This syllabus is subject to change without notice. Contact the professor for most recent changes.

17-88-603-01 Organizational Environment

Thurs. 2:00-4:45 p.m. MH212

 

Instructor:      Dr. Janet Cherrington-Cucore                                                   f:603\syllabus\f99\r1

Office: 106b Morris Hall           Phone/Voice Mail:  507-389-5031

Office Hours:  Anytime, by appointment.  Also there will be time before and after class sessions for questions and discussion.  I encourage you to stop and visit with me during the semester.

 

E-mail: janet.cherrington@mankato.musu.edu

Be sure to add URSI603 to the subject line of your email.

 

Texts::Artistry, Choice and Leader

Required:

Reframing Organizations ship, Bohlman, Lee G. and Terrence E. Deal, Jossey Bass Publishers, 2nd Edition, 1991)

 

Creative Organizations Theory: A Resource Book, Morgan, Gareth, Sage Publications, 1989.

 

Course Goal:

 

This course is designed to provide graduate students a body of knowledge about the nature and importance of organizations and the leadership and managerial opportunities that they present.  While the internal dynamics of all types of organizations are of great importance, an added dimension of this course is to expand ways of thinking about them in terms of the local government arena.

 

Objectives of Course:

 

·        To present a historical overview of writers on organizations who provide a foundation for different types of organizational structures and their implications.

·        To identify the basic factors within organizational environments and effective approaches to diagnosing managerial problems and taking corrective actions.

·        To gain an understanding of the relationship between organizations and human nature while learning leadership methods to build more motivated committed workforces.

·        To help understand the organizational environment within the public sector framework and develop verbal and nonverbal skills to frame public issues and build community coalitions.

 

Course Requirements:

1a.  Graded written assignments include the following:

Internal organizational proposal #1.

Investigative report with graphics and executive summary #2.

Brief out-of-class writings, often responding to readings and case problems.

Group written case study #3.

1b.    Graded oral assignments include the following:

Group diagnosis of case problems and strategizing corrective actions.

Individual presentation of Investigative Report #2.

Group presentation of case study #3.

 

2.  All assignments should be done on a word processor, if possible, or on a typewriter.  When submitting assignments, be sure to check for spelling and grammatical errors.  (Most word processor programs have these features built-in.)  Staple projects together (don’t use report covers), have your name, section no., project name, and date submitted in the upper right corner of every page.  Consecutively number pages after the first one.

 

3.  All graded papers and all exercises should be kept throughout the term in a folder.  This folder is your portfolio—a record of your progress throughout the course.  You will hand it in at the end of the term and it will be used to help determine your final grade. Complete portfolios will be collected at the end of the semester as shown on the weekly schedule.

 

4.  As in the real world, completion of work on time is expected.  Late work will not be accepted unless arrangements are made with me in advance.

 

5.  Class participation is expected and class attendance is strongly recommended.