COMMGMT 7006 - People and Organisations (M)

North Terrace Campus - Trimester 3 - 2023

This course explores behaviour in the workplace from an individual, group and organisational perspective. It seeks to develop an understanding of how individual attributes such as attitudes, personality, values and motivation, impact on employee performance. It also considers the role of groups and teams in supporting organisational outcomes, strategies for managing interpersonal and intergroup conflict, organisational communication and the importance of leadership in promoting positive employee behaviours. Topics examined from an organisational level perspective include culture, and stress management.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code COMMGMT 7006
    Course People and Organisations (M)
    Coordinating Unit Management
    Term Trimester 3
    Level Postgraduate Coursework
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to 6 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y
    Course Description This course explores behaviour in the workplace from an individual, group and organisational perspective. It seeks to develop an understanding of how individual attributes such as attitudes, personality, values and motivation, impact on employee performance. It also considers the role of groups and teams in supporting organisational outcomes, strategies for managing interpersonal and intergroup conflict, organisational communication and the importance of leadership in promoting positive employee behaviours. Topics examined from an organisational level perspective include culture, and stress management.
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Dr Ayoosha Saleem

    Lecture/course coordinator: Dr Ayoosha Saleem
    Email:ayoosha.saleem@adelaide.edu.au 

    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
    1. Diagnose the causes and consequences of behavioural actions within organisations.
    2. Collaboratively and autonomously research, analyse and evaluate organisational business information from a wide variety of sources.
    3. Apply relevant contemporary theories, concepts and models in order to analyse organisational environments, cases and issues.
    4. Communicate their findings clearly and effectively using a variety of media.
    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)

    Attribute 1: Deep discipline knowledge and intellectual breadth

    Graduates have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of their subject area, the ability to engage with different traditions of thought, and the ability to apply their knowledge in practice including in multi-disciplinary or multi-professional contexts.

    2-4

    Attribute 2: Creative and critical thinking, and problem solving

    Graduates are effective problems-solvers, able to apply critical, creative and evidence-based thinking to conceive innovative responses to future challenges.

    1, 3, 4

    Attribute 3: Teamwork and communication skills

    Graduates convey ideas and information effectively to a range of audiences for a variety of purposes and contribute in a positive and collaborative manner to achieving common goals.

    3, 4

    Attribute 4: Professionalism and leadership readiness

    Graduates engage in professional behaviour and have the potential to be entrepreneurial and take leadership roles in their chosen occupations or careers and communities.

    2-4

    Attribute 5: Intercultural and ethical competency

    Graduates are responsible and effective global citizens whose personal values and practices are consistent with their roles as responsible members of society.

    1-4

    Attribute 8: Self-awareness and emotional intelligence

    Graduates are self-aware and reflective; they are flexible and resilient and have the capacity to accept and give constructive feedback; they act with integrity and take responsibility for their actions.

    1-4
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources
    Course Textbook:

    Wood, J., Zeffane, R., Fromholtz, M., Wiesner, R., Morrison, R., Factor, A., McKeown, T. (2019) Organisational Behaviour: Core concepts and applications, 5th Australasian Ed. John Wiley and Sons, Milton Qld.

    You can access the course textbook via MyUni.


    Recommended Resources
    The Communication Skills Guide and The University of Adelaide Writing Centre web page are helpful resources for your academic writing and observance of the protocols and conventions of the Harvard referencing style. You also have access to numerous resources in the library including scholarly journals and alternative contemporary OB texts, but there are many readings which are relevant to the course. You are encouraged to read widely and critically with a focus on recent work (less than 5 years old) in periodicals, refereed academic journals and books. Some  contemporary OB texts you may find useful include: 

    Kinicki, A., and Williams, B. 2012, Management – A Practical Introduction, McGraw Hill, Sydney

    McShane, S., Olekalns, M., Newman, A., Martin, A. 2018, Oraganisational Behavior: Emerging Knowledge. Global Insights. 6th Edition. McGraw Hill, Sydney

    Robbins, S.P., Judge, T.A., Millett, B., Boyle M., T., 2012, Organisational Behaviour, Pearson Education, Australia

    Recommended Readings

    Students are provided weekly articles to read and come prepared for the seminars. Reading the recommended articles would help students learn the course content better. It will also provide them with an opportunity to critique ideas and understand how theoretical concepts assist us in understanding our world better.

