DEPARTAMENTO ACADÉMICO DE NEGOCIOS INTERNACIONALES
PROGRAMA ACADEMICO
COURSE : Organisations and cultures
CODE : NI0038
PERIOD : 2008-2
FREQUENCY : 3 hours per week
MODE : Lecture
LANGUAGE : English
1. RATIONALE:
The understanding and management of organisational behaviour at the international level has become a pivotal area of international business. Understanding of cross-cultural issues of power, and managing of inter-group behaviour are increasingly critical areas for negotiating effectively. This course aims to examine the roles that the cultural aspects have in organisational behaviour.
2. COURSE OBJECTIVES:
· To revisit the main issues and research methods for the study of cultures.
· To examine cultural frameworks within organisations operating at the international, transnational, and at a global level.
· To discuss current issues and affairs within organisations.
3. COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Introduction to the course structure, academic programme and assessment methods.
Specific objectives
-To justify the importance of cultural studies for international business and negotiations.
-To revisit management tools for cultural diagnosis at the national level.
-To introduce ethnography as a method.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Class discussion.
Specific objectives:
-To understand, to contextualise and to define culture.
-To understand how behaviours affect international business and negotiations.
II. Organisations: national and organisational culture.
Specific objectives:
To discuss dimensions and types of cultures from different disciplinary frameworks.
To gain an understanding on what organisations are, their goals, the purposes they serve and how they emerge.
To reflect on the relevance of the concept of culture within the organisational framework.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Class discussions.
Film: The Corporation.
Bibliographical references:
-Mead, Richard. 2004. International Management: Cross-Cultural Dimensions London: Blackwell Publishing.
This is a comprehensive introduction to cross-cultural management, demonstrating how cultural factors influence behaviour in the boardroom and the workplace, and examines the skills needed to manage across national borders.
-Millman, Gregory J. . 2007. "Corporate Culture: more myth than reality? ." The Free Library 23:44-47. Millman, Gregory J. (2007, July 1).
Corporate Culture: more myth than reality? While business success and failure are often laid to "culture," the term is elusive and frequently misused. Experts in organization behavior say it's difficult to alter a company's culture, and when it does shift, it's often the result of successful business performance changes The Free Library. (2007). Retrieved January 03, 2008 from http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Corporate%20Culture:%20more%20myth%20than%20reality?
III. Exploring diversity
This module explores the dimensions and definitions of diversity.
Specific objectives
-To identify the myriad ways in which we are different, and how those important characteristics impact individuals’ values, opportunities and perceptions of self and others at work and at society.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Team group and discussion.
IV. Managing diversity
This module explores the globalisation of organisational behaviour and its future trends.
Specific objectives
To analyse and to answer:
-How diversity is managed within organisations?
-What is the future of cultures?
-Are cultures being homogenised? or are they falling apart?
Learning and teaching strategies:
Discussion and round table.
Film: Lost in Translation.
Assessment strategies:
Student participation and workshop.
Bibliographical references:
Sylvie, Chevrier. 2003. "Cross-cultural management in multinational project groups " Journal of World Business 38:141-149.
“This paper aims at better understanding the dynamics of international project groups by grasping the strategies project leaders set up to cope with cultural diversity. Three kinds of cross-cultural practices emerged from the comparative study of European project groups: (1) to draw upon individual tolerance and self-control, (2) to enter into a trial-and-error process coupled with relationship development and (3) to capitalize on transnational corporate or professional cultures. An alternative method to enhance the functioning of cross-cultural projects is also suggested. It consists in the construction of cross-cultural patterns based upon a structured examination of the cultural sense-making processes of project members. The paper concludes on the necessarily culture bound approaches of cross-cultural management in transnational project groups.”
V. Expatriates and migrant workers.
Specific objectives
To explore the phenomenon and the background of labour mobility worldwide.
To examine the main theoretical and practical challenges of labour migration.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Class discussions.
Film: The Beautiful Country.
Assessment strategies
Workshop.
Bibliographical references:
-Verbeeten, David. 2007. The Past and Future of Immigration to Canada. Journal of International Migration & Integration, 8(1): 1-10.
This study juxtaposes Canada’s history of immigration to present-day trends in immigration. It considers whether the future of immigration to Canada will resemble the nineteenth century, when immigration failed to contribute to population growth, or the legacy of the twentieth century, when immigration became the main source thereof. It notes the possibility of increased immigration from the Middle East and Russia in the next quarter century.
-Gercik, Patricia. 2003. "Moto: Coming to America." Pp. 226-229 in Readings and Cases in International Management: A Cross-Cultural Perspective edited by D. C. Thomas. London: Sage Publication.
