Introduction to Organisational Structures

• Business Management Theory
• Introduction to Organisational Structures

Introduction

Organisations are structured in a variety of ways, dependant on their objectives and culture. The structure of an organisation will determine the manner in which it operates and it’s performance. Structure allows the responsibilities for different functions and processes to be clearly allocated to different departments and employees.

Organisation Structure and Business Success

The wrong organisation structure will hinder the success of the business. Organisational structures should aim to maximise the efficiency and success of the Organisation. An effective organisational structure will facilitate working relationships between various sections of the organisation. It will retain order and command whilst promoting flexibility and creativity.

Internal Factors

Internal factors such as size, product and skills of the workforce influence the organisational structure. As a business expands the chain of command will lengthen and the spans of control will widen. The higher the level of skill each employee has the more the business will make use of the matrix structure to maximize these skills across the organisation.

Span Of Control

This term is used to describe the number of employees that each manager/supervisor is responsible for. The span of control is said to be wide if a superior is in charge of many employees and narrow if the superior is in charge of a few employees.

Different Structures

There are lots of different types of organisational structures. The most common are tall strctures, flat structures, Hierarchical structures, centralised structures and decentralised structures. Click on the links below to learn about each of the five types of organisational structures.

Links to further www.learnmanagement2.com articles about Organisational Structures

1. Tall Structures
2. Flat Structures
3. Matrix Structure
4. Hierarchical Structures
5. Centralised Structures and decentralised Structures