Teaching

Teaching

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There is so much more to management and organization than the application of specialist techniques. In my teaching, I seek to develop an understanding of how management - its theory as well as its practice - is culturally and politically defined and enacted (see Mats Alvesson and Hugh Willmott, Making Sense of Management : A Critical Introduction, Sage, 1996; 2nd ed, 2012). Even the development and application of techniques is necessarily mediated by complex and ambiguous social processes involving diverse, competing and conflicting understandings about individuals, organizations and social relations. The philosophy underpinning my approach is set out in David Knights and Hugh Willmott, Management Lives, Sage, 1999. A considerable amount of my writing and administrative activity has been devoted, especially in recent years, to the development of teaching and learning as well as articles and conference papers on management learning, management education and situated learning). A major, first year Organizational Behaviour textbook, titled Introducing Organization Behaviour and Management co-edited with David Knights was published by Thomson International Publishing in 2006 and a 2nd edition appeared in 2010 together with an edited book of Essential Readings. which was An advanced textbook, titled Organization Theory and Design co-edited with Richard Daft and Jonathan Murphy was published in 2010 and a 2nd edition is to appear in 2014. I have also collaborated in creating a web portal for critical management studies that includes links to teaching as well as other relevant material.

Cardiff (2006 - )

As the occupant of a research chair, my teaching is focused on research methodology. I have had responsibility for the design and delivery of The Principles of Qualitative Research. I have also contributed to other postgraduate and undergraduate modules - Applications of Qualitative Methodology; Strategic Human Resource Management; Organizational Analysis and Change

Cambridge (2001-2006 )

At Cambridge my teaching contributions extended across the entire range of programmes, including supervision of undergraduate students, teaching on the MBA and MPhil programmes, contributing to Executive Education courses.

Undergraduate - Supervisions for Final Year Organizational Behaviour 2001-2

MPhil – Organizations. Module for MPhil course. Further details can be found at the extensive web site for this course 2001-6

MBA – Management Practice module 2002-5

Research Methodology – Qualitative Methodology II 2002-5

MBA – Organizational Behaviour 2004

Executive Education courses - numerous

UMIST (1988 - 2001)

At UMIST, I tailored novel contributions to existing courses and was responsible for the design and delivery of a completely new second year undergraduate course People, Management and Change. I was also involved in preparing a new set of lectures for Term 2 of the BSc Year 3 course Work, Industry and Society. In the latter years at UMIST, I was course leader for Work, Industry and Society, giving all the lectures and also giving a weekly seminar. There were 85 students on this course.

BSc Year 1. Introduction to Sociology. Delivered a major section of this course which focused upon the sociology of management and managerial work.

BSc Year 2. People, Management and Change. This course was introduced in 1990/1. It was multidisciplinary in conception, with a core of organizational analysis which then expanded into a consideration of the organizational work of an number of management specialisms. It linked directly to a number of other 2nd year courses as well as connecting the discipline-based Year 1 course and the specialist options of Year 3. The course began with an overview of the development of the theory and practice of work organization, taking account of the variety its forms and perspectives for its analysis. The course incorporated an examination of how organizations change people as well as how people change organizations. In the second half of the course, the work organization of a number of management specialisms (e.g. accounting, operational research and information systems) was examined where I drew upon my research interests in these areas .

BSc Year 3. Work, Industry and Society. Further details can be found at the extensive website for this course. See

MSc (P/T). Organizational Sociology. Following a review of this course is early 1990, the focus shifted from the sociology of work to the sociology of organizations. The P/T MSc was discontinued in 1993.

MSc International Business. International Management and Organization. My contribution to this course focused upon changes in accounting regulation as a case study of the internationalization of management and organization.

Other. I provided seminar training for hourly paid seminar leaders and gave lectures on innovative teaching methods, primarily drawing upon the experiential aspects of elements of Work, Industry and Society

Aston University (1977-88)

During this period, I contributed to the design delivery and development of Undergraduate, Postgraduate and Doctoral Programmes.

BSc Year 1. Introduction to Social Science. Responsible for the delivery of lectures which introduced students to social science. This included links with the disciplines of psychology and economics as well as sociology.

BSc Year 2. Responsible for the complete course on Organizational Analysis. This option explored the variety of structures and processes which have been developed to co-ordinate and control modern organizations.

MBA. Responsible for the design and delivery of a major segment of a foundation module on Organizational Behaviour. This was primarily concerned with strategies of management control and their effect upon organizational performance.

MSc Personnel Management. Jointly responsible for a module on Job Design and solely responsible for a module on Organizational Structure and Performance. These explored, respectively, the range of options available for the (re)design of individual tasks and group work and the conditions for successful organizational change with special reference to the role of personnel specialists in this process.

Doctoral Programme. I was jointly responsible for the design and delivery of the Research Methodology course. My contribution was concerned with the relationship between theoretical frameworks and the collection and analysis of empirical data and the use of qualitative methods.

Other Teaching Appointments, Engagements and Activities

When appointed as a Guest Professor at Copenhagen Business School (1989), I designed and lectured a course on Management, Organization and Society for the International MBA.I also jointly designed and presented a number of accounting research seminars, sponsored by the Danish Social Research Council, which was organized for doctoral students from all Danish Universities. During my appointment at Copenhagen Business School, I organized and presented a series of seminars on `New Directions in Accounting Research' at the Department of Business Adminstration, University of Lund, Sweden. When visiting Copenhagen, I was invited to give lectures to doctoral students at a number of Swedish Universities, including the Stockholm School of Economics, Stockholm University and Uppsala University. In 1998/9 I gave a series of lectures at the University of Innsbruck. I have also contributed to Masters teaching programmes at the Universities of Lancaster University and the University of Birmingham. From 1999-2004, I was Visiting Professor at Lund University. This involved visiting Lund 3-4 times per year for 3-7 days on each occasion to give guest lectures (MBA, Research Students and Undergraduates) and present seminars and provide feedback and guidance to researchers. Between 2000-2003; and 2008-2011, I was appointed as Visiting Professor to Cranfield University, principally to provide advice and guidance for a major research project on change management. In 2007, I was a Visiting Professor at Sydney University; and in 2011-12, I was a Visiting Professor at the University of Technology, Sydney. In 2012, I gave a series of lectures in Universities in Tokyo and Fukuoka, Japan. In June 2013, I was invited to give the Opening Plenary Address to the International Doctoral Consortium on Mkanagement and Organization Studies in Saint Mary's, Halifax. In September 2013, I co-organized (with University of Naples) the First Summer School on Research Methods in Management Studies at Capri.