Organizational Structures

Organization

A systematic grouping of individuals which have been brought together to accomplish a common goal.

Systematic Structures

Define the various roles of members; set limits on employee work behavior; create rules and regulations; vary widely from organization to organization; adapt to the enviroment in which an organization is located.

Operative Employees

Make up the base level of the pyramid; produce an organization's goods and services; generally do not manage or oversee the work of other employees.

Supervisors

Part of an organization's management team; oversee the work of operative employees; are the only managers who do not manage other managers; considered first-level managers.

MIddle Managers

Employees who manage other managers; responsible for establishing and achieving the goals of their specific department or region set by top management.

Top Management

Sets an organization's goals and objectives; develops methods for achieving goals and objectives; is the head of the organization

The Management Process

Refers to accomplishing goals and objectives effectively and efficiently; involves using your resources competently; always has an end goal of achievement; accomplished through a specific organizational structure.

Organizational Structures

Arrange and group jobs based on specific tasks in order to enhance efficiency; increase the effectiveness of communication and reporting.

Informal Structures

Are laid-back and undefined; involve employees completing tasks which may not alwyas fit their job description; normally found in smaller businesses with fewer employees.

Formal Structures

Clearly defined and organized; can be found in any size business.

Work Specialization

Occurs when a job is broken down into a number of steps which are each completed by a different individual.

Span Of Control

The number of employees a supervisor can direct; varies from supervisor to supervisor.

Chain Of Command

The prnciple in which an employee should have only one supervisor to whom he or she is responsible; decreases conflicting demands and priorities.

Authority

Refers to the rights of a supervisory position to give orders; one person's position over another.

Line Authority

The most straightforward form of authority; gives the supervisor the right to direct the work of his or her employees without consulting other.

Staff Authority

Supports line authority; allows others to advise, service and assist the supervisor if needed; allows for input and suggestions from additional staff members, but does not guarantee implementation.

Functional Authority

Signifies the rights over individuals outside of an individual's specific division; breaks the chain of command.

Centralization

Occurs when only a select few people at the top of an organization make the decisions.

Decentralization

Occurs when decisions are made by the indiciduals who are the closest to the problem; more conductive to making changes in a process.

Departmentalization

The grouping of individuals into departments based on work functions, product or service, target market, geographic territory and process used to create products.

Functional Departmentalization

Groups activities with similar functions by units or departments; can be used in all types of organizations; reflects the purpose of the company.

Product Departmentalization

Divides the organization by the products or services it produces and then subdvides each department by its function; works well for companies with multiple product lines.

Target Market Departmentalization

Groups activities around common customer categories; uses the assumpion that customers in each department have a common set of problems and needs can be met by having specialists for each.

Geographic Departmentalization

Divides activities into segments based on location; mainly used when an organization's customers are spread over a large geographic area.

Process Departmentalization

Groups activities based on work or customer flow; provides a basis for the homogeneous categorizing of activities.

Simple Structure

Non-elaborate structure; has little formalizaion; has a centralized authority.

Functional Structure

Expansion of functional departmentalization; groups employees with similar and related occupational specialties; used as a framework for an entire company.

Divisional Structure

Composed of self-contained units or divisions; builds on product departmentalization; creates divisions which are self-sufficient within given limits; constructs divisions which are run by division managers or supervisors.

Matrix Organization

Combines the elements of functional and product-based departmentalization creating a dual chain of command; employees have at least two bosses; authority is shared between two supervisors; involves regular communication.

Team-based Structure

Consists entirely of work groups and teams which perfom an organization's work; allows team members to have authority to make the decisions which will affect them; has no chain-of-command.

Boundaryless Organization

Not defined of limited by boundaries or categories imposed by a traditional structure; blurs boundaries surrounding an organization by increasing its interdependence with its enviroment.

Learning Organizations

Have developed a capacity to continuously adapt and change because members take an active role in identifying and resolving work-place issues; employees must collaborate on work activities throughout the organization and have a team oriented work ethic.