3.2 Organisational structures

Question 1

what is an organisation chart?

Answer 1

A diagram to show how workers are organised in a business

Question 2

what is authority in a business?

Answer 2

the power that one person has to make decisions

Question 3

what is chain of command?

Answer 3

the order of authority and communication from top to bottom

Question 4

what is the span of control?

Answer 4

the number of people a line manager is in charge of

Question 5

what is delegation?

Answer 5

giving someone else permission to carry out a task

Question 6

what is accountability?

Answer 6

the responsibility that a person has for a job meaning that they will take the blame for what goes wrong as well as the credit for what goes well

Question 7

what are subordinates?

Answer 7

the workers that a line manager is responsible for

Question 8

what are the positive impacts of delegation on a business?

Answer 8

•can motivate staff
•makes it easier in the future to identify staff with qualities needed for promotion
•allows the boss more time for planning and thinking instead of doing

Question 9

what are the advantages of a narrow span of control?

Answer 9

*the manager can communicate easily with the employees under them and control them more easily
*feedback from the workers will be more effective as it encourages more direct and frequent communication between manager and employees
*it requires less management skill as there aren’t as many employees to control

Question 10

what are disadvantages of a narrow span of control?

Answer 10

•it may involve additional paying costs for managers

Question 11

what are the advantages of a wide span?

Answer 11

•there are less layers of management to pass a message through so the message reaches more employees faster
•it costs less money to run because a business does not need to employ as many managers

Question 12

what are the disadvantages of a wide span of control?

Answer 12

managers may find it harder to look after more staff

Question 13

what are the benefits of an organisation chart?

Answer 13

•they show who is responsible for which functions and tasks
•they show what a person is accountable for
•they show which work is delegated to who
•they show who a worker is managed by and from whom they take orders from
•they show the lines of communication up and down a business
•they show lines of authority

Question 14

what are features of a tall organisation chart?

Answer 14

•more levels of management
•many lines of communication
•tend to be seen in larger more established organisations

Question 15

what are the advantages of a tall organisation?

Answer 15

•the lines of communication and the responsibilities of the workers are clear
•the span of control more narrow so there aren’t many people to look after
•there will be many promotion opportunities that would motivate staff

Question 16

what are the features of a flat organisation?

Answer 16

•fewer levels of management
•fewer lines of communication
•tends to be seen in more modern organisations

Question 17

what are advantages of flat organisations?

Answer 17

•communication may be quicker from top to bottom as there aren’t as many layers
•less mistakes in communication as the message has not been passed through as many layers
•a wider span of control means managers must delegate work which may make workers feel more motivated

Question 18

what is delayering?

Answer 18

•when one or more layers of management are removed from the organisation structure/chart
•only happens at manager/supervisor level (never top or bottom)

Question 19

what are some advantages of delayering?

Answer 19

•it saves money as salaries of workers laid off are no longer being paid
•the responsibilities of workers that have been laid off may be delegated down the hierarchy, motivating and empowering workers

Question 20

what is full time work?

Answer 20

full time is generally thought of as 35 hours per week or more

Question 21

what is part time work?

Answer 21

It is generally seen as 35hours per week or less

Question 22

what are advantages of part time working for the business?

Answer 22

•experienced workers such ad those retiring can still stay and contribute to the business
•the business may have more choice of workers by offering part time works as not everyone wants full time
•can reduce overtime costs
•they can respond to changes in demand by employing staff to work only in peak hours

Question 23

what are advantages of part time working for the worker?

Answer 23

•suits people who need to look after family/pick up children from school
•suits students who want to earn while they study
•suits semi-retired workers who do not want to work a full week

Question 24

what are disadvantages of part time working for the worker?

Answer 24

•part time work may mean a lower income for a worker who’d prefer full time
•the hours may be inconvenient for the worker such as 3hours in the morning and 2 later in the afternoon

Question 25

what are disadvantages of part time working for the business?

Answer 25

•recruitment and training costs may be higher as more part time workers may be needed to do the job of fewer full time workers
•managers may have more workers to manage, leading to higher stress levels and less time to complete other jobs

Question 26

what is meant by temporary working?

Answer 26

when workers work for a short period of time, they may agree to a fixed term contract, for a few months for example of will just work when called in

Question 27

what are advantages of temporary working for the business?

Answer 27

•the business can respond to seasonal changes in demand by hiring more workers during busy months
•they can save money as they don’t have to pay workers during less busy times
•helps fill a short term lack of stacf
•can use this as a way to check on a potential employee before offering a permanent contract

Question 28

what are advantages of temporary working for the worker?

Answer 28

•they may wish to earn an extra income during holiday periods

Question 29

what are disadvantages of temporary working for the worker?

Answer 29

•they may be looking for something permanent
•they may feel like they are not full part of the work force

Question 30

what are disadvantages of temporary working for the business?

Answer 30

•there may not be enough suitably qualified employees looking for work when needed
•employees can lack motivation or commitment leading to a reduced quality
•costly to train an employee for a relatively short period

Question 31

what is mobile working?

Answer 31

refers to people who work when they are not in a place of work such as an office or in their home.

Question 32

what is flexible working?

Answer 32

refeers to working outside of a normal working pattern typically on a 9-5 e.g. zero hour contracts, working flexi time and shift working

Question 33

what are the advantages of working from home for the business?

Answer 33

•workers can work longer as they travel less
•workers may be more motivated as tbey have the freedom to manage workload from home
•workers may work better if there are fewer distractions than in a work place

Question 34

what are the disadvantages of working from home for the business?

Answer 34

•the worker may not be able to share ideas with colleagues at work
•the worker may produce less without the discipline of being in work and with distractions present
•the worker may need to be trained in the technology needed to work from home which the business would have to pay for

Question 35

what are the advantages of working from home for the worker?

Answer 35

•the worker may have freedom about how much and when they work
•the worker may save money in travel costs
•the worker may experience less stress by not having to go to work or be in a working environment

Question 36

what are the disadvantages of working from home for the worker?

Answer 36

*the worker may miss out on the motivating social side of being in work

Question 37

what is self employment?

Answer 37

refers to those who work for themselves and provide their services to other people or businesses

Question 38

what are the disadvantages of self employment?

Answer 38

•self employed people may lose employment rights such as sick pay and holiday pay
•penalties might have to be paid if they don’t complete work on time
•incomes may fall as competition increases
•often having to work long hours

Question 39

what are advantages of self employment ?

Answer 39

•you can be your own boss
•self employed people are usually more motivated and will work harder to establish their job