Organisational Structure and Design

Question 1

How is organisational structure studied?

Answer 1

Exploring structure in terms of work specialisation, span of control, departmentalisation, decentralisation and formalisation

Question 2

What are the types of organisational design?

Answer 2

• Bureaucratic approach (Max Weber): meaning, advantages alongside disadvantages and persistence
• Alternative approaches

Question 3

What is organisational structure?

Answer 3

• Form system of task and reporting relationships that control, coordinate and motivate employees to work together to achieve organisational goals (H and B)
• Formal and explicit indication to members of what is expected of them (Lorsch, 1977)

Question 4

How is organisational structure visualised?

Answer 4

In organisational charts

Question 5

Why study organisational structure?

Answer 5

• All businesses have to organise what they do
• A clear structure makes it easier to see which part of the business does what
• Helps understand human behaviour

Question 6

What is span of control?

Answer 6

The number of subordinates a manager can efficiently and effectively direct

Question 7

What is work specialisation?

Answer 7

The degree to which tasks in the organisation are subdivided into separate jobs

Question 8

How does Taylorism/Fordism relate to work specialisation?

Answer 8

Makes efficient use of employee skills. Increases employee skills through repetition

Question 9

What is departmentalisation?

Answer 9

The basis by which jobs are groups together, grouping activities by function, division (product/service), division (geography), matrix

Question 10

What is a functional structure?

Answer 10

Organises employees around skills or other resources e.g HR, marketing, manufacturing

Question 11

What is a divisional structure (product/service)?

Answer 11

Organises employees around products or business segments

Question 12

What is a divisional structure (region)?

Answer 12

Regional structure groups employees together based on specific geographic location. This is often used by large companies

Question 13

What is a matrix structure?

Answer 13

It has a two way flow of authority and responsibility.

Vertically - from superior to subordinate (creates stability and certainty for people working in the same unit)

Horizontally - from each employee to project manager who oversees the successful completion of the project

Question 14

What are examples of matrix structures?

Answer 14

ENGIE - French global energy company, divided by region

BT Group - divided by consumer, business and public sector

General Electrics, IBM and P and G have successful matrix structures

Question 15

How can there be conflicts within matrix structures?

Answer 15

Conflicts among product, geographic and functional divisions: people do not recognise a boss

Question 16

How can there be power struggles within matrix structures?

Answer 16

Power struggles due to dual command - needs to be a balance of power and mechanisms for checking for imbalances

Question 17

How can there be confusion with the decision making process in matrix structures?

Answer 17

Confusion with group decision making process - it isn’t the same as group decision making - decisions might have to be run by several members of the team but not all and others may feel their time is wasted listening to the process

Question 18

Why does a matrix structure collapse during economic slow down?

Answer 18

Matrix collapse during economic slowdown - too complex

Question 19

How can excessive overhead be a problem of a matrix structure?

Answer 19

High costs associated with matrix structures. This is because overhead costs rise due to duality of command.

Question 20

Why can there be uncontrolled layering within a matrix structure?

Answer 20

• Matrices lie within matrices which lie within matrices resulting from the power dynamics rather than the logic of design
• They cascade down the org and filter through several levels and across several decisions, without a logic and rationale behind it

Question 21

What is naval glazing as a problem of matrix structures?

Answer 21

Managers in a matrix can succumb to excessive internal preoccupation and lose touch with the marketplace

Getting absorbed in internal relations at the expense of paying attention to the clients

More energy spent ironing out disputes

Question 22

What is decision strangulation as a problem of matrix structures?

Answer 22

Too much democracy, not enough action. Endless delays for debate, for clearing with everyone. Decisions made too late to be of use.

Question 23

How is effective resource coordination a positive aspect of a matrix organisation?

Answer 23

Functional supervisors focus on hiring, training and managing employees in their field, while project supervisors can focus on achieving the goals of their specific projects or products

Question 24

How is breadth of skill a positive aspect of a matrix organisation?

Answer 24

When isolated in a functional area, employees may have more difficulty benefiting from the skills and experiences of those in other areas.

In a matrix structure, employees have constant contact with members of other functional areas via their project teams. This helps them to develop a wider skill set

Question 25

How is communication a positive aspect of a matrix organisation?

Answer 25

Since employees have constant contact with members of different functional areas, the matrix structure allows for information and resources to travel more fluidly between those functional areas, allows for the better handling of complex challenges

Question 26

How is there more flexibility in a matrix organisation than un other organisational structures?

