Organizational Structures and Management Fundamentals Quiz

Organizational Structures and Management Fundamentals

• There are 7 informal structures within an organization, including a "shadow" organization made up of unofficial working relationships between members.
• Informal structures can provide advantages such as helping people accomplish work, overcoming formal structure limitations, accessing interpersonal networks, and informal learning.
• However, potential disadvantages of informal structures include working against the organization's best interests, susceptibility to rumor, inaccurate information, diversion of work efforts, and alienation of outsiders.
• Types of organizational structures include traditional ones like functional, divisional, and matrix, as well as modern ones like team structures, network structures, and boundaryless structures.
• Functional structures group people with similar skills and tasks into formal work units, working well for small organizations producing few products or services.
• Functional structures offer advantages such as economies of scale, consistent task assignments, high-quality technical problem solving, in-depth training, and clear career paths within functions.
• However, disadvantages of functional structures include difficulties in pinpointing responsibilities, breakdown of cooperation and common purpose, and a narrow view of performance objectives.
• Divisional structures group people working on the same product, process, serving similar customers, or located in the same area or region, providing more flexibility in responding to environmental changes.
• Potential advantages of divisional structures include clear points of responsibility and expertise focused on specific customers, products, and regions.
• Potential disadvantages of divisional structures include duplication of resources and efforts, competition and poor coordination across divisions, and emphasis on divisional goals at the expense of organizational goals.
• Matrix structures combine functional and divisional structures to gain advantages and minimize disadvantages of each, commonly used in manufacturing, service industries, professional fields, non-profit sector, and multinational corporations.
• Potential advantages of matrix structures include better cooperation across functions, improved decision making, increased flexibility when restructuring, better customer service, better performance accountability, and improved strategic management.