Organizational behaviour and human resource management: a guide to a specialized MBA course.

Abstract

It is common to hear from managers, CEOs, engineers, and all kind of professionals that human resources (HR) are the key strategic issue and a source of competitive advantages of all organizations. Indeed, issues related to organizational behaviour and human resource management are among the most relevant decisions that managers need to take if they want to answer proactively to the challenges faced by the organizations. An organization cannot build a good team of working professionals without good human resources. Recruiting people, training them, implementing effective performance appraisals, promoting career management, motivating employees, implementing good workplace communication, safety, and labour conditions, among others, are only some of the key functions of the human resource management. Having the necessary knowledge about all these practices and policies of human resources management is one of the most concerns that all professionals who need to deal with their collaborators have. At this level, strong interpersonal skills are needed. Having an MBA can be the answer. However, due to time and money constraints, not always these professionals are able to obtain a MBA. Not only the time and schedule needed to obtain the MBA is not compatible with their professional availability, but also the prices established by the most reputable business schools are not accessible to these professionals. Conscious of this reality, and after a earlier book edition entitled MBA—Theory and Application of Business and Management Principles, in which we looked to focus some of the “core” curriculum of subjects usually present in an MBA programme (e.g. marketing, human resources, accounting, and finance), this present book, focusing on particular emphasis subjects such as strategic and operational human resource management, organizational behaviour, training and development, equal opportunities and diversity management, international human resource management, talent management, corporate social responsibility, sustainable HRM, among others, looks to give the “core” curriculum of subjects usually present in an MBA programme specialized in Organizational Behaviour and Human Resource Management. Based on the “core” subjects presented in this book, everyone interested will be able to obtain the necessary knowledge that can be applied as a whole to a variety of real-world business situations related to organizations’ HR or from a particular viewpoint that will allow them to follow their own personal or professional interests. Covering the main key HR issues needed to obtain a better organizational and business performance, the lecturers of this book, according to their interests and availability, and without costs, will be able to obtain the skills and knowledge subjacent to an MBA that will prepare them to pursue a career in a variety of working fields. In other words, and taking into account those constraints, this book will be designed to move the lecturer closer to his/her career goals while still allowing him/her to maintain a work/financial limitations/personal availability balance.