Master of Philosophy in Organizational Dynamics Theses
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Publication Is Time on Your Side: An Examination of Six Dimensions of Time From a Negotiation and Relational Perspective(2008-11-01) Jacobson, LarryThis Capstone Paper, which is heavily influenced by my Master of Philosophy studies in the Organizational Dynamics program, discusses six dimensions of time that influence negotiations and relationships. I describe in detail each of the six dimensions of time. Next, I use examples from the Cuban Missile Crisis to illustrate how these dimensions of time played a critical role under the most pressure packed situation. Then I explore how these dimensions play an important role in how individuals and organizations use time when negotiating with third parties and use time as a form of strategic advantage. I conclude by relating back to my prior discussion and analysis to support my argument that the person or organization who understands the time dynamics of a situation frequently will have the upper hand in a negotiation or relationship, regardless of the advantages or disadvantages the other person or organization might have in material resources.Publication Shapes, Colors, And Fonts: The Hidden Power In Employee Benefit Communications(2021-11-15) Krach, Pepper JThis capstone explored how an organization can achieve better employee benefit communications with the strategic use of color, shapes, and fonts. To achieve this, I examined the influence of visual communications on people and how that might create a greater emotional connection to their employee benefits, which may ultimately have a longer-term effect on how employees feel about their employer. In doing this, I built a model using a tiered approach to learn why and how this work is important to the business, the individual, and the organization. The study reviewed a broad spectrum of philosophies and psychologies including the work of Louis Cheskin, who built the Color Research Institute and focused on the scientific approach in the use of design and color in selling merchandise. The goal of this study was to apply a similar approach so when implemented these visual resources can result in greater employee appreciation of their employee benefits. By maximizing visual methods that support positive psychology theories, a greater overlap can be created between employees and the organizations they work for, which shows how an organization can support a meaningful whole life through total rewards communication methods. Employees value their employee benefits but often find them confusing (Wooldridge, 2020). Three in 10 workers (29%) reported they automatically re-enroll in their benefits from the previous year because they find the process overwhelming and spend little time looking at their options. The goal of the study was to identify methods that result in greater employee interest, understanding, and appreciation for the benefits made available by their employer.Publication Art, Experience and Learning: Art As Enhancement Of Experiential Learning(2018-10-29) Tordini, Claudia EThis capstone explores the relationship between art and experiential learning to support the hypothesis that Art enhances experiential learning. In doing so, it combines experiential learning theory from Kolb and other humanistic psychologies and pedagogists such as Carl Rogers with the philosophical approach to art as experience introduced by John Dewey. The study reviews a broad array of approaches to learn the impact of art in building skills for cognitive, emotional, social and even physical development. It also draws from educational philosophers and activists such as Maxine Greene, who have long supported the inclusion of art in education. I propose a modification of the experiential learning model that integrates creative processes to support art as an experiential learning process for both, the artist and the observer.Publication Doctors, Lawyers, & Leadership: Two Coaching Cases and Perspectives on the Future(2015-05-18) Levitt, Lia JBoth physicians and attorneys complete highly rigorous academic regimens in order to prepare to practice in their respective fields. Rarely does the training in law school or medical school prepare them to manage either staff or departments. Leadership coaching for physicians and attorneys is a newer field, which is slowly beginning to gain traction in medical and legal fields. Through coaching, professionals gain insights into how they are viewed by their supervisor, peers, and direct reports and use this knowledge to formulate coaching goals, which are facilitated by an Executive Coach. Coaching approaches are based on theoretical knowledge, which provides coaches with a framework for their client work. This framework when balanced with the coach’s insights through observation, the use of assessments and instruments, and other data provides a comprehensive method for client intervention. This paper focuses on two case studies of coaching engagements, which were a part of the Organizational Consulting and Executive Coaching Concentration requirements: a Practicum with a retina surgeon, and an Executive Coaching Internship with a litigation department chair. The application of theory as well as a review of selected articles related to the training and coaching of physicians and attorneys is included to provide an understanding of the past, present, and future of coaching in these fields. This paper is written in first person to create a connection between the author and reader and offer an introspective viewpoint beyond the academic nature of the topics. The case studies, though not originally connected, offer a glimpse into two portraits of successful professionals striving to better understand both management and themselves.Publication One Hospital’s Journey to Create a Culture of Safety(2010-05-12) McGoldrick, MargaretThe Institute of Medicine (IOM) reports in 1999, To Err is Human – Building a Safer Health System and 2001, Crossing the Quality Chasm sought to transform the culture of American hospitals. The culture of blame needed to become a culture of safety if we were ever to reduce and prevent errors and create a system of care organized around patient not provider needs. Abington Memorial Hospital began its journey to create a culture of safety in December 1999 and today in 2010 we continue that journey. Much has been done and our organization has truly advanced in our transparency and focus on systems improvement. This paper describes our journey over the past decade and our strength of commitment to continuous improvement in search of perfect care for our patients.Publication Defining Corporate Social Responsibility: A Systems Approach For Socially Responsible Capitalism(2011-07-01) Smith, Richard E.Although the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been advocated for decades and is commonly employed by corporations globally, agreement on how CSR should be defined and implemented remains a contentious debate amongst academia, businesses and society. This gap is problematic for corporations because they are increasingly being required to align with societal norms while generating financial returns. In order to remedy this problem, the following