“Rapid changes in management worldwide have clearly challenged the ability of academics to make courses in international management relevant. One of the best ways to enrich courses is to supplement textbook material with recent articles and case studies. Readings and Cases in International Management: A Cross-Cultural Perspective is a compilation of contemporary readings and case studies that focus on managing global organizations. Intended as a companion to editor David C. Thomas' Essentials of International Management: A Cross-Cultural Perspective (SAGE, 2001), great care has been taken to select readings that do not duplicate, but supplement, material typically contained in texts on this topic. The readings and cases in this book are organized around three major themes: the basis for understanding the influence of culture on international management, the key roles that international managers play, and the important challenges that these managers face. Designed to represent a broad geographic scope, this integrative volume includes An explanation of how culture influences individual managers Methods to systematically describe cultural differences Fundamental principles that influence cross-cultural interactions An examination of managers as communicators, negotiators, change agents, and organization builders Procedures for designing effective organizational structures Readings and Cases in International Management: A Cross-Cultural Perspective presents ways to maximize the positive effects of cultural diversity while minimizing the negative consequences. An index of key terms, teaching notes, and a quick reference guide are provided to facilitate learning in a seperate instructor's manual. Developed as a supplement for advanced international management texts, this is also an excellent primary text for courses in organizational behavior, management, and international business.”
VI. East Asia
-Introduction to the East Asian region with special emphasis on Japan.
-The Japanese management model.
-The (South) Korean management model
Specific objectives:
-To reflect on the influences of national cultures on traditional methods of management businesses in Korea and Japan.
-To compare the East Asian model with the United States model.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lectures.
Class discussions.
Bibliographical References
Lee, Jangho, Thomas W. Roehl, & Soonkyoo Choe. 2000. What Makes Management Style Similar and Distinct Across Borders? Growth, Experience and Culture in Korean and Japanese Firms. Journal of International Business Studies, 31(4): 631-52.
VII. China.
Introduction to Chinese culture and its impacts on its economic development.
Chinese organisations.
Specific objectives:
To understand the “Chinese case”.
To analyse the political history of China, and to recognise its implications on its current affairs.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Bibliographical references:
Warner, Malcolm. 2004. Human resource management in China revisited: introduction. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 15(4/5): 617-34.
“This introduction attempts to provide an overview of the Special Issue of the IJHRM on 'Human Resource Management in China Revisited'. It deals first with the economic background of the recent changes in the PRC from 1978 to the present day, exploring the change from a command economy to a more market-led one, as well as the demise of 'iron rice bowl' policy dominated by a model to Soviet-inspired personnel management in favour of one gradually being characterized by possibly Japanese-/Western-influenced human resource management (HRM), albeit with 'Chinese characteristics'. It then introduces the main debates in the field before summing up, at some length, the empirical contributions based on 'state of the art' field research contained in the papers submitted. Last, it deals with the comparative setting of the contributions on China vis-à-vis the national HRM systems of Japan and South Korea.”
VIII. South Asia
The Indian case.
Specific objectives
-To introduce the Indian social organisation and its cultural relations.
-To compare with the Chinese case.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture
Class discussions.
Film:
Dil Chahta Hai.
Bibliographical reference:
-Deleury, G. 1978. Le modèle indou: essai sur les structures de la civilisation de l'Inde d'hier et d'aujourd'hui.
-Country Watch. 2008. India: Social Overview, India Country Review: CountryWatch.
-Agarwal, Sanjeev, Thomas E DeCarlo, Shyam B. Vyas, & Source:. 1999. Leadership Behavior and Organizational Commitment: A Comparative Study of American and Indian Salespersons. Journal of International Business Studies, 30(4): 727-43.
IX. Africa
Specific objectives
To recognise the main aspects of colonialism.
To appreciate and to analyse socio-economic development based on local needs and regional circumstances.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture
Films:
Hotel Rwanda.
Blood Diamonds
I dreamed of Africa.
Nowhere in Africa.
The Interpreter.
The Last King of Scotland.
Bibliographical references:
Jones, Merrick L. “Management Development: An African Focus.” International Organizational Behavior - Texts, Readings, Cases and Skills. Prentice Hall International. 1998. p. 351-362
Mangaliso, Mzamo. 2003. Building competitive advantage from Ubuntu.In Thomas, David Clinton, editor, Readings and cases in International Management: A cross cultural perspective.
Thomas, Adèle & Mike. Bendixen. 2000. The Management Implications of Ethnicity in South Africa. Journal of International Business Studies, 31(3): 507-31.
