Foundations of Organization Structure Flashcards
To what degree are activities subdivided into separate jobs?
Work specialization
On what basis will jobs be grouped together?
Departmentalization
To whom do individuals and groups report?
Chain of command
What is the ability to efficiently and effectively direct employees by managers called?
Span of control
Where does decision-making authority lie?
Centralization and decentralization
What is formalization?
the degree to which jobs within the organization are standardized.
What is boundary spanning?
When individuals form relationships with people outside their formally assigned group
Define work specialization.
the division of labor into separate activities.
- Repetition of work.
- Training for specialization.
- Increasing efficiency through invention.
- Henry Ford.
Define departmentalization and tell by how many types it can be.
Grouping jobs together so common tasks can be coordinated
- By functions performed.
- By type of product or service the organization produces.
- By geography or territory.
- By process differences.
- By type of customer.
Define the chain of commands and its complementary concepts
Is an unbroken line of authority that extends from the top of the organization to the lowest echelon and clarifies who reports to whom.
Two complementary concepts:
- Unity of command
- Authority
What is centralization?
It refers to the degree to which decision making is concentrated at a single point in the organization.
Present the advantages of a decentralized organization
- Can act more quickly to solve problems.
- More people provide input into decisions.
- Employees are less likely to feel alienated from those who make -decisions that affect their work lives.
What is formalization?
the degree to which jobs within the organization are standardized.
Define boundary spanning
It occurs when individuals form relationships with people outside their formally assigned groups.
Give examples of some organizational frameworks and structures
- Simple structure
- Bureaucracy structure
- Matrix structure
- Virtual Organization
- Team structure
- circular structure
Define the simple structure and present its strengths and weaknesses.
the manager and the owner are one and the same.
Strengths:
- Simple, fast, and flexible.
- Inexpensive to maintain.
- Accountability is clear.
Weaknesses:
- Difficult to maintain in anything other than small organizations.
- Risky—everything depends on one person.
What characterizes a bureaucracy and what defines it?
A bureaucracy is characterized by standardization.
- Highly routine operating tasks.
- Very formalized rules and regulations.
- Tasks grouped into functional departments.
- Centralized authority.
- Narrow spans of control.
- Decision making that follows the chain of command.
What are the two aspects of bureaucracy?
Functional structure: groups employees by their similar specialties, roles, or tasks.
Divisional structure: groups employees into units by product, service, customer, or geographical market area.
Define the matrix structure
combines two forms of departmentalization—functional and product:
- The strength of functional is putting specialists together.
- Product departmentalization facilitates coordination.
Define the virtual organization
it is typically a small, core organization that outsources major business functions.
Define the team structure
eliminates the chain of command and replaces departments with empowered teams.
Define the circular structure
in the center are the executives, and radiating outward in rings grouped by function are the managers, then the specialists, then the workers.
Define downsizing
Downsizing is a systematic effort to make an organization leaner by selling off business units, closing locations, or reducing staff.
What are some strategies for downsizing?
- Investment
- Communication
- Participation
- Assistance
What are some characteristics of a mechanistic model?
- High specialization
- Rigid departmentalization
- Clear chain of command
- Narrow spans of control
- Centralization
- High formalization
What are some characteristics of an Organic Model?
- Cross-functional teams
- Coss-hierarchical teams
- Free flow of information
- Wide spans of control
- Decentralization
- Low formalization
On what dimensions do most framework strategies focus?
- Innovation strategy
- Cost Minimization strategy
- Imitation strategy
What is the strategy-structure relationship like?
Innovation - organic
cost minimization - mechanistic
imitation - mechanistic and organic
