As the number-one company on Fortune’s Best Company to Work For list for six straight years, Google must be doing something right! Actually, it does many things right! One thing that you might be surprised at is a self improvement course (one of many) that’s offered to Google’s employees. The course, first offered in 2007, is called simply Search Inside Yourself (SIY). And it’s so popular that thousands of Googlers are on waiting lists to take the course! SIY was developed by a Google engineer, Chade-Meng Tan. Tan has been around Google from almost the beginning—he was Google employee No. 107. His current work position carries the title “Jolly Good Fellow,” and his job description says he wants to, “Enlighten minds, open hearts, create world peace.” Interesting concepts for a highly successful tech company, don’t you think! But there’s a serious side to what might seem to be a “fluff” topic. The SIY course was designed to show Googlers how to be more aware of their emotions, to be more compassionate toward others, to be able to build sustainable relationships (internally and externally), and, of course, to contribute to world peace. (We’re not kidding!) SIY is based on the five dimensions of emotional intelligence— here’s a little review for you: self-awareness, self-management, selfmotivation, empathy, and social skills—and is broken into three parts. The first part of the course focuses on attention training—being able to center yourself calmly and clearly in the midst of whatever is going on around you . . . shouting, stress, conflict, or whatever. The second part involves self knowledge—being aware of your emotions and eventually being able to master those emotions. And the third part is creating mental habits—being in control of your emotions and able to naturally think how to relate calmly and kindly to others. Although all this sounds very interesting and very useful, that isn’t the most fascinating part of the story. What is most interesting is the fact that this course is so popular among people who are extremely intelligent and very logical, practical, and straightforward. After all, Google hires the best and the brightest engineers—people who have a lot of knowledge and training, but who may not always have the best social/people skills. So how did Tan appeal to those individuals? The appeal was that the course was designed for the intellectual intelligence side (the nerd side) by focusing on the neuroscience behind the touchy-feely behavioral self-control that is possible through emotional intelligence. And despite Google’s need for very smart, competent, tech-oriented employees, the reality is that even its workplace has to be about people working together to solve problems and design new ways to keep moving the company forward. So, even for them, emotional intelligence skills are needed for successful collaboration. Question#1 Why might emotional intelligence be important to Google’s engineers? Question#2 What is the purpose of this Search Inside Yourself course? Question#3 Describe each of the three parts of the SIY course. Which do you think would be the hardest to master? Why? Question#4 How has Google made the SIY course appeal to its engineers? Question#5 What do you think about a course like this? Would you find it interesting? Why or why not? Can you think of any potential ethics issues that might arise in a course like this? Discuss.
> Which do you think is more important for a manager: speaking accurately or listening actively? Why?
> Why isn’t effective communication synonymous with agreement?
> Which type of communication do you think is most effective in a work setting? Why?
> How can organizations develop effective leaders?
> Do followers make a difference in whether a leader is effective? Discuss.
> The Virgin Group Ltd. has succeeded with a simple plan—don’t put customers first! The British multinational holding company that has businesses ranging from an airline to a media company follows founder Sir Richard Branson’s strategy instead—put employee
> Do you think trust evolves out of an individual’s personal characteristics or out of specific situations? Explain.
> All managers should be leaders, but not all leaders should be managers.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Support your position.
> Do you think that most managers in real life use a contingency approach to increase their leadership effectiveness? Discuss.
> What would a manager need to know to use Fiedler’s contingency model? Be specific.
> What does each of the behavioral leadership theories say about leadership?
> Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the trait theory.
> When might leaders be irrelevant?
> Define leader and leadership, and discuss why managers should be leaders.
> Can an individual be too motivated? Discuss.
> As a manager, what will you need to know about goal-setting theory as a motivation tool?
> Controlling employee performance is a vitally important responsibility of managers. After all, it’s your employees who are working to accomplish established goals, and you want to see that those goals are being accomplished as planned. So wouldn’t it see
> Many job design experts who have studied the changing nature of work say that people do their best work when they’re motivated by a sense of purpose rather than by the pursuit of money. Do you agree? Explain your position. What are the implications for m
> What are some advantages of using pay-for-performance programs to motivate employee performance? Are there drawbacks? Explain.
