Organizing and Organization PDF

Organizing and Organization Definitions Organizing For successful management, once the objectives and plans have been developed, an orderly manner of bringing together and coordinating all the required human and physical resources must be designed. This is the managerial function of organizing. It...

Organizing and Organization Definitions Organizing For successful management, once the objectives and plans have been developed, an orderly manner of bringing together and coordinating all the required human and physical resources must be designed. This is the managerial function of organizing. It includes two aspects: structural and procedural. Organization Organization has been defined as two or more people working together in a coordinated manner to achieve group results. It is a system with an orderly structure, putting resources together into a working order and establishing a mechanism for undertakings which require cooperation and coordination. Purpose Structural organization Structural organization is a means of focusing attention and energy on goals and objectives, opening the way for their achievement through an orderly and methodical approach. It provides the framework for translating policy and plans into action by indicating how the total labour or operation, related to the purpose of the organization, is divided in a systematic manner into units. Procedural aspect The procedural aspect delineates working relationships through the establishment of lines of authority-responsibility, communication and the flow of work for optimal functioning of the interrelated units (coordination). It ensures for the staff a better understanding of their roles and the functions they are expected to perform, and provide them with a mechanism for a clear understanding of their responsibility and to whom they are accountable. The organizing process The following are the major steps performed by managers in the organizing process. It is helpful to pinpoint areas where failure might occur, giving possible reasons and indicating ways to achieve improvement so as to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of health laboratories. Stage 1: Developing an orderly structure – framework - Determining the functions to be performed and types of work to be accomplished. - Dividing the necessary work into parts small enough to be performed by one person. - Assessing the human resources required (number and qualifications). - Assessing the physical resources requirements (equipment, material. and space). - Grouping and/or coordinating the functions, as well as the human and physical resources, into an organizational structure. Stage 2: Delineating relationships - interaction Assigning the duties necessary for performing certain tasks (responsibility) and the right to make decisions in order to take action to accomplish such tasks (authority), Assigning specific work activities and determining whether or not the job has been accomplished (accountability of personnel). Organization of supervision Plans should not call for the supervisor to supervise too many or too few people. Although supervision is facilitated by the division of labour, it is generally recognized that one person can properly direct the efforts of no more than six other people. This limitation is usually referred to as the span of control or span of management. In fact, the number varies essentially with the competence and skill of both the supervisor and the technicians supervised, the complexity of the work, and the diversity and volume of work, as well as the stability of the organization concerned. Figures 2.5, 2.6 and 2.7 are illustrations of the development of different levels of responsibilities within the health laboratory. Figure 2.5 represents a small laboratory. Unlike a peripheral health centre laboratory, which is often staffed by only one laboratory assistant as the activity is limited, its workload is beyond the capacity of one person and therefore additional persons are employed. The related organizational chart shows one supervisor and four technicians. This is the starting point at which the process of organization begins, where two levels of organization appear: i.e. the management (the director) and the operative levels (Figure 2.5). This type of development is called downward differentiation. As the volume of tests continues to grow, or as the variety of tests and testing processes increases, more operative functions may be differentiated and work stations developed, resulting ultimately in the need for additional technicians. However, as one manager cannot supervise an unlimited number of personnel, a two-level management organization is developed (Figure 2.6). In the case illustrated above in Figure 2.7 the control span of supervisor-technician B is overloaded. To secure and maintain high quality services and efficient utilization of personnel, one of the technicians has been designated as assistant supervisor to technicians 7 and 8. The newly-appointed assistant supervisor, who may continue to perform some operative work in addition to the new directing job, remains accountable to supervisor-technician B. From the figures it will be seen that two types of structure can be differentiated, mainly the tall and the flat structure. The tall structure is generally used when there is an increased specialization. It permits greater unity of direction, provided that the authority, or coordinating responsibility, of the direct supervisor is strictly respected. It is a fact that an increased number of levels may prompt uncoordinated decisions and bypassing. In general, the recommendation is therefore to minimize the number of levels, in order to maintain the quality of the administration. The flat structure, conversely, is characterized by a broad span of control. While too broad a span of control may lead to poor quality and delay in getting decisions made (by the supervisor), when the span of control is too short, the supervisor may interfere with supervised technicians' responsibilities through over-supervision.