SPJIMR search icon

Overview

The Organisational and Leadership Studies (OLS) department is an interdisciplinary department comprising organisational behaviour, human resource management, communication, business ethics, science of spirituality, and business history. These disciplines together offer a comprehensive perspective on how people, organisations, and societies shape one another. OLS focuses on developing knowledge and capabilities around cultivating wisdom, leadership, ethical depth, and interpersonal skills in individuals and organisations, instilling critical inquiry and advancing human-centred practices to help individuals create meaningful impact in business and society. Through teaching, research, and innovative pedagogy, OLS faculty help future managers and leaders navigate complexity with judgement, integrity, and a grounded sense of purpose. As we seek to understand the challenges confronting leaders and organisations in today’s complex environment, we work in several interconnected areas:

  • The inner dimensions of wisdom, presence, and self-awareness drawn from the science of spirituality, that help individuals lead with greater meaning and fulfilment;
  • The psychological and behavioural foundations of how individuals and groups think, decide, and act within organisations;
  • The human resource management practices and systems that shape how organisations attract, develop, engage, and lead their people;
  • The communication practices and systems, written, verbal, interpersonal, digital, and AI-mediated, that shape leadership, negotiation, trust, influence, organisational reputation, and public discourse;
  • The ethical frameworks and reasoning that guide responsible decision-making within organisations and their relationship to society;
  • And the historical forces that have shaped, and continue to shape, business, as well as the relationship between business, economics, politics, and society.

Strategic focus areas


The research expertise of OLS faculty members at SPJIMR spans areas such as organisational behaviour, human resource management, leadership, communication, ethics, spirituality, diversity and inclusion, positive psychology, history, sustainability, and wisdom traditions.

Key research themes

Leadership, wellbeing and spirituality at work

Organisational change and decision-making

Business communication and brand management

Diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace

Business history, culture, society and social impact

Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management (OBHR)

Innovative pedagogy

At OLS, we believe that learning about organisations and leadership should be closely connected to the realities of work and life. Our curriculum is developed with an industry-centric orientation, informed by ongoing conversations with practitioners, alumni, students, and other stakeholders. In the classroom, we go beyond traditional lectures: caselets, simulations, role plays, and other experiential methods bring organisational dilemmas to life and encourage students to engage with multiple perspectives. We have been at the forefront of experiential management education, pioneering the use of management laboratories through our Organisational Behaviour Foundations course, which has been conducted in a lab-based format for over two decades. Our aim is to create learning experiences that are academically grounded, relevant to contemporary workplaces, and memorable enough to travel with students beyond the classroom. OLS faculty also develop experiential and technology-enabled approaches to management education, including simulations, role plays, communication diagnostics, negotiation exercises,behavioural assessments, case-based learning, and AI-supported feedback. These approaches enable learners to practise complex interpersonal and managerial capabilities, receive structured feedback, and reflect on how their behaviour influences organisational outcomes.

Key teaching focus areas

Science of spirituality

Organisational behaviour

Human resource management

Business ethics and leadership

Business and leadership communication

Executive presence

Negotiation skills

History of capitalism and management

Leadership and change management

Faculty

The OLS area comprises faculty members, bringing together scholars and seasoned practitioners from prominent Indian and multinational organisations. Their experience brings contemporary organisational realities directly into teaching and research. The academic foundations of the area reflect this interdisciplinary breadth, with faculty members having pursued their doctoral education at premier domestic and international institutions.

Category Faculty
Department chair
Core faculty
Visiting faculty

Doctoral scholars





AppLy Now