flexible organisations

• what is a flexible organisation?

  able to adapt and respond relatively quickly to changes in its external environment in order to gain advantage and sustain its competitive position
• benefits to a business having a flexible organisation

  • More likely to be efficient & productive (impact on unit costs)

  • More likely to respond to and meet changing customer needs and wants

  • Improved decision-making (better informed and quicker)

  • The organisation can concentrate on its core competencies rather than trying to undertake every business activity

  • A more attractive place to work for the best people

  • Essentially – more likely to identify and respond to the need for change – before it is too late to change
• Restructuring

  Businesses of any size or complexity often find it necessary to restructure the way they operate.

  usually involves changing the organisational structure, both in terms of the type of structure and layers.
• Restructuring also involves decisions about:

  • Activities are undertaken directly by a business

  • Where activities are undertaken

  • Activities that are outsourced to external suppliers
• Delayering can offer a number of advantages to business:

  • It offers opportunities for better delegation, empowerment and motivation as the number of managers is reduced and more authority passed down the hierarchy

  • It can remove departmental rivalry if department heads are removed and the workforce is organised more in teams

  • It can reduce costs as fewer (expensive) managers are required • It can encourage innovation

  • It brings managers into closer contact with the business’ customers – which should (in theory) result in better customer service
• disadvantages exist too, making a decision to delayer less clear cut:

  • Not all organisations are suited to flatter organisational structures - mass production industries with low-skilled employees may not adapt easily

  • Delayering can have a negative impact on motivation due to job losses, especially if it is really just an excuse for redundancies

  • A period of disruption may occur as people take on new responsibilities and fulfil new roles

  • Those managers remaining will have a wider span of control which, if it is too wide, can damage communication within the business.
• Flexible Employment Contracts

  Part-time working, Term-time working, Working from home, Flexitime, Career breaks, Job sharing, Annual hours contracts, Mobile working, Shift swapping
• businesses are increasingly likely to offer employees one or more flexible working options. for example:

  • Savings on costs

  • As a way of helping with recruitment and staff retention.

  • To reflect the changing profile of the UK workforce. There are more women in the labour market and an ageing population –

  • To take advantage of developments in technology

  • An increasing need for businesses to be able to deliver services to customers on a 24/7 basis

  • To meet employment legislation
• concerns that employers often raise about flexible working

  • Additional administrative work and “red-tape” involved in setting up and running flexible working

  • The potential loss of customers if key employees reduce their working hours

  • Lower employee productivity

  • Inability to substitute for certain skills if certain employees are absent

  • Managers finding it difficult to manage or administer the flexibility
• Organic Structures

  Informality

  Flexible and fluid (easy to change)

  Favours informal (e.g.) verbal communication

  Associated with decentralised decision-making & employee empowerment

  Find change easier to handle
• Mechanistic Structures

  More formality & bureaucratic

  Associated with centralised decision-making & supervision Reliance on formal communication methods

  Favours standardised policies and procedures

  Little perceived need to change

  Greater resistance to change when implemented