Organisation Structures

10 Key excerpts on "Organisation Structures"

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  Exploring Management

  • John R. Schermerhorn, Jr., Daniel G. Bachrach(Authors)
  • 2017(Publication Date)
  • Wiley

    (Publisher)

  Organization Charts Describe Formal Structures of Organizations. When managers organize things, they arrange people and jobs into effective work relation- ships. They spell out who does what, who is in charge of whom, and how people and work units should cooperate. This creates what we call the organization structure, a formal arrangement of people, tasks, positions, and reporting relationships. You probably know the concept of structure best in terms of an organization chart. This is a diagram of positions, or job titles, and reporting relationships, or the hierarchy of authority within a team or organization. 5 This chart describes a division of labor designed to support organizational performance by assigning important tasks to individuals and groups. You can learn from an organization chart, but only in respect to formal struc- ture, as shown in the margin. This is the “official” structure or the way things are supposed to operate. 6 Think of it as a “best guess” for how to align positions, people, and responsibilities. But as with most work, things don’t always go as intended. Cir- cumstances, tasks, and people change. And every time they do, the formal structure moves a bit further away from the situation it is supposed to fit. This is why managers often find themselves tinkering with the formal structure to get the alignment right. Organizations Also Have Informal Structures. SITUATION: A worker in his office cubicle overhears a conversation in the next cubicle. Words such as “project being terminated” and “job cuts will be necessary” are used. At lunch, he shares this with friends. Word quickly spreads around the building that the employer is going to announce layoffs. Organization structure is a formal arrangement of tasks, reporting relationships, and communication linkages. An organization chart describes the arrangement of work positions within a team or organization. The division of labor assigns important tasks to individuals and groups.

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  Management

  • John R. Schermerhorn, Jr., Daniel G. Bachrach, Barry Wright(Authors)
  • 2020(Publication Date)
  • Wiley

    (Publisher)

  Learn More About What is organization structure? • Formal structures • Informal structures and social networks Organizing is the process of arranging, connecting, and inte- grating people and other resources to accomplish a goal. Its purpose as one of the basic functions of management is to create a division of labour and then coordinate processes and results to achieve a common purpose. Figure 11.1 shows the central role that organizing plays in the management process. Once plans are created, the man- ager’s task is to ensure that they are carried out. Once strategy is set and plans are made, organizing launches the processes of implementation and accomplishment by clarifying jobs and working relationships. It identifies who does what, who is in charge of whom, and how different people and parts of the organization relate to and work with one another. All of this, of course, can be done in many different ways. The challenge for managers is to choose the best organizational form to fit the firm’s strategy and other situational/market demands. 202 CHAPTER 11 Organization Structures What Is Organization Structure? The way in which the various parts of an organization are arranged is usually referred to as the organization structure. It is the system of tasks, workflows, reporting relationships, and communication channels that connect the work and activities of diverse individuals and groups within a firm. An organiza- tion’s structure should both effectively allocate tasks through a division of labour and coordinate performance results. A structure that accomplishes both well helps to implement an organization’s strategy. 2 Yet as stated earlier, the problem for managers is that it is much easier to describe what a good structure does than it is to create one. Formal Structures You may know the concept of structure best in the form of an organization chart. It diagrams reporting relationships and the arrangement of work positions within an organization.

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  Management

  • John R. Schermerhorn, Jr., Barry Wright, Daniel G. Bachrach(Authors)
  • 2017(Publication Date)
  • Wiley

    (Publisher)