> What are some of the possible consequences of employees perceiving an inequity between their inputs and outcomes and those of others?
> What role would money play in (a) the hierarchy of needs theory, (b) two-factor theory, (c) equity theory, (d) expectancy theory, and (e) motivating employees with a high nAch?
> Contrast lower-order and higher-order needs in Maslow’s needs hierarchy.
> What is motivation? Explain the three key elements of motivation.
> What challenges do managers face in motivating today’s workforce?
> Most of us have to work for a living, and a job is a central part of our lives. So why do managers have to worry so much about employee motivation issues?
> A Gallup Organization survey shows that most workers rate having a caring boss even higher than they value money or fringe benefits. How should managers interpret this information? What are the implications?
> Describe the implications of social learning theory for managing people at work.
> It’s estimated that the average corporate user sends and receives some 112 e-mails daily. That’s about 14 e-mails per hour, and even if half of those don’t require a lot of time and concentration, that level of e-mail volume can be stressful and lead to
> How might a manager use personality traits to improve employee selection in his or her department? Emotional intelligence? Discuss.
> Instead of worrying about job satisfaction, companies should be trying to create environments where performance is enabled.” What do you think this statement means? Explain. What’s your reaction to this statement? Do you agree? Disagree? Why?
> Describe what is meant by the term emotional intelligence. Provide an example of how it’s used in contemporary organizations.
> Clarify how individuals reconcile inconsistencies between attitudes and behaviors.
> Define the six important employee behaviors.
> Does the importance of knowledge of OB differ based on a manager’s level in the organization? If so, how? If not, why not? Be specific.
> Write down three attitudes you have. Identify the cognitive, affective, and behavioral components of those attitudes.
> How is an organization like an iceberg? Use the iceberg metaphor to describe the field of organizational behavior.
> How do you think scientific management theorists would react to the increased use of teams in organizations? How would behavioral science theorists react?
> Contrast the pros and cons of diverse teams.
> How important are excellent leaders to organizations? Well, the answer, in theory of course, would be very important. However, the answer as practiced by countless organizations might indicate otherwise. Only 38 percent of organizations have a formal fro
> What traits do you think good team players have? Do some research to answer this question and write a short report detailing your findings using a bulleted list format.
> To have a successful team, first find a great leader.” What do you think of this statement? Do you agree? Why or why not?
> Would you prefer to work alone or as part of a team? Why?
> All work teams are work groups, but not all work groups are work teams.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Discuss.
> How do you explain the popularity of work teams in countries such as the United States and Canada, whose national cultures place a high value on individualism?
> Contrast (a) self-managed and cross-functional teams, and (b) virtual and face-to-face teams.
> What challenges do managers face in managing global teams? How should those challenges be handled?
> Think of a group to which you belong (or have belonged). Trace its development through the stages of group development as shown in Exhibit 10–2 . How closely did its development parallel the group development model? How might the group development model
> What, in your view, constitutes sexual harassment? Describe how companies can minimize sexual harassment in the workplace.
> List the factors that influence employee compensation and benefits.
> What are the benefits and drawbacks of realistic job previews? (Consider this question from both the perspective of the organization and the perspective of a potential employee.)
> Discuss the advantages and drawbacks of the various selection devices.
> Discuss the advantages and drawbacks of the various recruiting sources.
> Do you think it’s ethical for a prospective employer to delve into an applicant’s life by means of interviews, tests, and background investigations? What if those investigations involved looking at your Face book page or personal blogs? Explain your posi
> Some critics claim that corporate HR departments have outlived their usefulness and are not there to help employees but to shield the organization from legal problems. What do you think? What benefits are there to having a formal HRM process? What are th
> Discuss the external environmental factors that most directly affect the HRM process.
> Describe the six types of diversity found in organizations and how organizations should approach HR activities with a diverse workforce.
