring the degree of supportiveness and defensiveness in an organization.
For this SLP, take the inventory and score your organization’s communication
climate using the scale below. Take the Communication Climate Inventory.
Defensive Score
Defensive Score
Supportive Score
Supportive Score
SLP Assignment
Compose a 2- to 3-page blog like the one you read for this
SLP, describing the climate in your organization, department, or team. Do not
use the actual name of the organization – you can make up a pseudonym. Include
the following in your description:
Is the climate supportive or defensive? Does this align with
the results of your Communication Climate Inventory? Attach your Inventory
results as an appendix. (Note: This appendix requirement will likely increase
your paper’s Turnitin similarity score; your professor is aware of this.)
How does the communication climate affect motivation and
organizational/team commitment?
How could you improve the communication climate in your
organization, department, or team?
What communication skills would you like to learn or improve
on in order to create a supportive communication climate?
Be sure to support your analysis with concepts and
principles introduced in the background readings on communication as well as
conflict and teams (if appropriate). You may also incorporate outside research
to supplement the background material. Cite all sources properly.
SLP Assignment Expectations
Your paper will be evaluated using the criteria on the SLP
rubric (see the rubric for more detail): Assignment-Driven, Critical Thinking,
Business Writing, Effective Use of Information, Citing Sources, and Timeliness.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 3 - Case
LEADERS AND LEADERSHIP
Case Assignment
Once again, we will be considering an experience which has
personal significance for you as a means of understanding the material from
this module. For this Case Assignment, think about a situation involving
leadership that made a strong impression on you. Please structure your essay in
the following format, using the subtopics as headings. Your paper should be 4–6
pages, plus a title page and a references page.
Introduction: Discuss the topic of the paper and how you
will approach it. It is best to write
this section after you have written the rest of the paper.
Concrete Experience:
Objectively describe the leadership experience. It could be a situation where you were in a
leadership position, or one in which you were working under someone else as
leader. The situation could have been a good experience or a failure in
leadership. The important consideration is that it is a situation which you
would like to understand better. In this section, strive to be objective and
stick to the facts—who, what, where, when, and how.
Reflective Observation: Step back and consider the situation
from different points of view. How did
you feel—what were your thoughts at the time? It is also critical to consider
the experience of others involved. How
do you think they were feeling? Did they see things the same way you did? The
key to this section of your paper is to understand the experience not only from
your own perspective, but also to develop the ability to be able to look at the
situation through others’ eyes. Use these different perceptions to add depth
and meaning to your objective description.
Abstract Conceptualization: There are many readings and
other materials explaining various models of leadership in the background
section of this module. Use at least three of them to help explain the behavior
of the leader and the followers in this incident. How do the models of
leadership and power presented in the background material help you understand
your behavior as well as how others reacted (commitment, compliance, or
resistance?) Use proper citations and referencing when referring to any
material from the background pages or any additional outside research. (Outside
research not required, but you may supplement the background material if you
choose. It should not replace the background readings and videos, but acts as
an additional source.)
(Remember: The abstract conceptualization section is the
“heart” of your paper. Your ability to clearly and logically apply concepts of
leadership to explain your own experience is essential to demonstrating
critical thinking.)
Active Experimentation: What have you learned about effective
leadership from this exercise? What have you learned about how the leadership
style influences follower’s reactions and motivation? What actions would you
take to revise or improve upon your own leadership style and practices to be
more effective in the future?
Conclusion: Sum up the main points of your analysis and the
key learning you are taking from it.
Reference List: List
all references that you have cited in the paper using APA formatting. References include materials from the
required background readings as well as any outside internet or library sources
you used in researching and writing your paper. If you have APA questions,
refer to the optional listings on the background page.
Assignment Expectations
Your Case paper will be evaluated using the criteria on the
assignment rubric (see the rubric for more detail): Assignment-Driven, Critical
Thinking, Business Writing, Effective Use of Information, Citing Sources, and
Timeliness.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 3 - SLP
LEADERS AND LEADERSHIP
Most of what is written about leadership has been written by
western scholars and practitioners—mostly from the United States. Thus, what we
have studied in this module so far reflects western assumptions and values
about how to improve leadership performance.
But leadership quality, we know, is mostly about perception.
If the followers perceive that a person is a leader, that person will be
treated with respect and the followers will grant him the power and authority
to guide their actions. These perceptions can vary across cultures, and
successful global leaders know that leadership is viewed differently in
different cultures and modify their behaviors to align with culturally diverse
expectations. This is what is called Cultural Intelligence.
Required Reading
The following reading discusses the importance of cultural
awareness in increasing organizational effectiveness:
O’Reilly, C. (2013). Why is cultural intelligence important?
