This course is compulsory on the MSc in Human Resources and Organisations (Organisational Behaviour). This course is available on the MRes/PhD in Management (Employment Relations and Human Resources), MRes/PhD in Management (Organisational Behaviour) and MSc in Human Resources and Organisations (International Employment Relations/CIPD). This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit. This course uses controlled access as part of the course selection process. For information on controlled access courses, including eligibility, application processes, deadlines, and departmental contact details, please refer to the Controlled Access Courses webpage.

How to apply:

Places on oversubscribed courses will be allocated via a random ballot process with priority given to students with the course in their Programme Regulations, followed by other Department of Management students, then students from elsewhere in the school. Providing you apply before the Department deadline of 10am on Monday 28 September 2026, the time you applied will not be taken into account. Please be aware that places on high demand courses cannot be guaranteed. By submitting an application, students are confirming that they meet any pre-requisites specified. Providing an additional written statement will not aid a student’s chances of being accepted onto a course, and statements are not read.

For further information and updates on course availability during Week 1, please see the Department of Management Electives Moodle page.

Deadline for application:

Please apply by 10am on Monday 28 September 2026 with your first course choices. No allocations are made before this date and time.

For queries contact:

Please view the Department of Management Electives page for contact emails.

This course provides a theoretically grounded introduction to organizational theory, examining why organizations take different forms and how they operate within broader social and institutional contexts. Moving from classical foundations to contemporary perspectives, the course analyzes organizations as systems shaped by strategy, resource dependencies, institutional environments, cultures, and networks. It places particular emphasis on comparative approaches, showing how organizational forms vary across national contexts, as well as on internal dynamics such as micropolitics and the reproduction of power and inequality, including gendered structures. Rather than focusing on managerial “best practices,” the course develops an analytical understanding of organizations as embedded, contested, and evolving social systems, equipping students to critically assess both traditional and emerging organizational forms. 

15 hours of seminars and 15 hours of lectures in the Autumn Term.
2 hours of lectures in the Spring Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Autumn Term.

In its Ethics Code, LSE upholds a commitment to intellectual freedom. This means we will protect the freedom of expression of our students and staff and the right to engage in healthy debate in the classroom.

Students will complete a formative assessment. Details will be provided in class.

• Scott, W. R. (2003). Organizations: Rational, Natural, and Open Systems (chs. 1–2) 
• Davis, G. F. (2010). “Do Theories of Organizations Progress?” Organization Studies 
• Weber, M. (1978). Economy and Society (bureaucracy excerpt) 
• Taylor, F. W. (1911). Principles of Scientific Management (excerpt) 
• Chandler, A. D. (1962). Strategy and Structure 
• Donaldson, L. (2001). The Contingency Theory of Organizations (selections) 
• Pfeffer, J.,  ;Salancik, G. R. (1978). The External Control of Organizations (selections) 
• Meyer, J. W., & Rowan, B. (1977). “Institutionalized Organizations.” AJS 
• DiMaggio, P. J., & Powell, W. W. (1983). “The Iron Cage Revisited.” AJS 
• Kunda, G. (1992). Engineering Culture: Control and Commitment in a High-Tech Corporation 
• Granovetter, M. (1985). “Economic Action and Social Structure.” AJS 
• Powell, W. W. (1990). “Neither Market nor Hierarchy.” Research in Organizational Behavior 
• Maurice, M., Sellier, F., & Silvestre, J.-J. (1986). The Social Foundations of Industrial Power (selections) 
• Hall, P. A., & Soskice, D. (2001). Varieties of Capitalism (intro) 
• Burawoy, M. (1979). Manufacturing Consent (selections) 
• Acker, J. (1990). “Hierarchies, Jobs, Bodies.” Gender & Society 
• Tomaskovic-Devey, D., & Avent-Holt, D. (2019). Relational Inequalities (selections) 

Exam (60%), duration: 120 Minutes in the Spring exam period.

Presentation (30%).

Course participation (10%).

For detailed assessment information, including all deadlines and timings, please see the relevant course Moodle page. Assessment timings will be available at the start of each term.