Department of Managementorganisation Humanresource Management Unit

NUSBUSINESSSCHOOL

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENTORGANISATION HUMANRESOURCE MANAGEMENT UNIT

Semester 1,AcademicYear 2014/2015

HR2002- HumanCapitalinOrganisations

MODULEDESCRIPTION

Thismulti-disciplinarymoduleinvitesstudentstoexamine, fromdifferentperspectives, some majorthemes pertainingtothemanagement ofhumancapitalinaknowledge-intensiveworld ofindustrytoday.

Themoduletargets studentswhowishtoseeksomefoundationalknowledgeoftheprinciples ofhumaninteractionsintheworkplace.Departingfromthemoreconventionalapproaches, studentswillexamine thedynamicsofandconstraints toindividualandorganisational behavioursinthecontext ofthechallengesposedbyanincreasinglycompetitive global landscape.

Besideslooking intothestructureandcultureoforganisations,individualbehaviours,thoughts andfeelingsoforganisationalmembers arealsoexploredwithreferencetosocialprocesses. Thethemescoveredinthemodulewouldprovidestudentswitharangeofconceptswith which tomake senseofthehumanresourcechallengesarisingoutofcompanies’ needsto strategicallyadaptthemselvestotheforcesoftechnologicalchange andbusinessimperatives.

Inthismodule,studentswouldbeinvitedtocriticallyevaluatehowmultiple‘intelligences’ – emotional,socialandprofessional–canbedeveloped andtappedupontohelpthem effectivelycarryoutthemulti-facetedrolesthat theyare oftentimescalled upontofulfil.

OBJECTIVES

Thismoduleseekstore-orientatestudents’perceptionsandthinkinginaneraofnewbusiness paradigms.Thus, themoduleis designedto:

•examinehowindividualsmayrespondtoglobalforcesthatimpact technology, organisationsandpeople;

•provideaframeworkforunderstandingthestructureandcultureoforganisations andhow theinteractions ofthedifferentcomponents mayinfluenceanindividual’s performanceinorganisations;

•enhance one’sunderstandingandappreciation ofworkingwith diverseindividuals,

•developanunderstandingofandinsightsintotheimportanceofone’sleadership andteamrolesinnegotiatingthroughtheweboforganisationallife; and

•rethinkone’smentalmodels,performancesandcontributionsintheorganisations oftoday.

MODULEOUTLINE

1.GlobalizationandItsEffectsontheWorkplace

Intheglobalizedworkplace, everyone mustrespondtoarapidlychangingsocietyand constantly shiftingdemandsandopportunities.Informationandtechnological change are modifying organisations and bringing added emphasis on knowledge and knowledgeworkers. Becauseknowledgeconstantlymakesitselfobsolete,thepressure isonindividualstoadoptalearning ethic andcontinually apply new knowledge to problemsandopportunities.

• Globalization,technologyandcustomization

• Changingparadigmsofmanagement

2.OrganisationStructure,CultureandStrategy

Thissegmentwillexaminehoworganisationsstrategically respondtothedemandsof theglobalisedenvironmentbyaligningtheirstructure, cultureandstrategy.Inthis connection,studentswilllookatvariouswaysbywhichorganisationsstructuretheir processestocreatevalue. Thecriticalroleofcultureinthesuccess ofanorganisationis also examined by exploring how varied relationships are involved in the implementationoforganisationalstrategies.References andillustrationstothese conceptswillbemade bylookingathowsuccessfulorganisationsarestructuredinthe contextofthecontemporaryenvironment.

• OrganisationStructure

• OrganisationCulture

• The linkbetweenorganisationstructure,cultureandstrategy

3.PeopleandProcessesin Organisations

Animportantpartoforganisationallifeinvolvesworkingwithandthroughpeople.In thecontextofchangingbusinessparadigms,theabilitytonegotiatethroughtheweb oforganisationalhierarchiesandcomplexitiesbecomes paramount toone’ssuccessat work.Hence,thissegmentemphasizes onpeopleandtheirbehaviouralandemotional interactionswithoneanotherattheworkplace.Itwouldexploretherangeofsocial andemotionalcompetencies requiredbyindividualstoperformandcontribute effectivelyinone’srolesasaleaderandteammember.Centraltothediscussionofthe segment wouldbeemphases ontheoriesandconceptsthatwouldenablestudentsto findnewperspectives andapproachesinmanagingrelationshipsinorganisations.In addition,theintricacies ofmanagingthepoliticsofinteractionswouldbeinvestigated through exploring the dynamics of peer-to-peer;superior-to-subordinate and customer-to-supplierinteractions.Without a doubt,anamalgamationoftheknow-how tomanageone’semotion,anabilitytonegotiaterole-identities andtheawarenessto recognize thesignificanceofone’srolesinanorganisation,wouldbeacatalystto creatingsynergyat workandachievingasatisfactorylevelofworkperformance.

