| Learning objectives |
To be awarded the highest grade (12), the student
should, with a few insignificant shortcomings, be able to:
- Identify, analyse, and synthesize concrete problematics within
the field of strategic change management. This by accounting for,
adapting and applying the concepts & theories from the
course.
- Critically reflect upon the various theories and perspectives
of managing change in use as well as reflect upon the consequences
of applying a specific perspective in a given contextual
setting.
- Link overall strategic thinking with planned based, process
oriented and interpersonal aspects of managing organizational
change.
- Present a change analysis and suggested course of action or
awareness in a structured and coherent manner.
|
| Examination |
|
People-Centric
Strategic Change Management:
|
| Exam
ECTS |
7,5 |
| Examination form |
Oral exam based on written product
In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product
must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The
grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and
the individual oral performance, see also the rules about
examination forms in the programme regulations. |
| Individual or group exam |
Oral group exam based on written group
product |
| Number of people in the group |
2-4 |
| Size of written product |
Max. 20 pages |
|
Definition of number of pages:
Groups of
2 students 10 pages max.
3 students 15 pages max
4 students 20 pages max.
Note that the exam is a group exam. If you are not able to find a
group yourself, you have to address the course coordinator.
Students who wish to have an individual exam might be able to write
a term paper in the course. |
| Assignment type |
Synopsis |
| Release of assignment |
Subject chosen by students themselves, see
guidelines if any |
| Duration |
Written product to be submitted on specified date and
time.
15 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade,
and informing plus explaining the grade |
| Grading scale |
7-point grading scale |
| Examiner(s) |
Internal examiner and second internal
examiner |
| Exam period |
Autumn and Spring |
| Make-up exam/re-exam |
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
Re-take exam is to be based on the
same report as the ordinary exam:
* if a student is absent from the oral exam due to documented
illness but has handed in the written group product she/he does not
have to submit a new product for the re-take.
* if a whole group fails the oral exam they must hand in a revised
product for the re-take.
* if one student in the group fails the oral exam the course
coordinator chooses whether the student will have the oral exam on
the basis of the same product or if he/she has to hand in a revised
product for the re- take.
|
Description of the exam
procedure
After the last teachings, the students are required to hand in a
small group project. This project will work as the point of
departure in an oral dialog-based group exam. The project should be
centered around parts of a specific transformational change process
and have as a focal point the analysis and critical assessment
of this change, followed by a more general discussion or
reflection springing from the analysis. The oral exam starts
with a short student driven presentation containing possible
talking points, critical reflections and new insights. The students
are not entitled to supervision during the exam period,
nevertheless sparring during and after lectures are welcome.
Extensive explanatory and suggestive exam slides will be
uploaded. The exam will be evaluated in accordance with the
learning objectives of the course.
|
|
| Course content, structure and pedagogical
approach |
|
In this course, we will critically explore different
perspectives of how to work strategically with managing the
challenge of transformational organizational change in a modern
context. This course will therefore be focusing upon the actual
change part - intended or not – in an overall strategic sense
under Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity (VUCA).
This focusing upon people-centric and sustainable changes along
with organizational resilience. Furthermore, we will dive into
the countless challenges and paradoxes that change agents and
organizations face when trying to change strategies, organizations,
and behaviors alike. Frequently, Simultaneously and
Velociously.
This course takes point in 3 basic levels of
attention:
1. Developing a concrete toolbox to build and execute change
processes, including applied AI experiments (What to
do)
2. Understanding the contextual settings that differentiates
each change (Where and Why to do it).
3. Supporting strategic and reflective competencies in
understanding people and analyzing change
initiatives, paradoxes, and different perspectives (How to do
it).
These 3 levels are to be understood as interacting, shaping the
actual outcomes and consequences of the change process in
question.
The structure of the course
We will start out by understanding the original planned and
experimental approaches to change, followed by its main successor
the generic instrumental approach, where we focus on how each
can benefit the management of change in a modern context.
Furthermore, we will supplement this by exploring what cannot be
captured in these classical and dominant views by bringing in
multiple perspectives from e.g., organizational development &
culture, middle & top management, neuroscience, emotions,
temporality, sense-making & social psychology, power, and
complexity theory among others to give a more nuanced picture of
managing the multiple challenges of change – and durable
workarounds.
The overall aim is hence to raise the change management
practice from a pure planning and project-oriented approach to
an overall strategic discipline with a focus upon sustainable
changes, people and organizational resilience, that goes
beyond the singular change project.
