Organizational Structure

1
Organizational Structure

• Mary Jo Hatch
• Organization Theory
• p. 180-193

2
Social Structure

• The duality of structure
• Constrains the choices about activities
• But structures are created by the activities
• Enabling interaction
• Can be seen as fixed immovable
• Or as a moment of everchanging interactivity

3
Two purposes

• Social structure is giving a picture of
• The differentiation between work activities
• And at the same time indicating the major
  challenges of integrating the same activities

4
Organization Chart

• The Org. Chart is a representation of
• The hierarchy of authority
• the vertical structure or
• the chain of command
• The division of labour
• the horisontal coordination or
• the work specialization

5
Chain of Command

• Unbroken line of authority that links all persons
  in an organization.
• Shows who reports to whom.
• Associated with two underlying principles.
• Unity of Command.
• Scalar Principle.

6
Work Specialization

• Tasks are subdivided into individual jobs.
• Division of labor concept.
• Employees perform only the tasks relevant to
  their specialized function.
• Jobs tend to be small, but they can be performed
  efficiently.
• Many organizations are moving away from this
  principle.

7
Authority

• Formal and legitimate right of a manager to make
  decisions, issue orders, and to allocate
  resources to achieve organizationally desired
  outcomes.
• Authority is distinguished by three
  characteristics
• Authority is vested in organizational positions,
  not people.
• Authority is accepted by subordinates.
• Authority flows down the vertical hierarchy.

8
Span of Control

• The number of employees reporting to a
  supervisor.
• Traditional view, seven or so per manager.
• Many organizations today, 30 or more per manager.
• Generally if supervisors must be closely involved
  with employees span should be small.

9
Tall versus Flat Structure

• Span of control used in an organization
  determines whether the structure is tall or flat.
• Tall structure has a narrow span and more
  hierarchical levels.
• Flat structure has a wide span, is horizontally
  dispersed and fewer hierarchical levels.
• The trend has been toward wider spans of control.

10
Tall vs. Flat Structure
11
Five structual alternatives

• Vertical functional approach. People are grouped
  together in departments by common skills.
• Divisional approach. Grouped together based on a
  common product, program, or geographical region.
• Horizontal matrix approach. Functional and
  divisional chains of command. Some employees
  report to two bosses.
• Team-based approach. Created to accomplish
  specific tasks.
• Network approach. Small, central hub
  electronically connected to their other
  organizations that perform vital functions.
  Departments are independent, and can be located
  anywhere.

12
Structural Design
13
Structural Design