There are several different organizational structures that corporations use today and they all have their advantages and disadvantages. There are however three main organizational structures that are the most common: matrix, boundary-less, and those that maintain organizational learning environments, otherwise known as a learning organization. Matrix organizations themselves are a cross of both a traditional functional structure and a product structure. Employees report both to department managers and also work in projects or product teams allowing for talents and skills to be shared cross-departmentally promoting high levels of communication and cooperation between those departments. Downsides of the matrix structure ,however, There are several different organization structures that corporations use today and they all have their advantages and disadvantages. There are however three main organizational structures that are the most common: matrix, boundary-less, and those that maintain organizational learning environments, otherwise known as a learning organization. Matrix organizations themselves are a cross of both a traditional functional structure and a product structure. Employees report both to department managers and also work in projects or product teams allowing for talents and skills to be shared cross-departmentally promoting high levels of communication and cooperation between those departments. Downsides of the matrix structure however can be significant and
Alternative structures such as grouping by output/product or grouping by market are not options as they would result in “duplication of activities and resources, the erosion of deep technical expertise, missed opportunities for synergies and learning” (Ancona, Kochan, Scully, Van Maanen, & Westney, 2009, p. M2-19). The matrix structure provided a potential positive aspect in that it would provide a needed cross-functional linking mechanism by mixing the functional structure with grouping by output/product, but the complexity, cost, dual systems, and dual roles resulting from the matrix structure historically resulted in either the functional or the output/product system becoming more powerful than the other.
When a firm is rating its processes and products against the best in the world, the firm is practicing:
An organization must align its strategy and structure to allow itself to achieve performance improvements over time. The four different structures, simple, functional, multidivisional, and matrix, are all suited to allow companies with different strategies to succeed but the company must decide which of these is correct for itself. A small start-up company will overburden itself with excessive cost if it seeks to implement a functional structure because it clearly will not have the talent on hand to create whole departments of HR employees or accountants. On the other hand, a company that grows to become a large multi-national
Jeff’s immediate reaction and desire of reassigning Tyler to his new project indicates that not all employees have bought in to or have a functional understanding of the organisation’s matrix
4. Compare and contrast the three organizational structures discussed in the text: functional, project, and matrix. Provide examples that show the difference between the three, including some of the advantages and disadvantages of each.
Organizational structure is the most crucial element for the success of any business. This is because of the way it facilitates and supports the management system of the organization. It is through the structure that specialization and differentiation are attained. For effective management of the employees, different firms employ different structures for the organization that is unique to its operation and the organization culture.
The bureaucratic culture is another weakness in the corporation. The General Motors Corporation employs more than 260 millions staff, which composes a huge and complex organization. The General Motors Corporation had taken the lead in organization. For example, the corporation had injected into matrix organization that combined the functional and project patterns of department in the same corporation in early years. The General Motors Corporation also organized with strategic business unit that classified products and product lines in the same independent business department in ahead of other corporations. The decentralization makes each department a profit centre. However, after ages of development the departments and business units concerns more on their own benefits
BEC has taken on the matrix organizational structure. This type of structure combines functional and divisional organization structure styles. There are advantages and disadvantages in utilizing this
M2: Analyse the advantages and disadvantages of the interrelationships between organizational functions and its impact that can have upon organizational structure.
When it comes to business as any organizations it requires a structure, based on the resources and demands organization can changed or modify their structure. The most common two structures are vertical and horizontal structure which we see every business organization in global market (Bateman & Snell, 2011). In today’s any business organization theirs and important trait is not only the structure, it is the functions within the organization. An organizing function in management highlights the practices individuals use to interact and work with each other. There are many business organizations that are very successful in their own
Effective organizational structures define how job tasks are subdivided, grouped, coordinated, and managed. Six key components of organizational structures include division of labor, departmentalization, chain of command, span of control, centralization, and formalization (Remme, Jones, Van der Heijden, & De Bono, 2008, p. 79). Each element influence how employees interact with each other to reach organizational goals. Different structures are common in similar organizations among high performing organizations (Reimann, 1974, p. 707). The most appropriate structure will depend on the unique needs and culture of the organization.
As seen from figure 2, the matrix organisational structure is complex and aligns functional and divisional organisational structures merged into a hierarchical structure. The student observes that with this comes the potential to on the one hand, improve interdepartmental collaboration through avoiding silo-functioning and yet, on the other hand, blur the unity of command structure in an organisation that can be counterproductive. A critical analysis of two major advantages and disadvantages of this organisational structure here
Manager’s of an organization has to use structure to help the company run efficiently. “The five types of organizational structures are functional, divisional, matrix, team-based, and virtual network” (Draft, 2013, p.316). Functional structure in an organization that is developed by grouping departments by the skills, level of knowledge, activities done daily, and the resource used. “This structure places specific departments from the bottom to the top” (Draft, 2013, p.318). For example, specific departments such as: human resources, accounting, engineering, and manufacturing are placed at the top, while there are mostly seen at the bottom in other organizations. While common functions such as; people, facilities, and other resources are combined together as a single department instead of being divided into multiple departments.
“Every structure should be built to support its work load” This statement supports the use of the organizational chart within the work place, can you begin to imagine the confusion that would exist without it? In a company organizing, is to arrange or to position resources strategically in order to achieve goals. It is imperative for a company to function efficiently, under the use of an organizational structure. An organizational structure provides balance in the work environment and monitors the workflow of all employees. It also provides growth in the organization, in terms of new employment and other major achievements. A company that exist without practicing organizational structure would cause a lot of confusion and chaos as it relates
At least two different organizational structures are identified, described, and compared in terms of their design principles.