Organizing and Enabling Success

Organizing for Success:

Organizing is about an organization’s configuration which consists of; Structures – how organization is
designed; Processes – how strategies are made and controlled; Relationships – connections between people.
These three must work together intimately and consistently for the organization to be successful.

Structure provides a means of exercising appropriate control. Self-contained organization structure and
boundary-less organization structure are the two types of structure. Moreover, JS&W review seven basic self-
contained structural type which are; (1) Functional – people organized according to type of work they do; (2)
Multi-divisional – differentiated by territory, product, or market; (3) Holding Company – radical form of
divisionalisation; (4) Matrix – formalization of management control between different functions (5) Transnational
– reconcile global scope and scale; (6) Team and (7) Project – utilizing cross-functional team. On the other hand,
boundary-less organization structure includes Hollow Structure – creation of outsourcing is central; Modular
Structure – outsource some parts of its production to specialist providers.; Network Structure – applied both
within and between organizations; Virtual Organization Structure - electronic linking of spatially dispersed
components.

Processes are an important part of how organizations work. JS&W analyze them into four categories
according to whether they deal with inputs or outputs and whether they operate by direct contact or through
more indirect means. Input controls are supervision, planning processes, self-control and cultural processes.
Output controls are performance targets, Balance scorecard, Problems, linkages, market processes.

Relationship of an organization is analyzed into two categories: internal and external. Internal
relationships concerned in responsibility and authority for decision-making. Its two important issues are
centralization which means a greater degree of central control and decentralization which means a greater
degree of delegated authority to regions or sub-units. External relationships are increasingly co-operative, rather
than adversarial.

To conclude, a need for compatibility is present since structures, processes and relationships have to
integrate closely and as a result, the number of successful configurations is small. Furthermore, Henry Mintzberg's
theory of organizational configuration is a way of expressing the main features by which both formal structure
and power relationships are expressed in organizations.

Managing Strategic Change:

In enabling success, organization must be able to recognize the factors that drive change and constrain
the ways in which it may be affected. Therefore, there is a need for strategic change. The management of this
change starts with an understanding of three main considerations: Type of change; Wider context of change;
Forces facilitating and blocking change.

It is important that the style in which the change is managed is appropriate. The five styles of change of
management identified by JS&W are; Education and communication; Collaboration/participation; Intervention;
Direction; Coercion. The 3 change management roles are Change Agent - an individual or group that helps to bring
about strategic change in an organization; Middle Management - implementers, at best, and possibly, as potential
blockers; Outsiders - contribute to the change process in a range of roles. The four change management levers;
Turnaround; Challenging the paradigm; Changing Routines; Symbollo Processes. There is also the change
programmes which may be subverted and lead to unintended consequences and has four implications which are
monitoring and control are vital, the existing culture must be understood, the organization’s people should be
involved in the change process, and the extent of the challenge must be recognized for change management.
These change programmes are designed to deliver benefits by implementing changes in culture, structure,
infrastructure and processes and both internal and external services.

To sum up, it is important to manage strategic change as this establishes a roadmap and reassures
employees that the organization is committed. Change in an organization leads to many positive aspects that lead
to success such as creation of innovation, develops skills, develops staff and improves staff morale that results to
better opportunities.

Reference

BPP Learning Media Ltd. (2016). ACCA P3 Business Analysis: Study Text