¶ … organization? (reading outline - summary of the reading)
Do you have a well-designed organization?
Organizational design
Rarely the result of planning
When things go wrong very difficult to change
Better to start with a good organizational design
A practical framework is needed for organizational design and redesign
Nine separate tests
Fit tests
Good design tests
Fit tests
Market advantage
Does it fit your marketing strategy and segmentation approach?
Also must support key sources of market advantages
Parenting advantage: Does it help add value to the parent organization and stem from core competencies?
People: Does it reflect the strengths (and weaknesses) and motivations of the organization's people?
Look at key players
Look at key job descriptions
D. Feasibility: What external and internal constraints could affect the organizational design?
Government regulations
Interests of shareholders
State of information systems
4. Corporate culture
III. Refining the design tests
A. Specialist cultures: If the organization had distinct cultures, does it reflect them and allow them to be maintained as a source of strength?
B. Difficult links: To what extent does the design protect the organization by coordinating difficult (self-managed) units?
C. Redundancy hierarchy: To what extent does the design eliminate too many levels and units which can result in needless bureaucracy? Extra layers translate into additional costs
1. Ask yourself -- to what extent does each level add value and is unique to its parent unit?
2. Ask yourself -- does each unit have access to the resource sit has to function well?
D. Accountability: Does the design allow for effective controls and monitoring?
E. Flexibility: Does the design allow for the creation of new strategies?
1. List new opportunities and ask yourself the extent to which the organization can respond to these needs
2. Identify aspects of the organization which require change and identify areas of change resistance
IV. Conclusion
A. Run through these 'tests' twice
B. Going back through the tests may reveal additional design flaws.
Reference
Goold, M & Campbell, A. (2002). Do you have a well-designed organization? HBR.
Retrieved from:
http://hbr.org/2002/03/do-you-have-a-well-designed-organization/ar/1
