Nowadays we
can observe different trends in organization structures and their smooth
transitions . Companies must adapt to market trends to be competitive . Those
who do not want or cannot see the need of change are quickly forgotten. What
types of organizations can be distinguished ? I will try to show you the most
popular types of organizations along with my opinion of their ability to change
.
Vertical
This type
of structure is called a classical structure, in which roles of managers and
their subordinates are strongly
classified. Historically these organizations show the medieval model of a ruler
and a subject. Relationships between staff are also heavily influenced
by management . In such
organization low-level decisions are taken fairly quickly while important decisions that require
intervention of senior level staff take too much time, and the communication
path is strongly formalized . Typical representatives of this hierarchy are:
banking institutions , offices , countries (depending on the political system )
and religions .
The
organization of this type does not like to change. If changes occur, they are
very laborious , lengthy and encounter resistance amongst senior managers . Such
a model occurs typically in companies with a very strong market position and a very
good financial condition.
Flat
This is
another structure with a rich historical background . It shows a model of the
factory or the army, where there are little commanders and many contractors. In
such an organization the work is determined and planned together with a team ,
and the manager has a controlling role. Decisions in the organization of the
flat structure are taken fairly quickly. Problems occur when it grows into a very
big team, communication fails and the scope of activities of team members is
too wide. Typical examples of such hierarchies are military units , factories ,
small and medium businesses employing up to 50 people , companies aspiring to transform
into corporation .
Such
organizations are quite flexible. Flat hierarchy allows continuous change which
is initiated by the market without interfering in the operation and internal
structure of the company. Such a model exists in small companies and in
companies with less capital or startups with some work experience.
Matrix
It is quite
a young type of hierarchy structure , made in the late 80s. Such organizations
do not have much formalized relationships between management and employees . This
organization has one goal : to do its job best with the smallest share and
influence of executives. This does not mean the absence of "governance"
as the role of the head of the company exists and the most important decisions
and the functioning of the company depends on that person. It is difficult to
define examples of such organizations, because their shape changes with the
development of the company , but most of the new companies engaged in
programming.
In the case
of matrix structure we cannot talk about stability because such companies adapt constantly to
specific customers and market trends. Flexibility of the company is its biggest
advantage and disadvantage because in the case of long-term existence on the
market and the systematic expansion of the company there is a need to formalize
.
Questions:
1 Which business
models presented above would be the best and the most suitable for you ?
2 If you
found a company ,which model would you choose to manage it: the lack of a
formal structure or hierarchy ?
Source:
Rusell L. Ackoff, Jason Magidson, Herbert J. Addison
„Projektowanie ideału – Kształtowanie przyszłości organizacji”, ISBN
978-83-60501-73-3
In my opinion flat organisation is the most suitable for me. I like clear rules and responsibilities, without changing in time. I think this is opposition to the matrix where everything change when new project is starting . For sure structure in organization depends on areas for action. Small programing companies developing apps for sure can work in matrix and do it well. Big companies like banks have to be stable for responsibility reason so the best chose is vertical but i think also flat.
ReplyDeleteChoosing the type of organisation depends on question what would do my company. I would like to build big things so more stable would be better choice.
It is true that model of organization depends on what you want to achieve as a fresh or experienced entrepreneur.
ReplyDelete1 Which business models presented above would be the best and the most suitable for you ?
ReplyDeleteFlat is usable in small companies where the line of command is simple and everyone has some responsibilities. Things change when You have to work on a bigger project, involving many different people from different departments etc, then matrix is necessary. Would it work for me, well it works for me now so I think this answers the question.
2 If you found a company ,which model would you choose to manage it: the lack of a formal structure or hierarchy ?
Lack of formal structure would mean that this company is run by one person - me. Then it would work perfectly. Otherwise, You need clear structure (even is flat) to make everything work.
Well, you mixed a little bit division of organization structure types. Should be categorized this way:
ReplyDelete-flat and vertical structures
-line, line-staff, functional(U structcutre), matrix, process structures
1. There are two main discrimination factors whether structure is flat or vertical:
-the number of management levels
-span of control
2. In the second group there are multiple factors:
- relation between employee and manager
- number of commandship centers
- responsibilites division
You write about the hardest topics to respond to while being a freelancer! Goddamn. Well, my dream job is having few people helping my bigger projects to come true, so I guess the flat, clear structure would be perfect for this. Right now, a have a flat, clear structure of "yes, mr client, I will do what you want, please pay me".
ReplyDelete@Martyna Zych
ReplyDeleteBut what kind of company would you like to fund?
@armandstanczak
Not every time clear structure can mean clean work or proper way of developing projects. I work in matrix-styled organization but whole company is self-organised and everyone know what to do.
@Tomasz
I agree with you :)
Probably the small company using a flat model and consisting of few very talented people oriented strictly on their goals.
ReplyDelete1 Which business models presented above would be the best and the most suitable for you ?
ReplyDeleteI think flat is the best model from those presented. I like to clearly know what I am supposed to do and what are the rules. If those change every single time, it becomes a mess in which it's hard to organize.
2 If you found a company ,which model would you choose to manage it: the lack of a formal structure or hierarchy
I think hierarchy. It's hard to do everything alone and also no one knows everything. I like to work with and depend on specialists
The best and the most suitable for me would be the matrix model. I like to work in the enviroment where you just do the work which brings income and nothing more, I don't like meaningless paperwork or meetings. If I found a company, I would also choose the matrix model. To get the work done is most as important as to be flexible and adaptive. The Matrix model provides such oportunity, so with ambitious and hard working people such organization would win against big corporations which are not adaptive, because of formal structures.
ReplyDelete@Michał
ReplyDeleteIt's always hard to tell if there can be successful recipe for good structure but You have to experience as many as possible to find Your own way.
@Natalia
Matrix structure is truly flexible and allows You to move forward when You waste no time on red tape.
I guess it's fine as long as I can do my job without having to deal with a lot of pointless overhead. Organisation should be simple and transparent to individual workers, to avoid the situation when talking and writing about working takes more time than *actually* working.
ReplyDeleteGenerally - huge, formal companies with piles of paperwork and pointless meetings are a big NOPE for me, so I don't even want to know how are they structured.