SYLLABUS

BUS 107 ~ Organizational Behavior

Fall, 2014
Instructor: Dr. Raj Singh
Office: OLMH 2335
Office Hours:T/TH
03:30 pm to 05:30 pm
or by appointment

Classroom: LFSC 1500

Class Hours: T/TH (02:10 am to 03:30 pm)
E-Mail: raj.singh@ucr.edu

SoBA Mission Statement

Our mission is to develop diverse leaders, propel research-based innovation
and promote the sustainable growth of Inland Southern California within the
global economy. We harness the powerful resources of UC and our location at
the nexus of commerce to create a laboratory for education, research, and
productive partnerships across economic enterprises. The strategic activities
that propel our mission include:

Conducting basic and applied research in management that

explores and informs the creation, development and management of
growth;
Providing degree programs that prepare our students to be effective
managers and responsible community leaders with a deep
understanding of the dynamics of growth in both a regional and global
context;
Partnering with business and community leaders through a shared
commitment to exemplary growth; and
Delivering educational programs to executives and the public at large
that respond to the needs of our local, state, national, and
international communities.

Undergraduate Program Learning Goals

Problem Solving Skills

Students will be able to use a variety of theoretical perspectives to identify and

critically evaluate implications of business decisions for organizational
stakeholders (e.g., customers, colleagues, employees, stockholders, suppliers,
foreign governments, communities, cultures, regulatory agencies) and the
natural environment.

Professional Integrity / Ethical Reasoning Skills

Students will be able to recognize ethical issues, demonstrate familiarity with
alternative frameworks for ethical reasoning, and discern trade-offs and
implications of employing different ethical frames of reference when making
business decisions.
Global Context Skills
Students will be conversant with major economic, social, political, and
technological trends and conditions influencing foreign investment and
development of the global economy and demonstrate an understanding of the
cultural, interpersonal and analytical competencies required for engaging in
global business activities.
Written Communication Skills
Students will demonstrate proficiency in written communications by creating
written document that are clearly written, with appropriate content and
conclusions.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This class studies organizations from the behavioral science perspective. Topics
include motivation, leadership, communication, groups, organization structure
and culture, and control in complex organizations.
COURSE OBJECTIVES

Understand the importance of Organizational Behavior as an academic

field and why it is important to you and your success.
You will also study its effect on increasing efficiency and individual
performance/output while improving employee working conditions,
increasing corporate citizenship behavior and reducing turnover.
Understand the importance of TEAMS and learn some guidelines for
participating in teams and some methods for effectively managing and
leadings teams. Learn how to increase teams efficiency and production.
Understand the importance of organizational culture and how that is
impacted by the national culture. Learn the appropriate methods of
working in an increasingly global, digitally interconnected, and culturally
diverse work environment.

Learn the basics theories of leadership and individual behavior. Learn

concepts and methods of motivation theory.

LATE POLICY
There are times when compelling and legitimate reasons, beyond your control,
arise for missing an assignment due date. Typically, there is no make up for
quizzes or exams. Prior arrangements should be made with the Professor (not
the TAs) when one will not be able to meet the deadline. Failure to make prior
arrangements will require adequate documentation of the reasons for missing
the deadline. Under exceptional circumstances, to be determined by the
Professor, part or all of the penalty may be waived.
STATEMENT ON DIVERSITY AND HARASSMENT
The university is a setting for the free exchange of ideas. It is a place for
individuals to explore new ideas, encounter new people, and broaden their
intellectual perspective. To this end, the classroom setting should foster
participation and the sharing of opinions. Learning and intellectual growth
require the challenge of pre-existing assumptions and stereotypes. However,
such challenges should always address appropriate issues and not threaten the
personality or demographic traits of an individual.
INTEGRITY STATEMENT:

At the University of California, Riverside (UCR) honesty and integrity are

fundamental values that guide and inform us as individuals and as a
community. The academic culture requires that each student take
responsibility for learning and for producing work that reflect their intellectual
potential, curiosity, and capability. Students must represent
themselves truthfully, claim only work that is their own, acknowledge their use
of others words, research results, and ideas, using the methods accepted by
the appropriate academic disciplines and engage honestly in all academic
assignments. Misunderstanding of the appropriate academic conduct will not
be accepted as an excuse for academic misconduct. If a student is in doubt
about appropriate academic conduct in a particular situation, he or she should
consult with the instructor in the course to avoid the serious charge of
academic misconduct.
To ensure the highest standard of academic integrity, all students should be
familiar with the guidelines posted at:
http://conduct.ucr.edu/SiteCollectionDocuments/DocumentsFromStudentCo
nduct/AcademicIntegrityBrochureStudent.pdf
REQUIRED TEXT
ISBN-13: 9781269986298; ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR CUSTOM EDITION
FOR UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE; By ROBBINS & JUDGE; 2015 |
GRADING
Course grades will be based on the following:
TOPIC
Exam I
Exam II
Exam III
Quizzes (2)
Online Homework Assignments (5)
Individual Paper
Group Project (20 points for
presentation and 60 points for
written report)
Group Member Evaluation
Discussion section evaluation

POINTS
40 points
40 points
120 points
20 points
50 points
30 points
80 points

TOTAL

450 POINTS

25 points
45 points

Conversion:
RANGE

GRADE

Top Score Above ~ 420

420~450
405~419
390~404
375~389
360~374
345~359
330~344
315~329
300~314
285~299
270~284
000~269

A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF

CLASS PARTICIPATION
Each student is required to attend all lectures and section meetings and be
prepared to discuss all reading material assigned for the applicable week and
any previously assigned reading material. Each student will be required to
participate in a group project, asked to evaluate their group members, and may
be asked to periodically assess the effectiveness of the course.
READING ASSIGNMENTS
In addition to reading assignments given in class or otherwise, all students
should read and be prepared to discuss, prior to class, the following:
DATE

PART

October 2nd
Introduction

Week 0

Week 1

READING ASSIGNMENT

Chapter 1:
Chapter 2:

What is Organizational Behavior?

