Online Graduate Certificate in Organizational Management

This course evaluates techniques for structuring and resolving managerial problems in organizations. The main managerial/educational tool used in the course is the business model canvas, which is a contemporary approach to identifying and creating a functional business/management plan in an organizational context. Topics include an examination of organizational theories, organizational framing, metaphorical analysis, systems theory, and organizational diagnosis.

This course consists of a collection of classic and contemporary readings in Organizational Development covering a broad range of topics including change management, organizational culture, team development, and organizational development diagnostic models. Included are experiential exercises that give students an opportunity to practice their skills and cases that allow students to draw on their experiences to apply the concepts and theories in managerial situations.

This course examines the variables involved in crisis planning, communication, and management. To do so, we must consider the organization's vulnerabilities, the environment in which it thrives, the stakeholders who can influence its operation and the strategies best suited to maintaining or enhancing its reputation. The media plays a crucial role in crisis management, and we will discuss this factor throughout the course. We will consider how the media acts as a catalyst as well as an intermediary in this process. Some of the questions that will arise will be: Is the relationship inherently antagonistic? Should it be? By the conclusion of the course, participants should have developed a deeper understanding of the range of crises facing organizations, an enhanced appreciation of communication tactics that can be brought to bear in such situations and a greater familiarity with the historical antecedents of current crises.

This course covers the elements of contemporary leadership and delineates the principles that are important in the development of a leader for the 21st century. Discussion of the role and function of leadership will include an in-depth analysis and study of needs impacting individuals, organizations and society. The course provides students with a set of leadership skills and competencies on which to build a unique model for effective leadership that can be tested over time.

Being a strategic or visionary leader has been identified as one of the top five skills needed to be successful in the global economy. This course outlines successful Strategic Management and Planning techniques, and it addresses the fundamentals of the strategic alignment of people, resources and processes to the business vision, mission, and purpose of the organization.

This course serves as an advanced course in human resource management with particular emphasis on the strategic planning process for each of the functions. Students will explore the historical evolution and philosophical foundation of the field as well as evaluate the current practices that are being used to support Human Resources in the workplace. Future human resource management challenges will be examined, and the emerging concept of strategic Human Resource professionals as business partners will be highlighted.

The course examines the techniques, policies, processes, strategies, and practices used by companies and managers to leverage effectively and efficiently their human capital. Students will evaluate how HR practices are aligned with organizational objectives. Additional special topics include workforce planning, diversity management, and succession planning.

This course addresses information systems, to include their nature and role as key management resources. This course covers the information systems infrastructure, to include databases, knowledge management systems, enterprise information portals, telecommunications, the Internet, and wireless technology. It examines the topics of e-commerce, information systems in the global economy, managing global systems, securing information systems, and ethical and social issues in information systems.

This course utilizes an experiential format to focus on a variety of concepts and practices associated with developing and managing an effective team. As such, students will engage with classmates in virtual groups for much of the classwork. Students will have the opportunity to evaluate the different approaches to management, motivation, and performance, along with some barriers to effective team efforts.

This course examines a range of management issues and strategies within the context of managing public organizations. The core focus is on an enhanced understanding of the theoretical and practical approaches to public management, an examination of enduring and day-to-day dilemmas faced by competent public managers, and the application of relevant theories to public management within the United States.