  An organization’s structure should both effectively allocate tasks through a division of labour and coordinate performance results. A structure that accomplishes both well helps to implement an organization’s strategy. 2 Yet as stated earlier, the problem for managers is that it is much easier to describe what a good structure does than it is to create one. Formal Structures You may know the concept of structure best in the form of an organization chart. It diagrams reporting relationships and the arrangement of work positions within an organization. 3 A typical organization chart identifies positions and job titles as well as the lines of authority and communication between them. It shows the formal structure, or how the organization is intended to function. Reading an organization chart should help you learn the basics of an organization’s formal structure. But caution is in order, because charts can be useful or they can be confusing and out of date. At their best, they provide a snapshot of how an organization is supposed to work in respect to: • Division of work—Positions and titles show work responsi- bilities. • Supervisory relationships—Lines show who reports to whom. • Communication channels—Lines show formal communica- tion flows. • Major subunits—Positions reporting to a common manager are shown. • Levels of management—Vertical layers of management are shown. An organization’s formal structure can change over time as the business changes, as shown in Management Is Real 11.1. Informal Structures and Social Networks Underneath an organization’s formal structure lies an informal structure. This is a “shadow” organization made up of social networks comprising the unofficial, but often critical, working relationships that connect organizational members (Figure 11.2). No organization can be fully understood without gain- ing insight into its spiderweb of informal networks as well as the formal organization structure.

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  Designing Organisations

  Why it matters and ways to do it well

  • Naomi Stanford(Author)
  • 2022(Publication Date)
  • Economist Books

    (Publisher)

  3

  Organisational structures

  Structure is the network of relationships that creates behaviour. The essence of structure is not in the things themselves but in the relationships of things. By its very nature, structure is difficult to see. As opposed to events and patterns, which are usually more observable, much of what we think of as structure is often hidden.

  Richard Karash

  WHEN LEADERS HAVE AN ORGANISATIONAL ISSUE they want to address, they tend to say they want to restructure. Closer questioning reveals that by “restructure”, they actually mean that they want a differently arranged traditional organisation chart.

  They are of the view that the configuration or people shown on the chart no longer works and that a revised chart with the same, or different, people in a new configuration will solve the issue. There is scant recognition that many people who work in an organisation, for example contractors, consultants and interns, are not shown on an organisation chart in spite of being essential to an organisation’s functioning. Neither do they appreciate that restructuring disrupts the entire organisation. Workflow can slow as employees adjust to the changes in reporting lines, communication and information flows sometimes become dislocated, decision-making is often delayed, and loss of knowledge can result, as demotivated people seek work elsewhere.

  However, structures, in the way leaders talk about them, can be intentionally designed and visualised as an organisation chart. What is less easy to design and visualise are the informal network structures that exist in any organisation regardless of the intentional structures. These influence organisational performance, are not shown on an organisation chart and would be hard to express on one as they are constantly shifting and often, in Karash’s word, hidden. (Chapter 8 considers these.)

  TABLE 3.1 Brief (very simplified) history of theories informing Organisation Structures

  Source: Adapted from D. Beakey, K. Wells Webster and J. Rubin (2007), “Organizational design and implementation”, Graziadio Business Review 10(4) (https://gbr.pepperdine.edu/2010/8/organizational-design-and-implementation/

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  Business Policy and Strategy

  The Art of Competition

  • Chris Chatfield, Cheryl Van Deusen, Steven Williamson, Harold C. Babson(Authors)
  • 2007(Publication Date)
  • Auerbach Publications

    (Publisher)

  88 Business Policy and Strategy: The Art of Competition, 7th Edition division of labor) and integration (coordination), two very important aspects of organizational structure, it is somewhat limiting in its scope. A more complete definition of structure is given by Daft, who reduces organization structure down to its most basic elements and then explains each one individually as follows: 1. It designates formal reporting relationships, hierarchy levels, and span of control. 2. It identifies the grouping together of individuals into departments. 3. It includes the design of systems to ensure effective communication, coordination, and integration of efforts across departments. The three components identified and defined by Daft illustrate both the vertical and horizontal factors of the organization structure. The first two elements of this description deal with vertical communication and structural framework, whereas the third component focuses on horizontal communication and integration across departments. Therefore, an organi-zation structure is vital in determining how labor activities are controlled and coordinated, as well as how people are grouped and allocated through-out the corporation. An important distinction that should be made at this point is the difference between organization structure and organization design. Whereas organization structure focuses on the differentiation of labor throughout the organization and its subsequent integration, organization design centers on the decisions and actions by managers that result in a structure. In other words, the managerial decision-making process necessary to formulate and develop a structure is called organizational design . Upon completing the organization design, an organizational chart depicting the formal organization structure is derived.

