BHM761 CREATIVE DECISIONS FOR EFFECTIVE
CHANGE
Number of Aston Credits:
10
Number of ECTS Credits:
5
Staff Member Responsible for the Module:
Mrs Karen Caine
Email: [email protected]
Availability: Please email for appointments before or after the lectures
Pre-requisites for the Module:
None
Module Objectives and Learning Outcomes:
Charles Handy, in a provocative chapter titled ‘What They Don’t Teach You at
Business School’, suggests that ‘near the top they (managers) need creative,
conceptual skills to deal with a whole range of new issues. Nor will they find the
solutions to these issues in any management text book.’ (1995:103). In short, he
argues that finding the solutions to new issues requires those leading organisational
change to establish creative decision making processes. Handy is not a lone voice.
Amongst others, and more recently, Henry Mintzberg and Tom Peters are also
advocating the need for the development of top team creative and conceptual skills.
In response to this agenda, this module aims to give you skills, knowledge and
experience in organisational change, decision making and creativity, especially the
links between them.
By the end of the module you will have:
A survey of new thinking about organisational change, especially the role of
context in shaping strategic change and its implications for achieving the most
appropriate implementation approach.
A systematic understanding of relevant knowledge about behavioural decision
making processes and how it can be applied to decision making in practice.
Reviewed how you intervene in organisations and, more specifically, been
encouraged to experiment with how you make decisions in complex and
unpredictable situations.
Related traditional business skills and knowledge about organisational change and
decision making to emerging business issues about the need for the development
of top team creative and conceptual skills.
More confidence about making sound judgements in the absence of complete data
and communicating your conclusions clearly to your peers and the wider business
community.
Module Content:
Week 1
Scoping the Module: Organisational Change, Decision Making and
Creativity – Is it Possible to be Right Every Time?
(Karen Caine)
Keynote Speaker – TBC
Week 2
Decision-Making Concepts
(Karen Caine)
Week 3
Strategy, Implementation and Context – The Change Kaleidoscope
(Karen Caine)
Week 4
New Thinking: Guest Speaker – Professor Peter Allen on Complex
Systems and how they Revolutionise Thinking about Organisations and
Management
Facilitator – Karen Caine
Session Leader – Professor Peter Allen (Complex Systems Management
Centre, Cranfield School of Management)
Week 5
Liberating the Individual – Unlocking Creative Capabilities for Business
Success (Co-run with an Artist)
Visit to ‘IKON Art Gallery’
Creative Exercises using Art Techniques
Underlying Theme – Exploring Perception
Facilitator – Karen Caine
Session Leaders – Education Team (IKON)
Week 6
Applying the ideas: A case study
The guest speaker will be posing a real business problem from their own
experience. You will suggest a solution using the ideas from the module.
Content of solutions and decision-making processes will be reflected on
Facilitator – Karen Caine
Guest Speaker - TBC
Week 7
Preparation for Coursework
Individual Work. Karen Caine available for discussion.
Week 8
Small Group Tutorials – Developing your Coursework
(Karen Caine)
Week 9
Synthesizing the Module and Practical Creativity
Summing Up: Some Answers to the Question – Can we be Right Every
Time?
Reflection on the Impact of the Module
Workshop on practical ways to encourage creativity.
(Karen Caine)
Week 10
Hand in Coursework
Residential Part-Time Students
Weekend Small Group Sessions – Common Questions and Developing your
Coursework
Corporate Connections:
Research and case studies from both the private and public sectors will be used to
illustrate key learning points and achieve the learning outcomes.
Guest speakers bring examples of their real life experiences.
International Dimensions:
International research and case studies will be used to illustrate key learning points
and achieve the learning outcomes.
In addition, with the sustained rise in research activity taking place in China, the
notions of Guanxi and trust in management will be highlighted.
Students will be encouraged to share and explore their own differing experiences.
