Week 6 - Structure and Culture of organisations Flashcards
Give 3 reasons as to why Restructuring may occur.
- Traditional (Tall/complicated) hierarchy reinforces inflexibility and impedes communication.
- To become more flexible and agile.
- Cultural change (e.g. customer focus, move to team work, change to Agile programming) is impossible without structural change.
Define a formal organisation.
The pattern of relationships and tasks defined by official rules, policies and systems. Often depicted in hierarchy diagrams ie, Organisation Charts.
Define an informal organisation.
Social grops develp behaviour patterns, beliefs and objectives which are different from the requirements of the formal organisation, e.g. informal channels of communication.
What are Handy’s four main culture types?
Power Culture, Role Culture, Task Culture, Person Culture
Define Centralisation
Centralisation is when those at the top of the organisation make most decisons, with those at middle and lower levels following the policies thus established.
Define De-Centralisation
Decentralisation is when a relatively large number of decisions are made by those working at middle and lower levels.
What are the benefits of its Centralisation?
Avoids duplication of processes, Allows central co-ordination and control of expensive resources, Enables economies of scale, Enables people to respond consistently
What are the benefits of De-Centralisation?
Brings decision making closer to the areas affected, Allows more local autonomy which may improve motivation.
What is the advantage of Specialisation within an organisation?
By specialising, people working on related tasks develop proficiency, knowledge and expertise, raising organisational effiency.
What are the three common types of specialisation?
Funtional, Geographical and Product/Service
