Week 4

Question 0

What does high formalisation mean?

Answer 0

Individuals have little choice about how to work
Hierarchy of managers deciding other’s work
Examples: bank call centres, supermarkets etc

Question 1

List three elements of organisational structure:

Answer 1

Complexity (horizontal, vertical and spatial differentiation)
Formalisation (degree of discretion)
Centralisation (concentration of authority)

Question 2

What is centralisation?

Answer 2

The extent of centralisation of power and decision making

Inversely related to complexity because increases in complexity must lead to decreases in centralisation

Question 3

Centralisation is ________ related to Complexity

Answer 3

Inversely

Question 4

Centralisation is ________ correlated with formalisation because high formalisation associates with increased complexity.

Answer 4

Weak

Question 5

Who do classic studies of size/structure?

Answer 5

Blau and Aston

Question 6

What were the Aston studies?

Answer 6

Conducted at Aston University. Study of 46 organisations - concluded that increased size is associated with increase in probability of repeated events (establishment of structures and processes to repeat how events are dealt with)

Question 7

Who studied the relationship between technology and structure?

Answer 7

Woodward

Question 8

What are the three different technology types according to Woodward?

Answer 8

1) Unit - the manufacture of custom made products (tailored suit)
2) Mass - the manufacture of standardised products (cars)
3) process - the manufacture of automated continuous products (oil refineries)

Question 9

Summarise the Woodward findings:

Answer 9

Unit - low complexity, low formalisation, high centralisation
Mass - high complexity, high formalisation, high centralisation
Process - low low low

Question 10

What are the Chandler Findings?

Answer 10

Chandler suggests over time organizations become multidivisional but he only looked at large, dominant industrial organisations