Organisational structures

Question 1

What are organisation charts?

Answer 1

Organisation charts are diagrams
that show the internal structure
of the business.

They make it easy to identify the specific
roles and responsibilities of staff.

They also show how different roles relate to
one another and the structure of departments within the whole company.

Question 2

Businesses have to organise themselves to be able to carry out their activities effectively. It is important that everyone in the organisation knows:

Answer 2

• What their duties are
• The person or people that they have to report to
• The other employees in the organisation for whom they are responsible

Question 3

What is Griffin Engineering?

Answer 3

The departments in the business are organised by function. This means that each department has a specific job to do.

Question 4

What is purchasing department?

Answer 4

The purchasing department are responsible for buying in the materials which are needed to make the components.

Question 5

What is the sales department?

Answer 5

The sales department are responsible for finding customers to buy the components.

Question 6

What is the personnel department?

Answer 6

The personnel department will carry out all the jobs connected with recruitment, training and relations with the workforce.

Question 7

What is the IT and research department?

Answer 7

The IT and research department responsibility for helping all other departments when they need it.

Question 8

What does this chart tell us?

Answer 8

• The shop floor workers are responsible to and report to team leaders, who are their line managers
• The team leaders report to managers, with each manager being responsible for a group of team leaders
• Managers report to individual directors who report to the chief executive or managing director (MD)
• The chief executive (CEO) or MD has ultimate authority (power) within the business

Question 9

There are a number of factors that influence a manager’s decision on whether to have a tall or flat structure such as:

Answer 9

• The skills of the workforce
• The management style used in the business
• The business’s competitive environment

Question 10

Which structure would use a delegation approach and which would use an authoritarian approach?

Answer 10

A tall structure would be more authoritative and a flat structure would be a more delegated approach. Tall structures has a narrow span of control whereas a flat structure has a wider span of control.

Question 11

How can you communicate within a business?

Answer 11

• Meetings
• Video conferencing
• Telephone
• Emails
• Intranets
• Other forms of written communication such as letters or faxes

Question 12

Three types of communication:

Answer 12

• Downwards - from senior to junior
• Upwards - from junior employees to their line managers and other senior employees
• Horizontal - employees on the same level

Question 13

What does the term centralisation mean?

Answer 13

Where decisions are made at the centre of the organisation and then passed down the chain of command.

Question 14

What does the term
Decentralisation
mean?

Answer 14

When decision making is pushed down the hierarchy (local level) and away from the centre of the organisation.