Advanced Organization Theory
Management 6381 – Sec 01
Ph.D. Seminar
Tuesday 6-8:50, BA 269
Instructor: Kimberly B. Boal, Rawls Professor of Management
Office: 1110 BA
Phone: (0ffice) 721-2150; (cell) 441-3509
e-mail: kimboal@ttu.edu; profboal@aol.com
website: kimboal.ba.ttu.edu
Texts:
Clegg, S.R., Hardy, C., Lawrence, T.B., and Nord, W.R., (Eds.). 2006. The Sage handbook of
organization studies, 2nd ed. London: Sage. (OS)
Greenwood, R., Oliver, C., Sahlin, K., and Suddaby, R., (Eds.). 2008. The Sage handbook of
organizational institutionalism. Los Angeles: Sage. (OI)
Goals
In the area of management, historically the big 4 divisions of the academy of management have
been: BPS, OB, OMT, and HRM. To this list we could add the growing interest in ENT. BPS
is concerned with questions regarding corporate, competitive, and functional level strategy.
Examples include: what business should we compete in, how do we become the supplier of
choice to our customers; how do we organize/integrate our resources/functions to support our
corporate and business level strategies. In OB the focus is on the individual and group level of
analysis. Important questions involve the motivation and leadership of people. In HRM the
focus is on selection, placement, training, and compensating them to do it. Important issues start
with the validation of hiring procedures and extend to issues of outplacement. In OMT we are
concerned with the design of organizations and their subdivisions. Both Strategy and OMT
follow the ESP framework. However, in Strategy this framework stand for Environment,
Strategy, and Performance, whereas in OMT this framework stand for Environnment, Structure,
and Performance. Both postulate there must be a fit between the environment and its
strategy/structure if the organization is going to be effective. NOTE¨ Because Porter’s 5 forces
model is so popular, and it refers to the “structure” of the industry, some students get confused
when talking about “structure.” The structure we refer to in this course is the organization’s
structure, and not the economic structure of the industry.
Now there are many theories that we could look at. A sampling would include:
Contingency theory, resource dependence theory, agency theory, symbolic interaction theory,
network theory, population ecology, and institutional theory.
However, we will not give all of these theories an equal look in this course. This is because, in
the opinion of your instructor, not all of these theories are of the moment. By this, I mean, if one
were to pick up a current random issue of ASQ, Organization Science, JMS, or Organizational
Studies not all the fore mentioned theories would have an equal probability of being mentioned.
For example, in the 1970s contingency theory reined, the Population Ecology in the 1990s, and
today Institutional Theory dominates. Thus, I have chosen two books that I think you will need
on your bookshelf as references if you wish to do any work in OMT. We will not re4ad either
book in its entirety, but sample 10 chapters from each.
There are two ways to read each chapter. The traditional way is to ask you to think about the
theory in question as theory. That is to say, what are the fundamental propositions of the theory,
what is the level of analysis, what are its fundamental predictions, and how well is it supported.
I want you to read the chapters in this way. However, I want you to read them in a different way
as well. I want you to ask yourselves the following questions: Does this theory address why
organizations exist in the first place? Does this theory answer the question about why only some
survive? Does this theory explain why or why not organizations differ? Does this theory
address why and how organizations change? Does this theory address new, and emergent issues
facing organizations in the 21st century? If you can accomplish these two ways of understanding,
then I believe you will have a sophisticated understanding of the central issues in OMT.
Assessment
Course Work: 50%
There are two assessments I will make. The first is how much effort, thought, and insight did
you bring to each weeks reading assignments. While I will ask one student to lead the discussion
of each chapter (2 students per week for two chapters), and this student should prepare handouts
to guide us through the chapter, examples would include, relevance to the issues discussed in the
two ways to read each chapter discussed above, everyone is expected to be able to discuss the
issues. Sometimes, your instructor will ask specific students for their input lest some voices
become to dominate. Each time you are asked to lead the discussion, you will have
approximately 1 hour to do so. As time goes by, all students should be able to reflect on
previous readings to look for points of agreement/contention/integration.
Paper: 50%
Students are to prepare an empirical/theoretical paper that touches on one or more of the theories
presented in the class. However, students are allowed to work with each other or a faculty
member on the paper. But there must be clear evidence of each student’s contribution.
Contributions may be in the form of a written testimony by the student’s co-author. If a student
is working on a paper that has already progressed to some state, (say an earlier version was
presented at the AOM), the student’s paper must be able to take it to the next level, (say,
receiving an R&R from a major journal). If the paper is a new paper, it should be written in such
a way that it would be acceptable to AMR/AMJ.
In your career as Professors, you will be ask to profess in writing as well as the classroom. The
two assessments in this course are meant to prepare you to do both.
Readings
January 19
Get acquainted and course syllabus
January 26
OS Chapter 1.1 Organizational theorizing:…
OI Chapter 4 Organizational fields:…
February 2
OS Chapter 2.6 Beyond Contingency:…
OI Chapter 24 Ecologist and institutionalist:...
February 9
OS Chapter 1.2 Ecological approaches to organizations
OI Chapter 1 Legitimacy in organizational institutionalism
February 16
OS Chapter 1.3 Organizational economics:…
OI Chapter 7 Institutional entrepreneurship
February 25*
OS Chapter 1.5 Complexity science and organization studies
OI Chapter 22 Systems theory, societal contexts, and …
Note: Class will meet Thursday of this week
March 2
OS Chapter 1.7 Critical theory and postmodernism approaches…
OI Chapter 6 Power, institutions and organizations
March 9
OS Chapter 1.6 Institutions and institutional work
OI Chapter 3 Organizational logics
March 16
Spring Break
March 23
OS Chapter 1.8 From the “woman’s point of view”…
OI Chapter 29 Taking social constructional seriously:…
March 30
OS Chapter 2.16 Radical organizational change
OI Chapter 26 Institutional level learning:…
April 6
OS 2.9 Globalization
OI Chapter 11 Institutions and transnationalization
April 13
OS Chapter 2.14 Networks and organizations
OI Chapter 27 Social movements and institutional analysis
April 20
All Papers Due, Presentations Begin, but Presentations will be staggered
April 27
May 4
Presentations, last day of class.