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  Management

  • John R. Schermerhorn, Jr., Daniel G. Bachrach(Authors)
  • 2014(Publication Date)
  • Wiley

    (Publisher)

  243 Organizing as a Management Function Formal Structures You may know the concept of structure best in the form of an organization chart. It diagrams reporting relationships and the arrangement of work positions within an organi- zation. 3 A typical organization chart identifies positions and job titles as well as the lines of authority and communication between them. It shows the formal structure, or how the organization is intended to function. Reading an organization chart should help you learn the basics of an organization’s for- mal structure. But caution is in order, charts can be useful... or confusing and out of date. At their best, they provide a snapshot of how an organization is supposed to work in respect to: • Division of work—Positions and titles show work responsibilities. • Supervisory relationships—Lines show who reports to whom. • Communication channels—Lines show formal communication flows. • Major subunits—Positions reporting to a common manager are shown. • Levels of management—Vertical layers of management are shown. Informal Structures and Social Networks Underneath an organization’s formal structure lies an informal structure. This is a “shadow” organization made up of social networks comprising the unofficial, but often critical, work- ing relationships that connect organizational members. No organization can be fully understood without gaining insight into its spiderweb of informal networks as well as the formal organizational structure. 4 If the informal structure could be drawn, it would show who talks and interacts with whom, regardless of their for- mal titles and relationships. The lines of the informal structure would cut across levels and move from side to side. They would show people interacting through social media, meeting for coffee, joining in exercise groups, and participating in leisure activities—all driven by friendship and enjoyment rather than formal requirements.

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  Managing Organisations in Africa

  • Peter Blunt, Merrick L. Jones(Authors)
  • 2011(Publication Date)
  • De Gruyter

    (Publisher)

  Chapter 7: Configurations of Organisational Structure Elsewhere in this book we consider questions associated with organisational change and development in Africa (see Chapter 10). There we make the point that a great deal of what passes for organisational change and development in Africa, as elsewhere in the world, is overly mechanistic: that it gives insufficient attention to the human consequences of change and justifiable anticipatory fears which change arouses in people. A common feature of such mechanistic change is a general interest in the structure of organisations, which is usually taken to mean the domains of activity with which organisations or units within them are concerned. As we saw in the last chapter, organisational structure is a more complicated and inclusive concept than that because it refers also to methods of coordination and questions of managerial style. But applications in Africa of even the more restricted notion of organisational structure have suffered from a limited knowledge among those responsible for undertaking organisational redesign of the variety of organi-sational forms available, and the circumstances in which each of these forms has been found to work best This chapter attempts to fill such knowledge gaps with a series of rationally constructed models of organisational structure along with accounts of the internal and external environments to which they appear to be best suited. In addition to providing a detailed description of organisational structure the previous chapter reviewed the major empirical studies of the variables associated with it. This massive and complicated body of research has been synthesised by Mintzberg (1979, 1983, 1988, 1989) into six basic configurations depicting the relationships between distinctive structural forms and associated sets of environmental contingencies. These configurations are the subject of this chapter.

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  The Self-Made Program Leader

  Taking Charge in Matrix Organizations

  • Steve Tkalcevich(Author)
  • 2015(Publication Date)
  • Auerbach Publications

    (Publisher)

