Contents
Week 1 – Organizations and Their environments
Week 2 – Organizations as Strategic Design
Week 3 – The Political Lens : Interest and Power
Week 4 - Introduction to the Cultural Lens
Week 5 - Integrating the lens
Week 7 - Managing In Complex Environments
Week 8 - Managing Teams
Week 9 - Managing Organizational Change
Week 1 – Organizations and Their environments
Understanding Organizations
- Organizations are different on the surface, but fundamentally similar underneath.
Features shared by modern large-scale organizations - Bureaucracy
- A system that mainly controls and prioritizes efficiency, accuracy and prediction.
1. Clearly specialized jobs and detailed performance requirements for each job
2. Formal hierarchy : a clear chain of command by authority
3. Rules and standard procedures → sometimes slow and rigid ( Sometimes rules
become more important than the actual goal )
4. Standardized training & rewards : reward systems based on skill expertise and
predictable satisfaction.
Max Weber and the Rise of rational bureaucratic organizations
During the height of the Industrial Revolution, scholars trying to understand :
● how modern capitalism worked
● how the modern state organized
● how to respond to Marx’s critique of capitalism
Europe, England and US growing rapidly in size and complexity
-> and they look similar
Core idea : Rational bureaucracy
→ Modern society = the rise of rational bureaucratic organizations
, - “Rational” : actions based on rules and logic rather than personal relationships and
traditions
- Strengths & dangers : highly efficient, predictable, superior but can become rigid,
prioritize rules over human needs, trap people in control and rationality.
Scientific Management - Frederick Winslow Taylor ( late 19th and early 20th )
- Like Weber, Taylor focused on efficiency but his is much more mechanical and
task-focused
Goal :
- To find the most efficient way to perform task and enforce it across organization :
1. What is the most efficient way to perform a job?
2. Standardization of Work
Once the best way is determined, it must be standardized across the organization.
→ Same position = same tasks = the same way & Period !!
3. Selection and training of workers
Workers are selected to fit a specific job.
Only” ideal type” for each job. No flexibility
→ Trained to follow the standardized method
4. Strict division of labor
Management did planning and thinking
Workers execute and obey
→ Separate jobs
→ Strong hierarchy
5. Incentive systems
Universal incentive systems that reward employees for meeting or exceeding performance
standards.
Scientific management greatly improved productivity and efficiency, especially in factories
- Concepts (still) used : time and motion studies, standardized work processes, and
systematic training
Criticism :
- Efficiency at the expense of worker satisfaction and creativity : treat workers as
machines
→ Monotonous and dehumanizing work
But despite criticism, many principles still influence modern organizations.
Henri Fayol and Administrative Management
, - Henri Fayol was also a pioneer of management theory
→ more practical (and less stiff) approach to managing organizations.
Taylor focused on shop-floor efficiency, Fayol focused on how managers should manage.
5 functions of management
Five core managerial activities :
1. Planning
2. Organizing
3. Commanding
4. Coordinating
5. Controlling
Principles of management :
14 principles, these are most important contributions :
● Division of labour ( Specialization ) helps people doing only what they do best
● Managers should have authority over subordinates to give orders.
● Lines of authority should be uninterrupted -> a clear chain of command from the top
to the bottom level
● Clear defined unity of command : employees receive directions from only 1 person ->
avoid confusion
● Subordinates should be allowed to develop ideas and implement their plans
The Human Relations Movement
- As response to the limitations of Scientific Management , which primarily focused on
efficiency and productivity
- The catalyst was the Hawthorne Studies, conducted by Elton Mayo.
→ Called attention to Dysfunctional aspects of classical management & bureaucracy :
1. Employee alienation
2. Limits to innovation and adaptation
3. Resistance to change
4. Minimum acceptable level of performance
5. Employees lose sight of the overall goals
From Micro to Macro: Shifting the Level of Analysis
- The study of organizations : originally known as administrative studies/science
- The systematic study of organizations has moved beyond Weber’s focus, to both
research into the informal social processes & analysis of relationships between
organizations and external environments.
→ Informal social processes also shape organizational outcomes.
, Bureaucracy often creates more opportunities for informal interpersonal influence
1. Individual and Interpersonal level - leadership, power and leader-follower relationships
2. Group and Team level - effects of diversity of membership on team performance
3. Organizational and subunit level - the study of the interactions between different kinds
of production technology and organizational structure
4. Organization-Environmental level - comparative analyses of business enterprises in
different countries.
Introduction to Systems Thinking :
- Behaviors are affected by those at other levels (micro or macro) in significant and
complex ways.
eg : what motivates an individual in an investment bank is shaped
● by personality
● by interactions with their fellow employees
● work group
● systems of evaluation and reward at the organizational level
What is a System ?
- A system is a set of interconnected and interdependent parts that interact in
unpredictable and unique ways.
- In organizations, understanding systems helps leaders see interdependencies, address
root causes of problems, and foster adaptability and innovation.
System Thinking :
● Interconnectedness
Understand how these elements interact helps optimizing efficiency, reducing cost and
solving problems
→ Mitigate risk & unlock competitive advantage
IKEA : worked with supplier networks from energy efficiency in supply chains to sustainability
in sourcing.
