Course content

The course is a general introduction course to the management sciences, with special focus on organization and leadership topics. The course is taught in Norwegian. The course aims to develop students' understanding of the basics of the organization and leadership field and how these topics are related. This is an introductory course aimed at building a basis for further courses in the program. The aim is also to develop students' ability to apply theoretical knowledge on the analysis of practical phenomena. By the end of the course students' should have a comprehensive understanding of core constructs and concepts within the field, and the ability to apply these to analyze practical situations.

Core topics:

• Organization theory perspectives
• Strategy
• Organizational structure
• Power and conflict
• Decision-making processes
• Communication
• Organizations and their environments
• Learning and innovation
• HRM, including topics such as trust and motivation
• Organizations and change
• Leadership in organizations
• The Nordic model
• Sustainability in an organizational context

Learning outcome

Knowledge:

After completing this course students should:

• Have a comprehensive understanding of core phenomena within the field of organizations and leadership
• Understand the core concepts of the field
• Understand how the different topics of the course are related and how different parts of organizational life influences each other

Skills:

After completing this course students should:

• Be able to work independently and in groups to apply theory in analysis and problem-solving related to a range of practical organizational phenomena
• Be able to analyze and discuss a range of current issues in organizations
• Communicate the ideas based on theory and class discussion

General competence:

After completing this course students should:

• Independently be able to analyze organizational life and be able to substantiate the claims made in analysis by building on theory and practical examples
• Independently be able to access and acquire new knowledge from relevant research
• Be able to identify relevant and current issues for organizational development, be able to analyze those based on relevant theory and be able to communicate and discuss those ideas with leaders and co-workers

Learning methods and activities

Lectures, group work, case solution and discussions. The norm is combined 2 hours lecture and casework, twice each week.

The combined lectures and casework will be streamed live and can be watched in Panopto any time. Off-campus students do not participate as such in any of these activities, observation only. Some online meetings will be arranged during the semester for dialog.

Off-campus students will work on a compulsory assignment and then assess fellow students' assignments (one-to-one) according to given guidelines. The assignment must be approved in order to be entitled to sit for the exam.

Off-campus students may work in groups if they manage to get in touch with other students, but they deliver the obligatory assignment individually.

Compulsory assignments

• Approved exercises

Specific conditions

Recommended previous knowledge

None.

Required previous knowledge

None.

Course materials

Jacobsen, Dag Ingvar og Thorsvik, Jan (2025) Hvordan organisasjoner fungerer. 6.utg. Bergen, Fagbokforlaget.

Articles and bookchapters published on Blackboard.

Credit reductions