Organisation Flashcards
how to show how a buisness is organised
using an organisational chart
shows the hierarchy in the business - top to bottom or from board of directors to shop floor workers etc.
Span of control
the number of employees for whom a manager/superior is responsible for
great/wide - manager is responsible for many employees
narrow/thin- manager is responsible for few employees
what recommended as the best span of control
is 4/5
because as the number in the SPAN OF CONTROL INCREASES, the number of CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION INCREASE
= effective communication can break down
how many people are involved in the span of control dependent upon:
- manager personality
- size of the business
- whether or not the business is centralised
- degree of competition in the market - costs are an issue then WIDER will be encouraged - DELAYERING
- skills of employee or subordinate
- if employees have a good idea of where they want to go with the business then less supervision and wider span
small span of control
number of layers/levels required will INCREASE
more layers for communication to pass through
=ineffective communication
Chain of Command
about the way on which RESPONSIBILITY IS ORGANISED within a business
serve as a useful guide to communication
what are Levels of Hierarchy
refers to the number of layers/levels in the buisness organisation
will depend on the TYPE OF ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE chosen by the business
too many levels/layers may not be good for a business - hard for promotion etc.
what is Delayering
as a result of RATIONALISATION by the business
competitive market, keep costs under control = remove layer or tier of management
advantages and disadvantages to Delayering
- provides an opportunity for employees to have more responsibility - motivation
- decision making process is made quicker as fewer layers have to be discussed with to go ahead with something and agree on it
- span of control will increase
- implications for costs in the short term - potential redundancies might have to happen to achieve the delayering
- demotivating
- reduced job security
whats Delegation
more delegation - the bigger the span of control will be - the wider the organisational structure
how much delegation goes on depends on:
- leadership style (democratic = more delegation)
- how busy the manager or leader is (more busy = more delegation)
- ability or willingness of employees to take on extra responsibility
- type of task to be delegated
whats Empowerment
giving employees responsibility for the tasks they preform
FORM OF DELEGATION
by enriching their jobs, they hope employees will be more motivated
may give business the power to reduce the number of layers in its organisational structure (delayer)
horizontal organisation structure
flat
large span of control
each manager is responsible for a large number of employees
associated with a democratic style of leadership
delegation is encouraged, so a more motivated workforce
vertical organisation structure
taller
smaller span of control
less democratic than under the flat structure
large number of layers in the structure = more bureaucratic
centralised structure
associated with autocratic leaders
WANT TO KEEP FIRM CONTROL OF THE BUSINESS
leader is involved with everything
all communication goes through him/her
DECISION MAKING TAKES PLACE AT THE TOP OF THE HEIRARCHY
decentralised structure
allows the decision making to take place away from head office
may be decentralised by product or by area/region
wide span of control
democratic leadership associated with this - more employees will have responsibilities delegated to them
organisation by system
business is split into SPECIALIST AREAS which OPERATE TOGETHER to make the business function efficiently
each part of the system/departments contribute to the output of the business
- contain specialisests who can concentrate on what they do best
organisation by system
pros and cons
each dept can see themselves as a seperate entity and not functioning as a whole contributing towards the business - throws off strategic objectives
each department can work largely to its own agenda - timescales, deadlines but this can damage the whole productivity of the business
it can be hard to evaluate preformance and whetehr or not a particular product is particularly successful as there are lots of departmental inputs affecting business preformance - blame others for failure and take their preformance as success
organisation by product
the buisness is organised around recognisable invidual products - KNOWN AS PROFIT CENTRES
each producthas its own finance, marketing department, HR resources etc.
organisation by product
pros
easy to see which products are doing well -profit centre for each can be easily calculated
managers for each product can ceoncentrate their energy and time on one sole product rather than a range
all have their own finance, marketing etc - increase in motivation
direct results of their decisions can be seen by managers - motivated
organisation by product
cons
can lead to a wste of resources - better cost saving if there is just one finance team etc. than lots - achieve managerial EOS then
costs to run per product departments
centralised structure
pros
decisons are made quickly - no need to consult other branches or areas
standardised approach to how a business will operate
concistency and standardised approach recognised from consumers
reduce costs by not doubling up on resources
centralised structure
cons
some people arent as involved in the decision making as others
consumer needs arent always met by centralised decisions
centralised decison making means that they ignore expert advice
decisions are made without of important knowledge lower down etc.
decentralised structure
pros
being able to make decisions is motivating
no standardisation to decision making makes it more flexible
knowledge and input of lower down is gathered so that they can make educated decisions regarding cunsumer trends and needs etc.
opportunity for alll to be involved
decentralised structure
cons
double up of resources which would be avoided if it was centralised
some deicions not always appropriate for the business as a whole but better for just the product or regional area
loss of identity with regional veriations
Matrix organisational structure
employees with similar skills are put together to complete tasks/projects
more than one manager supervising
serious cooperation is needed - working for lots of managers is confusing but can work with effective communication
will have several lines of communication and reporting
organisational structure importance
brings a sense of organisation / order to the business
who is responsible and report to who
lines of responsibility and communication is clear for all to see
spans of control used to see there is a fair distribution of workers within the span of control
can be used to see if delayering is possible or beneficial to a business to cut costs
can help a business plan for the future - cope with expansion or take on new orders or where they can save etc.
stakeholders see where the strengths and weaknesses are in that business
employees see opportunities for promotion
which departments are being over-stretched or suffering stress/lack of motivation
employees see their role and where they fit in within the business
authority can be seen - seeing the chain of command and span of control - who they communicate to etc.
organisational culture
reflects the values, attitudes and beliefs of a business
the culture of the business will strongly influence the manner to who the business operates
its the collection of values and behavious which are unique to the environment of the organisation - mission statement giving an indication of the business culture
many businesses try to mirror their organisational culture of that in society - equality etc.
organisational culture components
Vision - starting with a mission statement
Values - values of the firm being at the core of its culture
Practices - acting and operating ina way to match its values
People - employees all share the same values of the business
Narrative - viewing the business history and heritage
Place - locating where it best suit the business + buisness layout i.e.open plan offices to enhance communication etc.
how the organisational culture of a business can be seen within a business by how it
- conducts its business
- treats its customers
- reacts to concern in the local community
- allows its employees to be involved in the decison making process
- communicates within the organsation
- views commitment within the business to the values, mission statement and objectives
how the organisaitonal structure can be SEEN in the business
- way workers dress (sense of belonging with uniform or dress code)
- manner to how the building is designed, decorated and equipped
- degree of training offered
- business publications (in-house magazines)
- all signs that can give an idea of the culture of the business
- stakeholders able to clearly see how the values of the organisation are put into practice