  25 3 U NDERSTANDING Y OUR O RGANIZATIONAL S TRUCTURE Looking back at Chapter 1 and the mind map of influential leaders you created, how do you currently stand with your identified skills for improvement, leadership traits, and your overall progress? This mind map will start each chapter to guide insight from this book and will give you the opportunity to compare your goals and progress along your journey. Always have an open discussion with your group of six to ten professionals on where you stand and if you have any roadblocks (Figure 3.1). If someone asks you what an organization is, what would you tell them? What does it mean to you? It can be best defined as a collective group of people systematically arranged to meet a need or obtain an ongoing goal. An organization structure is a framework that shows others the lines of authority, dictates formal communication channels, and allocates duties and rights to individuals. How does the organiza-tion structure impact the goal of the company? How does the struc-ture affect the role of a project, program, or portfolio manager? Are there ways a project, program, or portfolio manager can maneuver and succeed in any organization structure? These questions have merit and will be discussed in this chapter. What makes one choose a particular organizational structure over another? There are times when multiple structures may have merit, but only one can be selected. Understanding the makeup of your orga-nization structure will only work in your favor. There are four major factors that affect an organization’s structure: technology, strategy, human resources, and the organizational environment. These factors determine the organizational structure that will be used for the orga-nization. Aligning the strategy with the direction your firm is headed will allow for smoother operations for example. This direction comes from top management with the involvement of the entire management

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  The Self-Made Program Leader

  Taking Charge in Matrix Organizations

  • Steve Tkalcevich(Author)
  • 2015(Publication Date)
  • Auerbach Publications

    (Publisher)

  3 Understanding Your Organizational Structure

  Looking back at Chapter 1 and the mind map of influential leaders you created, how do you currently stand with your identified skills for improvement, leadership traits, and your overall progress? This mind map will start each chapter to guide insight from this book and will give you the opportunity to compare your goals and progress along your journey. Always have an open discussion with your group of six to ten professionals on where you stand and if you have any roadblocks (Figure 3.1 ).

  If someone asks you what an organization is, what would you tell them? What does it mean to you? It can be best defined as a collective group of people systematically arranged to meet a need or obtain an ongoing goal. An organization structure is a framework that shows others the lines of authority, dictates formal communication channels, and allocates duties and rights to individuals. How does the organization structure impact the goal of the company? How does the structure affect the role of a project, program, or portfolio manager? Are there ways a project, program, or portfolio manager can maneuver and succeed in any organization structure? These questions have merit and will be discussed in this chapter.

  What makes one choose a particular organizational structure over another? There are times when multiple structures may have merit, but only one can be selected. Understanding the makeup of your organization structure will only work in your favor. There are four major factors that affect an organization’s structure: technology, strategy, human resources, and the organizational environment. These factors determine the organizational structure that will be used for the organization. Aligning the strategy with the direction your firm is headed will allow for smoother operations for example. This direction comes from top management with the involvement of the entire management team. Managers often work tirelessly to maintain the course set forth by the strategic direction and goals of the organization.

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  Organisational Behaviour

  • Gert Alblas, Ella Wijsman(Authors)
  • 2021(Publication Date)
  • Routledge

    (Publisher)

  Because collaboration is required for every assignment, working in project groups has become a standard approach and is built into the functional structure of the organisation. There are still functional groups (departments) but the employees in them are also assigned to specific projects (see figure 7.13). Figure 7.15 shows the matrix structure of project organisation systematically. FIGURE 7.15 Matrix structure of project organisation Team 1 Team 2 Team 3 Management Department A Department B Department C Department D § 7.8 Designing communication channels In the structural design of organisations, it is also necessary to establish how information can be sent to and between the different parts of the Communication organisation. Communication channels must be designed for sending and channels receiving all the information that is relevant for the guidance, control and coordination of activities. There are essentially three types of communication channel: © Noordhoff Uitgevers bv ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE 269 7 1 Vertical communication. Information that is relevant for the management, control and coordination of organisational activities runs via a hierarchical route. Information is passed from the top to the bottom of the organisation and back via managers, who form the nodes in the process. In a centralised organisation, vertical communication dominates. The top level of the organisation takes all the important decisions and resolves all the organisational problems itself. It receives and sends information in steps via management at the different levels. 2 Horizontal communication. Information that is relevant for the management, control and coordination of organisational activities is passed on to employees and organisational units at the same level. In a (partly) decentralised organisation, horizontal communication plays an important role. This is necessary if management and decision-making are to take place without reference to higher authority.

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