BEING A FLEXIBLE ORGANISATION Flashcards
What are flexinle organisation able to anticipate
Flexible organisations are able to anticipate changes and respond to them quickly
What are the benefits of a flexible organisation
Finance: Having reserves of cash (being liquid) and not being highly geared
Marketing: conducting regular market research to be aware of changes in consumer demand
Operations: Having short lead time, just in time production , utilising mass customisation practices, subcontracting and outsourcing
HR: Having a highly skilled workforce, making use of peripheral workers (i.e. part time or seasonal), making use of different types of employment contracts, decentralised decision making
What are the downsides of a flexible organisation
Finance: Larger opportunity cost of holding cash
Marketing: Cost of conducting market research and staying close to customers
Operations: Need to maintain positive relationships with suppliers, tied into one supplier, need for workforce to be adapted and highly skilled, need for customisation and economies of scale
HR: Impact on morale of peripheral workers, flexible working practices can create stress, often becoming flexible requires redundancies to be made
