Organizing (management)


Organizing or organising is the establishment of effective authority relationships among selected work, persons and work places in order for the group to work together efficiently. Or the process of dividing work into sections and departments.

History

The organizing of information could be seen since humans began to write. Prior to that, history was passed down only through song and word. As can be seen with religion, books and spoken word, science organizing not only is history but also supports the communication of history. organizing involves coordinating and arranging people in order to meet up a set planned objective.

Characteristics

The following are the important characteristics of organization:
Organizing, in companies point of view, is the management function that usually follows after planning. And it involves the assignment of tasks, the grouping of tasks into departments and the assignment of authority with adequate responsibility and allocation of resources across the organization to achieve common goals. Organizing involves the establishment of an intentional structures of roles through determination and enumeration of the activities required to achieve the goals of an enterprise and each part of it,the grouping of these activities, the assignments of such groups of activities to managers,the delegation of authority to carry them out,and provision for coordination of authority and informal relationships,horizontally and vertically,in the organisation.

Structure

The framework in which the organization defines how tasks are divided, resources are deployed, and departments are coordinated.
  1. A set of formal tasks assigned to individuals and departments.
  2. Formal reporting relationships, including lines of authority, decision responsibility, number of hierarchical levels and span of managers control.
  3. The design of systems to ensure effective coordination of employees across departments.

    Work specialization

Work specialization is the degree to which organizational tasks are sub-divided into individual jobs. It may increase the efficiency of workers, but with too much specialization, employees may feel isolated and bored. Many organizations enlarge jobs or rotate assigned tasks to provide greater challenges.

Chain of command

is the vertical lines of a command structure that is used for the purposes of overall responsibility and accountability in the achieving of stated goals and objectives through the use of orders one direction and reports of compliance in the other direction. Chain of command differs from horizontal lines in an organization which are basically the communication and coordinating lines of the organization.
Chain of command states that a clear, unbroken chain of command should link every employee with someone at a higher level, all the way to the top of the organisation.

Authority, responsibility, and accountability

Delegation is the transfer of authority and/or responsibility to others, often lower in position. Delegation can improve flexibility to meet customers’ needs and adapt to competitive environments.
Possible reasons for delegation:
1. Efficiency - many people can complete a task faster than one/few
2. Specialization - delegating simple tasks allows more important/complex tasks to be completed by the most qualified
3. Training - delegating a task to a trainee so that they may learn from experience

Types of authority (and responsibility)

Line authority managers have the formal power to direct and control immediate subordinates. The superior issues orders and is responsible for the result and the subordinate obeys and is responsible only for executing the order according to instructions.
Functional authority is where managers have formal power over a specific subset of activities. For instance, the Production Manager may have the line authority to decide whether and when a new machine is needed but the Controller demands that a Capital Expenditure Proposal is submitted first, showing that the investment will have a yield of at least x%; or, a legal department may have functional authority to interfere in any activity that could have legal consequences. This authority would not be functional but it would rather be staff authority if such interference is "advice" rather than "order".
Staff authority is granted to staff specialists in their areas of expertise. It is not a real authority in the sense that a staff manager does not order or instruct but simply advises, recommends, and counsels in the staff specialists' area of expertise and is responsible only for the quality of the advice It is a communication relationship with management. It has an influence that derives indirectly from line authority at a higher level.
Line and Staff Authority is the combination of Line organization and Staff organization. Such organization follows both the principles of scalar chain of command and there is a provision for specialized activities to be performed by staff officers who act in an advisory capacity

Span of management

Categories:
Factors influencing larger span of management.
  1. Work performed by subordinates is stable and routine.
  2. Subordinates perform similar work tasks.
  3. Subordinates are concentrated in a single location.
  4. Subordinates are highly trained and need little direction in performing tasks.
  5. Rules and procedures defining task activities are available.
  6. Support systems and personnel are available for the managers.
  7. Little time is required in non-supervisory activities such as coordination with other departments or planning.
  8. Managers' personal preferences and styles favor a large span.

    Tall versus flat structure

is the basis on which individuals are grouped into departments and departments into total organizations. Approach options include:
  1. Functional - by common skills and work task
  2. Divisional - common product, program or geographical location
  3. Matrix - combination of Functional and Divisional
  4. Team - to accomplish specific tasks
  5. Network - departments are independent providing functions for a central core breaker

    Importance of organizing