Organisational behaviour: Know your people

Go to Course: https://www.coursera.org/learn/organisational-behaviour-know-your-people

Introduction

# Course Review: Organisational Behaviour: Know Your People ## Overview In today's dynamic workplace, effective personnel management is more critical than ever to ensure organisational success. Coursera's course, **Organisational Behaviour: Know Your People**, offers an immersive exploration into the psychology of workplace dynamics and leadership. This course delves into various concepts, theories, and methodologies that are essential for optimising your work environment. Through a blend of video lectures, quizzes, discussion prompts, and written assessments, participants will learn from industry experts about best-practice leadership strategies that can significantly enhance employee performance and engagement. ## Course Syllabus Breakdown ### Week 1: People in Organisations The first week sets the foundation for understanding individual differences in the workplace. Rather than focusing solely on skills and experience, this week emphasises the importance of personality traits, values, and attitudes. Engaging quizzes encourage self-reflection and offer insights into how leaders can create a more productive and satisfying workplace by recognising and respecting diversity among team members. This aspect is particularly enlightening, inviting participants to explore their leadership style in light of psychological principles. ### Week 2: Diversity and Inclusion In Week 2, the course tackles the pressing issue of diversity and inclusion. It challenges conventional perceptions by urging participants to consider deeper-level differences, such as cognitive styles and perspectives beyond surface demographics like age and gender. The discussions around the benefits of diversity—especially in terms of fostering innovation—are particularly impactful, as they prepare leaders to cultivate inclusive environments that harness the full potential of diverse teams. ### Week 3: Motivating Your People Motivation is the focus of Week 3, where participants gain insights into what drives individuals. The course draws on extensive research to debunk common misconceptions about monetary rewards, highlighting the significance of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. This week encourages critical thinking about traditional reward systems, urging leaders to consider the meaningfulness of work as a central component of motivation. The shift from merely financial incentives to fostering a sense of purpose is both refreshing and essential for modern leadership. ### Week 4: Conflict and Emotion: Good or Bad? Contrary to the belief that conflict should always be avoided, Week 4 explores the dual nature of conflict within organisations. Participants will learn to assess when conflict can trigger innovation rather than stagnation. By understanding the impact of emotions on workplace dynamics, leaders can develop strategies to manage conflicts more effectively and use them as tools for growth, rather than obstacles. ### Week 5: Teams and Teamwork: Creating High-Performing Teams In Week 5, the course dives into the complexities of team dynamics. While teamwork can drive satisfaction and innovation, it can also lead to imbalances and conflicts. This module equips learners with the tools to identify and foster effective teamwork strategies, ensuring that all team members contribute positively. Leaders will be able to design teams aimed specifically at maximising potential while navigating interpersonal challenges. ### Week 6: Cross-Cultural and Global Leadership Finally, Week 6 broadens the perspective to include cross-cultural leadership in an increasingly globalised world. It prepares leaders to manage and leverage cultural differences, elucidating the unique challenges and benefits of leading diverse teams across geographical boundaries. The expert insights provided by Professor Brendan Boyle and Dr Narender Sharma add a rich layer of real-world application to the content. ## Recommendation **Organisational Behaviour: Know Your People** is a highly recommended course for anyone looking to elevate their leadership effectiveness in today’s multifaceted workplace. The structured learning approach ensures that participants are engaged and actively applying concepts in their professional context. Each week builds on the previous one, culminating in a comprehensive understanding of how to manage people effectively. Whether you are a seasoned leader or an aspiring manager, this course is invaluable for gaining the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate the complexities of human behaviour in organisations. By completing this course, you will not only understand your people better but also foster an environment that promotes inclusivity, innovation, and high performance. Invest in your growth today by enrolling in **Organisational Behaviour: Know Your People** on Coursera—your path to becoming a more effective leader starts here.