The course’s development of personal competences evolves from the 3
levels of attention to support the development of a reflective and
context-sensitive change practitioner that focuses on both the
change itself and the sustainability of the
host organization. However, it also provides inter-personal
competencies through its collaborative form and focus since most
changes are performed in teams.
|
| Research-based teaching |
|
CBS’ programmes and teaching are research-based. The following
types of research-based knowledge and research-like activities are
included in this course:
Research-based knowledge
- Classic and basic theory
- New theory
- Models
Research-like activities
- Development of research questions
- Analysis
- Discussion, critical reflection, modelling
- Activities that contribute to new or existing research
projects
- Students conduct independent research-like activities under
supervision
|
| Description of the teaching methods |
| The course contains a mix of theoretical
reflections, group work, cases, real-life stories, and visits from
practitioners. Most on-site lectures will be accompanied by videos
and when possible, the lectures will be focusing upon an involving
dialogue-based approach with instant feedback and experimentation.
The course therefore encourages the students to be prepared and to
engage in exploring and actively discussing different angels, risks
and workable solutions to organizational transformational change
problematics and cases in the light of the literature - and to
accept that two changes often do not look alike. |
| Feedback during the teaching period |
Feedback happens mainly via student
presentations, cases, student to student group work and in-class
discussions.
A voluntary feedback and Q&A session is normally arranged after
class in the end of the quarter.
|
| Student workload |
| Lecture preparation |
68 hours |
| Teachings |
33 hours |
| Exam |
75 hours |
| Extracurricular activities |
30 hours |
|
| Expected literature |
|
Indicative list
-
Main Book for overview: "Managing Organizational Change - A
Multiple Perspective Approach" 2021, Palmer, Dunford &
Buchanan 4.edition.
-
Batilana et.al. (2013) “The Network Secrets of Great Change
Agents” July–August 2013 Harvard Business review.
- Burnes, Bernard (2020) “The Origins of Lewin’s Three-Step Model
of Change”. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science 2020,
Vol. 56(1) 32–59
- Burnes, B. (2015). Understanding Resistance to Change –
Building on Coch and French. Journal of Change Management, 15(2),
92–116.
- Chia, Robert. (1999) “A ‘Rhizomic’ Model of Organizational
Change and Transformation: Perspective from a Metaphysics of
Change.” British Journal of Management. Vol. 10: 209- 227. (20
pages)
- Conger, Jay A. (2000) “Effective Change Begins at the Top.” In
Beer & Nohria, Breaking the Code of Change. Harvard Business
School Press. (20 pages)
- Ford et al (2008) "Resistance - the rest of the
story" Academy of Management Review. Vol. 33, No. 2 (Apr.,
2008) pp. 362-377.
- Gino, F & Staats, B (2015) "Why Organizations
Don't Learn" Harvard Business Review November
2015
- Hart, Stuart L. 1992. "An Integrative Framework for
Strategy-Making Processes." Academy of Management Review 17:
327-351 (24 pages)
- Huy, Quy Nguyen. 2011. "How Middle Managers'
Group-Focus Emotions and Social Identities Influence Strategy
Implementation." Strategic Management Journal 32 (13):
1387-1410 (23 pages). (suggested reading)
- Huy, Quy Nguyen & Henry Mintzberg (2003). “The Rhythm of
Change.” MIT Sloan Management Review. Vol. 44, no. 4: 79-84. (5
pages)
-
Kotter, John (2012) "The Big idea Accelerate!"
November 2012 Harvard Business Review
- Nahapiet, Janine and Sumantra Ghoshal. (1998) “Social Capital,
Intellectual Capital, and the Organizational Advantage.” Academy of
Management Review. Vol. 23, No. 2: 242-266. (25 pages)
-
Scarlett, Hilary (2019) Neuroscience for Organizational
Change, Second edition, Kogan Page Limited
(extracts).
- Snowden, David J.; Boone, Mary E. (2007) "Cynefin" “A
Leader's Framework for Decision Making” Harvard Business
Review. Nov2007, Vol. 85 Issue 11, p68-76. 9p.
- Snowden, David (2001) “Narrative patterns - the perils and
possibilities of using story in organisations” Knowledge
Management, Ark Group
- Stacey, Ralph. (2003a) “Organizations as Complex Responsive
Processes of Relating.” Journal of Innovative Management. Vol. 8,
No. 2, Winter 2002/2003. (20 pages)
- Weick, Karl E. (2000) ”Emergent change as a Universal in
Organizations.” In Beer & Nohria, Breaking the Code of Change.
Harvard Business School Press. (20 pages)
- Weick (2007) “Drop your Tools: On Reconfiguring Management
Education” Journal of management education, 2007-02, Vol.31
(1)
- Woodman, R.W, (2014) "The Science of Organizational Change
and the Art of Changing Organizations" The Journal of Applied
Behavioral Science 2014, Vol. 50(4) 463– 477 (suggested
reading)
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