UNIVERSITY SYSTEM OF MARYLAND

16 Jan - 8 Mar 2001

This course presents basic concepts of formal organizations. Students will become acquainted with the major conceptual models that purport to explain organizational behavior, will acquire an understanding of the methods used to study organizations and will analyze some of the research, which has been produced. While the emphasis is placed on critical analysis of literature, which deals with "what is," some attention is given to views about "what should be" in order for people to derive maximum satisfaction and other benefits from organizational activity.

Basic Texts:

Robbins, Stephen P. Organizational Behavior (9th Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 2001.

Ott, J. Steven. Classic Readings in Organizational Behavior (2d Ed.). Orlando, FL: Harcourt Brace, 1996.

Course Objectives:

1. To provide an introduction to human behavior in organizations and to the behavior of organizations themselves.

2. To focus on the theory, philosophy, and especially the practice of managing people and groups in an organization.

3. To examine the theoretical structures and empirical results in the field of behavioral science.

4. To learn how to analyze and constructively review organizational environments through class discussions, case study examination, and written papers.

Mastery of concepts emphasized in required readings and class discussions will be accomplished and demonstrated through:

1. Two examinations, these will be essay and quantitative in form, and there will be some choice of which questions to answer.

2. Two written papers on organizational behavior issues.

3. Team project.

4. Active participation in the class discussions.

Teamwork is essential to the team project. Teams of up to 4 students will be formed with fellow students in class. The use of the Internet as a communication and publishing tool will help you to enhance your concurrent working on the project. The team members will select a sector of the economy from which an organization will be chosen for analysis. The analysis will include the organization's culture, technology, electronic environment, organizational behavior, leadership style, and employee, investor and customer relations.

Grading Criteria:

Topic

Percentage of Grade

Mid-term examination

25%

Final examination

25%

Two written papers (2x15)

30%

Team project

10%

Participation

10%

Total

100%

90-100 = A

80-89 = B

70-79 = C

Less than 70 = F(a) Academic Failure

A grade of F(n) may be assigned for lack of participation.

Email: wmarie639@aol.com

Course Policies:

1. Attendance: Class attendance is expected and required. Attendance is directly related to the educational benefit received when lectures, discussions, cases, and in-class assignments are used. It is also a prime indicator of a student's interest and motivation. If a class must be missed for an unavoidable duty assignment or emergency, contact the instructor immediately. Please refer to the Student Handbook.

2. Class Preparation: Assigned readings should be completed before the class session for which the topic is scheduled. Class lectures are designed to reinforce the assigned text, to present additional material, and current issues. Students are expected to read and master the assigned readings independently when class time is used for discussions, case analysis, hands-on exercises, and presentations.

3. Class Participation: Learning means being involved, participating, and enjoying the class. Participation is the degree to which a student makes a responsible effort in class and makes a contribution to class discussions. Participation is encouraged and expected.

4. Late Assignments: Permission must be obtained in advance if an assignment is to be submitted late. Late submission of assignments may result in a lower grade and is strongly discouraged.

5. Make-up Examinations: Students missing an announced exam for duty or illness must provide documentation for a make-up exam. Please refer to the UMUC European Division, Graduate Catalog for policy on make-up exams.

6. The Grade of I: The mark of I (incomplete) is given only upon the request of a student whose work in a course has been satisfactory, and who is unable to complete the course because of illness or other circumstances beyond his/her control. Please refer to the UMUC European Division, Graduate Catalog for policy on Incompletes.

7. Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism: Students can avoid plagiarism by carefully following accepted scholarly practices. Please refer to the UMUC European Division, Graduate Catalog, for policy on academic dishonesty and plagiarism.

8. Schedule: The schedule is tentative and subject to change. The instructor reserves the right to make changes to the schedule for the successful progress of the course. It is the student's responsibility to know if, when, and what changes have been made to the schedule.

Other: All complete exams and assignments will be kept permanently by the instructor once submitted. Exams and assignments will be distributed temporarily to students for perusal immediately after they have been graded. However, they will be collected at the end of the time period or class. A student may request a previously submitted assignment or exam for temporary review at any time. However, a student may not keep it once it has been submitted and graded. Therefore, if a student wants a copy of his/her assignment, it should be copied or saved to disk prior to submission.

MGMT511 - Class Schedule

Jan 16 - Mar 8, 2001

Date

Day

Topic(s)

Chapter(s)

Jan 16

Tuesday

What is Organizational Behavior?

1, App. A

Jan 18

Thursday

Foundations of Individual Behavior

Classic Readings: Articles 1,2,3

Jan 23

Tuesday

**Assign Class Members to Project Teams

Classic Readings: Articles 4,5.6

Jan 25

Thursday

**Teams Select Project Topics

Classic Readings: Articles 7 & 8

Jan 30

Tuesday

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Classic Readings: Articles 27 & 28

Fed 01

Thursday

**Paper#1 due on 02/06

Classic Readings: Articles 29 & 30

Feb 06

Tuesday

**Paper #1 due

Classic Readings: Articles 31,32,33

Feb 08

Thursday

**Midterm Exam (Chapters 1-8)

Classic Readings: Articles 9,10,11

Feb 13

Tuesday

Understanding Work Teams and Communication

Classic Readings: Articles 12 & 13

Feb 15

Thursday

**Project Team Status Reports

Classic Readings: Articles 22,23,24

Feb 20

Tuesday

**Paper #2 due

Classic Readings: Articles 25 & 26

Feb 22

Thursday

Foundations of Organizational Structure &Work Design and Technology

Classic Readings: Articles 14-21

Feb 27

Tuesday

Human Resource Policies and Practices

Classic Readings: Articles 34-38

Mar 01

Thursday

**Project Team Presentations

Classic Readings: Articles 39-41

Mar 06

Tuesday

**Project Team Presentations

Classic Readings: Articles 42-45

Mar 08

Thursday

**FINAL EXAM (Chapters 9 - 18)

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