THE HELLER SCHOOL AT BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY2.53 Leadership and Organizational Behavior

Instructor: Professor Jon Chilingerian, Ph.D.Phone: (781) 736-3828 (W); (617) 965-8009 (H)Fall Semester: 2019Class time: Tuesday 9:00 AM – 11:50 AM G3Office Hours: Monday 2-5; Tuesday 12-2, Wednesday 9:00-12:00 PM and by appointmentTeaching Assistant Yaminette Diaz-Linhart, MSW, MPH (Schedule by appointment)MBA Coordinator: Norma DeMattos, (781) 736-3866 (ndemat@brandeis.edu)E-mail: chilinge@brandeis.edu ________________________________________________________________________I. COURSE DESCRIPTION:OVERVIEW: This course has a dual focus: (1) leadership; and (2) managing organizations. You cannot be an effective leader if you are not an able manager. The purpose is to increase your understanding of behavior within organizations and to improve your effectiveness in analyzing, diagnosing, and leading organizations. As a course in applied behavioral science or organizational theory, you will be building upon your understanding of how managers in organizations can improve performance and how leaders can become the instrument of fair process and justice. The course can become an opportunity for you to develop your leadership skills through group work and reflection.

Course Focus 1

Policy makers and leaders must take note—job pressures, “bosses” and toxic workplaces are a major source stress for people. While we ought to be very concerned about the physical environment, perhaps we should be even more concerned about the effect of work organizations on human beings. Moreover, a study recently reported that only 1 out of 4 people feel engaged, and 88% feel that they work for organizations that do not care about them.

A few years ago, the CEO of one global company employing 12,000 people said, “we became aware that all 12,000 employees who work for us are somebody’s precious child, and we know that the way we treat them will have a material impact on their life.” To design organizations and cultures in which people care about each other, feel valued and offer their clients and customers outstanding value and experiences requires effective and “truly human” leadership. And we also need to be leaders who understand how to get all of these things done. Patty McCord formerly of Netflix once said that the job of a leader is to “create great teams that do amazing work on time…”

This is not a survey course on the history of theory or the landscape of organizational behavior. The aim (and goal) of this course is to prepare you to effectively lead and manage organizations that care about human well-being. This entails developing knowledge and skills to analyze key issues in organizational design, leadership, justice, power and influence, culture, change, and performance management. The course combines conceptual and experiential approaches. We draw on four sources of knowledge to accomplish the course objectives: (1) conceptual frameworks and research findings from organization 1

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studies, sociology, political science, anthropology, and psychology; (2) management (and business) cases and media accounts; (3) simulations and exercises; and (4) your own work experiences. The class will be interactive, and active participation in discussions is expected.

II. Course Objectives The main objective of this course is to help you to understand: 1) yourself as a follower, a collaborative team player and a leader; 2) the way people in groups behave; and 3) how to lead and change organizations. This course takes a behavioral and humanistic point of view.

Working FrameworksYou will develop conceptual frameworks for analyzing organizational structures, power and politics, culture, and change, with a focus on the interplay of rules, resources, and relationships in managing interdependencies. By identifying critical sources of tension in organizations, you can learn to harness them to produce beneficial outcomes for you and your organization.

Course Outcomes (CO): CO1: Evaluate individual, group, and organizational issues from a behavioral science point

of view CO2: Apply strategic, political, and cultural perspectives to the analysis and redesign of

organizations and teams CO3: Reflect upon how to build, participate in, and lead collaborative teams more

effectively through the evaluation of the science of collective intelligence CO4: Examine the roles of a leader as a strategic thinker and instrument of justice to ensure

that decision makers diagnose micro situations and organizational systems prior to determining goals, alternatives, risks, and trade-offs

CO5: Assess your personal leadership style to increase personal growth and your effectiveness in contributing to high performance teams and organizations

CO6: Analyze the relationship between macro and micro leadership behaviors and models of leading change to the fit/congruence of an organization’s strategy, people, and structures and critical tasks

CO7: Apply tools and tactics for attaining organizational goals such as mapping the social networks, assessing power and politics, aligning stakeholders, and interpreting and managing cultures

Acquire Diagnostic SkillsYou will increase your skills in diagnosis that enable you to analyze the fit of an organization’s structure to its goals, to map out the networks of the organization, to assess the political landscape, and to interpret culture and identities.

Learn Key Concepts, Strategies, Tactics, and ToolsYou will begin to build a repertoire of strategies and tactics to increase your effectiveness in varied situations, induce and lead change initiatives, and use politics in pragmatic ways to get things done. You will learn and apply tools and tactics for attaining organizational goals effectively.

III. Coursework and Grading 2

Grading (explained in detail in appendix 1)

1. Class Participation & 2 On-Line Polls 40%2. Post-Class Discussion on Latte 3. Two Reflective and Analytic Essays, each one is

2 single-spaced (S.S.) pages:

10% 20%

4. Group Mid-Term Case 25%5. Personal Leadership Development Plan 5%

V. Explanation of Coursework Requirements:

1. Class Participation 40% (see Appendix 1 for more details)a. Reading to Prepare for each Class. Students are expected to read materials assigned for

class, before each class, lead some discussions and to engage in thoughtful discussions.

b. 2 Polls: Speed Ventures & Parker Cases. The Parker poll should be no more than 1,300 characters with spaces. Use word count. Polls will not be graded, but they will count towards your class participation. Be ready to defend your positions in class. They are due 6 PM the evening before class. Submit via LATTE (for help ask Norma DeMattos - ndemat@brandeis.edu).

