THE CHINESE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG
INTERNATIONAL SUMMER SCHOOL (JULY SESSION)
Preliminary
December 2015
28 JUNE – 1 AUGUST 2016
Course
MGNT2040B Human Resource Management
Class Time
14:30-17:15 Tue, Wed, Thur
Teacher
Professor Mark C. Bolino
Professor and Michael F. Price Chair in International Business
Price College of Business, University of Oklahoma
Visiting Professor, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Email
To be provided
Course Description
This course deals with the study of optimum utilization of human resource within a working organization.
The primary focus is on the application of behavioural science concepts to analyse the human resource
problems which affect organizational performance. Major topics include manpower planning, job analysis,
recruitment, training and development, motivation and maintenance of work force, communication,
performance evaluation, compensation, employee relations, quality of work life and career management.
Prerequisite: HTMG1010 or MGNT1010 or 1020.
Course Objective(s), if any
The objectives of the course are to:
1. Help students understand the activities performed by HRM managers.
2. Expose students to the value and challenges of using evidence-based management practices.
3. Enhance students’ awareness of the current problems and issues facing HRM managers.
4. Provide students with an opportunity to learn about HRM practices and issues in other countries.
5. Assist students in thinking about managing their own careers.
Required Textbook
Pfeffer, J., & Sutton, R.I. 2006. Hard Facts, Dangerous Half-Truths, and Total Nonsense: Profiting from
Evidence-Based Management. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Required Articles and Cases
Articles and cases will be posted to Blackboard.
Course Requirements/Evaluation
Grades will be earned on the basis of: Two required exams, a group project presentation, a written case
analysis, and class participation.
Exam 1*
Exam 2*
Group Project Presentation
Written Case Analysis
Class Participation
30%
30%
20%
10%
10%
Final grades (A, A-, etc.) will be based on the CUHK grading system.
* Used for external assessment.
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Exam
The exam will use multiple choice questions to assess your knowledge of the material. While some questions
will test your ability to apply the ideas discussed in the readings and class discussions, others will require
that you simply know the various models, concepts, or other subject matter. In order to do well on the exam,
then, you will have to both know and understand all of the material covered in the course.
Group Project Presentation
Working in groups of approximately 5 students, you will put together a presentation report describing HRM
practices (e.g., recruitment, selection, performance management, compensation, and labor relations) in a
country other than the United States. Examples of content that might be included in your report are:
background information on the institutions and history of HRM in your country of interest; statistics that
provide general information about HRM in your country of interest; a discussion of the key factors that
influence HRM practices in your chosen country; a description of the key challenges facing HRM managers
in your country of interest and how HRM practices influence organizational competitiveness there. Any
HRM issues related to the course content is acceptable, and I encourage you to focus on content that you
find interesting. The presentation will be approximately 15 minutes, and you will need to provide me
with a hard copy of your PowerPoint slides and a list of references on the day of the presentation. Additional
details about the group project presentation will be provided in class.
Written Case Analysis
In this course, there are eight cases taken from Harvard Business Review. We will discuss the cases in class.
It is essential, then, that you read these cases prior to class. Moreover, I strongly encourage you to take
notes. Everyone is required, as part of a group, to hand in a written analysis of one of the cases we will
cover. Groups will be randomly assigned to cases; however, I will do my best to accommodate any special
requests that certain groups may have with regard to such assignments. Your paper will provide a succinct
(2-3, single-spaced, typed pages of text) analysis of the case—please do not summarize the case. Whenever
possible, you should consider the concepts, issues, frameworks, and theories discussed in class and presented
in the reading material. Likewise, when appropriate, you should seek to rely on these frameworks to try to
diagnose the underlying causes of problems presented in the case. Again, your group’s analysis should spend
little time reviewing the details of the case. Instead, details of the case should be used as evidence to support
your points. Simply put, the analysis of the case is the most critical element, and you should use evidence
from the case and ideas from the course to develop your arguments. In your analysis, be sure that you fully
evaluate the pros and cons of the potential avenues that might be reasonable actions to pursue. Once you
have completed your analysis, you can develop recommendations to solve problems you have identified.
Again, though, you should also address potential problems with your recommendations and support why you
think the recommendations are justified. Additional details about the case analysis will be provided in class,
and I encourage your group to speak with me about this assignment if you have any questions. All case
analyses are due on the date indicated in the syllabus and must be handed in at the beginning of class.
Peer Evaluation
The group project and written case analysis will be completed by teams. Students will be assigned by the
Professor to a team that they will remain in for the entire course. Each student will receive the same score as
their team members on the group project presentation and cases, unless the student is absent or if the peer
evaluation indicates that the student did not make significant contributions. In other words, a student’s score
on the group project and/or written case analysis may be lowered significantly if the peer evaluations
indicate that the student’s contributions were less than the other team members.
