Emily Block, PhD
Contact
Associate Professor, Alberta School of Business - Department of Strategy, Entrepreneurship and Management
- eblock@ualberta.ca
Overview
About
Emily Block is an Associate Professor of Strategy, Entrepreneurship and Management and the George Cormie Chair in Management at the Alberta School of Business. Her research program explores how values pluralism impacts the processes of legitimacy and change, the nature of social evaluations and how organizational theory can be used to understand and address grand challenges. Emily’s research has been published in journals such as AMJ, SMJ, JBV, JOM, MISQ and JMS. Her book, “Business to the Edge,” (Basic Books, July 2024) explores how business can both thrive and improve lives in post-conflict environments. She serves on the ASQ editorial board and is a Visiting Professor at Strathmore University in Nairobi, Kenya. She received her BBA in Management from the University of Notre Dame and her PhD in Organizational Behavior from the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign.
Research
Visit my webpage at profemilyblock.com for an updated CV and access to my ongoing research.
Teaching
General Teaching Philosophy
“Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.” - Chinese Proverb
I teach a variety of courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. My classes focus on experiential learning as a core principle. This pedagogical method encourages students to bring themselves, as whole persons, into the classroom, and to use the theories that are discussed to relate them to relevant problems they may be experiencing in their own lives.
Current Courses
SEM 310: Management (Organizational Behavior and Human Resources Module)
SEM 412: Bargaining and Negotiations
SEM 612: Bargaining and Negotiations
SEM 680: Business on the Frontlines
Announcements
A Spotlight on Research at the Alberta School of Business
Does investing in IT security really protect firms from hackers?
My findings tell us...
- More IT security does not directly reduce the chances of data breaches.
- New security initiatives can expose firms to vulnerabilities in the short-term because change is integrated throughout the organization.
- 'Symbolic' use of IT security as deterrents fade quickly and are not effective in the long run.
- Over time, firms that 'do it right' realize a pay off.
Courses
EXASB 6104 - Negotiations and Stakeholder Engagement
Delve into working in the public sector and the unique challenges of meeting the needs of citizens, elected officials, and other levels of government, including land based governments. Participants will have opportunities to discuss and understand how administration can work more effectively with its political and community partners. The principles of 'interest based negotiations' will be explored through interactive case review. The differences between positions and interests will be explored, including how emotions impact communication.
OM 804 - Bargaining and Negotiation
This course is a blend of both experiential learning and theory with the objective of making the student more effective in all types of bargaining. A study of positive theories on how to improve negotiation skills will be combined with analytical models of the game theoretic structure of bargaining. Through this mix of theories and several case studies and bargaining exercises, students will see both the opportunities for joint gain (win-win) and the constraints which can lead to inferior outcomes. Restricted to Executive MBA students only.
SEM 210 - Introduction to Management, Organization and Entrepreneurship
Introduces students to the fundamentals of human resource management, strategy and organizational theory, and entrepreneurship/innovation. Topics include: motivating employees, designing jobs, staffing, ethics and decision making, leadership and managing teams; developing and implementing an organization's strategy, structure, control systems, and change initiatives; and identifying and evaluating opportunities, launching and growing a business, establishing networks and legitimacy. Pre- or co-requisite 3 units junior level English. Open only to students in the Faculty of Business. Not to be taken by students with credit in SEM 200 or 301. Students may not receive credit for both SEM 210 and SEM 310.
SEM 412 - Effective Negotiations
This is a comprehensive study of negotiation theory and practice. A negotiation simulation is conducted to provide an understanding of how theory translates into practice. Prerequisite: SEM 201, 301 or 310. Open to third- and fourth-year students.