    Students are required to read beyond the core textbook to enhance their learning of organisational behaviour. As mentioned above, some specific seminar preparation readings drawing from the core text, journal articles and various online materials will be recommended as the course progresses. In addition, lectures will include citations you might find relevant, interesting and useful for following up key issues and theories useful in preparing your written assignments.

    You are encouraged to become familiar with the online and electronic databases and other information sources available in the main library. Familiarity with these information sources is important for the effective searching of academic literature. Some relevant academic journals are listed on the following page however, please note, this list is by no means comprehensive and is offered as a launching point for additional readings.

    • Academy of Management Journal
    • Academy of Management Perspectives (formerly Academy of Management Review)
    • Administrative Science Quarterly
    • Human Relations
    • Journal of Applied Psychology
    • Journal of Organizational Behaviour
    • Journal of Management Inquiry
    • Organization Science
    • Organization Studies
    • Work, Employment and Society
    • Australian Institute of Management
    • Australian Institute of Company Directors
    • New Zealand Management journal
    • The British Journal of Administrative Management
    Online Learning

    MyUni will be extensively used in this course for announcements, resources and assessments. Students are advised to actively check the MyUni course webpage regularly for accessing information pertaining to the course (e.g., announcements, lecture slides, assessment details, tutorial preparation, additional readings and suggested links).

    Please ensure you have access to the MyUni page before the start of the Trimester.

  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes

    The course will be taught as a 3-hour interactive seminar for 12 weeks.

    Each seminar will cover a topic in Seminar/Workshop format.

    You will have access to lecture slides, and seminar discussion before each seminar as well as the text and references to academic material through MyUni. Students are advised to use the course material and seek other resources to ensure comprehensive learning of the course topics. Please check the Learning Resources section above.

    Seminar sessions are designed to engage students in discussion and critical thinking, which covers the course content and examples from personal and professional lives. These discussions emphasise the course content and allow students to explore and reflect on their experiences and relate those to the course content. It is recommended that students share their personal and professional experiences to make sense of the course content.

    It is important in this course that you familiarise yourself with the text material before you come to class to participate in the in-class activities.

    Workload

    The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

    Seminar / interactive discussion: 3 hours per week (face-to-face)

    Reading and preparation: 2 hours per week (approximately). This would include reading the required information pre-seminar and up to an hour of self-study.
    Learning Activities Summary
    This course is taught face-to-face on campus.

    Seminars are supported by discussions covering the learning objectives of the course content.

    Students are expected to fully participate in discussions based on seminar discussions and other activities. Students are expected to come fully prepared having read (at a minimum) the required text and having engaged with the additional readings as well. 

    As a minimum contribution, you are expected to raise at least one new idea/opinion/point in relation to the weekly seminar topic and respond to comments by fellow group members. It is advised that you share your ideas with others and ask questions about others' ideas to enhance your learning experience.
      Specific Course Requirements

      It is important in this course that you familiarise yourself with the text material before you come to class so that you can actively participate in all class activities. Consequently, the schedule of topics for this course, as outlined above, requires pre-class reading from the course textbook. Please come to the seminar prepared to participate. Doing so would enable you to get the most out of your involvement in this course.

      Other preparation is important and will be useful to help you participate effectively and contribute sound and scholarly answers to assessment items. That preparation may include reading research articles, conducting case study analysis, self-reflection, watching video material and so on. Materials will be provided when they are not available from internet sources.

    • Assessment

      The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

      1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
      2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
      3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
      4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

      Assessment Summary

      To ensure students passing this course have a good understanding of the material, this course has been structured to provide maximum learning opportunities through assessment tasks.

