Faculty

David X. Swenson PhD
Phone: (218)723-6476
FAX: (218)723-6290
E-mail: dswenson@css.edu
Office: Tower Hall 3130

Course Description

This course explores the structure and process of organizations, and how decisions about organization development, learning and change are related to its overall effectiveness. The focus will be on integrating OB and OD activities with strategic planning objectives. The course will emphasize teamwork dealing with simulated and real problems in the workplace involving organizational planned change.

In addition to the objectives below, you should formulate your specific learning objectives for this course. What are you most interested in? What knowledge and skills would help you solve problems more effectively in your workplace? What would give you greater expertise, responsibility, mobility, or preparation for your future career? As a result of the course, you will be able to:

1. Explain how large scale change drivers (e.g., globalism, economics, information, technology, demographics, etc.) are impacting organizations and requiring them to develop new ways of managing and operating.

2. Describe the aspects of organizations that are most impacted and changing, including design and structure, communication patterns, power and politics, and performance.

3. Understand the role of change agents in organizations and how they can effectively leverage for change

4. Propose a strategy for managing organizational innovation, resisitance to change, and transition.

5. Thoroughly discuss the ethical implications of organizational level decisions.

6. Construct a scale for measuring a behavioral domain for instrumented feedback to a client organization.

Methods

We will use a variety of methods including lecture, simulations, demonstration, small group work, videotape presentations, text and online readings, and class discussion. We recognize the experience that our students bring to the program and encourage open and practical discussion of issues and challenges in the workplace related to the course.

Performance Evaluation

Team Case Presentation

• 50% will be based on team presentations of an OD case intervention
• Team members will discuss cases in their experience and finally decide on one of them for team planned intervention
• The team will make a formal presentation to the class (acting as client) regarding the planned change
• The presentation will be evaluated on poise of presenters, use of good graphic design, clarity of organization, explanation of rationale, and delivery to audience.

Paper on Transition Management

• 50% will be based on a final paper on transition management
• This is an individual paper covering your proposal for managing an organization transition regarding any one of the following scenarios (or another you propose and acceptible)
• shift from individual to team-based organization
• merger or acquisition
• downsizing
• organizational culture change
• restructuring
• disaster recovery or significant crisis
• The paper will be evaluated on clarity of organization, use of terminology related to and demonstrating facility with the course content, conciseness, use of citations and graphics, and rationale for intervention.

These assignments will be detailed in class along with their due dates.

All papers should use APA style. By now you should have the current APA Style Manual, but can also find assistance at The Manager's Library (see Writing Resources).
 

Course Schedule

Information is available at Schedule

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last updated 7-31-00
David X. Swenson