X. The Middle East: The Arab World and Israel
Specific objectives:
To analyse the relationship between culture and business organisations within the Middle East.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Film:
§ Syriana.
Bibliographical references:
· Ali, Abbas & Ahmed. Azim. 1996. A Cross-National Perspective on managerial problems in a Non-Western Country. Journal of Social Psychology, 136(2): 165-72.
· Ali, Abbas, Krish Krhishnan, & Ahmed. Azim. 1997. Expatriate and Indigenous Managers’ Work Loyalty and Attitude Toward Risk. The Journal of Psychology(3): 260-70.
· Zwikael, Ofer & Kazuo Shimizu. 2005. Cultural differences in project management capabilities: A field study. International Journal of Project Management, 23: 454-62.
XI. Europe
Specific objectives:
To explore the changing contours of European 'space' and human movement, the significance of 'borders' (both external and internal), the construction of 'communities', as well as the dynamics of diversity, unity and conflict in order to understand how the history of the European continent has defined its present cultural and political variety.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Class discussions based on reading material.
Assessment strategies:
Discussion based on reading
Bibliographical references:
-Huijgh, Ellen. 2007. Diversity United? Towards a European cultural industries policy. Social Policy, 28(3): 209 - 24
-De Vries, Manfred Kets & Konstantin Korotov. 2006. The future of European Business Leadership. European Business Forum, 24: 36-42.
XII. Australia and Oceania
Specific objectives:
To gain a general understanding of society and culture within Australia and Oceania.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Class discussions based on reading material.
Film:
Whale rider.
Assessment strategies:
Workshop participation.
Bibliographical references:
· Baird, Kevin. 2007. The culture of Australian organizations and its relation with strategy. International Journal Of Business Studies, 15(1).
XIII. North America
Specific objectives:
To gain a view of the growth and achievements of the North American countries by focusing on cooperation in resolving critical trade issues of common interest.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Class discussions based on reading material.
Films:
-Bread & Roses.
-The pursuit of happyness.
-Supersize me.
Bibliographical references:
HARRIS, Marvin. La cultura norteamericana contemporánea.”Introducción”; “¿Por qué no funciona nada? p. 7 – 42
Rapaille, Clotaire. 2006. The Culture Code New York: Broadway
XIV. Latin America: Brazil
Specific objectives:
-To analyze and to discuss (i) the Latin American view of North America, (ii) the Latin American view of itself, and (iii) the North American view of the Latin American.
-To understand historical components of current affairs Latin America (indigenous roots, colonialism, foreign direct investment, human migration, institutions and regional crises).
-To analyse top-down decisions in societies highly referenced by regularised social classes (estratos).
Learning and teaching strategies:
Lecture.
Discussion based on reading material.
Film:
The Mission.
The Motorcycle diaries.
Assessment
Attendance
Class discussions.
Bibliographical references:
Barros, Marcos. 2006. Emancipatory management: the contradiction between practice and discurse. Academy of Management Proceedings: C1-C6.
XV. Cultural citizenship, multiculturalism and the State
Specific objective:
To explore and to analyse views of cultural citizenship as a process of self-making and being made in relationship to nation-states and transnational process.
Learning and teaching strategies:
Discussion based on reading material.
Assessment
Attendance
Class discussions.
Bibliographical references:
-Kim, Harris H. . 2003. Ethnic enclave economy in Urban China: the Korean immigrants in Yanbian. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 26(5): 802-28.
“The purpose of this article is two-fold. First, it seeks to contribute to the ongoing sociological debate surrounding the immigrant enclave hypothesis, originally articulated by Alejandro Portes and his associates. It also extends his debate beyond the empirical setting on which the previous research has almost exclusively focused, i.e., developed market economies. The current study applies the enclave argument to a non-market context by analysing an original survey of 449 ethnic Koreans living in the city of Yanji, located in the north-eastern corner of China. In doing so, this study probes into how ethnic enclave relates to inequality and stratification within the context of China’s transitional economy. Multivariate analyses reveal that ceteris paribus working in the Korean enclave economy is positively associated with significant earnings advantage. Logistic regression models are also estimated to explore the causal determinants of enclave participation in terms of both immigrant entrepreneurship and employment. Empirical results indicate that the ethnic sector typically attracts those who lack substantial human capital required for entering ‘mainstream’ (state-managed) labour markets.”
4. ASSESSMENT
10% Research Proposal (midterm assessment)
10% Blog
10% Research progress
15% Blog (midterm assessment)
25% PowerPoint and oral presentation on a specific module.
30% Final report (max. 3 students per group).
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