Organisational Desgin

• what is organisational design?

  planning an appropriate structure to help a business to achieve its objectivws
• what is organisational structure?

  the way the workforce is organised
• what is organisational chart?

  a visual representation of the structure of the workforce
• what is a chain of command?

  the path that messages take down through the organisational hierchay
• what is span of control?

  the number of subordinates that a manager is in direct control of
• what is a flat organisational structure?

  a business that has few levels in its hierarchy. each manager has a wide span of control
• what is a tall organisational structure?

  a business has many levels in its hierarchy. managers have a narrow span of control
• what is a hierarchy?

  A system or organization in which people or groups are ranked one above the other according to status or authority.
• what is a functional hierarchy?

  a business where employees are grouped by departement
• what is a matrix organisational structure?

  a business where teams are put together from different functional areas to work on specific projects
• what is delayering?

  removing one or more levels of hierarchy from the organisational structure
• advantages of a tall structure?

  • close supervision
  • roles are specialist
  • improved productivity
  • good opportunity for promotion
• disadvantages of tall structures?

  • slow communication
  • increased cost of labour
  • employees may feel limited
• advantages of flat structures?

  • quick communication
  • improved motivation
  • lower labour costs
• disadvantages of flat structures?

  • increased manager stress
  • no promotions
  • hard to monitor quality
• advantages of a matrix structure?

  • better decision making
  • increased flexibility
  • skill development
• disadvantages of a matrix structure?

  • risk of power struggles
  • role ambiguity
• how to choose the most suitable structure?

  • size of business
  • skill if employee
  • leadership style
  • external environment
  • corporate culture
• why would a business delayer?

  • to cut costs
  • to speed up communication
• advantages of delayering?

  • lower labour costs
  • faster communication
  • higher motivation
• disadvantages of delayering?

  • de motivating if de promoted
  • less opportunity for promotion
  • affects labour productivity in short term
  • spam of control is increased