Contribution of Research:
Underpinning this Module is the latest research on Organisational Change, Decision
Making and Creativity. In particular:
Organisational Change: a novel contextual approach is introduced – The Change
Kaleidoscope
Decision-Making: a Guest Speaker, Professor Peter Allen, an international expert
on Complex Systems, will discuss how these ideas will revolutionize thinking about
organisations and management
Creativity:
traditional organisational approaches (for example, teams and
creativity) are linked to emerging ideas about learning and teaching (for instance,
off campus visits stimulating imagination – the story method)
Method of Teaching:
A variety of methods will be used to reinforce learning points: verbal, visual and
written. Importantly, organizational theory (delivered through lectures) will be linked to
management practice (delivered through case studies and simulated experiences) to
reveal what is happening in real organizations.
Most importantly, your participation will be encouraged by stimulating your ideas
through critical reading, by exploring your ideas and previous experiences through
discussion and debate and by testing your ideas through the Individual Report.
Method of Assessment and Feedback:
Individual Report
3000 Words
Submit in Week 10
The Individual Report can be interpreted broadly and is an opportunity for you to
show your creativity. You can choose an organization for your analysis, but you can
also choose a decision making sequence from a film or another source:
organisation: it may be one you currently work for, have worked for or one that has
caught your attention, but select an important event to analyse, for example, a
change intervention
decision-making sequence: it may be a key moment, where two protagonists are
confronting each other with their individual points-of-view
another source: alternatively, you may wish to reflect on a past decision,
identifying why it was successful or not – how will you improve your decisionmaking?
The only limiting factor is that whatever you focus on, it should be open to analysis in
terms of the skills and knowledge you will have developed during the Module. Having
selected your unit of analysis, organisation, decision-making sequence or another
source:
describe it concisely
analyse it in terms of the theory and ideas presented to you
make recommendations to improve individual and organisational learning
Although presentation is important, other criteria carry more weight:
understanding the reading, including at least ten references (though some may be
web-sites) and fully cited
originality of interpretation
clarity of argument
Given the creative nature of the Report, support will be given to students according to
their route through the MBA. Full-Time Students will have Small Group Tutorials in
Week 8, whilst Part-Time Students will have Small Group Tutorials during the
Residential Weekend. During the tutorials students will each have the opportunity to
discuss and get feedback on their assessment ideas and to ask questions.
Learning Hours:
Contact Hours
Directed Learning
Individual and Group Work
Assessment
Total
24
30
23
23
100
Essential Reading:
It is essential that you read the texts included on Blackboard prior to each Session,
which will be taken from the Indicative Bibliography.
Current Blackboard Essential Readings:
Adler, N. (2006), ‘The Arts and Leadership: Now that we can do Anything, What will
we Do?’, Academy of Management and Education, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 486-499.
Balogun, J. and Hope-Hailey, V., (2004), Exploring Strategic Change, 2nd Edition,
Financial Times Prentice Hall, Harlow.
Chapter 3 – Analyzing the Change Context: The Change Kaleidoscope
Bazerman, M.H. and Chugh, D. (2006), ‘Decisions Without Blinders’, Harvard
Business Review, January, pp. 88-97.
Butler MJR and Allen P (2008), ‘Understanding Policy Implementation Processes as
Self-Organizing Systems’, Public Management Review, 10:3, pp 421-440.
Lehrer, J. (2009), The decisive moment – how the Brain makes up its mind,
Canongate Books, Edinburgh. – This is the course book.
Lusher, A. (2007), ‘Another Fine Mess to Celebrate’, Sunday Telegraph, 25
February, p. 19.
Mintzberg, H. and Westley, F. (2001), ‘Decision Making: It’s Not What You Think’,
MIT Sloan Management Review, Vol. 42, No. 3, Spring, pp. 89-93.
Current Blackboard Additional Readings:
Banaji, M.R., Bazerman, M.H. and Chugh, D. (2003), ‘How (Un)Ethical are You?’,
Harvard Business Review, December, pp. 56-64.
Bazerman, M.H., Tenbrunsel, A.E. and Wade-Benzoni, K. (1998), ‘Negotiating with
Yourself and Losing: Making Decisions with Competing Internal Preferences’,
Academy of Management Review, Vol. 23, No. 2, April, pp. 225-241.
Berger, J. (1972), Ways of Seeing, Penguin Books, London, Chapter 1, pp. 7-33.
