CdLM Business Administration

This course, cognitive but also highly experiential, has been designed to help students understand the behavior of people at work and make the learning process enjoyable. We will explore a range of perspectives that explain the dynamics of individual, interpersonal, group, and organizational structure and processes, to make sense of today's organisational world. Scientific concepts, theories, teaching methods and ideas, will be delivered to:

-       understand the various aspects of human behaviour and cognition, both at the level of groups’ dynamics and of individuals’ changes within a social system;

-       provide students tools and techniques to develop personal awareness about individual and organisational behaviour, gender & diversity management;

-       help students who want to self-fulfil professionally to develop a growth mindset and to start a tailored, authentic and personal achievement process toward their professional dream supported by suitable psychological tools and techniques referring to “the psychology of professional dreams fulfilment” (Professional Dreamers Project by Remigia Spagnolo);

-       to disseminate knowledge that advances the understanding of how and when to follow, manage, lead, in order to increase personal and organisational effectiveness.

Students will be able to:

 

• reflect on human behaviour and develop personal and social awareness and interpersonal skills, which have a fundamental importance of improving both social and individual relationships within teamwork-based organization;
• acquire relevant conceptual frameworks to better describe and understand dynamics within different organisations;
• assume a critical attitude towards key components of human nature, such as personality and personal awareness, authentic professional dream, motivation and self-motivation, influence and power in groups and organisations;
• understand the causes and consequences of failing to manage diversity and gain basic behavioural insights in decision making;
• acquire practical tools to both reveal and contrast unconscious bias at the individual and organizational level.

Topics will be introduced by means of a brief overview at the start of class, followed by class participation:

- Discussions

- Group exercises

- Simulations

- Role-playing

- Movies parts and videos viewing

- Case Studies

- Anecdotes and methaphores

Participating students- The assessment will be divided in two parts:

         Class participation tasks: We are mainly looking for quality in class participation, not just quantity.

• 50% of final evaluation. Class participation covers your own contribution to classroom learning. There will be two class participation tasks: one on October 26th and the other one during the last lesson on November 9^th . The total mark of both participation tasks will be scored up until 15/30.
• Final written exam: 50%. The exam is based on a written text and it is composed by 3 open questions to be answered within 60 minutes. Each answered question can weight maximum five points for a maximum total of 15/30.

Not-participating students - Only written exam

The exam is based on a written text with 6 open questions to be answered within 90 minutes. Each answered question can weight maximum five points for a maximum total of 30/30.

The course is structured in different topics which are:

• Introduction to OB
• Gender & Diversity Management
• Self Awareness and Personality
• Emotional Intelligence
• Followership, Management, Leadership
• Growth mindset
• Conflict Management
• Group dynamics
• A model of intervention at individual and organisational level: Professional Dreamers Project -developing professional dreaming intelligence (by Remigia Spagnolo)

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Reading and studying material will be given during the lectures and put on Moodle platform

A list of suggested watching or reading material will be available during lectures

 

TEXTBOOK – FOR EXAM PREPARATION

• Robbins, S. P. (2011). Organizational Behavior, Concepts, Controversies and Applications, sixth edition, Prentice Hall International, Inc,
• Bohnet, I. (2016). What Works: gender equality by design. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

REFERENCE BOOKS

Italian books about the following topics: “professional dreaming intelligence”; followership, management, leadership.

• • SPAGNOLO, R. (2017) Un ignoto promettente: realizzare il proprio sogno professionale per un destino ori-geniale (A promising unknown: fulfilling your professional dream toward an ori-genius destiny) Giappichelli Editore, Torino, Italy. A project/book about the psychology of professional self-actualization and self-discovery
  • CORTESE, C.G; SPAGNOLO. (2013) Leader e Follower nei gruppi di lavoro (Leader & follower on Work Teams) Giappichelli Editore, Torino, Italy
  • SPAGNOLO, R. (2013) Sognatori di Professione. Storie di Creatività e di Successi (Professional Dreamers. Creativity and Success Stories) Giappichelli Editore, Torino, Italy