• OrganisationalRoles:LeadershipandTeam Roles

• Diversityin Interactions:DiversityChallengesReframingDiversity

• WorkplaceInteractions:InterpersonalDynamics

4.The Selfin Organisations

Thissegmentexamines themultifaceted tasksandchallenges encountered by individualsinanorganisationalsetting.Asorganisationsstrivetobecome more competitive intheglobalbusinessenvironment,individualsareexpectedtomanage new formsofpressuresandrelationships.Hence,theabilitytomakesenseofand developone’scapabilitiesisofutmostimportancetoperformeffectively inthehighly competitive work placeoftoday.Changeisinevitable,andthepremiumisonthe adaptability oftheindividualtomake thetransitionsthroughchangesmore effectively andeasily.Inthelightoftheseunprecedenteddemandsonstudentswhoseentryto theworkplaceisimminent,thissegmentofthemodulewillfocusontheindividual’s roleinmanagingchange, theimperativetolearnandmanageknowledge;andhis/her strategic plan and choices in managing his/her career development. The need to developmultiplecompetenciesaswellasreframe one’smentalmodelstoremain relevant isalsoexpoundedontoencouragestudentstothinkandconsiderbeyond his/her currentroleidentities.

• ManagingChangeandLearning

• ExploringCareer: Development andProfessionalism

• UnderstandingCompetenciesandReframingMentalModels

TEACHINGMETHODOLOGY

Theteachingformatofthismoduleisvialecturesandtutorials.Thelecturescoverthekey conceptsandtheir applicationsthroughorganizationalexamples. Thetutorialsaredesigned to beflexible,interactiveandsupportiveofactiveandcreativelearning.Studentsareurgedto makethebestuseofthismodeofteaching, tocultivateanactivelearningmindset,andtobe involved andparticipative.

ASSESSMENTS

Studentswillbeassessedonthebasisofbothindividualandgroupwork. Continuous assessments accountfor50% ofthefinalgrade,whilethefinalopen-bookexaminationmakes uptheother50%.

I. ContinuousAssessments(50%)

There willbe2continuousassessmentsas follows: CA1Learning Contribution15%

CA2GroupProject35% Detailsofthecontinuous assessmentsare as follows: CA1 LearningContribution(15%)

For learning contribution,markswillbeawardedbased onactiveandqualitycontributionstoclass discussionaswellas for demonstratinggoodlearningattitudes.

CA2GroupProject (35%)

Thisisagroupassessment. Thesizeofeachgroupdependsontheclasssize. Please checkwith your tutor for moredetailsongroupingsfor theproject.

This projectcomprisestwoparts:

Part 1(15%)Presentation

Eachgroupwillbeassignedaproject topicbyyourtutor. StartingfromSession6,each weektherewillbeonegroup presentation.Your tutor willdothescheduling.

Thegroup willmakea20-minutepresentationfollowedbya 10-minuteQ&A.

Allgroupmembersmustbepresentonthedayofpresentation. Thepresentation willbeassessed onthefollowing:

a.Relevanceandqualityofinformationpresented;

b.Depthofcriticalanalysesanddiscussion;

c.Adding valuetoaudience learningandunderstandingofthetopic;

d.Effectivenessofthedelivery

Part 2(20%)

Besidesthein-classpresentation,thegroupwillcontinuetowork ontheassignedtopic andsubmitawrittenreportat theend ofthesemester.

Thereportwillbeassessed onthe following:

a. introducenewperspectivesandinsights pertainingtothetopic;

b. applyandevaluateyourexperiences,personaland/ororganisational,inthe contextofthetopic; and

c. synthesize informationcollected, eitherthroughprimaryorsecondary research, adding value tothediscussion ofthetopic.

Asaguide,themethodologiesthatcouldbeusedforthegroupprojectmayinclude fieldstudies,companyvisits,interviews, surveys, focusgroupdiscussionsandcontent analyses,includingcompanypracticesanddevelopmentsrelevanttotheengineering profession,etc.

Mereregurgitation oflecturematerialsorreproductionfromreferencesourcesisnotencouraged. Students shouldseek toaddvalue vianew insights,criticalopinions,andapplicationsofconceptslearned

Thewrittenreportwhichshouldnotexceed3000words,excludingreferences, istobe submitted latestbysession13inclass. Submissionsthatarelaterthanthedeadline maynot begrantedcredits.

ReferencesforLibraryResearch

The followingjournalsandperiodicalsprovideawealthofinformation whichstudents could useintheirfurtherreadingandresearch:

AcademyofManagementJournal,AcademyofManagementReview,Administrative Science Quarterly,HumanRelations,Harvard BusinessReview,Journal ofApplied Psychology,Journal ofOrganisationalBehavior,etc.

II.FinalExam(50%)

Thisisanopen-bookexamination. Studentsareindividuallyrequiredtoanswer2outof3 questions(25%each).Thetotaltimeallottedfor theexamis 1½ hours.