General provisions

The course is offered within, e.g., the Bachelor's Programme in Business and Economics and as freestanding course, as part of Business Studies C.

"Research Design" (5 credits) is included as a Module in the course.

Entry requirements

Completed 30 credits from basic courses (A-level) in business studies, and attended 30 credits intermediate courses (B-level) in business studies of which at least 15 credits must be completed.

Learning outcomes

The course Organisation and Management is divided into two parts, one focusing on in-depth subject specific knowledge and one focusing on research design.

After the subject specific course part, the student should be able to:

• explain how stakeholders, norms and rules of society influence organising, management and governance,
• independently compare and explain how theoretical perspectives for analysing the relationship between the organisation and its environment differ,
• independently use different perspectives within organisation theory to critically analyse potentially conflicting organisation-environment demands and evaluate organisations' alternative courses of action, as well as their consequences for organisations and the environment,
• communicate results and conclusions orally and in writing.

After completing the part of the course focusing on research design, the student should be able to:

• explain basic qualitative and quantitative research methods in business studies,
• use relevant research methods to analyse, interpret and critically evaluate research in business studies,
• critically examine and evaluate research results based on methodological and theoretical perspectives,
• reflect on ethical aspects in the research process and show awareness of how to conduct empirical investigations responsibly.

Content

The content of the course Organisation and Management deals with both subject specific knowledge and knowledge linked to research design.

In the subject specific knowledge part of the course, a theoretical conceptual framework for analysing organisations and organisational problems is introduced. It pays special attention to how organisations manage and interact with the environment, both with stakeholders such as owners, employees, customers and media and to contemporary norms and rules of society. Different types of stakeholders and demands (related for instance to efficiency, sustainability, transparency, equality etc.) and rules (softer standards and hard laws) and how organisations respond, manage and make decisions in relation to them are being analysed, presented and discussed from multiple theoretical perspectives (such as Stakeholder theory, Resource dependence theory, Institutional theory) during the course.

In terms of research design, the aim is to lay the foundations for the ability to understand, account for, choose and use relevant qualitative and quantitative research methods to solve problems in business studies. The course focuses on the most common qualitative and quantitative research methods that students come into contact with and are expected to use at graduate level.

Instruction

Teaching consists of a combination of activities such as lectures, seminars and group work. Active participation is a requirement. The course language is English.

Assessment

The examination consists of three modules:

1. Seminar Assignments, 4 credits (U, G)
2. Written Exam, 6 credits (U, G, VG)
3. Research Design, Written Assignments and Seminars, 5 credits (U, G)

and one grade is given for the whole course, 15 credits.

Grading criteria are presented in the study guide that applies to the course section. The following grades will be used: pass with distinction (VG), pass (G), and fail (U). To receive a grade G for the whole course, the student must have achieved at least a grade G in all three examination modules. In order to receive a grade VG for the whole course, the student must have achieved a grade VG in module 2 and a grade G in modules 1 and 3.

In Module 1 the examination is carried out in groups, while the examination in Module 2 is an individual examination. In Module 3 examination is carried out in groups. 

If a student has not received a passing grade on Module 1 and/or 3, the examination has to be re-taken. This is only possible through re-registration during subsequent course sections. A student that hasn't received a passing grade on Module 2 can take a re-exam without re-registration during subsequent course sections. Any remaining supplemental work must be handed in by the deadline specified in the study guide.

If there are special reasons for doing so, an examiner may make an exception from the method of assessment indicated and allow a student to be assessed by another method. An example of special reasons might be a certificate regarding special pedagogical support from the University's disability coordinator.

Uppsala University does not accept cheating or plagiarism. Suspected incidents of cheating or plagiarism are reported to the Vice-Chancellor, which may issue a formal warning to the student or suspend the student from studies for a certain period.

NOTE: Only completed courses can count toward a degree.

Other regulations

The course substitutes/overlaps among others Organisation and Management, and Project Work 2FE439.