Diversity in Organizations

October (14 - 16)

Week 2

Chapter 3:
Chapter 4:

Attitudes and Job Satisfaction

Emotions and Moods

Week 3

EXAM I
10/23/14
Chapter 5

Week 4

Week 5

Chapter 9:
Chapter 10:

Chapter 12:
Chapter 13

Week 6

Chapter 16:

Week 7

EXAM II

11/20/14
Chapter 17
Week 8

Part 6:

Chapter 18:

Week 9

Supplement

Week 10

EXAM III

12/11/1
3
INDIVIDUAL
PAPER
FINAL GROUP
PAPERS

October (21 - 23)

Chapters 1, 2, 3 and 4
Personality and Values

October (28 - 30)

Foundations of Group Behavior
Understanding Work Teams

November (04 - 06)

Leadership

Power and Politics

November 13th
Organizational Culture

November (18 20)

Chapters 9, 10, 11 and 12

Human Resource Policies and Practices

November 25th

Organizational Change and Stress Management

December (2- 4)

Career Management

December (09 11)

Course Overview

Note: 1. Individual interview paper

assignment Due to TAs at Beginning of
Lecture on December 4th.
2. Hard copies of the group papers are due to
TAs on December 9th.
3. Electronic copies of Final Papers and PP Slides
to be posted on the Blackboard no later than
December 18th at 11:00 am.

GROUP PROJECT:
A group project will be assigned. The project will center on any topic related to
organizational behavior. Groups will be able to choose any topics covered in
this course. The purpose of the assignment is to offer group members an
opportunity to explore new research in the area of organizational behavior. The
project will center on completing an 8 10 page paper at the end of this course.
Papers should include the following:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7

Introduction
Problems Statement
Research Questions
Methodology
Results and Findings
Conclusions and Recommendations
References

A team proposal of no more than one page is required before proceeding with the
group paper. The group proposal should include the following:

1 Introduction
2 Problems Statement
3 Research Questions
Further details for the project will be made available in the class.
Your major direction for the project will come from your TA. Seek his/her
guidance for direction and checking your progress. Have the TA review a draft
of the document from time to time.
INDIVIDUAL STUDENT PAPER:
In this project, individual students will conduct primary research to analyze how
managers utilize key elements of organizational behavior concepts such as leadership,
decision making, motivation, etc. in their organizations.
To accomplish this task, students will interview one manager from one of the three
different levels in order to determine how the manager utilizes organizational behavior
techniques in their organization. Interview should be from one of the following:

Top manager (conceptual with human skills)

Or
Middle level manager (conceptual, human and technical skills)
Or
Line manager (human and technical skills).
The managers do not need to be from a specific type of organization or industry.
When interviewing your managers, be sure to cover all relevant organizational behavior
issues and get specific examples of how these managers implement OB in their
organization. Relate your interview responses directly to organizational behavior topics.
Interview questions should be designed using the issues in the course and include (but
NOT be limited to):
Personality

Motivation

From your interview, what personality traits does this manager exhibit?
What do you think this managers Myers-Briggs personality assessment
is? Why? What type of personality assessment do this managers
employees have?
Which type of motivational theory does this manager use? Why? How?
What motivates this manager? What motivates their employees?

Stress

What sources of stress does this manager have? How is it managed?

What sources of stress do this managers employees have? How does
this manager handle their employees stress?
Decision Making
What types of decisions does this manager usually make? What style of
decision making is used? Why? Are employees involved in decision
making?
Team Dynamics
What teams are in this organization? What are their characteristics, size
and composition? What are the teams norms? Is the team cohesive? How
does this manager deal with social loafing?
Team Building
How does the manager build trust in their teams? How does team
building occur?
Communication
What type of communication commonly occurs in this organization? What
is the most effective form? Why? What communication barriers commonly
exist? What cross cultural and gender issues in communication exist?
Power

What sources of power are evident in this managers organization? How

does this manager influence their employees?
Conflict and Negotiation
What sources of conflict exist in this organization? How is conflict
managed?
Leadership
What type of leadership style does this manager have? Is it effective?
Why?
Each student is required to hand in the typed interview questions and answers per
manager as well as contact information for each of the managers. Managers may be
contacted to ensure that each student successfully completed the paper.
Length and Format:
Paper should be 8 10 pages long, double spaced, cover page, 1 inch margins and
should clearly distinguish managers name, title, level, organization and contact
information. Write out the question and the managers answer. Identify each
Organizational Behavior concept and group questions according to each concept.
Provide a short introduction of each managers organization and industry.