Management Theory
Compare and contrast centralized and decentralized decision-making. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?
In centralized decision-making, the organizational hierarchy has a top-down structure. It can keep communication costs low and may be best when different parts of the company have different needs, resulting in complicated conflicts of interest. Decentralized decision-making complicates communication to some degree but allows the company to make maximum use of specialized or localized knowledge, or to tap into the creative skills of individual employees. It can also be used to increase employee motivation.
What changes has your organization made in response to environmental uncertainty? Give specific examples, and explain how these responses will help your organization.
Retail bookselling has encountered environmental uncertainty in two ways. The trend has been toward bigger and bigger stores offering more and more services, and the industry has had to cope with the rise of online book sales, often at a significant discount. The move toward bigger and bigger bookstores has forced many smaller, independent bookstores out of business, resulting in less selection. Bookstores have capitalized on this problem by offering more books online. They do not have to have these "lower demand" books in every store, making them profitable. Along with the trend to bigger stores, content has branched out. Barnes and Noble stores now include a small gift section, a large magazine section, movie DVD's, music CD;'s, and even snack bars or a small branch of Starbuck's. These wider choices draw customers in who can't get a latte online and let them provide a computer presence to compete with such organizations as Amazon.com.
3. What are your organization's values? How do the values and culture of your organization correspond to its structure? Explain.
At the core of Barnes and Noble's values is service. In today's competitive atmosphere, where people can buy books without ever leaving their homes, Barnes and Noble offers human assistance. The employee structure in stores is geared toward customer service. You do not see B & N. employees so tied up with shelving books that they cannot help a customer. They are encouraged to leave that task and see if they can help any customers in the vicinity. They have computer kiosks where employees can rapidly help a customer find a book either within the store or online through Barnes and Noble. This requires a centralized organizational structure so all stores will conform to the company's standards. However, each store will also have books of local interest, and the feedback of local employees facilitates the decisions regarding which of those books to stock.
4. Describe the organizational structure in your organization (or one with which you are familiar). Does the organization's current structure support its competitive position? If so, why? If not, what changes would you recommend (and why)?
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