Dimensions of organisation structure
23 important questions on Dimensions of organisation structure
What is horizontal differentiation?
What is vertical differentiation?
What is spatial dispersion?
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What are the 3 components of organisation structure?
2. Formalisation - degree to which jobs are standardised (high = more standardised)
3. Centralisation
What are the arguments for job specialisation?
2. Knowledge limitations
3. Efficiency
4. Training is simplified
5. All workers have unique talents and abilities
What are the most common formalisation techniques used by organisations?
2. Role requirements
3. Rules, procedures and policies
4. Socialisation - individuals learn values, norms and expected behaviour patterns for the job and the organisation
5. Training
6. Rituals
What are the advantages of decentralisation?
2. It can provide more detailed input into decision
3. Can act as motivator as employees feel important in process
4. Creates training opportunity for low-level managers
What are the advantages of centralisation?
2. Some activities (e.g. financial and legal decisions) are carried out more efficiently when centralised
3. When an organisation is under threat, centralisation can be beneficial
What are the different types of coordination?
2. Individual coordination - when situations cannot be anticipated or require a unique solution to a problem
3. Informal coordination - voluntary coordination in an informal setting
What are the 5 core parts of an organisation according to Mintzberg?
2. Strategic apex - top management
3. Middle line - managers who connect the strategic apex to the operating core
4. Technostructure - analysts who develop the means that standardise the work
5. Support staff - indirect support services
What are the 5 organisational structures defined by Mintzberg?
2. The machine bureaucracy (technostructure)
3. The divisional structure (middle line)
4. The professional bureaucracy (operating core)
5. The adhocracy (support staff)
What are the characteristics of a simple structure?
2. Low formalisation
3. High centralisation (in a single person)
4. Typically found in small businesses
5. Organic structure
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the simple structure?
+ Fast decision-making, flexible operations
+ Cheap operation costs
+ Minimum goal ambiguity
- Applicable only to small businesses
- Power concentrated in one person --> authority abuse or lack of skills in leader
What are the characteristics of a machine bureaucracy?
2. High level of functional departmentation
3. Middle managers become overseers of rules, rather than managers of innovation and change
4. High specialisation
5. High formalisation
6. High centralisation
7. Mechanistic structure
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the machine bureaucracy?
+ the departmentation and standardisation leads to economies of scale
+ allows transfer of knowledge within specialist areas
- poor at adapting to change due to change in role manager
- Specialisation creates subunit conflicts
- Transfer of knowledge between specialities is small
- Obsessive concern with following rules
When is the machine bureaucracy most efficient?
What are the characteristics of the divisional structure?
2. Middle management plays key role
3. High specialisation (functional)
4. Low formalisation
5. Low centralisation
6. Mechanistic structure
On what criteria may a company be divided in the divisional structure?
2. Geographic area
3. Customer
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the divisional structure?
+ Frees head office staff from day-to-day tasks, so that they can focus on long-term activities
+ Good vehicle for training of managers
+ Each autonomous division can be sold or disposed of with minimal effect to rest of company
+ Ineffective performance has little effect on other divisions
- Duplication of activities and resources
- Makes cooperation between divisions difficult
- Autonomy can breed resentment in division managers, as they are held accountable but still need to conform to rules from above
- Coordination problems
What are the characteristics of a professional bureaucracy?
2. High complexity
3. Decentralisation
4. Use of internalised professional standards
5. Low formalisation
6. High social specialisation
7. Mechanistic structure
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the professional bureaucracy?
- Subunit conflict
- Specialists are constrained by rules of their profession
- Difficulties coordinating work of various professionals
- Difficulties in setting strategic priorties
What are the characteristics of an adhocracy?
2. Low vertical differentiation
3. Low formalisation
4. Intensive coordination
5. Great flexibility and responsiveness
6. Technostructure almost non-existent
7. Traditional distinction between supervisor and employee is blurred
What are the strengths and weaknesses of an adhocracy?
- Lots of conflict
- Inefficient configuration
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