Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Informal groups are oftentimes very useful; in the accomplishment of major tasks,
especially if these tasks conform with the expectations of the members of the
informal group.
The informal organization, useful as it is, is vulnerable to expediency, manipulation,
and opportunism, according to Valentine. Its low visibility, Valentine added, makes
it difficult for management to detect these perversions and considerable harm can
be done to the company.
The manager is, therefore warned that he must be on the lookout for the possible
difficulties that the informal groups may do the organization. It will be to his best
interest if he could make the informal groups work for the organization.
TYPES OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES
Before the commencement of activities, the decision-makers in an organization will
have to decide on what structure to adapt. Depending on the size and type of
operations, a certain structural type may best fit the requirements.
Organizations may be classified into three types. They are the following:
1. Functional Organization this is a form of departmentalization in which
everyone engaged in one functional activity, such as engineering or
marketing, is grouped into one unit.
2. Product or Market Organization this refers to the organization of a company
by divisions that bring together all those involved with a certain type of
product or customer.
3. Matrix organization an organizational structure in which each employee
reports both a functional or division manager and to a project or group
manager.
Functional Organization
Functional organization structures are very effective in smaller firms, especially
single-business firms where key activities revolve around well-defined skills and
areas of specialization.
Advantages:
1. The groupings of employees who perform a common task permit economies
of scale and efficient resource use.
2. Since the chain of command converges at the top of the organization,
decision-making is centralized, providing a unified direction from the top.
3. Communication and coordination among employees within each department
are excellent.
4. The structure promotes high-quality technical problem-solving.
5. The organization is provided with in depth skill specialization and
development.
6. Employees are provided with career progress within functional departments.
Disadvantages:
functional
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Matrix Organization
A matrix, organization, according to Thompson and Strickland, is a structure with
two (or more) channels of command, two lines of budget authority, and two sources
of performance and reward. Higgins declared that the matrix structure was
designed to keep employees in a central pool and to allocate them to various
projects in the firm according to length of time they were needed.
Advantages:
1. There is more efficient use of resources than the divisional structure.
2. There is flexibility and adaptability to changing environment.
3. The development of both general and functional management skills are
present.
4. There is interdisciplinary cooperation and any expertise is available to all
divisions.
5. There are enlarged tasks for employees which motivate them better.
Disadvantages:
1. There is frustration and confusion from dual chain of command.
2. There is high conflict between divisional and functional interests.
3. There are many meetings and more discussion than action.
4. There is a need for human relations training for key employees and
managers.
5. There is a tendency for power dominance by one side of the matrix.
TYPES OF AUTHORITY
The delegation of authority is a requisite for effective organizing. It consists of three
types.
1. Line authority a managers right to tell subordinates what to do and then
see they do it.
2. Staff authority a staff specialists right to give advice to superior.
Chapter 5
STAFFING THE ORGANIZATION
After setting up the organizational structure that has been decided to best serve the
interest of a certain firm, the next move that has to be made is to fill up the
identified positions with the most qualified persons available.
Organizations are very sensitive to whatever staffing errors are made. Placing the
wrong person in a highly specialized position like quality control, for instance, may
bring untold damages to the firm. Yet, this refers to single error only.
An example of the ill-effects of staffing errors was provided by the TV program
Brigada Siete. The disaster that happened in the Film Center at the Cultural
Center Complex in Manila was highlighted in the program. In November 1981, the
whole sixth floor of the Film Center collapsed while undergoing a construction. Many
workers and an engineer died as a result.
When interviewed by the TV program staff, a former construction worker said he
was hired to do masonry job when he does not have training in masonry. Some
other examples of staffing errors were provided in the program.
This type of tragedy underscores the importance of staffing in any organization,
engineering or otherwise. Effective staffing, on the other hand places the
organization on a competitive stance.
WHAT IS STAFFING?
The manager must be concerned with putting the right persons in various positions
within his area of concern. Although some of the important aspects of staffing may
be delegated to the human resource office, the manager assumes a great
responsibility in assuring that right persons are assigned to positions that fir their
qualifications.
Staffing may be defined as the management function that determines human
resource needs, recruits, selects, trains, and develops human resources for jobs
created by an organization.
Staffing is undertaken to match people with jobs so that realization of the
organizations objectives will be facilitated
THE STAFFING PROCEDURE
The staffing process consists of the following series of steps:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7. Employment decisions
demotions) and
8. Separations
(monetary
rewards,
transfers,
promotions
and
When management wants to fill up certain vacancies, the following sources may be
tapped:
1. The organizations current employees. Some of the organizations current
employees may be qualified to occupy positions higher than the ones they
are occupying. They should be considered.
2. Newspaper and Advertising. There are at least three major daily newspapers
distributed throughout the Philippines. Readership is higher during Sundays.
3. Schools. These are good sources of applicants. Representatives of companies
may interview applicants inside campuses.
4. Referrals from employees. Current employees sometimes recommend
relatives and friends who may be qualified.
5. Recruitment firms. Some companies are specifically formed to assist client
firms in recruiting qualified persons. Examples of these companies are the
SGV Consulting and John Clements Consultants, Inc.
6. Competitors. These are useful sources of qualified but underutilized
personnel.
For entry-level personnel, the manager will likely rely on newspaper advertising,
schools, and referrals. When recruiting managers, the reliable sources are current
employees, recruitment firms, and competitors.
Selection
Selection refers to the act of choosing from those that are available the individuals
most likely to succeed on the job. A requisite for effective selection is the
preparation of a list indicating that an adequate pool of candidates is available.
The purpose of selection is to evaluate each candidate and to pick the most suited
for the position available.
Selection procedures may be simple or complex depending on the costs of a wrong
decision. If the management picks the wrong person and the subsequent effect to
the organization is negligible, then the selection process is simple. This is true in the
case of construction laborers where a review of their application is done. Within a
few days or even few hours, the applicants are informed of the decision.
When the position under consideration involves special skills, a more elaborate
selection process is undertaken.
Ways of Determining the Qualifications of a Job Candidate
Companies use any or all of the following in determining the qualifications of a
candidate:
1. Application blanks. The application blank provides information about a
persons characteristics such as age, marital status, address, educational
background, experience, and special; interests. After reading the application
blank, the evaluator will have some basis on whether or not to proceed
further in evaluating the applicant.
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the organizations management must find out the real reason. If the presence of
defect in the organization is determined, corrective action is necessary.
Involuntary separation (or termination) is the last option that the management
exercises when an employees performance is poor or when he/she committed an
act violating the company rules and regulations. This is usually made after efforts
fail to produce positive results.