2. Post Class discussion (10%). After every class if you have an insight or would like to ask a question, please post. Based on the quality of the contribution and your ability to generate discussion, each posting is worth 1 point per week. These discussions should aim to advance our understanding of posting questions and thoughtful comments on Latte. The posting should also advance the learning from the class.

3. Two Reflective and Analytic Essays 20% (10 points each). For each of these 2 single-spaced papers, you will be assessed based on thoughtful, convincing, insightful and exploratory writing and reflection, a strong connection between experience and insights, and use of detail and narrative account that reflect on the experiences framed and supported by course concepts and materials (readings, lectures, discussions).

a. Paper 1 due October 8. Reflection on yourself and your own behaviors. Since Class 1, what are you learning about yourself? Your strengths, your personality, as well as your biases, as a decision maker and collaborative team player. Any new information?

b. Paper 2 due November 19. Describe your team experience and a decision-making unit. Did your group progress? Why or why not. How has your group been influenced by individual and group “properties” and processes? What readings and concepts helped you understand and manage group dynamics and leading teams?

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4. Group Mid-Term 25%. On October 22, your team will read, analyze, and write a single analysis of a case. Submitted on November 12, and with one grade for the team.

5. Personal Leadership Development Plan 5%. Each student will ask the team for anonymous feedback on their leadership and fill out al leadership plan that will be handed out. You are expected to utilize the ideas from class and the current readings. I will give you a template and the development plan is due December 3.

VI. COURSE MATERIALS INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

READINGS ON LATTE. LATTE CONTAINS many of the required reading, cases, and other materials.

TWO REQUIRED BOOKS: 1. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivate US, (2009) By Daniel Pink,

New York: Riverhead Hardcover2. DIFFICULT CONVERSATIONS: HOW TO DISCUSS WHAT MATTERS MOST. (2010)

DOUGLAS STONE, BRUCE PATTON, & SHEILA HEEN. (PAPERBACK) ISBN: 978-0-14311-844-2

THREE RECOMMENDED BOOKS: (FOR OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS APPENDIX 4)

1. REINVENTING ORGANIZATIONS, FREDERIC LALOUX. PAPERBACK ISBN: 978 2960 133509

2. MINDSET: THE NEW PSYCHOLOGY OF SUCCESS. CAROL DWECK (2016). NEW WORK: RANDOM HOUSE. ISBN: 978-1-4000-6275

3. Crucial Accountability: Tools For Resolving Broken Promises, Violated Expectations and Bad Behavior. Second edition By Kerry Patterson, Joe Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler. New York: McGraw Hill. 2013 *ISBN:* 0071446524

NOTE: EXTRA REQUIRED MATERIALS (IN CLASS AND PURCHASED FROM NORMA DEMATTOS): (SEE APPENDIX 3)

MBTI (SELF-SCORABLE FORM M), HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL CASES (PURCHASED THROUGH THE COURSEPACK AT HBS PUBLISHING): HTTPS://HBSP.HARVARD.EDU/IMPORT/659731

1. IDEO: Human Centered Service Design2. Judgment in Crisis (simulation)3. Elizabeth Parker (A) 4. Elizabeth Parker (B)5. Taran Swan at Nickelodeon Latin America (A) 6. Reverend Jeffrey Brown: Cops, Kids, and Ministers 7. Organization Design Simulation8. Satya Nadela at Microsoft9. Blue Ocean Leadership

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CommunicationAn important source of communication is the course web site. After each session, you will find there a summary of my slides with main learning points or annotated versions of each session’s slides. It will aid your learning if you briefly review the summary after class. Please talk with me in class or make an appointment to talk if anything is unclear.

Although there are office hours, I am happy to meet with individuals or small groups by appointment.

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Overview of Course Schedule: Assignments and Key Due Dates

Class and Date Topics and Sub-topics AssignmentSeptember 3

Class 1

Introduction: The Opportunities and Challenges of Managing and Leading People in Organizations w/o Authority

Case: Nestles Globe Program

September 10

Class 2

Understanding Individual Differences, and Motivation: Managing Yourself and Other People

Fill out the MBTI Take Social Sensitivity TestRead Drive

September 17

Class 3

Evolving Structures to Design & Organize Work: Organizational Culture and Formal Architecture

Case: Ideo-Human Centered Design Organization Design Simulation

September 24 Class 4

Issues in Organizing Work and Managing People: Workforce Diversity

Video Case: Hidden Figures Take Implicit Bias test

October 8 Class 5

Issues in Teaming & Team Dynamics: Individual & Group Decision Making

In-class Simulation

Paper 1 dueOctober 22

Class 6

Issues in Decision-Making and Crisis Intervention Earlier Start—1:30 PM

Prepare: Judgment in Crisis Guest Speaker: Mike Nikitas

October 29

Class 7

The Disciple of Strategic Thinking: A Core Competency of Leadership Take Home Group Midterm

Case: Speed Ventures A, B & C Complete Speed Ventures Online Poll by Monday 9pm

Take Home Due November 12November 5 Class 8

Leadership Behaviors: Managing Performance, Developing People & Having Difficult Conversations

Case: 6 Case Vignettes Read: Difficult Conversations

November 12

Class 9

Leadership Behaviors and Effective Leaders: Leading Change

Change Pro SimulationTake Home Mid-Term Due

November 19

Class 10

Leadership Behaviors and Effective Leaders: Adapting Your Leadership Style

Earlier Start—1:30 PM

Fill out LEAD Instrument Case: Taran SwanPaper 2 due

November 26

Class 11

Leadership Behaviors that Aim to Solve Social Problems with Social Impact

Case: Reverend Brown: Kids, Cops and Ministers Case: Satya Nadella at Microsoft

December 3

Class 12

Leadership Behaviors and Effective Leaders: Leading Teams, Exercising Power & Influence

