Orgs 2010 Midterm Notes
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What is an organization
An organization is a structured social system made of groups and individuals working together to meet goals
They are open systems: self sustaining systems transform resources to output.
Identifying organizations – Max Weber (Bureaucracy)
Weber was the first to systematically discover features that modern large scale organizations in private enterprise and government have in common
His model has 4 issues/features
Are work activities being completed in the best way?
Does each member’s subtask contribute to the whole?
Is there orderly deference among organizational members?
Do members work together harmoniously?
Bureaucracy
Max Weber’s ideal type of organization that includes:
Strict chain of command
Selection/promotion criteria based on technical competence
Detailed rules, regulations, and procedures
High specialization
Centralization of power at the top of the organization
Critique on bureaucracy: Employee alienation, limits innovation, resistance to change, Minimum acceptable performance level
Levels of Analysis in Organizations
Macro: External organizational environments, organizations
Micro: Groups and teams, individuals/interpersonal relations
Behaviors of people at either levels are affected by what is happening at other levels – motivation is influenced by personality and interaction w/ peers, work group, systems of evaluation, rewards in the org and compared to other orgs in the industry
3 ways of categorizing theories at organizational levels (3 Lens)
Strategic Design, Political System, Culture
formal organization, interests and power, meaning and values
Strategic Design
Weber’s Bureaucratic Model 4 issues
the formal design of the organization: positions, job specifications, formal reporting hierarchy, rules and procedures
History of organizational design dimension
The organizational design dimension has changed it used to focus on issues like span and control; 1 person supervising others, formal rules and procedures
Now researchers focus on formal processes, like as cross-unit teams, task forces, and IT systems
Today strategic design focuses on getting the right design to carry out the orgs strategy
Structure and Strategy (nowadays focus)
Cost Leader
Differentiation
Niche
Political System
Weber saw the org as a formal structure and concentrated on one’s formal position power
This lens sees the organization as an arena for conflict and for the exercise of power and influence
Interests
Different parties pursuing multiple objectives
Power
The ability to influence others and resist unwanted influence
Conflict
Areas of personal and organizational interest
This lens points out that organization chart of the design perspective claims everyone to be on the same level – misleading: not all VP’s (finance vs small division) have same amount of power.
Cultural Systems
This lens focuses on what people believe and value
how they see their organization and how they develop those views, what kinds of behaviors they expect and take for granted
it examines norms and values, shared mental models, socialization, habits and routines, symbols
When people join an org they absorb its culture, if not it’s hard for them to take effective action
Culture changes over time – more slowly then poltical system and is harder to changed then strategic design
Example of using 3 lens
Topic: 2008 wall street financial crisis effects on global economy, how could it happen with smart well paid people getting it wrong?
Strategic Design: would look at rewards and incentive of top managers in banking as the heart of the crisis – systems that were supposed to align the manager behaviors with interests of shareholders but there was to much risk taking on compensation
Political System: During the late 80s investment banks changed from professional partnerships to public companies this shifted the interest of top managers from long term bank health to short term aggressive performance
Cultural System: would focus on the increasing trading mindset instead of the investment banking mindset – this deal oriented subculture replaced views of investment bankers
Shifting paradigms
Globalization
Effects of globalization on organizations
New structures
Increasing diversity
Increasing competitive pressures, intensification
Diversity
Surface Level (e.g. race, ethnicity, gender, age)
Deep Level (e.g. personalities, beliefs, values, and attitudes)
Different Workforce Expectations