      Assessment Task Task Type Due Weighting Learning Outcome
      Preparation and contribution to weekly seminar discussion and debate Individual Weekly starting week 2 10% 1,2, 3 and 4
      Online Quiz Individual Starting Week 3 Until the end of week 12 20% 1,2, 3 and 4
      Learning Journal (1000 words) 

      Individual End of Week 4 20% 1, 2, 3, 4
      Position Paper (1500 words) Individual End of Week 8 20% 1, 2, 3 and 4
      Group research Project (2000 words) Group End of Week 12 30% 1, 2, 3 and 4
      Total 100%
      Assessment Related Requirements
      Students are required to use theoretical concepts, models and theories from the course (and other courses, if applicable) to complete their learning log, position paper and group research project assignments. Identifying relevant models and theories from the course and applying them to your discussion context would help you make sense of it better. Assignments without the use of theories and models may lack clarity.
      Assessment Detail
      ASSESSMENT 1: Participation and preparation (10%).
      Students are expected to ideally attend ALL seminars. Marks will be allocated for participation (which ideally depends, in large part, on one's preparation of course readings beforehand, of course), not for attendance, although the lecturer will keep an attendance record.


      ASSESSMENT 2: Online Quiz (20%).
      Quizzes are conducted weekly from week 3 to week 12 based on the current or past week’s content covered. This multiple-choice quiz contains 10 questions. Each correct answer is awarded 0.20 marks and it is for a total maximum mark of 20. The time allowed is 15 minutes. No facility for multiple attempts.


      ASSESSMENT 3: Learning Journal 1000 words (20%).
      For this assessment, you are assessed on content understanding, critical analysis, and reflective skills with proper referencing (wherever required). You are supposed to write on how have/are able to utilise each week's learning in your real-life (e.g. personal, professional, academic). Explanation of theories/concepts/models is important but the application of those in your real-world scenarios is the main basis of this assignment. The word count for this assessment is 1000 words which exclude the references (/bibliography section). Generally, +/- 15% of the specified word count is treated as normal.


      ASSESSMENT 4: Individual Position Paper 1500 words (20%).
      From week 5 to week 8, we will cover many interpersonal level theories and constructs. In your work context, we hope you can identify one (1) specific challenge that you or your workgroup face now and figure out the solutions from an evidence-based aspect. The challenge could be based on some scenarios that you experienced in the past, you are currently coping with, or you anticipate that they will happen in the future. You can go beyond what was discussed in class – as long as you can discuss it clearly as a challenge in your work context.


      ASSESSMENT 5: Group Research Project - 2000 words (30%).
      From week 9 to 11, we will cover important leadership qualities in contemporary organisations, including different leadership aspects (week 9), decision-making (week 10), and conflict resolutions (week 11). In this assessment, you will be asked to complete a group project to evaluate a seeming bad leader based on the course content. To complete this assignment, you and your group members will need to identify a BAD leader from the business domain. Please note that the seemingly “bad” leader means he/she has a bad reputation for his/her leadership (i.e., people think he/she is a bad leader).
      Submission

      All assessment submissions are to be made through TURNITIN.

      Late assignments will be penalised in line with University policy.

      Resubmission is not available.

      Replacement/Additional Assessment may be granted in certain circumstances (e.g. medical, compassionate etc.).

      Any requests for extensions must be made in writing, to the lecturer stating reasons with supporting evidence(s), before the due date.

      Course Grading

      Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

      M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
      Grade Mark Description
      FNS   Fail No Submission
      F 1-49 Fail
      P 50-64 Pass
      C 65-74 Credit
      D 75-84 Distinction
      HD 85-100 High Distinction
      CN   Continuing
      NFE   No Formal Examination
      RP   Result Pending

      Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

      Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

      Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

    • Student Feedback

      The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

      SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

    • Student Support
    • Policies & Guidelines
    • Fraud Awareness

      Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

    The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.