Cases: Elizabeth ParkerComplete Parker Poll Online Due: Personal Leadership Development Plan

December 10

Class 13

Leadership Behaviors: Transforming Organizations and Leading Change Class Party: bring food and drinks

Case: The Marvel Way: Restoring A Blue Ocean

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SESSION I TOPIC:

September 9 Introduction: The Opportunities and Challenges of Managing and Leading People in Organizations w/o Authority

Key Learnings and Description of Session

To introduce the course, we will focus on a young manager, Chris Johnson, asked by the CEO to implement a complex information system on a global scale. We will explore the opportunities, as well as the managerial and leadership challenges. Organizing on a global scale is among the most difficult managerial challenges. Different multi-national designs will lead to wide variations in the distribution of power. In the past, the design choices were either a) country- subsidiary structures, or b) business-unit structures. Today a simple either-or organization design seems impossible. How do we differentiate and integrate the

activities that take place in different countries and subsidiary cultures?

Global organizations find themselves in scores of countries, dealing with different languages, cultures, currencies, tax systems, and regulatory agencies, and they also find that their key customers have also globalized. To serve their customers in Taiwan, Mexico or Brazil, requires Nestlé to undertake new initiatives: making purchases across business-units, common order-fulfilment processes, common supply-chain process, and coordinated buying. To deepen its global organizational capability, Nestlé has decided to put all of these new projects and initiatives in enterprise software from SAP. We will learn how Chris Johnson manages this GLOBE project. To succeed, Chris Johnson must not only understand strategic design, but also understand power & politics, and culture. And to manage and lead a massive global project without the authority.

Study Questions:1. On a scale from one to ten (ten being very difficult), how difficult will it be for

Chris Johnson to make a success of his new job?2. What and who will be the keys to success for Chris Johnson in his new job?3. What would you advise Chris to prepare for his upcoming meeting to discuss

staffing with Mario Corti? What should he ask for? On what issues should he be willing to compromise? Why? If he follows your advice, what will be the risks and ramifications for him, and how should he deal with them?

Preparatory Reading: I will give some time in class to read this.• Nestlé’s GLOBE Program (A): The Early Months. Killing, P. International

Institute for Management, (2019).7

Readings on LATTE (if you have time): Harnessing the Science of Persuasion. Cialdini, R. Harvard Business

Review. (2001). Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail. Kotter, J.

Harvard Business Review, (2007). Beer, M. & Nohria, N. 2000 “Cracking the code of change”.

Harvard Business Review

ON SEPTEMBER 17, OCTOBER 8 th , OCTOBER 22, AND NOVEMBER 12 THERE ARE AT HOME AND IN-CLASS SIMULATIONS—THIS IS AN IMPORTANT REMINDER TO BUY THE HBS READING PACK FOR THE SEPT. 17 AND OCT. 22 SIMULATION.

Please purchase the HBS reading package by September 10th to do the organization design simulation and the judgment in crisis simulation.

For the October 22 will start early at 1:30 PM. There is video and audio data. Please bring headphones and a laptop and power cord

to the class. You will be making several important decisions. You may want to take notes to help

you recall what influenced your decisions during your class debriefing discussion.

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SESSION II. TOPIC: September 10 Understanding Individual Differences and Motivation: Managing

Yourself and Other People

OverviewThis session has three parts. The first part of the session introduces the new science of collective intelligence, and the" new" basic work units in global organizations—virtual project teams. You cannot effectively manage people without understanding what drives people. We will explore the tools organizations have at their disposal to employees’ needs and efforts congruent with the organization’s objectives and watch a short video of a group of people working on a task. The case is about IDEO and its human-centered innovation culture and service design process. We will introduce the congruence model to identify misalignments.

Before you can manage and lead other people, you should understand your preferences for acquiring and processing information to make decisions. To help you to understand the human element and to help you to perceive people as more predictable, we will use the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) - the most widely used psychological instrument in the world. The MBTI is based on the work of Swiss Psychoanalyst Carl Jung.

In class we will watch a video of IDEO, a design team in action.

Study Questions1. According to Pink, what drives people? 2. Can we apply these ideas when designing organizations?

Assignment :1. Read: Drive , by Daniel Pink (Entire)2. Read: “Evidence for a Collective Intelligence Factor in the Performance of Human

Groups.” Woolley A.W. et al., Science 29 October 20103. Bring your MBTI to class (Self Scored)4. Take the Test “Reading the Mind in the Eyes” https://s3.amazonaws.com/he-assets-prod/interactives/233_reading_the_mind_through_eyes/Launch.html5. Be prepared by the end of class to form diverse teams (sign-in sheet)6. Readings on Congruence

Optional Reading “Managing Yourself” by Drucker “Introduction To Type” Myers-Briggs [Skim]

Study Questions What is your MBTI profile? Share the results with your team.

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SESSION   III.                               TOPIC:

September 17 Evolving Structures to Design & Organize Work: Organizational Culture and Formal Architecture

Overview: How can we, as leaders, turn human creativity and innovation into organizational resources and capabilities? How do you design an organization for performance? Which formal structures do you select and what type of culture? Can you create a strong motivating environment for people to perform at their very best?

In class, we will build on what we learned in the previous session and see IDEO in action. In 2014 owing to competitive pressures, Cineplanet, the leading movie chain in Peru, hired IDEO to re-invent the movie-going experience for Peruvians. How do you re-align the operating model with the unmet needs and behaviors of its clients and customers?

We will analyze IDEO’s corporate culture and core values on which it is based. How do leaders embed values in a culture and where should a leader focus attention?

