Organizational Behavior Comp Guideline



Organizational Behavior Comp Guideline

I. Organization Theory

a. What are some of alternatives to traditional machine bureaucracies

b. What are the strengths and limitations of bureaucratic designs

c. What are the strengths and limitations of more organic organizational designs

II. Culture –

a. What is org culture and how does if influence organizational behavior

b. Why is culture change so difficult and what are some tools managers have available to help shape culture?

III. Power and politics

a. It is important as a manager to be able to get a handle on the political landscape of an organization – how would you go about profiling power dynamics within an organization? How about external to the organization?

b. What are some of the factors that increase politicking in organizations?

IV. Motivation

a. What are some of the different perspectives on what motivates people? How can these perspectives be used as a tool for addressing problems or enhancing staff performance?

b. Human needs perspectives:

i. Maslow’s hierarchy

ii. McGreggor’s X & Y

iii. Herztberg 2 factor

iv. Job Design Theory

v. McClelland’s need theory

c. Cognitive Behavioral perspectives

i. Goal setting

ii. Reinforcement theory

iii. Expectancy theory (3 conditions for motivation)

d. Normative and Identity perspectives

i. Social Information processing

ii. Equity Theory

iii. Public Service Motivation

V. Leadership

a. What is the role of a leader? What should a leader be concerned about?

b. In what ways might different situations require different types of leadership?

i. Task v. Relationship

ii. Transactional v. Transformational

iii. Contingency perspectives (Blanchard & Hersey Situational leadership; House’s Path Goal theory)

VI. Decision Making

a. What does a rational decision making process look like – what are the factors that limit our ability to make rational decisions?

b. What are some of the cognitive biases that hinder our decision making?

c. Rational decision making processes account for only a small portion of the decision that get made in organizations – What are some alternative explanations for how decisions get made in organizations?

VII. Communication & Conflict

a. In what ways can interpersonal communication go awry & what can be done to mitigate these risks

b. What are some of the principals of supportive communication?

c. When is conflict functional versus dysfunctional in an organization?

VIII. Groups & Teams

a. When are teams advantageous to use in organizations?

b. What are some of the risks to decision making in teams?

c. What does a manager need to know about teams in order to manage them effectively?

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