An organizational
structure consists of activities such as task allocation, coordination and
supervision, which are directed towards the achievement of organizational aims.
It can also be considered as the viewing glass or perspective through which
individuals see their organization and its environment.
An
organization can be structured in many different ways, depending on their
objectives. The structure of an organization will determine the modes in which
it operates and performs.
Organizational
structure affects organizational action in two big ways. First, it provides the
foundation on which standard operating procedures and routines rest. Second, it
determines which individuals get to participate in which decision-making
processes, and thus to what extent their views shape the organization’s
actions.
Organizational
structures developed from the ancient times of hunters and collectors in tribal
organizations through highly royal and clerical power structures to industrial
structures and today's post-industrial structures.
The early
theorists of organizational structure - Taylor, Fayol, and Weber saw the importance
of structure for effectiveness and efficiency and assumed without the slightest
question that whatever structure was needed, people could fashion accordingly. Organizational
structure was considered a matter of choice... When in the 1930s, the rebellion
began that came to be known as human relations theory, there was still not a
denial of the idea of structure as an artefact, but rather an advocacy of the
creation of a different sort of structure, one in which the needs, knowledge,
and opinions of employees might be given greater recognition." However, a
different view arose in the 1960s, suggesting that the organizational structure
is "an externally caused phenomenon, an outcome rather than an artefact.
What are the
ways through which Organization action is affected by Organization Structure?
a) Laying the foundation on which standard operating procedures and routines
rest.
b) Determines which individuals get to participate in which
decision-making processes, and thus to what extent their views shape the
organization’s actions.
What an
Organizational structure like be?
Organizational
structures shall be adaptive to process requirements, aiming to optimize the
ratio of effort and input to output.
TYPES OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES
a) Functional
Organization
The
structure is divided on the basis of the functions they perform in an
organization. For example, functional divisions of an organization tend to
perform a specialized set of tasks, for instance the engineering department
would be staffed only with software engineers.
This
leads to operational efficiencies within that group and increases the productivity.
However it could also lead to a lack of communication between the functional
groups within an organization, making the organization slow and inflexible.
b) Product/Market/Divisional Organization
This type of
structure brings
together in one work unit all those involved in the production and marketing of
a product or a related group of products, all those in a certain geographic
area, or all those dealing with a certain type of customer.
It Can follow three patterns as described below:
As shown
the categorization (division) has been done on the basis of broad category of
products. And each category of related group of products has its own marketing,
sales, purchasing and inventory manager.
Geographical organization is logical when a
plant must be located as close as possible to sources of raw materials, to
major markets, or to specialized personnel.
c) Matrix Organization/ Multiple Command System
An
example would be a company that produces two products, "product a"
and "product b".
Using the
matrix structure, this company would organize functions within the company as
follows:
"product
a" sales department, "product a" customer service department,
"product a" accounting department.
"product
b" sales department, "product b" customer service department,
"product b" accounting department.
Without
having an organizing structure company cannot take a step forward. We can take
an example of AMUL without the guidance of Dr. Verghese Kurien the
path to success for AMUL may not be the same. Dr. Verghese Kurien is just
an illustration the key people from his company plays an equal important role.
Behind
the success of a company there is a more successful organizational structure.
And talking about the failures lack of a proper guidance is the main reason and organizational structure for
poor performance of a company.