definition is presented: corporate social responsibility is a business system that enables the production and distribution of wealth for the betterment of its stakeholders through the implementation and integration of ethical systems and sustainable management practices. Many of the concepts in the proposed definition are commonplace amongst CSR practitioners and organizations, the validations for the key segments – production and distribution of wealth, stakeholder management, ethical systems, sustainable management practices – coupled with the application of a systems approach and other business practices make the definition unique and conclusive. An in depth review of the definition and supporting concepts will provide the needed vision and knowledge to enable corporations to successfully manage CSR strategies.Publication The Castlebury Tales, A Frame-Story Of My Reflections On Organizational Dynamics Learnings(2020-12-01) Castle, DanielThis Capstone is written in the portfolio paper format, and strives to synthesize key lessons learned over my three year journey as a Masters in Philosophy student in the Organizational Dynamics program at The University of Pennsylvania. Main themes and key learnings are presented, supported and interpreted through a series of stories inside a larger story, the former being told in the style of The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer and the latter as a dialogue between an older man and his grandson. The stories themselves, included in the fictional title The Castlebury Tales, each exemplify a value/ key lesson learned in my journey through the OD program. Key themes were selected through combining key themes identified during an exhaustive literature review and through something I’m calling the PennVenn, an artifact that identifies key themes from each course I’ve taken and where/how such themes overlap. A copy of the PennVenn can be found in the Appendix. The Castlebury Tales are read by an older character to a much younger character. The younger character (the “grandson”) exemplifies the version of myself before I started my Penn journey in January of 2018; the older character (the “grandfather”) from the perspective of one who has had time to reflect on the value of his education at Penn. As the grandfather fields questions from the grandson or finishes an individual story, he takes time to reflect on what he has learned and experienced in life and it is here where supporting literature is entered into the Capstone. Diagrams in the Appendix serve to aid the reader in both the Capstone’s construction and as an aid to understanding the flow of the document overall.Publication Rethinking Intuition: Using the Framework of an Integrative-Brain Assessment for Optimal Decision-Making(2018-06-04) LeBoon, RichardThe purpose of this capstone is to challenge the coaching community to rethink intuition as a form of intelligence, and that when applied to the coaching process can be of greater help to coaching clients within the context of decision-making. This capstone introduces the design and test pilot of an “Integrative-Brain Assessment” that uses a novel somatically-informed, neuroscience-based framework to help coaching clients engage their whole-brain for an optimal decision-making process. This assessment enables the coaching client’s ‘Intuitive Intelligence’ to absorb, synthesize, and integrate the elements of their problem or challenge so that a solution seems to pop into their head without any conscious effort on their part. The more the coaching client lets go and allows this organic process to work, the stronger their ‘Intuitive Intelligence’ becomes.Publication A Comparative Analysis of Coaching Programs Offered by the Graduate School Alliance for Executive Coaching (GSAEC)(2008-05-28) Perry, Kimberly A.The field of executive coaching has grown dramatically over the past 15 years and continues to increase in size and scope. A growing number of academic institutions in the United States and Canada now offer coaching programs packaged as graduate degrees, graduate certificates, continuing education courses, workshops, and other professional development for students, faculty and staff. Academic coaching programs are located in many departments or schools including psychology, business, education, public policy, and human resources. A single institution may have multiple yet autonomous coaching programs or offerings. Out of the chaos and turmoil of coaching education offerings, an orderly academic system began to emerge. Coaching now seems on a pathway toward becoming an academic discipline. At this juncture, the nidus of executive coaching exploded into a universe of possibilities in a fashion similar to cosmology’s Big Bang. In 2005, an expansion of the U.S. academic coaching community occurred when a small number of other colleges and universities offering coaching programs where enjoined. One important goal was to form an alliance around the establishment of educational standards for academic and professional coaching programs. At this epicenter the “Graduate School Alliance for Executive Coaching” (GSAEC) formally assembled. Eight academic institutions in North America provided financial support for this new organization and hence become the “founding members” of GSAEC (Ibid). If indeed GSAEC is the epicenter of the academic universe for executive coaching, what are the characteristics of the institutions and their programs? Can they bePublication Implementation of Change to Audits and Inspections Using Action Research(2021-05-14) Hampton, Larry KThe audits and inspections process is a critical component related to a pharmaceutical firm’s compliance in the industry. To be out of compliance has significant ramifications both on the safety and purity of the firm’s products and its viability in the industry. Such firms are routinely audited by boards of health and customers that purchase the firm’s products to ensure they are in compliance with expected standards. The success of hosting the audits and inspection program is the first line of defense in demonstrating compliance. To succeed at these audits and inspections changing with the times is a necessity. The implementation of change in an organization is fraught with challenges. Issues such determining who in the organization are the right people to discover, develop, and diffuse change is a complex process for management. This study will describe how the use of Liberating Structures and coaching were used to change the audits and inspection process for a major pharmaceutical firm. The changes are evaluated through the lens of Adaptive Space and the use of action research to integrate theory and action with the goal of answering the following questions: How might I get the right people on the team to implement a digital auditing process? How might I implement a digital auditing process? In the time involved with the completion of this action research study, COVID-19 hit. This led me to another question: What modifications to the auditing process must be made as a result of COVID-19, how can I modify the auditing approach to incorporate site restrictions The outcome of this effort transformed the auditing process at the firm and was implemented at the firm’s sites worldwide.