Class Participation and Professionalism
You must check e-mail and Blackboard daily and bring required materials to class. Active participation is
vital for this course. Our discussions will revolve around the cases and readings. It is essential, therefore, that
you read these assignments prior to class. On occasion, without notice, students may be asked to describe or
discuss the key ideas of an assigned article; if you are unprepared or do not participate, this will negatively
impact your class participation grade. Also, there will be unannounced quizzes to ensure that the assigned
readings have been completed. Poor performance on these quizzes will hurt your participation grade, too.
Tardiness and unexcused absences will adversely affect your participation grade as well.
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I expect a high level of courtesy and professionalism in the classroom. This means minimal talking, no
working on assignments for other classes, no cell phones, no instant-messaging, no text-messaging, and so
forth. These behaviors are distracting and disrespectful not only to me, but also to your peers. Finally,
professionalism means that we should all treat each other with respect. That includes being polite to
everyone at all times and thinking about our behavior from the other person’s perspective.
Some students have come to believe that it is the professor’s responsibility to “make” them or cause them to
learn, and perhaps to entertain them while doing so. Likewise, many students believe that good teaching and
effective learning are the same thing. However, teaching and learning are two related, but very distinct
processes. Put simply, it is my job to teach, and it is the student’s job to learn. Thus, my role is to make
available to you the tools—the readings, a classroom environment conducive to learning, and other
materials—that I hope will motivate you and encourage you to learn the material. But learning is ultimately
your responsibility.
Although I will rely on objective data in making judgments about class participation and professionalism,
this evaluation is ultimately a subjective one. Only those students who have excelled in the areas of quizzes,
participation, attendance, and professionalism will receive a high mark for class participation.
Class Schedule
Date
Topic
Readings
Wednesday, June 29
Introduction & HRM Challenges
Evidence-Based Management
Pfeffer & Sutton: Chapters 1 & 2
Article: Becoming an
evidence-based HR practitioner
Article: Workplace 2025-What
will it look like?
Thursday, June 30
Evidence-Based Management
Strategic HRM
Pfeffer & Sutton: Chapter 9
Article: Competing on talent
analytics
Tuesday, July 5
The Analysis & Design of Work
Article: A players or A positions?
Article: A low-cost way to
improve performance
Article: Turning the job you have
into the job you want
Wednesday, July 6
Recruitment & Selection
Pfeffer & Sutton: Chapter 4
Article: The definitive guide to
recruiting in good times and bad
Case 1: We Googled you
Thursday, July 7
Motivating & Rewarding
Employees
Pfeffer & Sutton: Chapter 5
Article: On the folly of rewarding
A, while hoping for B
Case 2: The best laid incentive
plans
Tuesday, July 12
Exam 1
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Wednesday, July 13
Evaluation and Performance
Management
Article: Behind the mask: The
politics of employee appraisal
Article: New developments in
performance management
Case 3: When salaries aren’t
secret
Thursday, July 14
Employee Separation &
Retention
Article: Retaining talent:
Replacing misconceptions with
evidence-based strategies
Case 4: Why are we losing all of
our good people?
Tuesday, July 19
Managing Diversity
Effective Communication
Article: How (un)ethical are you?
Article: Respectful engagement
Case 5: The best of intentions
Wednesday, July 20
Corporate Culture
Training & Development
Socialization
Article: The making of a UPS
driver
Case 6: Gen Y in the workplace
Thursday, July 21
Employee Stress
Work-life Balance
Pfeffer & Sutton: Chapter 3
Article: Stress so bad it
hurts-really
Article: Get a life!
Tuesday, July 26
Managing Careers (including
your own)
Article: How will you measure
your life
Case 7: What a star—what a jerk
Wednesday, July 27
International HRM
Article: Corralling the “horses”
to staff the global organization of
the 21st century
Case 8: The expat dilemma
Thursday, July 28
Project Presentations
Monday, August 1
Exam II
Others
Honesty in Academic Work
Attention is drawn to University policy and regulations on honesty in academic work, and to the disciplinary
guidelines and procedures applicable to breaches of such policy and regulations. Details may be found at
http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/.
With each assignment, students will be required to submit a signed declaration
(http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/Eng_htm_files_(2013-14)/p10.htm) that they are aware of
these policies, regulations, guidelines and procedures.
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•
In the case of group projects, all students of the same group should be asked to sign the declaration,
each of whom is responsible and liable to disciplinary actions should there be any plagiarized
contents in the group project, irrespective of whether he/she has signed the declaration and whether
he/she has contributed directly or indirectly to the plagiarized contents.
•
For assignments in the form of a computer-generated document that is principally text-based and
submitted via VeriGuide, the statement, in the form of a receipt, will be issued by the system upon
students’ uploading of the soft copy of the assignment.
Assignments without the properly signed declaration will not be graded by teachers.
Only the final version of the assignment should be submitted via VeriGuide.
The submission of a piece of work, or a part of a piece of work, for more than one purpose (e.g. to satisfy the
requirements in two different courses) without declaration to this effect shall be regarded as having
committed undeclared multiple submission. It is common and acceptable to reuse a turn of phrase or a
sentence or two from one’s own work; but wholesale reuse is problematic. In any case, agreement from the
course teacher(s) concerned should be obtained prior to the submission of the piece of work.
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