Bower, J.L. and Gilbert, C.G. (2007), ‘How Managers’ Everyday Decisions Create or
Destroy Your Company’s Strategy’, Harvard Business Review, February, pp. 72-79.
Choi, J.N. (2004), ‘Person-Environment Fit and Creative Behavior: Differential
Impacts of Supplies-Values and Demands-Abilities Versions of Fit’, Human Relations,
Vol. 57, No. 5, pp. 531-552.
Davenport, T.H. (2006), ‘Competing on Analytics’, Harvard Business Review,
January, pp. 98-107
Hayashi, A.M. (2001), ‘When to Trust Your Gut’, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 79,
No. 2, February, pp. 59-66.
Robbins, S.P. and Judge, T.A. (2009), Organizational Behaviour, 13th Edition, N.J.,
Pearson Prentice Hall.
Chapter 5 – Perception and Individual Decision-Making
Rosenfeld, R.H. and Wilson, D.C. (1999), Managing Organisations: Text, Readings
and Cases, 2nd Edition, McGraw Hill Publishing Company, London, pp. 182-196
Chapter 10 – Decision-Making
Special Issue (2007), ‘Strategizing: The Challenges of a Practice Perspective’,
Human Relations, Vol. 60, No. 1.
Special Section (2006), ‘Special Section: Art and Design in Management Education’,
Academy of Management and Education, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 484-523.
References Used on Slides and Not Referred to Above:
Adair, J. (2001), Decision-Making and Problem Solving, Chartered Institute of
Personnel and Development (CIPD), London.
Allen, P. and Moore, M.J. (2001), Innovative Manufacturing Initiative – The
Complexities of Product Definition, CD-ROM, Complex Systems Management
Centre, Cranfield School of Management, Cranfield University, UK and School of
Engineering, The University of Warwick, UK, 8 May.
Ansoff, H. I. (1965), Corporate Strategy, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Ansoff, H. I. (1987), Corporate strategy. London: Penguin Business
Burns, T. and Stalker, G. M. (1961) The Management of Innovation, London,
Tavistock.
Cutting, B. and Kouzmin, A. (1999), ‘From Chaos to Patterns of Understanding:
Reflections on the Dynamics of Effective Government Decision Making’, Public
Administration, Vol. 77, No. 3, pp. 475-508.
Cutting, B. and Kouzmin, A. (2000), ‘The Emerging Patterns of Power in Corporate
Governance – Back to the Future in Improving Corporate Decision Making’, Journal
of Managerial Psychology, Vol. 15, No. 5, pp. 477-511.
Davis, J. and Devinney, T. (1997), The Essence of Corporate Strategy – Theory for
Modern Decision-Making, Allen and Unwin, Australia.
Dawson, S. (1996), Analysing Organisations (3rd edition), MacMillan Business,
Basingstoke.
Handy, C. (1993), Understanding Organizations (4th edition), Penguin Books
Limited, London.
Hannan, M. T. and J. H. Freeman (1977), ‘The population ecology of organizations,’
American Journal of Sociology, 89, 929–964.
Hatch, M.J. (1997), Organization Theory – Modern Symbolic and Postmodern
Perspectives, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
PA Strategy and Marketing Practice (2000), Developing Business Solutions – A
Programme for SAP, PA Consulting Group, London.
Russell, P. and Evans, R. (1992), The Creative Manager – Finding Inner Vision and
Wisdom in Uncertain Times, Jossey-Bass Incorporated, New York.
Russo, J.E. and Schoemaker, P.J.H. (1990), Decision Traps – The Ten Barriers to
Brilliant Decision-Making and How to Overcome Them, Fireside, New York.
Thomas, K. (1991), Religion and the Decline of Magic, Penguin Books, London.
Thompson, J.D. (1967), Organizations in Action, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Thompson, P. and McHugh, D. (2002), Work Organisations, 3rd Edition, Palgrave,
Basingstoke.
Thompson, J.D. and Tuden, A. (1959), ‘Strategies, Structures and Processes of
Organizational Decision’, in Thompson, J.D.; Hammond, P.B.; Hawkes, R.W.;Junker,
B.H. and Tuden, A. (Eds), Comparative Studies in Administration,
University of
Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, pp. 195-216.