Retrieved from
http://www.trainingzone.co.uk/topic/soft-skills/why-cultuiral-intelligence-important/181942
Assignment
In this exercise, there are two sets of quizzes (A & B)
that you will participate in.
Select either the Cross Cultural Work Scenarios or Working
Globally Across Cultures quiz from
http://www.commisceo-global.com/quizzes/cultural-awareness-quizzes?view=qcategory&cat_id=39
Choose any one of the country quizzes at
http://www.commisceo-global.com/quizzes/cultural-awareness-quizzes?view=qcategory&cat_id=41
that looks interesting to you.
After completing the quizzes, address the following questions
in a 2- to 3-page essay:
Which quizzes did you take?
Include your actual results in an Appendix at the end of
your paper.
Were you surprised at your score?
What strengths do you think you have in intercultural
awareness?
What weaknesses are you able to identify?
If there were gaps between your assessment results and your
own thoughts about your level of cultural awareness, why do these gaps exist?
Create a plan of specific, concrete actions you can take to
build on your strengths and improve areas of weakness so that you improve your
cultural awareness.
Why is it important for managers to increase their levels of
cultural awareness?
SLP Assignment Expectations
Your paper will be evaluated using the criteria on the SLP
rubric (see the rubric for more detail): Assignment-Driven, Critical Thinking,
Business Writing, Effective Use of Information, Citing Sources, and Timeliness.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 4 - Case
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND CULTURE
Assignment Overview
The format of this case differs from the previous three modules
and resembles more closely the format of assignments you will see in many of
your courses going forward. This is not to say that you should abandon what you
have learned about the analytical process of alternating between the abstract
and the concrete, the reflective and the active, but this paper will not follow
the format of a section on concrete experience, reflective observation,
abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation. Each of these aspects
of analysis should be present, but integrated into the paper as a whole, rather
than broken out into distinct sections.
The topic of this case is organizational design. To complete
this assignment, we will begin as before, and you should identify an
organization you know very well. Then conduct your analysis by addressing the
topics below. Do not line up the questions and address them one at a time as in
a short-answer test, but rather integrate them into a single coherent
commentary and analysis of the organization. A critical part of successful
completion of this assignment is for you to demonstrate your ability to employ
the concepts introduced in the background material in describing and evaluating
the effectiveness of the organizational design. To do this, you will need to
draw on the concepts from at least three readings/videos. This paper should be
4-6 pages long.
Case Questions:
Diagram the formal structure of your organization. Identify
the various management positions or titles on the chart and indicate the
positions/jobs that would report to each. Identify the various management
positions or titles on the chart and indicate the positions/jobs that would
report to each.
SmartDraw.com (https://cloud.smartdraw.com/) provides free
examples, though others are also available via Google. PowerPoint also has
templates for organizational charts you can use.
Describe how work is divided (specialization and
departmentalization), coordinated (chain of command and span of control), and
controlled (centralization and formalization). Is the structure more
mechanistic or organic?
Describe the informal structure of the organization. How
does work actually get done?
How does the organization deal with the
differentiation-integration issue?
Having completed this analysis, identify three strengths and
three weaknesses of the organizational design.
If you could suggest one major improvement to the
organizational design, what would it be?
Assignment Expectations
Your Case paper will be evaluated using the criteria on the
assignment rubric (see the rubric for more detail): Assignment-Driven, Critical
Thinking, Business Writing, Effective Use of Information, Citing Sources, and
Timeliness.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 4 - SLP
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND CULTURE
For the SLP 4 assignment, you will explore some aspects of
an organization's culture, at least as you see it. (Select an organization you
have worked with, if possible.) Since the concept of organizational culture is
open to many interpretations and classifications, this assessment offers a
slightly different approach from your background reading on organizational
culture.
Required Reading
Debra Woog McGinty and Nicole C. Moss have compiled a short
corporate culture survey aimed at identifying characteristics of workplaces.
The categories of workplace description that it generates are fairly
self-explanatory.
Assignment
When you have completed the assessment think about it for a
minute, and how it compares to the Academy, Baseball Team, Fortress, and Club
cultures described by McNamara in the Background reading. Then prepare a 2- to
3-page paper addressing:
Your scores on the McGinty/Moss assessment and whether or
not they fit your general expectations or constitute a surprise in some ways.
Interpret the results of the assessment in terms of your own experience, either
to confirm or to question the results. Compare your findings with the McNamara
categories.
The degree to which the McGinty/Moss assessment and the
McNamara information tell you similar or dissimilar things about your
organization.
Do the assessment and the McNamara categories help improve
your managerial understanding and/or skills? What can you infer from the
assessment results about how your organization’s culture fits or doesn't fit
with you? What (if anything) can you do to make your interaction with the
culture more effective?
