• Describe and explain basic theoretical perspectives and concepts of organizations (including theories on the structural, institutional, processual and cultural aspects of organizations and their environment) covered in the curriculum.
• Apply, compare and critical reflect upon different analytical approaches to the study of organisations
• Provide an analytical answer by applying relevant theories and concepts from the curriculum to a simple research question relating to a particular organisation
• Formulate a simple research question relating to a particular organization and apply relevant theories and concepts from the curriculum
• Select relevant data to produce justified answers to the research question relating such data to choice of theory and concepts.
• Assess strengths and weaknesses of the applied theoretical perspectives and concepts used to analyse the research question.

The course provides the students with an understanding of how to make sense of and analyze organizations and the challenges they face. It focuses on key aspects that influence the design and life of organizations. Students will learn to interpret organizational situations and cases by way of basic theoretical frames and concepts and to apply this toolset of theories in the analysis of concrete organizational practices.

The course material involves a combination of theory and case studies focused on the application of theory onto one or several cases. Readings for each lecture will consist of both a ‘theory text’ and a ‘case text’ that draws on the discussed theoretical perspective.

The course is structured according to four overall theoretical approaches to the study of organizations: A structural, institutional, processual and cultural perspective. To be continued……