Sabella Larkin
OGL 498: Pro-Seminar I
February 2, 2015
Core Assignment #1
Part I:
COURSE
OGL 200:
Introduction to
Organizational
Leadership
KEY LEARNING – CONCEPTS, THEORIES,
SKILLS, BEST PRACTICES, APPLICATIONS,
CASES, ASSIGNMENTS, DISCUSSIONS,
SIMULATIONS / ACTIVITIES, TEAMWORK
INITIATIVES, READINGS, ANALYSIS, OTHER
PROJECTS, ETC.
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Motivational Style Assessment
Manager’s Workshop-practice effective
management, motivational theories,
how to apply leadership theories in real
life situations
PROFESSIONAL (OR PERSONAL) APPLICATION.
AS A RESULT OF YOUR ACADEMICS: HOW DO
YOU THINK DIFFERENTLY? HOW DO YOU
BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY? WHAT CAN YOU DO
MORE EFFECTIVELY? HOW HAVE YOU CHANGED
AS A PERSON?
I particularly really enjoyed OGL 200 especially for
the Manager’s Workshop simulations. The concepts
of effective management and leadership theories
were able to be applied to real life situations. I am
able to motivate peers, coworkers, and employees
more effectively. This class especially helped to
determine which leadership style was most effective
for specific types of personalities.
OGL 220:
Behavioral
Dynamics in
Organizations
Concepts addressed through discussions and
reading quizzes:
 Psychoanalytic, Behaviorist, and
Humanist perspectives on personality
 Stress management
 fundamental attribution error
 perception of the world and others
 internal and external barriers to
listening
 gender differences in communication
goals affect listening style
 high-context and low-context
communication
 instrumental and affective
communication
 nonverbal communication
 dual-conflict model
The concepts that I learned in OGL 220 were
concepts that I could apply to my every day personal
life. The material helped me to understand and
evaluate behaviors, communication styles, and
different perspectives regarding behavior and
communication styles. This class was extremely
effective in being able to enhance my communication
skills to listen and communicate more easily.
OGL 240:
Introduction to
Project
Management
Through weekly papers and a team project I
learned the following concepts:
 Project management vs. operations
management
Life, personally and professionally, is full of multiple
projects. After completing OGL 240, I had grasped
the concept of the project life cycle and how to
effectively manage the project throughout the
Project life cycle: initiating, planning,
executing, monitoring & controlling, and
closing.
how organizational culture and
structure, stakeholder management,
project management maturity levels,
and enterprise environmental factors
can influence a project
effective approaches to forming a
project team
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
Responsibility Assignment Matrix
(RAM)
Risk Management
lifecycle. I am a very organized person and so the
concept of a work breakdown structure and
responsibility assignment matrix was easy for me to
understand. The most difficult portion of a project is
risk management. Because of this class, I am now
able to identify scope creep more effectively and
utilize specific skills related to managing risk.
Trait Approach
Skills Approach
 Technical skills
 Human skills
 Conceptual skills
Style Leadership Theory
Situational Leadership Theory
Contingency Theory
Path-Goal Theory
o Path Goal Leadership
Questionnaire
Leader-Member Exchange Theory
Transformational Leadership
o Transformational Leadership vs.
Transactional Leadership
questionnaire (Week 4).
Servant Leadership
Strategic Management
Task vs. Relationship Oriented SelfAssessment
WEAA Case Study Final Paper
I have a deeper understanding of the different
approaches to leadership. From this class, I was able
to learn the history of leadership theories and apply
these theories to a Harvard Business Review Case
Study on the leadership style of a leader at WEAA
radio station. Throughout the course, there were
several assessments and questionnaires that helped
me to determine my leadership style in regards to
the specific theory or approach learned. Through
these assessments, I was able to determine that I am
nearly equal in terms of relationship oriented and
task oriented leadership styles. However, I am
slightly more relationship oriented.