Before coming to class run the short simulation (30-40 min) on organizational design at home. You will have experienced the range of choices managers have to design the architecture in a simulation. Dive into a leadership role at Ecotripp, an online travel agency specializing in sustainable travel. As the company transitions from an entrepreneurial venture to an established midsize company, you will apply organizational design concepts to evolve the company's structure to support their rapid growth and avoid the downfalls of a misaligned organization. You will have the opportunity to experiment with different structures throughout the business lifecycle and understand the short and long-term effects of their choices.

Once you are up to speed on Ecotripp's history, industry, and current performance, you tackle the challenge of determining the best organizational design: informal, functional, multi-divisional, or matrix. To support each design, you will adjust structural elements based on the seven dimensions of organizational structure: work specialization, departmentalization, chain of command, span of control, centralization and decentralization, formalization, and boundary spanning. After making your decisions, you will experience the impact on different parts of the business, such as its people, processes, revenue, and customers. Did you create a strong, weak or distorted structure?

Assignment :1. Prepare Case: IDEO: Human Centered Service Design2. You must purchase the HBS reading package to do the simulation.3. At home Prepare and Run Organization Design Simulation from the HBS casepack

(debrief in class)

Study Questions1. How does IDEO define opportunities, developed hypotheses, and test hypotheses?2. How would you describe and define IDEO’s human-centered innovation culture, process,

and philosophy? 3. Watch the customer interview video. What do you learn from this customer as they try to

reimagine a movie-going experience? What are the most important features of the way the team interacts with the customer during the interview?

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SESSION IV. TOPIC: September 24 Issues in Organizing Work and Managing People: Workforce

Diversity (Paper 1 due next class October 7)

OverviewThis session will delve into how gender and race are played out in organizations like NASA. They underscore a dark history of institutional racism and sexism that continue in organizations today. Hidden Figures is set in a NASA research center in Virginia about 1961-62. It chronicles the amazing story of three black women scientists and mathematicians and their critical roles in the US space program. On a daily basis, they are coping, confronting, and overcoming the overt discrimination and racism in the workplace.

Assignment If you took the Implicit Bias Test, please share any reflections you have on the process and

what you learned about yourself. Names are not collected with this survey to keep it fully anonymous. This is optional. https://brandeis.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3PEADKUSVKmWl1P

Please view the film on latte: Hidden Figures Take 2 Pre-Tests: 10-15 minutes: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/selectatest.html What did your pre-test tell you? What do you learn from the data? Read: Cheeks, M. 2018. How Black Women Describe Navigating Race and Gender

in the Workplace. HBR Read: Marshall, M. and Wingfield, T. 2016. Getting more Black Women in the C-

Suite. View “Creating a level playing field” by Stanford Professor Shelley Morrell.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPoymWLNjVk

Study Questions1. What lessons can leaders learn from the film Hidden Figures?2. Why have we not fixed these problems?

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SESSION   V.                               TOPIC: October 8 Issues in Teaming and Team Dynamics: Individual & Group

Decision Making PAPER 1 DUEOverview According to Katzenbach and Smith (2003), a team is a "small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable." How do we get people and technology to act intelligently when working together on a team? We will explore these issues by working on a group simulation.

You will experience a simulation first working alone as an individual and then in collectively in groups. In the subarctic simulation, you have survived a plane crash with your group. Your group must decide on a strategy. You have 15 items from the crash that you must rank in order of importance to the group’s survival. Your challenge is to rank the items based on their importance.

The simulation involves a demonstration of your group’s collective intelligence. Your group will receive an overall measure of their performance.

Assignment : Read: The Secrets of Great Teamwork. By Martine Haas and Mark Mortensen In-Class Group Simulation: Sub-Artic Survival Paper 1 on self is due

Recommended:

Kaplan, Gimbel and Harris. 2016. Neural correlates of maintaining one’s beliefs in the face of counterevidence. Nature: Scientific Reports. DOI: 10.1038/srep39589

“Building the Emotional Intelligence of Groups, “ by Druskat and Wolff (HBR 2001)

"The Discipline of Teams" Katzenbach and Smith (HBR March 1993)

Instructions for the simulation• When you meet as a team, there are four key roles and responsibilities to assign:

– Someone to facilitate or chair the process (helps with the rational & relational)– Someone to take minutes – Someone to keep time – Someone to harvest the learning

• Develop ground rules and a charter for your team (for example)– Agree to rotate the 4 roles so everyone plays each role– Be sure to have rules such as “No interrupting/no one dominates, etc.”– Agree to keep 10-15 minutes at end to do process checks today and whenever you

meet as a team– Agree to call a time-out or say “I am not getting it” when appropriate– Agree to discuss low scores to capture learnings– Agree to do a process check today and for every team meeting: answering the 7

questions using a 5-point scale below to quantify your performance and Q. 8 to summarize

Not at all To a small extent Moderate Great Extent Very Great Extent

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1 2 3 4 5

Not at all To a small extent Moderate Great Extent Very Great Extent1 2 3 4 5

Process QuestionsQ. 1 Did we achieve the objectives of the group today?1-5

Evaluate the rational process. 1-5Q2. Did we analyze the situation separating facts from assumptions? 1-5 Q3. Did we set clear, engaging objectives?1-5Q4. Did we discuss the full-set of consequences?1-5

Evaluate the relational process. 1-5Q5. How well did the team work together? Listening, deep engagement?1-5Q6. Did the group confront and challenge each other respectfully? 1-5Q7. How well did each individual participate in/contribute to the meeting?1-5Q8. How can we improve our performance as a team?(qualitative summary comments)

A diverse team brings many points of view, which sometimes creates conflict and misunderstanding. Listening to understand a person is not listening to refute or argue. Manage your team members by listening-to-understand each person’s feelings and perceptions. Once you analyze their perceptions, you can understand different assumptions that are being made. Listening to understand and connecting with people is fundamental to good leadership.

