Q1: In your own, what is organizational behavior and why is it relevant to you?

Q2-In the case of Laura's employment dilemma from chapter 2, discuss which position you would take and why it is (or isn't) different from Laura and why?

Laura's Employment Dilemma: A Case Study Laura Gomez just completed her master's of public administration (MPA) program at the University of Southern California. She entered the program as a midcareer stu dent after spending 12 years as a state employee in Sacramento. During those 12 years, she worked in a budget office, where she found the work to be tedious and routine. She wanted a change and thought that the best way of entering the job market was to have an MPA in hand. During her academic program, she concentrated on nonprofit and volunteer management. At home, she is a single parent of two children, 8 and 10 years of age. She feels a great deal of responsibility for her

children and wants to be available to par ticipate in their lives on a daily basis. Laura has been interviewing for positions, and with her experience and education, she has had several job offers: The first came from a management consulting firm in the Midwest interested in doing more public sector work; Laura's experience in a state budget office was viewed as highly valuable.

The salary is higher than she had been expecting to receive as an entry-level MPA graduate. She would be expected to travel the Midwest region approximately 80% of the time. The second job offer came from a non profit organization in Los Angeles. This nonprofit has been in existence for about f ive years and is now in the position of hir ing someone to handle all aspects of its f inances, including fundraising. Laura does not have experience in fundraising, though she specialized in nonprofits and has been recommended to the organization as a quick learner. The salary is lower than what she was making before she returned to school 2 years prior. There are expectations that with successful fundraising her salary would increase. The office location is 3 miles from her current residence, and the job would require very little traveling. The third job offer came from the federal government in Washington, DC. In this posi tion, Laura would be fully trained to work in evaluation for the Department of Health and Human Services. This is not an area in which she has worked before, but she is known to pay a great deal of attention to detail, to have good interpersonal skills, and to be a fast learner. The salary is higher than what she was making prior to entering the MPA program but not as high as that offered by the consulting firm in the Midwest.