Organizational Behavior (OB)

Categories: Company Management

A field within behavioral science in which the behavior of individuals and groups in the context of organizations is studied. In other words, a study of what people do in an organizational setting, why they do it, and whether or not it can be tweaked (or at least somewhat understood) so that the people running an organization have some semblance of an idea of how to keep the place running. It would be even better if the people in charge could use this knowledge to get that organization optimized…especially for the shareholders. Shareholders love optimization. An optimized organization means optimized wallets and bank accounts.

Fields included in Organizational Behavior: Psychology, Sociology, and (to a lesser extent) Anthropology.

You're at a party. Big room. Where do you want to stand? Near the exit door? Near the wall? No no. In the middle. You then intersect physically with the most people, shake the most hands, slap the most backs.

You want power. You want access. You want the keys to the executive washroom. Learn O.B. and you'll get there (maybe).

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