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Lesson#4
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Unique Attributes of Organization
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Unique Attributes of Organization
Organizations can be distinguished on the basis of various
criteria. These are as follows.
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Organizational structure
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Culture of the
Organizations
•
Management Style
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Decision Making Style
4.1 Organizational Structure Pyramid/Tall/Hierarchical
4.1.1 Hierarchical organization
A
hierarchical
organization
is organization
structured in a way such that every entity in the
organization, except one, is subordinate to a single other
entity. This is the dominant mode of
organization among large organizations; most corporations and
governments are hierarchical
organizations
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Low number of
subordinates per supervisor
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Long chain of command
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Greater number of levels
4.1.2 Organizational Structure
Flat
Flat organization refers to an organizational structure with few
or no levels of intervening management
between staff and managers. The idea is that well-trained
workers will be more productive when they are
more directly involved in the decision making process, rather
than closely supervised by many layers of
management.
This structure is generally possible only in smaller
organizations or individual units within larger
organizations. When they reach a critical size, organizations
can retain a streamlined structure but cannot
keep a completely flat manager-to-staff relationship without
impacting productivity. Certain financial
responsibilities may also require a more traditional structure.
Some theorize that flat organizations
become more traditionally hierarchical when they begin to be
geared towards productivity.
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Following are the characteristics of a flat organization.
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High number of
subordinates per supervisor
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Short of chain of
command
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Less number of levels
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Eliminates middle level
managers
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Decentralizes authority
to low level managers
4.1.3 Culture of the Organization
Organizational culture is the specific collection of values and
norms that are shared by people and groups in
an organization and that control the way they interact with each
other and with stakeholders outside the
organization. Organizational values are beliefs and ideas about
what kinds of goals members of an
organization should pursue and ideas about the appropriate kinds
or standards of behavior
organizational members should use to achieve these goals. From
organizational values develop
organizational norms, guidelines or expectations that prescribe
appropriate kinds of behavior by
employees in particular situations and control the behavior of
organizational members towards one
another.
Culture is set of Fundamental Assumptions that exist and grow
with the organization. It’s not publicly
announced but spoken about within the organization. It is a
combination of implicit values that keep the
organization together. It is essential that the employees
understand the culture-What drives the
organization.
4.2 Management Styles
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Authoritative
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Participative
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Mixed
4.2.1 Authoritative
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An Autocratic or
authoritarian manager makes all the decisions, keeping the information and
decision making among the senior management. Objectives and
tasks are set and the workforce is
expected to do exactly as required. The communication involved
with this method is mainly
downward, from the leader to the sub-ordinate critics such as
Elton Mayo have argued that this
method can lead to a decrease in motivation from the employee's
point of view. The main
advantage of this style is that the direction of the business
will remain constant, and the decisions
will all be similar, this in turn can project an image of a
confident, well managed business. On the
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other hand, subordinates may become highly dependent upon the
leaders and supervision may be
needed. Decisions are taken centrally by the senior management
themselves and are enforced at all
levels.
4.2.2 Participative
In a
Democratic
style, the manager allows the
employees to take part in decision-making: therefore
everything is agreed by the majority. The communication is
extensive in both directions (from subordinates
to leaders and vice-versa). This style can be particularly
useful when complex decisions need to be made
that require a range of specialist skills: for example, when a
new computerized system needs to be put in
place and the upper management of the business is
computer-illiterate. From the overall business's point of
view, job satisfaction and quality of work will improve.
However, the decision-making process is severely
slowed down, and the need of a consensus may avoid taking the
'best' decision for the business.
4.2.3 Mixed
The approach is a combination of both authoritative and
participative style. Input from employees is taken
and respected, final decision is taken by the senior management
keeping in view the views given by the
employees.
4.3 Decision Making Approach
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Structured
Procedures are predefined for solving routine repetitive
problems
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Non-structured
When problems require individual judgment, evaluation and
insight varying on case-to-case basis
4.4 Sources of information in Organizations
There can be sources of information both internal and external
to the organization. Following is a list of
important sources.
Internal External
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Staff meetings
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Formal reporting systems
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Project proposals
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Research results
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Employee Surveys
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Persuasive interviews
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Loan applications
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Purchasing agreements
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Advertisement
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Distribution Contracts
Table 4.1
4.5 Direction of Information Flow
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Ideal Information Network in an Organization
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Periodically updated /
continuously updated – the information should be updated so that whenever
accessed, the user should be fully informed.
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Efficient Processing –
data should not be kept unprocessed for long. Timely processing helps in
effective decision making.
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Value driven – the
information kept in a computerised system should add value to the user’s
knowledge.
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Audience Centred – every
one should receive that part of information that is relevant to the user.
Conclusion
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Availability of timely
and accurate information helps in proper decision making and meeting the
organizational goals.
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Information should be
tailored in accordance with the organization’s culture and structure. |
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