Previous Resource Pack Reading:
Allen, P.M. and Phang, H.K. (1994), ‘Evolutionary Intelligence for Portfolio
Management’, paper prepared for the sixth Annual Conference on ‘Intelligent
Financial and Business Systems’, London, 8-10 February, pp. 1-13.
Ambassador (2001), ‘Drawing Releases Business Creativity’, Ambassador, May, pp.
16 -17.
McLuhan, M. and Fiore, Q. (1967, 1996), The Medium is the Massage – An
Inventory of Effects, Gingko Press, Corte Madera, CA.
Medland, D. (2005), ‘Nigel Nicholson on the Lessons of the Messai’.
Rudebeck, C. (2005), ‘How to Become a Genius’, The Independent Review – The
Blue Sky Issue, Monday 4 April, pp. 6-7.
Snowden, D. (2000), ‘Cynefin, A Sense of Time and Place: An Ecological Approach
to Sense Making and Learning in Formal and Informal Communities’, unpublished,
pp. 1-10.
Snowden, D.J. (2002), ‘Complex Acts of Knowing: Paradox and Descriptive SelfAwareness’, Special Edition Journal of Knowledge Management, Vol. 6, No. 2, May,
pp. 1-14.
Stewart, T.A. (1998), ‘The Cunning Plots of Leadership’, Fortune, 7 September, pp.
1-4.
References Previously Used on Slides:
Butler, M.J.R. (2000), The Rise and Rise of the New Public Management,
unpublished PhD thesis, The University of Warwick, UK, June.
Gombrich, E.H. (1996), Art and Illusion – A Study in the Psychology of Pictorial
Representation (5th edition), Phaidon Press Limited, London.
Lukes, S. (1982), Power: A Radical View, The MacMillan Press Limited, London and
Basingstoke.
March, J.G. and Simon, H.A. (1958), Organizations, John Wiley, New York.
Simon, S. (1957), ‘A Behavioural Model of Rational Choice’, in Simon, H.A. (Ed.),
Models of Man, John Wiley, New York.
Useful Electronic Sources:
ABI-Inform Full Text (Proquest)
Emerald
Web of Science (Social Science Citation Index)
Max Bazerman: http://www.people.hbs.edu/mbazerman Bazerman’s site provides an
opportunity to see his latest thinking, including making copies of his working papers
available: http://www.people.hbs.edu/mbazerman/working_papers.htm
Daniel Kahneman:
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/2002/kahneman-lecture.html.
This link takes you to Kahneman’s 2002 Nobel Prize speech. It is also available in
text and video, and explains and reflects upon his work on the heuristics of judgment,
risky choice and framing effects.
Harvard
Business
School:
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/topics/decisionmaking.html.
Bazerman’s work is set in the context of other research in decision making at Harvard
Business School. Again, working papers are available.
Michael Butler: http://academicsocialnetwork.ning.com/. A senior lecturer at Aston
University, and created this course. He uses a web site to make his articles and other
publications more widely available. The purpose of the web site is to provide an
opportunity to co-create ideas in 'Strategy Idea Space' by you downloading evidencebased ideas (the publications), adapting them to your situation, then uploading your
innovations to share with like minded-people.
www.thetransformationproject.co.uk. The Transformation Project: Michael Butler, in
an ESRC sponsored research project, is exploring how to transform decision making
processes in project management settings. Along with his team, he is co-producing
two new management toolsets with project partners from all sectors and testing their
impact on performance. The case studies show quicker decision making leading to
senior manager agreement to project roll out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyvXu3lSSG0: Henry Mintzberg is mentioned
several times in the module. This is a short clip on decision making from one of his
teaching sessions on the International Masters in Practicing Management (IDPM,
www.impm.org). He explains the different approaches of thinking first, seeing first and
doing first.
http://www.slideshare.net/themoleskin/visual-and-creative-thinking: Kelsey Ruger,
Pop Labs, presents ideas about visual and creative thinking – what we learned from
Peter Pan and Willy Wonka. The link explains why visual and creative thinking are
useful, what the myths surrounding them are and some ways to encourage them.