Answer 26

The matrix structure allows for HR to be shared across different projects or products. Functional areas maintain a stock of talented employees to meet project requirements.

Question 27

How can managers prevent conflict among functional and product managers in a matrix structure?

Answer 27

- Should not rely too much on an informal or latent matrix to coordinate critical tasks - Relationships between functional and product managers should be explicit so that people are in agreement about roles

Question 28

How can managers avoid power struggles in a matrix structure?

Answer 28

- Ensure equal power dimensions and dynamics for decision making - Have institutional point of view - Replace weak managers with strong ones - Monitor and manage to whom duelling manager reports to

Question 29

How can managers avoid matrix structures being seen as a group decision making process?

Answer 29

- Education on what a matrix is and what it is not | - Top managers need to accompany their strategic choice to move toward a matrix with educational effort to clarify roles

Question 30

How can managers avoid a matrix collapsing during an economic crisis?

Answer 30

- Employing general managerial excellence, independent of the matrix, long before the crunch arrives - Good planning, can often forecast downturns in economic cycle

Question 31

How can managers avoid too many overhead costs in a matrix structure?

Answer 31

- Carefully recruiting employees with correct skill sets - Setting up a matrix of functional specialists against client or account managers -provides availability for assignments - Can easily bill the time of consultants to the client, otherwise the time of consultants will be billed against the company

Question 32

How can uncontrolled layering in a matrix structure be avoided?

Answer 32

- Careful task analyses | - Reduced power struggles

Question 33

What should managers be aware of to prevent navel glazing?

Answer 33

- Level of complaints from customers - Level of internal conflict - Importance of external relationships over internal relationships

Question 34

How should managers deal with naval glazing?

Answer 34

Find a balance of inward and outward focus

Question 35

How can decision strangulation in a matrix structure be avoided?

Answer 35

- Learn to delegate before each decision has to be cleared in too many meetings - Appeal the issue up a level of the managers to whom the focal employe e reports to - Avoid managers who feel they need to make unilateral decisions

Question 36

What is centralisation?

Answer 36

Managers at the top of the organisation make decisions

Question 37

What is decentralisation?

Answer 37

The dispersion of authority, decision making is shared across business units

Question 38

What is formalisation?

Answer 38

The extent to which there will be rules and regulations to direct employees and managers, a formalised structure defines responsibilities and roles

Question 39

What is organisational design?

Answer 39

Process of choosing and implementing structural configuration through which the organisation seeks to accomplish their goals (H and B 2013)

Question 40

What are the disadvantages of a bureaucracy?

Answer 40

- Lack of motivation - Employees like a cog in a machine - Low levels of customer service - Challenges for innovation and change - Slow decision making - Goal displacement - Conflict - Mock bureaucracy - Emphasis on efficiency over morality

Question 41

How does Weber suggest there are three types of authority?

Answer 41

- Traditional authority: established authority of institutions - Charismatic authority: personal authority of individuals - Legitimate authority: based on knowledge, written rules, most rational and efficient from

Question 42

What are new forms of organising as strategic choices?

Answer 42

- Boundaryless organisation (Jack Welch, GE): flexibility, collaborative relational structures, cooperation, strategic alliances - Virtual organisation structures - use of technologies to transcend physical, geographical, temporal structures

Question 43

What is the case of Valve; ''Flatland"?

Answer 43

Valve's handbook detailing its unusual structure; no founder/president, you steer toward opportunities and away from risks with no one to report to

Question 44

What are flexible working arrangements?

Answer 44

- Teleworking - working at home - Telecommuting - split between work at home and at work - Flexitime - arriving late, leaving early

Question 45

What did Reuters (2016) find about the New Office of 2020?

Answer 45

- By 2025, 75% of all employees will be millennials (Deloitte) - Employees expected to use their own devices for work - Spread of mobile devices and rapid uptake of cloud computing - 63% of those who frequently check emails outside traditional work time say they are thriving

Question 46

What did Flexjobs find in September 2016?

Answer 46

- 65% of respondants to a survey said remote work would boost their productivity - 51% of participants prefer to work at home with flexible work hours - Antidote for commute stress, work life balance issues, meeting overload, workplace distractions, office politics and interrupting colleagues

Question 47

What did BBC news find in January 2017?

Answer 47

- Flexible work practice to contribute £165m for working parents and £250m for non parents - Tendency to discriminate flexible work practices against non married couples