Organisational Behavior and Leadership

Introduction

This course is a Norwegian version of the international business school subject "Organizational Behavior." The subject focuses on how individuals' characteristics, efforts, interactions, and leadership have a fundamental impact on organizations' effectiveness, profitability, and value. The course emphasizes human characteristics and processes.

The course covers the most central and research-based knowledge about human characteristics, processes, and interactions in a complex work environment. It also introduces organizational theory topics such as organizational culture and design. The organization is both a context and a tool where individuals with different characteristics interact to create value. Leadership is a central process in all of this, providing direction, mobilizing efforts, and contributing to the success of employees, groups, and organizations.

The course aims to cover topics such as learning, what motivates people, perception, how human characteristics can be characterized, and how such characteristics and processes can be linked to well-being, health, effort, and productivity. Furthermore, the course provides knowledge about groups and teams, work environment, characteristics of creativity, problem-solving, and decision-making. Special attention will be given to key aspects of management, including leadership during change processes and e-leadership.

The course provides a broad and fundamental introduction to how to facilitate the sustainable use of human resources.

Course content

• The course covers various topics related to individuals in groups and organizations, including:
  • Individual characteristics and productivity in organizations.
  • Motivation, attitudes, and performance.
  • Thinking at work: learning, problem-solving, decision-making, and creativity.
  • Work in groups: interaction and work environment.
  • Communication, information, power, and influence.
  • Diversity in the workplace.
• Organizational theory topics such as:
  • The purpose and existence of organizations.
  • Organizational design
  • Organizational structure
  • Organizational culture
  • Organizational change
  • Third-party collaboration in the Norwegian workplace
• Leadership topics, including:
  • What is leadership?
  • Leadership traits, behaviour, and leader-member relationships
  • Diversity in leadership
  • Leadership and technology
  • Destructive leadership
  • Leadership and social responsibility