Personnel Economics / Personnel Economics

The Academic Board of Business Administration, Odense
Teaching activity id: 9851301.
Teaching language: English.ECTS / weighting: 10 ECTS / 0.167 full-time equivalent.
Examination language: English.
Exam activity id: 9851302.Approved: 29-09-17.
Period: Spring 2018.
Grading: Internal grading.
Assessment: 7-point scale.
Offered in: Odense.
Subject director:
Associate Professor Jacob Lyngsie, Institut for Marketing & Management.

Prerequisites:
Prior coursework in organization theory, human resource management, and microeconomics at the bachelor level. Ability to summarize formal theories and quantitative analyses (how to interpret results from e.g. regression analysis, analysis of variance, and t-tests), ability to prepare and summarize case-analyses.

Purpose:
The purpose of this course is to give the student a rigorous framework that is helpful in guiding a structured analysis, and in developing recommendations concerning the choice of human resource practices and policies. The framework is based on economic analysis of human resources practices and policies, also called Personnel Economics. Application of personnel economics adds rigor and structure to the understanding of firms' human resources practices and policies.

Content - Key areas:
The course is divided into four parts.
The first part addresses the challenges firms face in sorting among potential and present employees, and decision-making regarding investment in employees.

The second part addresses organizational design and job design. Here we look at decision making, organizational structure, and job design.

The third part considers the problems of designing efficient reward and performance management systems. We look at performance evaluation, the design of performance-based rewards, and at the structure of incentives in the firm.

The fourth part looks at different applications. Here we examine the use of benefits, systems that stimulate intrapreneurship and innovative behaviour, and the employment relationship itself.

Goals description (SOLO taxonomy):
Students should be able to master the following after completion of this course:
  • Account for, evaluate and use the theories in personnel economics to analyze key human resource practices and policies.
  • Conduct an informed analysis of key human resource practices and policies.
  • Use the principles laid out in the course to examine and solve policy problems regarding human resources, and align human resource practices and policies with firm goals and strategies.

Literature:
Examples:
Lazear, E. P., & Gibbs, M. 2009. Personnel economics in practice. New York: Wiley. ISBN 978-0-471-67592-1.
Supplementary readings (journal articles, cases). The supplementary readings are supplied at the beginning of the semester.

Time of classes:
Spring.

Scheduled classes:
3 hours a week (14 weeks).

Form of instruction:
The learning activities consist of traditional lectures with class discussion, preparation of case analyses and class discussion of these in English. To achieve the course learning goals, students must study actively and participate in class discussion.

Lectures: 45 hours.
Preparation: 150 hours.
Preparation of case discussion: 15 hours.
Examination preparation: 55 hours.
Examination: 5 hours.
In total: 270 hours.

Time of examination:
Ordinary examination in June.
Reexamination in August.

The form of the reexam is subject to change. This will be announced no later than14 days before the reexam takes place.

Registration for the course is automatically a registration for the ordinary examination in the course. Cancellation is not possible. If the student does not participate in the examination, the student will use an examination attempt.

Examination conditions:
None.

Form of examination for the certificate:
Take-home.

Supplemental information for the form of examination:
Duration: 5 hours.
Location: Home assignment.
Internet Access: Necessary.
Hand out: Course page in Blackboard.
Hand in: Via SDU-assignment in the course page in Blackboard.
Extent: No limitations.
Exam Aids: All exam aids allowed.

Can be written by 1 person only.

The exam seeks to test students' theoretical understanding of the key issues and challenges related to the economic approach to human resources and their ability to apply the relevant theories to solve practical problems.

Programmes:
cand.merc. Management of People
2nd semester, mandatory. Offered in: Odense
cand.oecon. Health Care Management and Economics
All Semesters, mandatory. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. Human Resource Management
2nd semester, mandatory. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. Communication Management and Leadership
All Semesters, elective subject. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. Accounting and Finance
All Semesters, elective subject. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. Management Accounting
All Semesters, elective subject. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. Brand Management and Marketing Communication
All Semesters, elective subject. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. International Business and Management
All Semesters, elective subject. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. International Business and Marketing
All Semesters, elective subject. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. Management of Innovation Processes
All Semesters, elective subject. Offered in: Odense
cand.merc. Strategy and Organization
All Semesters, elective subject. Offered in: Odense