Provide your opinion on whether or not the questions asked
help you understand the organization and how you cope with it. Do they
accurately assess what is needed to analyze a company’s culture?
Include the actual results to the survey in an Appendix
section in your paper.
SLP Assignment Expectations
Your paper will be evaluated using the criteria on the SLP
rubric (see the rubric for more detail): Assignment-Driven, Critical Thinking,
Business Writing, Effective Use of Information, Citing Sources, and Timeliness.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 1 discussion
DQ1 How to design jobs to enhance satisfaction and
motivation: Job Characteristics Model
Each module’s Discussion Forum in this class has two topics
– one for the first week and another for the second.
In the Module 1 Discussion Forum be sure to post your
responses using the background material, including the reading and video on the
Job Characteristics Model. Here is a shorter synopsis of that material:
Louis, D. J. (2016) Notes on the Job Characteristics Model.
In Week 1, consider a job you have held that you did NOT
find motivating. What job characteristics were missing? Look at another
student’s post and suggest some ways that a manager could redesign that job to
enhance one or more job characteristics and increase the motivating properties
of that job. When someone has posted to your original job characteristics, go
back and comment on whether or not the suggested changes would have made you
feel more motivated. Why or why not?
(Besides the source listed above, introduce and cite at
least one other source of information for your initial post.)
Remember, after you submit your answer to the Discussion
this week, you also need to respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.
(In total for this module’s two-part Discussion you should
have contributed to at least two Discussion Question posts and four response
posts to your classmates.)
You MUST participate in BOTH Week 1 and Week 2 Discussions
to get credit for this module’s Discussion.
Posting early each week will allow for more opportunities
for leading the discussions, making substantial contributions, and engaging in
meaningful and mutual discussions with others.
DQ2 How to design jobs to enhance satisfaction and
motivation: Job Characteristics Model
Read the following: Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene Theory.
http://www.netmba.com/mgmt/ob/motivation/herzberg/
Herzberg’s Theory suggests that pay and benefits are not
motivators, because they do not satisfy the worker (who doesn’t want more pay
or vacation time?). However, they can cause dissatisfaction if not sufficient.
Critically compare and contrast his theory to the Job Characteristics Model.
For example: What factors leading to
satisfaction (motivators) can be aligned with Job Characteristics or Critical
Psychological States? Do you think any of Herzberg’s dissatisfiers (hygiene
factors) align with Job Characteristics or Critical Psychological States? Does
this mean one or both of these theories is wrong?
(Besides the source listed above, bring in and cite at least
one other source of information for your initial post.)
Remember, after you submit your answer to the Discussion
this week, you also need to respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.
(In total for this module’s two-part Discussion Forum you
should have contributed to at least two Discussion Question posts and four
response posts to your classmates.)
You MUST participate in BOTH Week 1 and Week 2 Discussions
to get credit for this module’s Discussion Forum.
Posting early each week will allow for more opportunities
for leading the discussions, making substantial contributions, and engaging in
meaningful and mutual discussions with others.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 2 discussion
DQ1 Conflict Management
Recall that the discussion for each module has two parts—one
for each week. To get proper credit, be sure you post an initial posting for
each week, as well as respond to the postings of at least two other students
each week. Remember that if someone posts a response to one of your posts, you
should engage with that person as appropriate—as if you were having a real-time
conversation.
Review the background materials on Conflict Management. You
will need the concepts and principles from these readings to support your
responses to the discussion questions. You may also support your comments with
references from outside sources. Be sure to cite sources used.
Week 1: Conflict Management
What was the worst experience you ever had with conflict?
What was so bad about it? What are some of the things that caused the conflict?
Look at another student’s post and comment on how you, as an outsider, see the
causes of their conflict. What are some suggestions you would have to mitigate
or resolve their situation? When someone has responded to your post, be sure to
go back and comment on if you think that the suggestions would have worked to
resolve the conflict. Why or why not?
DQ2 Active Listening
Active listening is a technique that is frequently used in
conflict situations to increase the effectiveness of communication. View the
following video and short article that teach active listening skills.
Active listening: Hear what people are actually saying.
(2016). Mind Tools. Retrieved from
https://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/ActiveListening.htm
Now try to practice active listening with a friend, a
spouse, coworker—or even a stranger on the bus! (You can use a cheat sheet if
you can’t remember all the steps.) Tell us about your experience. What were the
circumstances of the conversation? Was it easy or hard? What gave you
difficulty in putting the technique into practice? What was the other person’s
reaction? Do you think the experiment was successful?
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 3 discussion
DQ1 Merger and Unit Integration Issues
As a leader/manager, one circumstance you may encounter is
the necessity to integrate or merge two organizational units. This can be a
stressful period which, if not properly managed, can cause a good deal of
tension and/or conflict, often leading to decreased organizational performance.
