ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

Organizational structure determines how the roles, power and responsibilities are assigned, controlled, and coordinated, and how information flows between the different levels of management.

A. Division of LaborAlso known as the work specialization, is the breaking down of work into simple repetitive tasks to eliminate unessential motion and confines the handling of different tools and parts.

Worker 1TaskAssignment 1

Worker 2TaskAssignment 2

Worker 3TaskAssignment 3

Worker 4TaskAssignment 4

Employees tend to become very expert at their respective tasks because of doing the same task repetitively thus increasing his efficiency and productivity

Individuals performing mundane and repetitious tasks would lead to an ignorant, dissatisfied work force

Advantages:

Decline in the cost of staffing, training and compensation since highly experienced workers were often no longer essential

Disadvantages

Fatigue, stress, boredom, low quality products, absenteeism and turnover

B. DEPARTMENTALIZATION:It is the categorizing of jobs under the supervision of a sole manager, based on some logical bases for the purposes of planning, coordination and control.

1. FUNCTIONAL DEPARTMENTALIZATION

Includes grouping parallel jobs into their own function, like accounting , sales human resources, information system and engineering. Divisions may also be made by occupational groupings

Creates a career ladder based on superior performance through promotion

ADVANTAGES:

Easy communication and sharing of information

Quick and effective decisions in solving problems because of having the same perspective

Makes it easier for people in the same discipline to improve their skills and abilities

Facilitates ease in monitoring performance evaluation for supervisor

Allows performance evaluation for group members to monitor and control one another’s behavior and performance levels

Creates teamwork that encourages high performance

Serving needs of different regions by only a single functional department becomes difficult as companies grow and expand their operations

DISADVANTAGES

Results in limited outlook because of distinctiveness of each department

Reduced cooperation and communication may happen because of many layers of hierarchy

a. PRODUCT DIVISION is product departmentalization, which considers organizing around an enterprise’s product portfolio. Each product division contains the functions necessary to that service the specific goods or services it produces.

2. DIVISIONAL

Is the grouping of common product, market (customers) or geographical location. By segmenting according to the different products, the different customers served or the different geographical locations which the entity operates, it will not be difficult to monitor all the company’s products and activities.

c. GEOGRAPHIC DIVISION services customers according to different geographic areas like regional, national or international level.

b. MARKET DIVISION functions into divisions that can be receptive to the needs of specific types of customers.

Conflicts among divisions may arise as they compete for organizational resources and may even address their objectives at the expense of organizational ones.

ADVANTAGES:

Quality products and customer service

Facilitates communication that result in improved decision making, which led to increasing performance.

Regional managers are well positioned to be responsive to local situations

Facilitates teamwork among employees

Having obtained a common identity and strategy to solving problems, their binding heightens, and the result is better decision making.

Easy for organizations to evaluate and reward the performance of each division and their managers

Regional operations can be evaluated toward another by corporate managers which could facilitate sharing of ideas between regions and looking ways to better performance.

Regional managers and employees will find it natural to give customized service.

Increase the employees’ commitment, loyalty, and job satisfaction.

DISADVANTAGES:

High operating and managing costs for the organization.

Divisional structures with more managers and more levels of management hierarchy, poor communication may arise during coordination of their activities.

Is mix functional and divisional and is used by highly technical organizations for projects with specific time frame.

3. MATRIX

In practice the individual member of organization has two bosses – a functional boss and a product boss

ADVANTAGES:

•Some employees may not have a strong commitment to temporary assignment

•Violates unity of command because the employees have two bosses simultaneously for a period of time.

•Limited opportunities for promotion

•High levels of work stress because of role conflict and ambiguity

•Increase role conflict and vulnerable to role ambiguity

DISADVANTAGES:

•Provides a work setting that empowers each employee for their work activities.

•Facilitates solving problems through team brainstorming

•Ease innovation and creativity

•Maximizes communication and cooperation between team members

•It eases speedy product development

•It supports the development of specialized technical expertise while spreading out this expertise to the most appropriate operational areas

Is one of the recent organizational structures developed in the 20th century. It is created usually for the purpose of accomplishing specific tasks.

4. TEAM

Is another timely and modern structure. Big businesses become too risky and difficult to manage. This is the reason why big firms outsource business function that can be done better and lesser in cost. Basically, managers in network structures consume most of their time coordinating and controlling external relations, usually via electronic ways.

5. NETWORK

Is a special type of boundaryless organization. It works in a network of external alliances, using the internet. Basically, the core of organization can be small but still the company can be market leader globally in its niche. The web has an unlimited shelf space that the cost of selling niche goods is really decreasing. Using this type of structure, companies make good profit even if they do not sell in bulk.

6. BOUNDARYLESS STRUCTUREThe most advance idea in today’s organizational structure is the concept of boundarylessness. This is a mix of team and network structure, plus being temporary in nature. A company under this kind of structure works hand in hand with suppliers by giving technical support, leasing them equipment, and giving advice. It implements low-cost focused strategy.

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