Through the simulations completed on the
Harvard Business Publishing Account, I learned
the following concepts:
 Practice making decisions by managing
project behaviors, parameters and
outcomes
 Demonstrate the ability to manage an
unexpected mid-project problem
 Practice project human resource
management when faced with staffing
challenges
 Identify different leadership strategies
I really enjoyed completing the simulations on the
Harvard Business Publishing Account. These
simulations helped me to not only understand the
concepts, but apply the concepts learned in the class
to project simulations. I have a better understanding
of how to be prepared for scope creep. More
importantly, I am now able to manage projects more
effectively should surprises arise.
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OGL 300: Theory
and Practice of
Leadership OR
PAF 410:
Building
Leadership
Skills
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OGL 321: Project
Leadership,
Strategy and
Scope
in managing and directing staff
 Demonstrate the ability to make tradeoffs when project targets are unrealistic
Weekly module papers summarize these
concepts learned.
BIS 345:
Organizational
Ethics
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BIS 343: Social
Processes in
Organizations
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BIS 350:
Diversity and
Organizations
Business ethics (Discussion)
o Kantian Approach
o Aristotelean Approach -- Virtue
Ethics
o Utilitarian Approach
o Pragmatic/Deliberative
Approach
Ethical Reasoning (Discussion)
o Consequentialism
o Deontology
Profession Ethical Analysis Paper:
pharmaceutical sales
participative leadership and
empowerment on teams
team design
team mental models
group decision making process
types of conflict on teams and conflict
interventions
Through weekly module papers the following
concepts were addressed:
 Organizational Diversity and Identity
 Diversity Management
 Discrimination and Prejudice
 Socialization & Social Class
 Interview- individual of a different
culture
 Acculturation
 Intercultural Competency & Team
Development
 Organizational Conflict
 Intercultural Leadership
As a result of this class, I am able to understand how
to have an ethical approach to leadership. It seems
easy to do what is right. However, leaders face many
ethical dilemmas in which they need to make a
decision that may not produce the best consequences
for all parties involved. Leaders are responsible for
making ethical decisions in light of the customers the
organization serves, the employees, the investors,
the shareholders, etc. Because there are multiple
perspectives, it is difficult to determine what is
ethical. This class enlightened me by teaching me
different ethical approaches to leadership and ethical
reasoning in order to make the most ethical
decisions possible.
BIS 343 taught me the internal dynamics of a team –
the tasks, the people, and the processes. I learned
optimal team design is dependent on the type of
work to be accomplished and the structure of the
organization. I learned the importance of team
mental models and how to build cohesion. Because
of this class, I am able to understand how to create
and effectively manage a great and successful team.
This course was one of my favorite courses of my
major. Each module explored the different elements
of diversity in organizations. The course helped to
enhance my cultural intelligence and increase selfawareness of my own personal culture and identity.
I am able to examine and assess the impact of culture
on individual values and behavior and recognize bias
and discrimination more readily. The interview I
conducted with a person of a different
culture/ethnicity than me helped to broaden my
understanding of the Russian culture and her
personal values that influence her decisions daily. I
am able to comprehend the benefits of having a
multi-cultural team and how to develop a multicultural team. More importantly, I can identify not
only the opportunities of a diverse team, but the
challenges that arise and how to handle those
challenges. I have more of an understanding of how
to handle conflict in diverse atmospheres.
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OGL 355:
Leading
Organizational
Innovation and
Change OR PAF
311: Leadership
and Change (SB)
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External Analysis on Tesla Motors
o An external analysis is “the
process of scanning and
evaluating an organization’s
external environment” to
determine the opportunities and
threats it faces (Coulter, pg. 56).
