Based upon classical and contemporary theory and empirical research, this text forms a sociological analysis of organizations, focusing on the impacts that organizations have upon individuals and society.

Professor Pamela Tolbert is the Lois S. Gray Professor of ILR and Social Sciences, and chair of the Department of Organizational Behavior. She came to the ILR School in 1983 after receiving her Ph.D. in sociology from UCLA. She is broadly interested in processes of organizational change, the role of organizations in social stratification, and the reciprocal relations between occupational arrangements and organizational structures. Her current research includes studies of the use of tenure systems by higher education organizations, state-level influences on the admission of women to state bar associations, and the composition of corporate boards of directors. She has served on the editorial boards of a variety of organizational and sociological journals, as the book review editor for Administrative Science Quarterly, and as a senior editor for Management Science; Academy of Management Review, and Organization Science. She is currently serving as an associate editor for Administrative Science Quarterly.

Professor Richard H. Hall is the co-founder of UAlbany's Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program in Organizational Studies. He has been a full professor at Albany since 1977 and has served in numerous administrative roles, such as acting chair (1978-79) and chair (1982-85) of the Department of Sociology; dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (1991-93); director or co-director of the Organizational Studies Ph.D. Program (1989-91, 1994-97); acting vice president for Research and dean of Graduate Studies (1979-80); and coordinator of the joint University at Albany-Nankai University Ph.D. Program in Sociology (1985-91).

An internationally recognized scholar in the field of organizational theory, Hall has written seven books, co-edited one book, and written more than 45 articles and book chapters. His book Organizations, Structures, Processes and Outcomes (Routledge), now in its tenth edition, is considered a classic in the field. He has also served as editor for three journals: Sociological Forum (1995-2001), The American Sociologist (1991-95), and Sociology of Work and Occupations (1980-86). Hall, now associate editor of Social Science Quarterly and de Gruyter's Studies in Organizations, has served as associate editor for six other journals.