● Holistic problem-solving
- A comprehensive view helps developing & implementing effective solutions
Week 1 – Organizations and Their environments
Week 2 – Organizations as Strategic Design
Week 3 – The Political Lens : Interest and Power
Week 4 - Introduction to the Cultural Lens
Week 5 - Integrating the lens
Week 7 - Managing In Complex Environments
Week 8 - Managing Teams
Week 9 - Managing Organizational Change
Week 1 – Organizations and Their environments
Understanding Organizations
- Organizations are different on the surface, but fundamentally similar underneath.
Features shared by modern large-scale organizations - Bureaucracy
- A system that mainly controls and prioritizes efficiency, accuracy and prediction.
1. Clearly specialized jobs and detailed performance requirements for each job
2. Formal hierarchy : a clear chain of command by authority
3. Rules and standard procedures → sometimes slow and rigid ( Sometimes rules
become more important than the actual goal )
4. Standardized training & rewards : reward systems based on skill expertise and
predictable satisfaction.
Max Weber and the Rise of rational bureaucratic organizations
During the height of the Industrial Revolution, scholars trying to understand :
● how modern capitalism worked
● how the modern state organized
● how to respond to Marx’s critique of capitalism
Europe, England and US growing rapidly in size and complexity
-> and they look similar
Core idea : Rational bureaucracy
→ Modern society = the rise of rational bureaucratic organizations
, - “Rational” : actions based on rules and logic rather than personal relationships and
traditions
- Strengths & dangers : highly efficient, predictable, superior but can become rigid,
prioritize rules over human needs, trap people in control and rationality.
Scientific Management - Frederick Winslow Taylor ( late 19th and early 20th )
- Like Weber, Taylor focused on efficiency but his is much more mechanical and
task-focused
Goal :
- To find the most efficient way to perform task and enforce it across organization :
1. What is the most efficient way to perform a job?
2. Standardization of Work
Once the best way is determined, it must be standardized across the organization.
→ Same position = same tasks = the same way & Period !!
3. Selection and training of workers
Workers are selected to fit a specific job.
Only” ideal type” for each job. No flexibility
→ Trained to follow the standardized method
4. Strict division of labor
Management did planning and thinking
Workers execute and obey
→ Separate jobs
→ Strong hierarchy
5. Incentive systems
Universal incentive systems that reward employees for meeting or exceeding performance
standards.
Scientific management greatly improved productivity and efficiency, especially in factories
- Concepts (still) used : time and motion studies, standardized work processes, and
systematic training
Criticism :
- Efficiency at the expense of worker satisfaction and creativity : treat workers as
machines
→ Monotonous and dehumanizing work
But despite criticism, many principles still influence modern organizations.
Henri Fayol and Administrative Management
, - Henri Fayol was also a pioneer of management theory
→ more practical (and less stiff) approach to managing organizations.
Taylor focused on shop-floor efficiency, Fayol focused on how managers should manage.
5 functions of management
Five core managerial activities :
1. Planning
2. Organizing
3. Commanding
4. Coordinating
5. Controlling
Principles of management :
14 principles, these are most important contributions :
● Division of labour ( Specialization ) helps people doing only what they do best
● Managers should have authority over subordinates to give orders.
● Lines of authority should be uninterrupted -> a clear chain of command from the top
to the bottom level
● Clear defined unity of command : employees receive directions from only 1 person ->
avoid confusion
● Subordinates should be allowed to develop ideas and implement their plans
The Human Relations Movement
- As response to the limitations of Scientific Management , which primarily focused on
efficiency and productivity
- The catalyst was the Hawthorne Studies, conducted by Elton Mayo.
→ Called attention to Dysfunctional aspects of classical management & bureaucracy :
1. Employee alienation
2. Limits to innovation and adaptation
3. Resistance to change
4. Minimum acceptable level of performance
5. Employees lose sight of the overall goals
From Micro to Macro: Shifting the Level of Analysis
- The study of organizations : originally known as administrative studies/science
- The systematic study of organizations has moved beyond Weber’s focus, to both
research into the informal social processes & analysis of relationships between
organizations and external environments.
→ Informal social processes also shape organizational outcomes.
, Bureaucracy often creates more opportunities for informal interpersonal influence
1. Individual and Interpersonal level - leadership, power and leader-follower relationships
2. Group and Team level - effects of diversity of membership on team performance
3. Organizational and subunit level - the study of the interactions between different kinds
of production technology and organizational structure
4. Organization-Environmental level - comparative analyses of business enterprises in
different countries.
Introduction to Systems Thinking :
- Behaviors are affected by those at other levels (micro or macro) in significant and
complex ways.
eg : what motivates an individual in an investment bank is shaped
● by personality
● by interactions with their fellow employees
● work group
● systems of evaluation and reward at the organizational level
What is a System ?
- A system is a set of interconnected and interdependent parts that interact in
unpredictable and unique ways.
- In organizations, understanding systems helps leaders see interdependencies, address
root causes of problems, and foster adaptability and innovation.
System Thinking :
● Interconnectedness
Understand how these elements interact helps optimizing efficiency, reducing cost and
solving problems
→ Mitigate risk & unlock competitive advantage
IKEA : worked with supplier networks from energy efficiency in supply chains to sustainability
in sourcing.
● Holistic problem-solving
- A comprehensive view helps developing & implementing effective solutions
