Applied Studies (Business and Administrative Studies)
Prerequisites:
None. ADMN 232 and ORGB 326 are recommended. Students should have work experience or education that has covered organizational terminology, managerial roles, and basic theories of communication, motivation, and leadership.
Course start date:
If you are a:
Self-funded student: register by the 10th of the month, start on the 1st of the next.
Students registering in grouped study mode are advised that there may be some differences in the evaluation and course materials information indicated below. To obtain the most up-to-date information, contact the Faculty of Business Student Support Centre at 1-800-468-6531.
Overview
Change processes are a natural part of evolution. However, change presents significant challenges to organizations. Managers assist organizational members in meeting both organizational and individual goals, including navigating change. Knowing the dynamics of change enables managers to help individuals develop the resources and tools necessary to prepare for and move through change processes.
Since this course has been designed for those currently working in or hoping to move into management positions, the perspective of the manager/leader is woven throughout. Increasingly, as people work in teams where leadership is shared, managerial positions are becoming de-emphasized. This course will benefit anyone interested in understanding the processes of change from both personal and organizational perspectives.
Outline
The course consists of nine lessons:
Lesson 1: Overview of Organization Development
Lesson 2: Managerial and Leadership Responsibilities
Lesson 3: The Process of Organization Development
Lesson 4: Collecting, Analyzing, and Feeding Back Assessment Information
Lesson 5: Designing, Managing, and Evaluating Interventions
Lesson 6: Human Process Interventions
Lesson 7: Technostructural Interventions
Lesson 8: Human Resource Interventions
Lesson 9: Strategic Change Interventions
Learning outcomes
After completing this course, you should be able to:
Describe the nature of organizational change.
Assess change issues that need intervention.
Identify forces facilitating change and build on them.
Identify forces constraining change and address them.
Develop appropriate resources and tools to facilitate your own and an organization’s readiness for change.
Create a portfolio of organizational development (OD) strategies designed to facilitate change.
Facilitate implementation of appropriate strategies for change.
Facilitate change transition and integration.
Evaluate change outcomes.
Evaluation
To receive credit for ORGB 390, you must achieve a composite course grade of at least D (50%) for the entire course.
The following chart describes the credit weight associated with each course requirement:
Activity
Weight
Assignment 1
25%
Assignment 2
25%
Assignment 3
25%
Assignment 4
25%
Total
100%
To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University’s online Calendar.
Materials
Cummings, T. G., & Worley, C. G. (2019). Organization development & change (11th ed.). Cengage Learning. ISBN: 978-1-337-61883-0 (eText)
Kotter, J. & Rathgeber, H. (2017). Our iceberg is melting (10th Anniversary ed.). Penguin. (Print)
Kotter, J. & Rathgeber, H. (2016). That’s not how we do it here! Portfolio. (Print)
All other learning resources will be available online.
Challenge for credit
Overview
The challenge for credit process allows you to demonstrate that you have acquired a command of the general subject matter, knowledge, intellectual and/or other skills that would normally be found in a university-level course.
Full information about challenge for credit can be found in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Evaluation
To receive credit for the ORGB 390 challenge registration, you must achieve a grade of at least D (50 percent) on the challenge assignment.
Athabasca University reserves the right to amend course outlines occasionally and without notice. Courses offered by other delivery methods may vary from their individualized study counterparts.