Please discuss low scores to capture learnings

Post Class Discussion Assignment Debrief Sub-Arctic Exercise

Share your team summary (Q.8 of Process Questions: How can we improve our performance as a team?(qualitative summary comments)

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SESSION VI. TOPIC: EARLY START 1:30 PM

October 22 Issues in Decision-Making and Crisis Intervention Strategic Thinking and Decision Making: The Underlying Science of Decision Making

In Class Simulation: Judgment in CrisisGuest Speaker: Mike Nikitas

Overview

Here are some reminders:

You must purchase the HBS reading package to do the simulation. Don’t forget your headphones and laptop and power! This simulation includes video and audio data. Take notes. You will be making several important decisions. You may want to take notes to help you recall what influenced your decisions during your

class debriefing discussion.

In this simulation you will play the role of a manager puts you in the shoes of a manager at Matterhorn Health, a medical device manufacturer. The firm has launched a new blood glucose-monitoring device. Patients have the ability to monitor their blood glucose levels at home using this product. Matterhorn has tested the product extensively before launch. Managers feel confident that the product will achieve very strong accuracy rates.

Soon after launch, however, the company begins to receive reports that inaccuracy rates exceed Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines by a considerable amount. Your team must cope with this crisis and attempt to discover the causes of the problem. The problem may not be solved when the simulation ends in about 45 minutes.

Tasks:1. Prepare for the simulation2. Read: “Managing Strategic Issues and Stakeholders” by Chilingerian

Questions during class: Judgment in Crisis What key decisions did you make? What was most challenging? How did you cope? What should the CEO tell the media? What advice do you have for managers in crisis situations?DUE IN THREE WEEKS ON NOVEMBER 12 GROUP TAKE-HOME MID-TERM (SEE LATTE)

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SESSION VII. TOPIC: October 29 The Discipline of Strategic Thinking: A Core Competence of

Leadership

OverviewWe will build on what we learned in the Sub-Arctic Simulation and the Judgment in Crisis Simulation. The objective of this session is to get you to think analytically about strategic decision making as a leadership competency. You should think about questions such as: What processes do you use to come to your decisions? How do you differentiate facts from assumptions? How do you challenge assumptions? How do you choose from among alternatives? How do you form your ideas about what will happen in the future?

How do you evaluate the consequences and likelihood of an outcome? And how do you form judgments about the value of a particular event?

The session will be in double reflection. We will use a trivial and simple decision—whether to put a car in a race and in doing so we will try to make a high quality decision. I want to draw your attention as leaders to two processes: (1) the rational process needed to reach a high quality decision; and (2) the interpersonal process—how we engage and interact with each other to build commitment to strategic goals and decisions.

The learning goals are on several levels. First, I want you to learn something about your self—how you think. Second, learning something about how groups make decisions under uncertainty and time pressure. This runs to the heart of what is the “truth.” The truth alone is never good enough—ideas have to be explained, and people have to be persuaded. What persuades you may not persuade others. And third, how good leadership practices, employing decision models, stakeholder analysis, and SWOT analysis, can improve decision processes.

Assignment : Fill out Speed Ventures Questionnaire—online poll https://brandeis.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bOWaWRBBMCpNNOJ

Prepare Case: Speed Ventures (A), (B), and (C)

Study Questions for Speed Ventures:1. Analyze the Speed Ventures situation. What are the main problems? Is it “a strategically

designed organization”?2. Please be prepared to vote whether or not to run the race. Should Speed Ventures Race?

Online Questionnaire

Please fill out the questionnaire and hand in before class begins

DUE IN TWO WEEKS ON NOVEMBER 12 GROUP TAKE-HOME MID-TERM (SEE LATTE)

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SESSION   VIII .                       TOPIC:                                                                                                  

November 5 Leadership Behaviors: Managing Performance, Developing People and Having Difficult Conversations

Overview

This session will focus on difficult conversations, developing people, getting results and managing performance. The case is about a leader who wants to give some feedback to an employee. We will apply the ideas from Crucial Accountability, especially giving negative feedback, to the case.

Assignment 1. Read The Six Case Vignettes Difficult Conversations and Dealing with

Challenging Situations at Work: (1) The Partner Who Didn’t Take Part; (2) The Friend Who Asked

for Feedback; (3) The Questionable Contributions; (4) The Case of the Ineffectual FD; (5) Adjusting as a CEO; and (6) Managing Communication

2. Read: Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most [Entire]3. Read : Groysberg and Abraham. 2017. The whys and hows of feedback. HBS Press.4. Recommended : Weeks, H. Taking the stress out of stressful conversations.5. Recommended : Stone. Difficult Conversations : How to address what matters the most.

Study Questions

List 3-5 problems that the protagonist faces in each vignette and think about solutions based on the readings.

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SESSION   VIII .                       TOPIC:

November 12 Leadership Behaviors and Effective Leaders: Leading Change

KEY LEARNINGS AND DESCRIPTION OF SESSION

The diffusion of any idea, innovation, or technology depends on the process by which it is communicated to people who belong to a social system. The

attitudes of people toward change can facilitate, slow down, or resist the diffusion process. When people are interested in change, and they share

a common culture, communicate and interact through social networks, little changes can have a big effect. The tipping point refers to a moment when everything changes suddenly.

