Asian and global markets are becoming global, and therefore complex and chaotic. Add in climate change and political divisions: you have a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous – VUCA – Asia. NUCB’s mission to develop a modern Asia requires that students “see” the potential of disaster, and to build reliable organizations.

By taking this course, participants will better plan to navigate a complex and uncertain environment. They are encouraged to think and build organizational resilience.

High Reliability Organizations, HROs was developed by Prof. Karlene Roberts of UC Berkeley in the early nineties. This topic was later augmented by fine professors such as Karl Weick and Charles Perrow. Roberts and colleagues studied how organizations like aircraft carriers and firefighters prepared and responded to disasters. A current example is COVID: no one could see COVID coming. Yet some organizations—even countries—were better prepared than others. Why? Some were lucky, but they mostly had better “DNA.” Can we prepare our DNA for the next COVID?

This course goes beyond the original HRO. We will talk about VUCA reliability, not just crisis reliability. It takes new ways of thinking, organizing, engaging in a “wicked” world. How can organizations plan for a complex and uncertain environment? How can they think and build organizational resilience? How can they build reserves of organizational knowledge?

HRO is not about building a crystal ball. We cannot see the next COVID. But we can prepare our organization to be ready, robust, flexible for the next minor or major event.

By the end of the course, students will learn what and how to make organizations more reliable:

Knowledge about recipes of disaster and HRO
Improvisation and Bricolage
Agile and Lean approaches
Organizational grit and resilience
Flexible thinking: scenario planning
Ambidexterity

*本学の教育ミッションを具現化する形で設定されています。

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

1. Recognize the symptoms and consequences of man-made and natural disasters.
2. Prepare robust internal practices to mitigate disaster effects.
3. Build organizational learning and creativity.

教育手法 Teaching Method		% of Course Time
インプット型 Traditional		20 %
参加者中心型 Participant-Centered Learning	ケースメソッド Case Method	80 %
	フィールドメソッド Field Method	0 %
合計 Total		100 %

No prerequisite subjects are needed.

The course is two full days. We use class discussions. Participation in both class discussions and learning team breakout rooms. How actively do you participate by sharing your ideas with others, collaborating with teams, and contributing insights to the group? This is 70% of your grade.

I will assign a final paper, a case analysis. This is worth 30% of your grade.

*成績は下記該当項目を基に決定されます。
*クラス貢献度合計はコールドコールと授業内での挙手発言の合算値です。

講師用内規準拠 Method of Assessment	Weights
コールドコール Cold Call	0 %
授業内での挙手発言 Class Contribution	70 %
クラス貢献度合計 Class Contribution Total	70 %
予習レポート Preparation Report	0 %
小テスト Quizzes / Tests	0 %
シミュレーション成績 Simulation	0 %
ケース試験 Case Exam	0 %
最終レポート Final Report	30 %
期末試験 Final Exam	0 %
参加者による相互評価 Peer Assessment	0 %
合計 Total	100 %

評価の留意事項　Notes on Evaluation Criteria

I reward in-class contributions during case discussions. These include starting the case, summarizing others’ viewpoints, creating debate with others, concluding. Good questions that stimulate thinking and clarifying difficult concepts count. I like active group participation, especially positive, building, and collaborative work: no attacking or criticizing.

• 配布資料

Optional videos

1. Session 2, Resilience in Business UV 7118 optional video: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfSs4GfD5hMHCvFwE-ZC14P2hMC6Vx4g8)
2. Session 3, “Miracle on the Hudson” Optional: watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SL1A2d2e7M
3. Session 3, “Miracle on the Hudson” Optional: watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6EblErBJqw
4. Session 8, Fuji’s transition from Film to Make up: https://www.nippon.com/en/features/c00511/

Here are additional resources on reliable organizations:

- Perrow, C. (2011) Normal Accidents: Living with High Risk Technologies ‎ Princeton University Press
- Weick, K. and Sutcliffe, K. (2015) Managing the Unexpected: Sustained Performance in a Complex World 3rd Edition, Jossey-Bass.

I taught this course for the first time in 2021. Class ratings were good, with an average score of 4.7: note that rating was over an online Zoom course: Here is a sampling of student comments:

“The hands on application exercises of each theoretical concept. The group exercises were great.”
“It was very good to use the frameworks to do exercises with Professor's cheerful teaching style.”
“Linking different frameworks and methodologies.”

There were a few negative comments as well:

“I feel like the class could have been spread out over 4 days, and turned into a complete MBA course. It is unfortunate we did not have enough time to explore some of the material more deeply.”
“The school need to give him guideline of leveraging time to do group discussion before the lecture officially start.”

To answer the last comment, I tend to let discussions meander too much. I must exercise more control over discussion pastures.

Refereed Articles

• (2023) Determinants of Conspicuous Consumption in Smartphones. Asia Pacific Journal of Information Systems 33(3): 2288-5404
• (2023) A Study of Satisfaction and Loyalty for Continuance Intention of Mobile Wallet in India. International Journal of E-Adoption (IJEA) 15(1): 1937-9633
• (2021) Developing and Testing a Smartphone Dependency Scale Assessing Addiction Risk. International Journal of Risk and Contingency Management 10(4): 2160-9624
• (2021) Business Model Innovation: A Study of Empowering Leadership. Creativity and Innovation Management 1467-8691
• (2021) The Effect of Reciprocity on Mobile Wallet Intention: A Study of Filipino Consumers. International Journal of Asian Business and Information Management 12(2): 1947-9638