Designing an organization to meet current and future challenges is a central issue for managers. Oftentimes, they have to initiate changes in corporate strategy to adapt to external changes, and, as a consequence, realign organizational dimensions. This course addresses how firms should be organized to achieve their strategic objectives. It addresses the links between corporate strategy and organizational structure, processes, and people, thus focusing on the dimensions determine an organization’s design. This course is designed to provide students with the knowledge base for understanding and analyzing organizational and strategic challenges, including topics such as strategic decision making, strategic change, organizational redesign, designing successful organizations, and developing and retaining key talent.

The course uses a problem-based learning approach that emphasizes application and practice, primarily by the use of cases (by Harvard Business School Publishing) that describe real-life challenges of different types of firms. Key concepts learned in previous courses of the SBWL „Strategy & Organization“ will be applied throughout this course. The course is designed to be highly interactive and is held in English.

Case study discussions and presentations will train students’ analytic thinking and problem solving abilities as well as their teamwork, communication, and presentation skills.

The course is relevant for students interested in general management, strategic management, corporate development, management consulting, academia, and executive staffing and development.