Functional & Competitive Strategies
applied to GEICO
Case Analysis: JDRF
BIS 357:
Assessment in
Organizations
Through weekly tests and case studies I am
learning the following concepts:
 Awareness of why organizational
assessments are important in
organizations
 Identify main challenges of
organizational assessments
 Explain primary modes of organizational
assessments
 Identify general characteristics and key
attributes of the Organizational
Assessment Performance Framework
COM 430:
Leadership in
Group
Communication
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Leadership Approaches (Quizzes &
Discussion)
o Trait approach to leadership
o Behavior approach to leadership
o Contingency approach to
leadership
o Path-Goal Theory
o Leader Member Exchange
o In-groups
Into Thin Air Essay
o Applying leadership theories and
concepts to a written account of
a fatal expedition of hikers on a
mission to conquer Mount
From this course, I was able to learn how to create an
external analysis of organizations in order to
determine opportunities and threats that the
organization faces. Several tools can be used to
create external analyses, such as the SWOT-analysis
tool, which helps to summarize the threats and
opportunities determined during the analysis. I
learned that external analyses are extremely
beneficial in being able to help generate profits, help
support change, help cut costs, and increase
knowledge and support learning. Much of the class
involved an analytical style of thinking and then
translating those thoughts into words. This class
helped me to not only comprehend data, but to
understand, evaluate, and translate the data to form
a strategic plan. Being able to generate a strategy
from data is a difficult task, but has helped me to
think deeper and initiate a more creative style to my
thinking to generate strategies and solutions based
on data.
BIS 357 enabled me to perform assessments of
organizations and determine why assessments are
needed. I am able to identify the life cycle stage of
organizations, perform assessments, and determine
a strategy for the business to continue successfully.
Like OGL 300, COM 430 explored different
leadership theories and approaches. This course
emphasized the theory and process of leadership in
group communication specifically. Being able to
communicate is an essential skill for every leader.
Understanding which type of leadership theory can
be applied in terms of communicating is helpful to
understanding how to effectively communicate and
embrace the leadership approach.
Everest.
Table 2: Plus / Delta – Significant Learning Experiences – Structure and Transfer
Pick one of your most significant learning experiences from Table 1. Take some time to deeply reflect on the
experience. Respond to the following questions / sub-questions as explicitly as possible. Use your imagination
and creativity here – this is really all about making connections, and seeing what you can learn about your
learning style (and yourself) from the experience!
Describe the task / assignment? What,
specifically, did you learn?
Be sure to address both declarative forms of
knowledge (things you learned – concepts,
theories, ideas, models) as well as procedural
forms of knowledge(things you learned how to
do – skills).
Why is it important to you?
What connections can you make between this
learning and other things you have learned (in
school – and beyond)? What connections can
you make between what you learned and your
life roles and goals?
What worked for you?
In terms of process, was there something about
the assignment structure that appealed to you?
How did this task / structure of this assignment
differ from other assignments? Was it similar to
other assignments / tasks that were meaningful
to me? What strategies, skills, procedures
proved effective in the completion of this
assignment / task? Do you see any patterns or
connections in this regard to your preferred
approach to learning – such as following an
outline, keeping to deadlines, other learning or
OGL 355: Leading Organizational Innovation and Change
Case Analysis: JDRF
 I learned the components of and how to develop the right
structure for preparing a case analysis for an organization.
 I learned the importance of a company’s vision/mission and
how it relates to the company’s goals.
 I also learned to identify policies and values that a company
embraces.
 I was able to identify corporate and competitive strategies
used within the company in order to achieve its goals.
 In completing the case analysis, I was able to also learn how
to prepare an external and internal analysis in order to
determine an organizations various strengths/weaknesses
and external threats and opportunities. This also helps to
determine positive and negative trends that may impact the
organization’s performance.
 In preparing the analysis, I was able to practice executing the
SWOT model-strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and
threats.
 I identified strategic issues of the organization and compiled
strategic alternatives in response to those issues.