Consider that senior management has dictated that your unit
will merge with another manager’s unit over the next three months. You will be
the leader of the newly merged group. The previous manager will remain on your
staff. Senior management has asked you to submit a merger plan. (If you have
previously been involved in an actual unit merger, please share the
organizational dynamics you experienced as well as any lessons learned.)
(Bring in and cite at least one source of information from
your background readings for each of your weekly initial posts.)
Week 1 Discussion Question:
What are the key issues/challenges/opportunities you face,
both short- and long-term?
Remember, after you submit your answer each week to the
Discussion Question itself, you also need to respond to at least two of your
classmates’ posts.
(In total for this module’s two-part Discussion Forum, you
should have contributed at least two Discussion Question posts and four
response posts to your classmates.)
You must participate in BOTH Week 1 and Week 2 Discussions
to get credit for each module’s Discussion.
Posting early each week will allow for more opportunities
for leading the discussions, making substantial contributions, and engaging in
meaningful and mutual discussions with others.
DQ2 Merger and Unit Integration Issues
Using the same scenario as Week 1 of this Discussion, answer
the question in bold below:
In describing three key elements of your merger plan,
explain the sources of power that will be available to you and upon which you
will draw to help achieve a successful merger.
Remember, after you submit your answer each week to the
Discussion Question itself, you also need to respond to at least two of your
classmates’ posts.
(In total for this module’s two-part Discussion Forum, you
should have contributed at least two Discussion Question posts and four
response posts to your classmates.)
You must participate in BOTH Week 1 and Week 2 Discussions
to get credit for each module’s Discussion.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 4 discussion
DQ1 Sociopolitical Skills
Organizational structure, norms, values, culture, etc., all
have an impact on a leader’s success. Consider the new or advancing leader.
Such a leader is expected to learn how to effectively perform all of the
important administrative and professional/technical tasks. In addition, the
leader needs to master the necessary social skills associated with early
effectiveness in the new position. Below are 10 “sociopolitical” categories
which may influence a transitioning leader's early (and enduring)
effectiveness. These include, in no particular order, the ability to:
enter into an established leader/employee “network”;
sense, as well as use, appropriate communication and
influence behaviors;
sense and appropriately act on keen organizational norms;
become aware of, and sensitively interact with,
organizational “blockers” and “enablers”;
build political bridges by identifying and relating to key
formal/informal power sources;
become known as a “go-to/can-do” individual;
be perceived as a “team player”;
sense key organizational issues upon which to create early
vision, initiatives, and value;
identify and appropriately respond to the requirements of
superiors/peers/subordinates; and
be perceived as having organizationally appropriate ethics,
values, and beliefs.
Please note that these are behavioral skill categories, not
actual behaviors. You likely use many of the actual behaviors (such as
“interpersonal communication”) within a category every day.
Week 1 Discussion Question:
Does this list of “sociopolitical” skill categories match
your sense of what is most required to help ensure a leader's early success in
a new role/position? What might you add or subtract to help ensure the most
effective transition into a new job?
Remember, after you submit your answer each week to the
Discussion Question itself, you also need to respond to at least two of your
classmates’ posts.
(In total for this module’s Discussion Forum you should have
contributed at least two Discussion Question posts and four response posts to
your classmates.)
You must participate in BOTH Week 1 and Week 2 Discussions
to get credit for each module’s Discussion.
Posting early each week will allow for more opportunities
for leading the discussions, making substantial contributions, and engaging in
meaningful and mutual discussions with others.
DQ2 Sociopolitical Skills
Using the same scenario as Week 1 of this Discussion, answer
the question in bold below.
Week 2 Discussion Question:
In your view, how important to your enduring success in the
job are your early efforts in a new leadership role? Presuming you already have
practiced some or all of the 10 items, how did you learn to do so?
Remember, after you submit your answer each week to the
Discussion Question itself, you also need to respond to at least two of your
classmates’ posts.
(In total for this module’s Discussion Forum you should have
contributed at least two Discussion Question posts and four response posts to
your classmates.)
You must participate in BOTH Week 1 and Week 2 Discussions
to get credit for each module’s Discussion.
Posting early each week will allow for more opportunities
for leading the discussions, making substantial contributions, and engaging in
meaningful and mutual discussions with others.
MGT501 Management and Organizational
Behavior
Module 4 reflection discussion
Summary and Reflection
Identify one substantive topic in the course that you will
use in your job in the future. Specify the topic, your job, and how you will
use this knowledge to be a better manager or leader.
Looking back at the self-assessments you conducted
throughout the course, name one specific change you will make in your behavior
to try to build your management and leadership competencies or skills.