Syllabus

People in Organisations

We often think of people at work in terms of their expertise, their experience or their jobs, but to lead effectively, you have to understand different personalities, values, and attitudes. These are the attributes that may not be included in a job application but can have a substantial impact on the way people work, communicate and respond to leaders. In this course, industry experts will provide insight on how understanding individual differences has helped them to create a more productive and happier workplace. Ultimately, you will take a closer look at yourself as a leader and how you can make better decisions to optimise your team. As you move through this week, you will be asked to complete some quizzes that are designed to help you understand different concepts. Be prepared to think openly and answer honestly – this is an exciting journey into the psychology of people at work!

Welcome to Week 2 of the Know Your People course. This week you will explore diversity and inclusion in organisations. You will learn about the challenges for leaders in an increasingly diverse workplace and pay close attention to the benefits that diversity can provide – especially if you have the right expertise and perspective. This week draws on learning from Week 1 by highlighting the importance of individual differences in our thinking about diversity. You will also think about how perception and perceptual bias might be important in more diverse workplaces. You will also look at different types of diversity and different levels – we often think of diversity in terms of gender, age or nationality, but to take full advantage of diversity, we need to look beyond these bio-demographic aspects of people at work and focus on deeper-level differences, such as differences in the way people think and their viewpoints. These may not be as easy to detect but they are critical to understanding how diversity can help organisations be more innovative and competitive. You will explore some of the remarkable outcomes that leaders have generated by creating more inclusive workplaces and take a closer look at how you can lead more inclusively. Be prepared to think differently about differences – this could be the key to unlocking the real potential of people at work!

Welcome to Week 3 of the Know your people course. This week you will explore motivation in organisations. You will learn about what motivates people and the actual process of motivation. Both are important when you make decisions about rewards, organising work and even relationships at work and we draw on more than fifty years of research to design a motivating job. Thinking about motivation is often restricted to monetary rewards but we need to look more closely at issues of meaning and commitment if you are to really understand motivation. You will pay close attention to the difference between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation to answer the question: does money motivate? The answer might surprise you! You will also look at different types of rewards and think critically about the role of punishment at work. Be prepared to challenge your thinking about traditional rewards – especially money – the most effective motivators are often invisible!

Welcome to Week 4 of the Know your people course. This week you will explore conflict and emotions in organisations. Most of us think of conflict as inherently negative – something that we should avoid at work. But is harmony always better than friction? Is there a time when rocking the boat is a good idea? In an effort to answer these questions, you will learn about different types of conflict and their impact on the way people interact and think. You will pay close attention to the downside of conflict in organisations but you will also explore how you, as a leader, can think about conflict as a way to avoid stagnation and ‘groupthink’ – and even help employees innovate. You will also look into the role of emotions at work. Conflict and emotion often go hand-in-hand but emotions play a much greater role in our working life than you might think. Its not just about how you feel either; emotions can have a powerful influence on the way you think.

Welcome to Week 5 of the Know your people course. This week you will explore teams in organisations. Most of you work or have worked in teams and know that teams are a growing feature of organisational life. The benefits of teams are often extolled, from greater innovation to increased satisfaction for members, but there are many who claim that teams can be problematic. They can allow some members to do little work while others carry a heavier load. There can also be great potential for conflict and tension in teams. This can cause a dilemma for leaders who want to take advantage of the many positive outcomes that teams can achieve without risking interpersonal hostilities. This week you will look at the factors that contribute to effective teamwork – you will examine how you can design and lead a team to maximise its potential.

Welcome to the final week of the Know your people course. You all work in increasingly global and connected work environments. For many of you, this means that you lead people from different cultural backgrounds; for others it means leading people who have lived and worked in different countries. Although this is a reality for many leaders, few people really understand the challenges and real advantages that this provides. To help you reap some of these benefits (and avoid the pitfalls), you will explore how you can understand and leverage cultural differences. You will also learn about leadership across distance and truly global leadership: leading across countries and we explore the challenges of expatriate leadership. This week, I interview Professor Brendan Boyle, a leading scholar in international business and human resource management, and Dr Narender Sharma, who has extensive experience leading in multinational corporations. Together their research and international experience will help you develop important cross-cultural leadership skills!