Fall 2002, INFSCI 2938: Special Topics
Leadership and Design of Organizations
( Formerly “Systems and Technology Management and Policy”)
Back to course pages home
Summer 2002: LIS 3100 Seminars in Professional Issues: Technology, Information and Society: Convenience vs. Chaos
Other course descriptions
Course Syllabus
Basics
Required Texts
Goals of the Course
Course Objectives
Methods
Course Topics
Assignments and Requirements
Schedule
Download MS Word Version of this Syllabus
Prerequisite: Completion of core courses
Level: Graduate
Credit Hours: 3
Class time: Tuesday 9:00 -11:50
Class location: TBA - School of Information Sciences
Richard Farson, Management of the Absurd, Touchstone, 1997
Harvard Business Review on Leadership, Harvard Business School, 1998, 0-87584-883-4
Two additional books will be read during the course–in order to control the sequence in which they'll be read, they will be loaned to you at the appropriate time.
This course is intended to give students an understanding of leadership and organizational design in today's rapidly changing, knowledge–intensive, technologically enabled environment. The course will give students an opportunity to explore prevailing forces for change that are creating pressure on individuals and organizations alike. Understanding the nature of leadership; the roles expected of leaders; how leadership affects behavior, human relations and performance; and the implications of leadership styles on various constituencies are important for preparing students to take leadership roles in various aspects of their lives. Understanding how organizations work and how they can adapt to change to survive and thrive will help students prepare to participate in the reshaping of future organizations, identify the more difficult problems that must be managed along the way, and develop a sense of timing for the changes that lie ahead.
- To identify and explore trends and forces that call for leadership and organizational change in today's environment
- To understand the evolution of leadership theories and models and their implications for the roles and characteristics of leaders
- To become familiar with and use various instruments for leadership assessment
- To understand the relationships among leadership styles, behaviors, human relations and performance
- To introduce the concept of organizational architecture and approaches to
designing/redesigning organizations
- To understand the relationship between organizational design and performance
- To explore and affirm professional values, mores and norms as they relate to leadership and organizational design
- To recognize the importance of preparation and renewal for long-term success
Lecture, discussion (small group and full class), readings and critiques of readings, observation and workshop sessions.
INFSCI 2938: Leadership and Design of Organizations Course Topics
| 1. Forces for Change |
|---|
| 2. Leadership |
3. Organizational Design |
|---|
| a. Nature of leadership, leadership models, characteristics of leaders | a. The architecture of change |
| b. Leadership roles and responsibilities | b. Designing formal organizational arrangements |
| c. Leader-constituent interaction | c. Transforming the informal organization |
| d. Power and influence | d. Designing sector management |
| e. Values, mores, and norms | e. Managing cultural change |
| 4. Preparation and Renewal |
|---|
Students are expected to attend class, read the required texts and other materials prior to the class session, thoughtfully participate in class discussions, provide insights into the topic from their own education and experience, and participate in classroom activities.
Leadership Paper (due September 3)
Each student will write a nominal 1,500 word essay describing a leader they admire. Students should describe the specific behaviors or characteristics of this individual that demonstrate their leadership expertise.
Book Review (due September 17)
Each student will submit a book review for at least one book dealing with the topic of organizational leadership. Each student will submit a nominal 1,500-word book report, make a 5-minute presentation about your book, and lead a brief discussion of the important points from your book report.
Case Study Questions (due October 22)
Each student will submit written responses to the Harvard Business School “ABC Company” and Everest Expedition case studies as defined in the activity materials.
Group Project (due November 26)
Groups of 3-5 students will conduct a mock “consulting engagement.” You will identify an organization, present an overview of its operations, describe its larger context, and identify the major challenges facing the organization in the future. The organization can be real or hypothetical. Your group will submit a five-page “engagement status report” describing your consulting engagement, and will present a 15-minute “partner briefing” with accompanying handouts or visual aids. As part of the presentation, you will lead a discussion to receive input from your peers to identify appropriate “next steps” for your engagement.
Group Project Critique (due November 26)
Each student will write a nominal 1,500-word essay describing the performance of their group during the group project activity, and their contribution ot the performance of the group. Students should describe the dynamics of the group, how various group members exercised leadership skills, how the group project was managed to completion, and how they participated as leaders during the process.
Final Exam (due December 10)
The final exam will require you to apply your course learning to “real life” leadership challenges. Each student will select two of several case study scenarios, develop an analysis of the case, and make recommendations for action. Students will justify their analysis and recommendations from course materials, readings, and group project presentations.
| August 27 | Forces of Change; The Nature of Leadership. |
| September 3 | Leadership models, characteristics of leaders. Leadership paper due. |
| September 10 | Leadership roles and responsibilities; Leader-constituent interactions. |
| September 17 | Power and influence. Book Review due. |
| September 24 | Values, mores and norms. Start Everest case study. |
| October 1 | No class – Groups work on Everest case study |
| October 8 | Everest case study discussion |
| October 15 | Architecture of change. |
| October 22 | Designing formal organization arrangements. Case Studies due. |
| October 29 | Transforming the informal organization |
| November 5 | Designing senior management structure. |
| November 12 | Managing cultural change |
| November 19 | No class– groups work on projects. |
| November 26 | Group Project presentations. Group Project and Critique due.
Take-home Final distributed |
| December 3 | Preparation and renewal |
| December 10 | General class discussion. Final Exam due |
Back to top