> How does HRM affect all managers?
> The boundary less organization has the potential to create a major shift in the way we work.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Explain.
> Researchers are now saying that efforts to simplify work tasks actually have negative results for both companies and their employees. Do you agree? Why or why not?
> Non-GMO, organic, locally sourced … these terms are now a common part of our food vocabulary, although not typically associated with fast food. Chipotle entered the fast-food scene in the early 1990s with a seemingly impossible goal of creating a healthy
> With the availability of information technology that allows employees to work anywhere, anytime, is organizing still an important managerial function? Why or why not?
> Explain the contingency factors that affect organizational design.
> Contrast mechanistic and organic organizations.
> “An organization can have no structure.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Explain.
> Can an organization’s structure be changed quickly? Why or why not? Should it be changed quickly? Why or why not?
> Describe the traditional and contemporary views of each of the six key elements of organizational design.
> Draw an organization chart of an organization with which you’re familiar (where you work, a student organization to which you belong, your college or university, etc.). Be very careful in showing the departments (or groups) and especially be careful to g
> Discuss what is meant by the term organization design.
> How can entrepreneurs be successful and balance the demands of their work and personal lives?
> What controlling issues does an entrepreneur need to be aware of?
> We said in the chapter that trust is the essence of leadership. Trust is an important aspect of an organization’s culture, and we already know the role that leaders/managers play in exemplifying and manifesting the culture. However, what happens when an
> In what ways does an entrepreneur need to be a leader?
> Describe some of the personality characteristics that researchers have identified about entrepreneurs.
> Why do you think many entrepreneurs find it hard to step aside and let others manage their business?
> How can environmental opportunities be identified?
> Explain what happens in the entrepreneurial process.
> Why is entrepreneurship important to society?
> Do you think a person can be taught to be an entrepreneur? Why or why not?
> How are entrepreneurial ventures, small businesses, and selfemployed persons similar? Different?
> How does an innovative culture make an organization more effective? Could an innovative culture ever make an organization less effective? Why or why not?
> Research information on how to be a more creative person. Write down suggestions in a bulleted list format and be prepared to present your information in class.
> Does money buy happiness? Several of the 120 employees at Gravity Payments, a credit card processing company based in Seattle, are about to find out. The company’s founder, Dan Price, made the news in the spring of 2015 when he decided to bump up the sal
> Classical Approaches
> How do creativity and innovation differ?
> Why is organization development planned change? Explain how planned change is important for organizations in today’s dynamic environment.
> Organizations typically have limits to how much change they can absorb. As a manager, what signs would you look for that might suggest your organization has exceeded its capacity to change?
> How are opportunities, constraints, and demands related to stress? Give an example of each.
> Describe Lewin’s three-step change process. How is it different from the change process needed in the white-water rapids metaphor of change?
> Contrast the calm waters and white-water rapids metaphors of change. Which of these would you use to describe your current life? Why is that one your choice?
> How can organizations and individuals benefit from disruptive innovation? How can they not become victims of disruptive innovation?
> Why is managing change an integral part of every manager’s job?
> Do a personal SWOT analysis. Assess your personal strengths and weaknesses (skills, talents). What are you good at? What are you not so good at? What do you enjoy doing? Not enjoy doing? Then, identify career opportunities and threats by researching job
> What types of planning do you do in your personal life? Describe these plans in terms of being (a) strategic or operational, (b) short term or long term, (c) specific or directional, and (d) single-use or standing.
> Tweets. Twittering. Prior to 2006, the only definition we would have known for these words would have involved birds and the sounds they make. Now, practically everyone knows that Twitter is also an online platform—with 336 million monthly active users,
> Describe how managers can plan in today’s dynamic environment.
> Under what circumstances do you believe MBO would be most useful? Discuss.
> “Organizations that fail to plan are planning to fail.” Agree or disagree? Explain your position.
> What is a SWOT analysis, and why is it important to managers?
> Describe in detail the six-step strategic management process.
> Discuss why planning is beneficial.
