First and Last Name May 8, 2011

Organizational Analysis MGMT 206: OBM – Section #

Organizational Analysis

Select a business with which you are familiar—perhaps you have worked there/are working
there or are a frequent customer. You should notify me of your choice ASAP. No two students
may analyze the same company, and it is first come, first served.

Imagine you are an organizational consultant hired to improve the organization. You’ve been
asked to look specifically at structure and culture.

Answers to each part of the assignment should be well-developed with detailed examples and
justification using course material. When you include a claim, be sure to justify it with evidence.
Remember to personalize the header and use the correct file name format for your document.

HINTS/SUGGESTIONS
1. You may number your answers; no need to write a formal paper.
2. If you have contacted the company and searched the library databases with no luck for
some of the elements of Part I, discuss how the organization should organize based on
their contextual factors. Be sure to justify your responses.
3. If you cannot find articles about your organization (particularly for smaller, independent
organizations), you may include articles that discuss contextual factors. Try to find
sources that discuss the industry as a whole or the local economy.
4. I strongly recommend you make an appointment to see me to go over a draft of your
analysis. If you cannot come to office hours, you may set up an appointment on MWF to
meet me in my home office which is about 8 minutes from campus.

This assignment is worth 100 points.

Part I: Structure

Analyze the organization’s structure by covering the following points:

1. Briefly describe the organization.

2. Identify the unit you will analyze (entire organization, division, department, etc.).
3. Describe the contextual variables facing your organization (size, technology,
environment, strategy/goals). These DO NOT mean what you probably think at first; be
sure to read the chapter.
4. Describe how your organization in terms of the design dimensions of formalization,
centralization, specialization, standardization, complexity, and hierarchy of authority.
5. Identify the means of coordination used within your unit. (Not in book – see BB reading
on Mintzberg’s control mechanisms.)
6. Assess your unit on the organic-mechanistic continuum. Be sure to relate to design
elements.
First and Last Name May 8, 2011
Organizational Analysis MGMT 206: OBM – Section #

7. Provide a diagram of an organization chart with at least three levels for your chosen
organizational unit. You should not use a chart downloaded from the internet – you
need to create your own. Describe the bases of departmentalization (simple, function,
product or project, customer or client, geographical location, OR multiple bases) within
your chosen unit. (If you are not familiar with how to create an organizational chart
electronically, the easiest method is using PPT.)
8. Assess the appropriateness of your organization's structure—if appropriate, explain
why; if not, suggest an alternative. Be sure to relate the structure to the contextual
factors.

Part II: Culture

1. Identify and describe several artifacts of the business’ culture. You may want to consider
the logo, uniforms, rituals, stories, ceremonies, office layout, etc. Feel free to paste
images into the document, but adjust the page length accordingly. Not all of the
artifacts should be from marketing communications! Hint: Check to see if your
company is on Fortune’s Top Companies to Work for list.
2. Discuss what values and assumptions might be represented by the artifacts. Explain the
connection you see between the values and the artifacts. Do you think there is a gap
between the enacted and espoused values? Justify your answer.
3. Consider the discussion on your company’s leadership in the previous homework
assignment. How does the leadership style relate to the culture of the organization?
What is the leader doing well? What should the leader do differently? Be sure to justify
your answer.
4. Evaluate the extent to which the organizational structure and organizational culture are
aligned or are in conflict (do they support each other or go against each other); describe
how the organization can improve the alignment by changing either the culture or
organization—be sure to justify your approach.
5. To what extent does the culture and structure of the organization help it achieve its
goals? Explain your response.

Part III: Recommendations

What are your recommendations for improvement? Remember, even if they are doing things
very well, they can always do things better! Justify your responses.

Be prepared to share with the class some of the highlights of your report during Week 14.

You should have at least three outside references. One may be the company’s website
(including promotional materials and annual reports) while two must be articles from reputable
sources. Include a reference list in APA style. I also encourage you to use pictures,
advertisements, and other “artifacts” for your assignment. You may also want to visit the
organization for observation if there is a location in Ithaca.