The Change Pro simulation exposes you to the dynamics of change processes. Working in small groups, participants are given 120 days to convince 24 members of the organization’s top management team to adopt a six-sigma system. European HQ has sent you. However, you have no formal authority, and no one knows who you are. Your goal is to get as many adopters as possible, but where do you begin?

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. To introduce you to key concepts such as adoption curves, the law of the few, attitude segments, innovation/adoption life cycles, diffusion, and tipping points.

2. To understand the practical implications of implementing change.

3. To force participants to confront their biases with respect to change management, to challenge their assumptions, by becoming exposed to other viewpoints.

4. To learn how to overcome resistance to change by understanding social networks

READINGS AND ASSIGNMENTS TAKE HOME DUE The Change Pro Simulation Abridged User Manual (The Change Pro instructions detail the

various tactics available to you in the simulation. Review them and consider how and when each tactic might be appropriate)

“Informal Networks: The Company Behind the Chart” by Krackhardt and Hanson Read again Harnessing the Science of Persuasion. Cialdini, R. Harvard Business Review.

(2001) & Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail. Kotter, J. Harvard Business

Questions to consider while reading the case:

1. How do you engage people? Where do you focus your attention?

2. How do you build and cultivate networks? What channels of communication or tactics do you use?

3. How do you overcome resistance to change?

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SESSION   IX .                       TOPIC: EARLY START 1:30 PM

November 19 Leader Behaviors and Effective Leaders: Adapting Your Leadership Style

Overview

The first part of the session will focus on your leadership style and will introduce a situational leadership model that can help guide you to choose an effective leadership style. The Hersey Blanchard model is based on the idea that appropriate leader behavior depends on the readiness of the leader’s direct reports and followers. Readiness refers to the degree of motivation, competence, experience, commitment and confidence in accepting responsibility. As the readiness of followers improves, the leader’s behavior should also change. The learning objectives are to understand what we mean by leadership style and its importance in developing people and to evaluate and assess your leadership style and to learn how to adapt your style depending on the situation.

We will discuss the Taran Swan case. Taran Swan was the General Manager on Nickelodeon Latin America. She wrote a business plan and recruited a team to launch the channel. The case focuses on the role of the manager and the impact of her style on the team’s processes, culture, and outcomes.

Assignment:1. PAPER 2 on your Teams is Due2. Fill out 12 item “Lead” Questionnaire in “So You Want to Know Your Leadership

Style” and Directions for Self-Scoring3. Prepare Case: Taran Swan at Nickelodeon Latin America (A)4. Read: Fair Process: Managing in the Knowledge Economy. (Jan 2003) W.

Chan Kim & Renee Mauborgne. HBR

Study Questions Describe the culture and explain how Taran Swan developed that culture. Describe Taran Swan’s leadership style. What are the challenges that Swan faces? What are your preferred and dominant leadership styles? Are you an adaptive leader? How can we connect fair process models of leading with the science of collective

intelligence?

Optional Reading:

“Enhancing the Benefits and Overcoming the Pitfalls of Goal Setting” By Locke and Latham

“Leadership that Gets Results” by Goleman “Goal-Setting-A Motivational Technique That Works” by Latham and Locke

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SESSION   X.                       TOPIC:                                                                                                  

November 26            Leaders Behaviors that Aim to Solve Social Problems with Social Impact

Overview

We will focus on two leaders: Reverend Jeffrey Brown, founder of the 10 Point Coalition and Satya Nadella at Microsoft.

On May 14, 1992, 14 gang members entered the Morningstar Baptist church in Boston during a funeral and beat and stabbed a rival gang member in attendance at the service. This event prompted Reverend Brown to join forces with other clergy to develop the TenPoint Coalition, forging connections between the clergy and Boston’s minority youth. We will hear discuss how he accomplished his goals and how he brought innovative thinking and action to this challenge in this inspirational session.

When Satya Nadella became CEO at Microsoft in 2014, he inherited a firm drifting towards irrelevance. Microsoft had poor efficiency, a weak track record of innovation, lots of political in-fighting and cognitive inertia. Before Nadella took the lead, his wife (suspecting it might help her husband) bought him a book by Stanford psychologist, Carol Dweck, entitled Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.

Video: Rev. Jeffrey Brown

Assignment:1. Prepare Case: “Reverend Jeffrey Brown: Cops, Kids, and Ministers”2. Prepare Case: Satya Nadella of Microsoft

Questions to consider while reading the case:1. What was Rev. Brown’s diagnosis of the situation in Boston in the 1990s? What

did he do? Was he effective?2. What was Nadella’s diagnosis of the problems at Microsoft? How did he

reposition Microsoft? 3. What is the prevalent mindset in your organization? What can we learn from

Nadella about instilling a more innovative culture?

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SESSION   XII.                               TOPIC:

December 3 Leader Behaviors and Effective Leaders: Leading Teams and Exercising Power and Influence

OverviewToday we will study how Elizabeth Parker takes control in two very different situations Case A and Case B. Her leadership teaches some key lessons about developing and exercising power and influence. The central theme of this session is understanding the nature of power, how to get it, and how to use it.

Pfeffer says power is essential to initiate and sustain goal-directed action. Yet, organizations with scarce resources and interdependent individuals will produce different opinions on the organizational goals and how those goals should be met. Consequently, building and wielding power, negotiating and forming alliances maybe essential for any manager to be effective.

Assignment :1. Personal Development Plan due 2. Prepare Case: Elizabeth Parker (A) and (B) HBS casepack3. Complete Parker Poll Online on Latte4. Read Blue Ocean Leadership HBS casepack

Study Questions1. In case A, Elizabeth Parker describes her background and what she did as she started a new

job and career. Elizabeth Parker believes that her organization should be accomplishing its mission. How does she take charge of her department? What were the key factors that led to her success at the end of the case?