After completing the majority of the courses for my major, I found
that I really enjoy learning about the framework and operations of
organizations and the strategies developed in response to the
opportunities and threats that organizations face. After graduating, I
plan on applying to multiple companies in which I want to start my
career. This course in particular helped me to develop skills and
deepen my knowledge of concepts that I need in a position as a
business analyst.
This task essentially was a summary of everything that had been
learned and reviewed throughout the course. I was able to use my
other assignments in the class as references because the other
assignments were components of the entire case analysis. For
example, one of the assignments was to develop an external analysis
for a corporation, which I had chosen Tesla Motors. Another
assignment focused on applying functional and competitive
strategies. Both the external analysis and applications of functional
and competitive strategies are components which I later completed
for my case analysis on JDRF. Compiling a case analysis takes time
and attention to detail. I am extremely detail-oriented and very
efficient in my time management skills. I enjoyed the practice of
being able to switch perspectives from a very general/overview
study skills?
frame of mind to one that is narrow and focused on a specific topic.
What can you transfer?
A case study involves specific analysis of an organization’s mission,
goals, values, internal and external threats & opportunities in order
to be able to determine a strategy to use these aspects to its
advantage and avoid threats in order to achieve those goals. This
type of analysis is not only helpful for organizations, but also helpful
for one’s own personal life. To be able to identify core values and
goals for one’s self is the first step in the pursuit of happiness. Once
one has determined those goals, analyzing the internal and external
threats and opportunities will help to use one’s opportunities to his
or her advantage and combat threats as they pursue those goals. The
most difficult part is to develop the strategies to accomplish those
personal goals. A case analysis is important for an organization’s
growth and success and these same concepts can be applied on a
personal level to help one pursue happiness and achieve success in
life.
What evidence do you have?
I have my final draft for my case analysis on JDRF. I feel that sharing
the knowledge I have learned exactly how I learned it, in a step by
step fashion, is the best way to share the knowledge of what a case
analysis entails. I believe it is meaningful to help peers, friends, and
family use the case analysis structure as I had mentioned earlier as a
metaphor to help one achieve life goals.
Where can you apply / use these skills and
knowledge? How can you apply what worked
for you (above) to other learning goals or
initiatives in your life? Can you connect or adapt
this knowledge / skill to other areas of your life?
What kinds of metaphorical connections can you
make? Can you connect something that was
interesting or important with respect to this
knowledge / skill to something that you are
struggling with?
Do you have a plan for communicating your
learning to others? Are there any tangible
outcomes or artifacts that serve as evidence of
this knowledge / skill?
Assignment #1: Questions for Reflection
Prompt #1: Now that you have completed Assignment #1, what were the most important aspects
of this assignment? What moved you the most? Any surprises?
I thoroughly enjoyed going through the documents I had saved on my laptop in the corresponding
class folders and reviewing the concepts I had learned throughout my organizational leadership
career at ASU. As my undergrad career is coming to an end, being able to review not only the key
concepts and theories I’ve learned, but review the work I had completed applying these concepts
was extremely rewarding.
Prompt #2: What are your ideas in terms of how to best illustrate your growth and development
over the course of your education and experiences with the Organizational Leadership program?
There are a lot of papers and discussions to illustrate the concepts I had learned throughout my
courses. Two of my favorite activities were the Manager’s Workshop in OGL 200 and the Harvard
Business Publishing Account Simulations in OGL 321. These activities were my favorite activities to
complete in reference to applying the learned concepts. Discussions and papers capture a lot of the
experience, not just for these two activities, but for every concept learned throughout my courses at
ASU. I am particularly fond of creating a “web portfolio” or website that illustrates the concepts I
have learned in each class throughout my career in the Organizational Leadership program with a
few tangible documents that I am most proud of. I did something extremely similar to this in my
ENGL 102 course for just that class alone. Being able to dedicate time to review past concepts and
retrieve tangible documents I created that illustrate the application of the concepts and from that
creating a web portfolio almost like a web based scrapbook/timeline would be really fun and
rewarding.