Courses NonDegree Display 2018-2019

Course Description To PDF
Course title Crisis Management in Organisations
Course code EBC2100
ECTS credits 6,5
Assessment None
Period
Period Start End Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri
1 3-9-2018 26-10-2018 X X
Level Intermediate
Coordinator Catarina Marques dos Santos
For more information: c.marquesdossantos@maastrichtuniversity.nl
Language of instruction English
Goals
After successfully completing this course, students should be able to:
• understand the nature and types of organizational crises;
• discuss the possible outcomes of organizational crises;
• recognize how individual, social/organizational/cultural, and technological factors have contributed to the emergence of organizational crises;
• explain which factors help in preventing organizational crises;
• explain which factors help in containing and resolving organizational crises;
• appreciate the role of individual/group decision-making, communication, and leadership in the crisis management process;
• appreciate the challenges in coping with uncertainty.
Description
The aim of this course is to provide you with an understanding of the phenomenon crisis, its attributes, and to discuss ideas on what can help us to avoid and handle a crisis intelligently. A crisis is a low probability, high-impact event that threatens the viability of the organization and is characterized by ambiguity of cause, effect and means of resolution, as well as by a belief that decisions must be made swiftly. Well-known examples are the BP oil spill and the Chernobyl disaster. Hence, this is not a course about financial crises.
An enormous amount of articles have been written on how to solve crisis situations. Often these solutions are presented in easy to use -to do- lists. Unfortunately, solving organizational crises is not that simple. The objective of this course is to offer you a clear framework that helps you in understanding how organizational crises arise, and to give you more insight in the complexity of crisis management.
The course consists of two main parts: (1) conditions that affect the vulnerability to an organizational crisis; and (2) crisis management. The first part concentrates on the factors that make an organization crisis prone. We thereby focus on human nature; social-cultural causes; and organizational-technological causes. The second part discusses crisis management. We will discuss what organizations can do to prevent crises, and how to contain and resolve organizational crises. Specific attention will be paid to crisis decision making by individuals and groups; communication, and leadership in times of crises.
Literature
The literature in this course is of an advanced level as it draws from frontline scientific journals that often can be challenging. Furthermore, students are required to apply the literature to real-life crisis situations.
Prerequisites
An advanced level of English
Teaching methods (indicative; course manual is definitive) PBL / Presentation / Lecture / Assignment / Papers
Assessment methods (indicative; course manual is definitive) Final Paper / Attendance / Participation
Evaluation in previous academic year For the complete evaluation of this course please click "here"
This course belongs to the following programmes / specialisations
Bachelor Economics and Business Economics - Economics IBE Electives
Bachelor Economics and Business Economics - Emerging Markets Business Electives
Bachelor Economics and Business Economics - Emerging Markets Major Organisation
Bachelor Economics and Business Economics - Economics and Management of Information Free Electives
Bachelor Economics and Business Economics - International Business Economics Business Electives
Bachelor Economics and Business Economics - International Business Economics Major Organisation
Bachelor International Business - Emerging Markets Major Organisation
Bachelor International Business Business Electives (Major Accounting)
Bachelor International Business Business Electives (Major Finance)
Bachelor International Business Business Electives (Major Information Management)
Bachelor International Business Business Electives (Major Marketing)
Bachelor International Business Business Electives (Major Strategy)
Bachelor International Business Business Electives (Major Supply Chain Management)
Bachelor International Business Major Organisation
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SBE Exchange Master Bachelor Exchange Courses
SBE Non Degree Courses Bachelor Courses