2. In case B, Parker faces a new challenge. What plan of action do you recommend?

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SESSION   XIII.                               TOPIC:

December 10         Leadership Behaviors: Transforming Organizations and Leading Change

IntroductionThe Marvel Way: Restoring a Blue Ocean explains one of the greatest turnarounds in modern business history and is one of the best examples of how leaders can create or destroy value. Founded in 1939, Marvel Comics initially struggled in head-to-head competition producing primarily me-to knock-off comic books. In the early 1960's the business took a blue ocean turn by focusing on noncustomer college students. Marvel invented characters that were people first and superheroes second: Spider-Man, Black Panther, Storm, Iron Man, the X-Men.

The Marvel business thrived; but by the 1980's the leaders who took over Marvel, badly misaligned value, profit, and people. In 1996 Marvel filed for bankruptcy. New management purchased the business out of bankruptcy in 1998 but faced a daunting task: Marvel owed $30 million in annual interest payments on a $250 million loan, cash was so tight that they almost missed payroll, and movie rights for many of their best characters were licensed to others. First managers stabilized the business then Marvel created a new type of blue ocean that went on to produce the most profitable movie franchise in history. Just over a decade after exiting bankruptcy a debt-free Marvel sold itself to Disney for $4.2 billion. How did they manage that crisis? What were the innovations of the new leaders? What really matters in a turnaround?

READINGS AND ASSIGNMENTS Read the Case: The Marvel Way: Restoring a Blue Ocean Class Party—Bring some food and drinks!! All your work is done—today will be fun!

Questions to consider while reading the case:1. What happened to Marvel over time? What is the life cycle of any organization?2. What is the significance of Ronald Perelman and Carl Icahn? 3. Where would you start to revive a failing organizations?

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APPENDIX 1. Grading IssuesA. Class Participation (see “Tips on Preparing Cases” on page 25)

The character of the course naturally lends itself to active exchange among participants. The most important preparation is to have read and studied the cases. In the classroom, the expectations are relatively simple: be well-prepared, arrive punctually to class, and actively participate. There are several ways in which the materials in this course help you to do this.

Short Introduction or overviews provide background on, and an introduction to, the session’s materials. Read first – these provide contextStudy Questions guide you through each session’s content. Read second - these help you focus on what is most importantAssignments & Required Readings (incl. cases and articles) provide the content for our class discussion. If time do he optional readings--Read and study the cases – these provide content (you can’t participate in class discussions without them)

How do I get a high grade for class participation? Individual contribution consists of; Not surfing the internet in class Attending classes on time, coming prepared to listen and build on the ideas of others; Quality of individual comments in class discussions; Post your reflections (1 or 2 key take-aways) after every class and engage in after-class

on-line discussion with at least 2-3 students On-time submission of four online questionnaire/case polls;

Attending Class (In-class comments/contributions). There are many ways to participate, beyond showing-up, speaking, and not surfing the internet in class. Listening carefully to what your colleagues are saying in class and building on their ideas is critical. Listening for understanding is critical to good leadership. If you do not understand what your colleagues are saying, raise your hand, and ask them to clarify. Quality and clarity are more important than quantity – one insightful, concise comment that builds on the ideas of others and advances the learning could create more value than speaking five times in one session.

Missing class: Please note the only “excused” absences are those due to uncontrollable events (e.g. medical/family emergencies or critical personal events). Prioritizing your time is part of your Brandeis experience. If you decide it is in your best interest to miss or be late to class your professor won’t take it personally, but it may negatively affect your participation grade. Please notify your professor ahead of time if you will miss class.

B. TEAM PERFORMANCE

• Team Performance: During the first class, each student will self-select into a small (5-7 persons) diverse group to work together on several assignments and class exercises. You are responsible for building your group into an effective learning team over the course of the semester. You are responsible for managing relationships and productivity on your team, including helping other team members to learn.

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How do I get a high grade for team performance? The team grade consists ofa. Implementing the “Tips on Teams” on pages 24 and agreeing to use it.

Read tips on Teams page 23.

b. Doing reasonably well on simulations and showing improvement as a team. I do not grade the performance of the team based on the simulation but on your ability to help each other as a team. When you are on a team, some people do more work than others. Complaining about that to the professor is not effective. Create a safe space for each member of the team and learn how to communicate and work together.

c. Doing team process checks after class. Do process checks after each meeting and keep the team results. See page 25. YOU CAN USE THE DATA FOR YOUR ESSAYS.

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Grading Rubric

During the sessions that you will attend for this course, you will engage in a number of very important in-class activities that will allow you opportunities to apply the knowledge gained through the course material. Throughout this course, you will be asked to engage in various discussions with your peers in the online environment through the discussion board. These discussions will build on the information presented in each topic and will ask you to take this information one step further by making connection between the material and your own workplace, including your own personal leadership style.

Each of these discussion activities will be graded separately using something similar to the rubric below.

Demonstration Criteria Proficient (100%)Needs

Improvement (88%)

Not Evident (80%) Percentage

Quality of Response

Contributions to the in-class activities are well-thought out and professional in nature; it is evident that readings were completed and preparations to participate in class were in place before coming to the sessions

Contributions to the in-class activity lack preparation

Does not attend some residency sessions/does not contribute to the in-class activity

40

Connections to Professional Life

Makes connections between the class material and application to leadership in the field, supported by evidence

Attempts to make connections between the class material and application to leadership in the field, but does not support connections with evidence

Does not attend some sessions or does not make connections between the class material and application to leadership in the field

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Participation

Engages in discussions with peers in-class and post-class responding to peer and instructor contributions to the class

Participates in class, but does not engage in post-class discussion with peers and the instructor

Does not attend some sessions or does not participate in some post-class discussions

30

Total: 100%

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APPENDIX 2. TEAMING PLEASE READ: Tips on Teams

• A diverse team brings many points of view, which sometimes creates conflict and misunderstanding. Listening to understand a person is not listening to refute or argue. Manage your team members by listening-to-understand each person’s feelings and perceptions. Once you analyze their perceptions, you can understand different assumptions that are being made. Listening to understand and connecting with people is fundamental to good leadership. See Crucial Accountability.

