Miles and Snow Typology

The relationship between an organization’s strategy and structure are extremely important because it “directly impacts a firm’s performance” (Rothaermel, 2013, p. 309). Also, as an organization grows, it should reevaluate the current strategy and structure to ensure that it remains the optimal choice for the organization (Rothaermel, 2013). The four types of organizational structures, listed in order of least to most complex according to Rothaermel (2013), are: (1) simple, (2)

Organizations must not overlook the environmental factors that are outside of the organization, as they can leave a detrimental imprint on the organization and their attempts to achieve various goals. According to the textbook, “Domain defines the organization’s niche and defines those external sectors with which the organization will interact to accomplish its goals” (Daft, 2013, p. 142). Some of the external sectors include human resources, technology, economic conditions, and financial resources (Daft, 2013). Changing the organization’s domain is a feasible strategy for coping with a threatening environment because it allows the organization to remain competitive when the market changes. Organizations are constantly shifting and doing so in a rapid manner, which makes it even more likely for organizations to become unstable if action is not taken when threating environmental factors occur. Although the process may be difficult, organizations should look into changing the domain to keep up with the speed and volatility of the market. Mergers and acquisitions are two plausible options for organizations to partake in to reduce uncertainty (Daft, 2013). An organization can either purchase an organization to further their operations or merge with another organization to form a more powerful and dynamic organization. For example, Sirius and XM Radio were rivals back in the day, but merged together to provide consumers with Sirius and XM Radio for their vehicles.

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

Hentry Mintzberg and James A Waters give various types of strategies to improve business and business organizations. Their strategies can be summaries into eight. They are planned strategy, Entrepreneurial strategy, Ideological Strategy, Umbrella strategy, Process Strategy, Unconnected Strategy, Consensus Strategy and Imposed Strategy. The strategies can be briefly explained below.

In the article Mintzberg (1984, pp. 66) argues that companies are incorrectly planning strategy through rationale control, the analysis of competitors and markets, and of companies strengths and weaknesses, and combining all of this information to create their “full-blown strategies”. Inkpen & Choudhury (1995) believed that organisations that relied on strict set routines and focused on consistency would then be unable to become innovative and be able to experiment.

In the seventh chapter, the book makes its point through coevolution. Coevolution focuses on interdependent adaptation, the race to adapt to new conditions, and the importance of initial advantage and conditions (Johnson & Russo, 1997). By taking the game theory and the behavioral theory, coevolution bridges the gap and makes the connection between the two theories. Over the course of the first and second section, the book has been building to provide the tool to help managers make better decisions regarding their competitors, the markets in which they compete and outside forces

According to Slack et al. The corporate strategy or business strategy is the guide lines for the whole corporation’s businesses in relation to its markets, customers, and the competitors (2007). In the same context, the same authors discussed the link between the corporate strategy and

According to Miles et al. (1978, p. 547), an organization is both its purpose and the mechanism constructed to achieve the purpose. It means that the concept of organization is embracing both goals and all the elements that represent unique combination. Miles et al. (1978, p. 553) draws the conclusion that structure and the processes taking place inside the organization are closely aligned; it is hard to speak about one without mentioning the other. It is important to understand the conclusion drawn by Miles et al. (1978). It illustrates how the

Porter (1980) created a model which considers five important forces (Porters five forces) which aims to establish a profitable and sustainable position against the forces that determine industry competition, therefore position themselves within it and differentiating themselves where necessary in order to strategically gain a competitive advantage - this model gives vision of: Threat of new entrants, Threat of substitute products or services, Bargaining power of customers , Bargaining power of suppliers and Intensity of competitive rivalry (Porter 1980). Using models and academic theory like this allows strategy to be formed through a rational and an analytical process. Chandlers (1962) cited in (Lomash 2003) suggests the analytical process is about the determination of long-term clear goals, adopting actions to achieve these goals and then building the resources within the organization around this strategy in order to ensure it succeeds. Johnson (2005), likewise, simply suggested a three step approach to strategy - analysis, choice and implementation which goes hand-in-hand with intended strategy.

Functional structures are proved to operate well in stable environments where business strategies are less inclined to changes or dynamism, the amount of bureaucracy makes it tough for organizations to respond to changes in the market quickly.

Strategy can be defined as being different from one’s competitors, finding the race to operate and accomplished it. According to Michael Porter (1996), while becoming better at what you do is desirable, it will not benefit you in the long run because it is something other competitors can also do. Strategies for organizations are originally developed by Michael E. Porter in 1979 by introducing the five forces model. A company can identify the industry profitability and attractiveness by analyzing the five forces of Porter (Johnson et al., 2008). And then a reasonable strategy can be set up in line with the strengths and the weakness of an organization is able to create a plan for a stronger position for the organization within its

* In entrepreneurial school of thought the strategy making is formulated by a single person i.e. the CEO, so it may neglects the voice of other people in the organization.

In the business world, strategy is probably the most often used and the most often confused term. The article ‘Why Business Models Matter’ clarifies and elaborates on crucial element of any organization. The Author, who also wrote, ‘What Management is’ asserts that the business model and strategy is the basis of any organization whether it be profit or non-profit. Magretta shows the outlines of business model and strategy. To make a big success in business, the first step is making a business model, when making a new business model, managers must think about all possible outcomes. She goes on further in the article to give examples successful organizations and their use of strategies to compete within the industry.

After reading the case of the “Paradoxical Twins Acme and Omega Electronics”, I found Both Acme and Omega produce similar products and offer similar services. Acme president John Tyler is a very tough going individual and he is portrayed to be an autocratic individual because there is one way communication in Acme. The case provides an opportunity to evaluate both Acme and Omega’s organization structure of a business. Both companies used to have the same organizational structure but after they were sold to different investors, as a consequence of this, each company has its own procedures and company

Thus, strategy changes are inevitable in all organizations leading to structure and designing changes. Along with the changing policies the theories of organizational behaviour keep evolving. Hence we have traditional classical theories on one hand while modern contingency approaches on other hand. In this essay, I will explore and discuss classical and contingency theories along with their contributions and limitations with the help of contemporary organizational practices of businesses like McDonalds and Walgreen. The conclusion will be the result of evaluation of various theories and thus answering the question which is the best structure and designing approach for an organization?