Course Contents at a Glance

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The following list shows a summary of the topics covered in this course. To see all of the course pages, visit the Table of Contents.

Module 1: Introduction to Management

  • What Is Management?
  • Primary Functions of Management
  • Types of Managers
  • Management Roles
  • The Advantages of Managing People Well

Module 2: History of Management

  • Scientific Management
  • Bureaucratic Management
  • Humanistic Management
  • Current Developments in Management Practices

Module 3: Planning and Mission

  • Mission, Vision, and Values
  • Pros and Cons of Planning
  • The Planning Cycle
  • Types of Plans and Common Planning Tools

Module 4: Environments and Strategic Management

  • The Role of Strategy in Management
  • Common Frameworks for Evaluating the Business Environment
  • Common Frameworks for Situational Analysis
  • Stages and Types of Strategy
  • How Environment Affects Strategy

Module 5: Decision Making

  • Barriers to Individual Decision Making
  • Styles of Decision Making
  • Rational Decision Making vs. Other Types of Decision Making
  • Evidence-Based Decision Making
  • Using a Decision Tree
  • Managing Group Decision Making

Module 6: Organizational Structures

  • The Purpose of Organization
  • Common Organizational Structures
  • Factors Impacting Organizational Design
  • Current Trends in Organization and Job Design

Module 7: Human Resource Management

  • Purpose of Human Resource Management
  • Laws Affecting Human Resource Practices
  • Recruiting and Selecting Qualified Job Applicants
  • Employee Orientation and Training
  • Employee Development and Performance Evaluations
  • Employee Compensation, Incentive, and Benefits Strategies
  • Employee Separation and Termination
  • Current Trends and Challenges in HR Management

Module 8: Groups, Teams, and Teamwork

  • Common Group Behaviors
  • Types of Teams
  • Building Effective Teams
  • The Five Stages of Team Development
  • Conflict Within Teams

Module 9: Culture and Diversity

  • What Is Organizational Culture?
  • Key Dimensions of Organizational Culture
  • Influences on Organizational Culture
  • Cultural Change
  • Employee Diversity

Module 10: Leadership

  • What Is Leadership?
  • What Makes an Effective Leader?
  • Effective vs. Poor Leadership
  • Situational Theories of Leadership
  • Transformational and Transactional Theories of Leadership

Module 11: Motivation

  • The Importance of Employee Motivation
  • Needs-Based Theories of Motivation
  • Process-Based Theories of Motivation
  • Job Characteristics that Affect Motivation
  • Goal-Setting Theory
  • Reinforcement Theory
  • Manager’s Role in Motivating Employees

Module 12: The Individual and the Organization

  • Personal Values and Personality at Work
  • Common Management Biases
  • Attitudes that Affect Job Performance
  • Job Fitness and Performance

Module 13: Ethics in Business

  • The Need for Ethics in the Workplace
  • US Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations
  • Influences on Ethical Choices
  • How Managers Can Encourage Ethical Behavior
  • Corporate Social Responsibility

Module 14: Communication

  • Communication and Management
  • Typical Communication Flows within an Organization
  • Barriers to Effective Communication
  • Channels of Business Communication

Module 15: Control

  • What Is Control, and Why Do We Need It?
  • The Control Process
  • Levels and Types of Control
  • The Balanced Scorecard
  • Financial and Nonfinancial Controls

Module 16: Globalization and Business

  • Current Trends in Global Business
  • Risk Tradeoffs in Global Business
  • The Dimensions of Cultural Difference and Their Effect
  • Global Business Strategies for Responding to Cultural Differences
  • Training Employees for International Assignments