• A second way to work with a diverse team is to use the MBTI as a tool. We will discuss this next week. The next time you meet, agree to explore the MBTI personality types on your team and read the MBTI descriptions of each other. Learn how to talk with each other. Opposites (for example--ENFPs and ISTJs) will have a hard time communicating, connecting and cooperating. Learn how to communicate with diverse personality types.

• There are four key roles and responsibilities: – Someone to facilitate or chair the process (helps with the rational & relational)– Someone to take minutes – Someone to keep time – Someone to harvest the learning

• Develop ground rules for your team– Rotation of 4 roles so everyone plays each role– No interrupting/no one dominates, etc.– Keep 10-15 minutes at end to do process checks– Agree to call a time-out or say “I am not getting it”

– Process Checks for every team meeting: use a 5-point scalevery poor very good

1 2 3 4 5

– Did we achieve the objectives of the group today?1-5– Evaluate the rational process. 1-5

• Did we analyze the situation separating facts from assumptions? 1-5 • Did we set clear, engaging objectives?1-5• Did we discuss the full-set of consequences?1-5

– Evaluate the relational process. 1-5• How well did the team work together? Listening, deep engagement?1-

5• Did the group confront and challenge each other respectfully? 1-5• How well did each individual participate in/contribute to the

meeting?1-5– How can we improve our performance as a team?(qualitative comments)

Agree to discuss low scores to capture learnings.

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APPENDIX 3. CASES PLEASE READ: Tips on Preparing Cases

We will discuss the cases in class. Here are my recommendations—You should study the cases and prepare a 1-3 page “brief” on the case. The brief is intended to organize your ideas and facilitate class presentations. You should write the brief after you have studied the cases and readings.

After you have studied the case and read the readings use the following format:

1. Frame the problems/issues into a decision question: frame the major leadership or organizational issues and/or problems around a key goal or objective, differentiating the long from the short-run. The question might be—”What is the best course of action for this case in order to achieve X”? In some cases the goals may not be clear.

2. Analyze the problem/situation by identifying the pertinent facts vs. assumptions. Ask yourself three questions: where did the facts come from, how do I know they are correct? Are they a final, reliable reality or an interpretation or an assumption? Be sure to identify your assumptions explicitly. What OB models or concepts are most useful to understand the problem?

3. Alternatives and consequences: think about the alternatives courses of action and the full set of consequences. Analyze each alternative and consider what the trade-offs are. What are the risks and uncertainties? Remember to relate your analysis to your recommendations.

4. Recommendation: identify, justify, and support your recommendations, giving careful consideration to rebuttals from your classmates.

5. Implementation: (if applicable) assess the feasibility of your solution by developing a plan of action necessary to implement the recommendation.

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APPENDIX 4. OTHER READING

RECOMMENDED BOOKS FOR ADVANCED STUDY AND MASTERY: The Leadership Challenge (2017). 6th edition, James Kouzes, and Barry Posner,

San Francisco: Jossey Bass. Essentials of Organizational Behavior. Stephen P. Robbins, Upper Saddle

River, NJ: Prentice Hall (2017). Seventeenth Edition NOTE (If you do not have a strong background in Organizational Behavior, you should read this book, otherwise it is optional)

Why Great Leaders Don’t Take “Yes” For an Answer. Michael Roberto. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Wharton School Publishing (2005)

The Tipping Point. Malcolm Gladwell London: Little, Brown, and Company (2000)

Breaking Through: Making of Minority Executives in Corporate America David A. Thomas and John J. Gabarro, Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing Press (1999)

The Logic of Failure: Recognizing and Avoiding Error in Complex Situations. Dietrich Dorner, Reading, MA: Perseus Books (1996)

Driven: How Human Nature Shapes Our Choices. Paul Lawrence and Nitin Nohria, San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass and Son (2002)

Getting Past No: Negotiating Your Way from Confrontation to Cooperation. William Ury, New York, NY: Bantam Books (1993)

The Leadership Challenge. James Kouzes and Barry Posner, San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass (2002)

Action Coaching. Peter Cairo and David Dotlich, San Francisco, CA: Jossey-bass (1999)

Competing by Design: The Power of Organizational Architecture. David Nadler and Michael Tushman, New York, NY: Oxford University Press (1997)

The Psychology of Judgment and Decision Making. Scott Plous. New York, NY: McGraw Hill (1993)

Organizing Genius. Warren Bennis and Patricia Ward Biederman, London: Nicholas Brealey Publishing (1998)

Organizational Culture and Leadership, Second edition. Edgar H. Schein, San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass Inc (1992)

Managing Conflict, 2nd Edition. Richard E. Walton, Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company (1987)

Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. Roger Fisher and William Ury, New York: Penguin Book. (1992)

Right from the Start: Taking Charge in a New Leadership Role. Dan Ciampa and Michael Watkins, Boston: Harvard Business School Press (2005)

Primal Leadership. Daniel Goleman, Annie McKee, and Richard E. Boyatzis, Boston: Harvard Business School Press (2002)

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