MS-10 Organisational Design, Development and Change

Different between job rotation, job enlargement, job enrichment and group working.

2009-06-12T22:43:00.000-07:00

Different between job rotation, job enlargement, job enrichment and group working. In your opinion, which one if them is a better way of restructuring work? Substantiate your opinion with illustrations.

a) Job Rotation: This involves rotating people between jobs on the same horizontal plane, either in an agreed or informal basis. It goes some way to achieving some of the desirable job characteristics of increased variety, use of different skills and the opportunity to learn. However, it makes only a limited contribution to improving the motivational content of the jobs.
b) Job Enlargement: This involves combining a number of tasks on the horizontal plane to increase the cycle times and create more complete and hence meaningful jobs. It reduces the degree of specialisation involved and may reduce the degree of pacing in an individuals job. However, as with job rotation, some of the other characteristics of autonomy in decision makirig, interaction and responsibility not fulfilled.
c) Job Enrichment: This introduces changes in the vertical plane by giving operators greater responsibility for decision relating to their work. Thus they may be involved in the planning and organisation of their work, for checking and quality control or for auxiliary tasks such as record keeping, etc. The aim of this change is to enhance the motivational content of the jobs in terms of increased autonomy, decision making, responsibility, recognition, etc. This can be achieved to some extent by change on the horizontal plane, i.e. giving employees total task and control over their pace of work. However, vertical job enrichment does have implications in term of organisation, since it gives employees greater involvement in decisions which traditionally have been the responsibility of management.
d) Group Working: This recognises the significance of groups at work. The advantages of group working are seen as increasing the confidence of workers through recognition of important skills, development of social skills and the opportunity to influence and exercise leadership. The group provides support, encouragement and security and since individuals are interdependent, there is more scope for delegating complete task responsibility to the group.
CURRENT ATTEMPTS AT WORK STRUCTURING
Attempt at work structuring have shifted from the individual jobs as a unit of analysis and design, towards the group and a more holistic approach to work organisation design and development. The earlier technique of job rotation, job enlargement and job enrichment are perhaps now recognised as having somewhat more limited application, while the broader approaches involved in group working and socio-technical system design can often provide an umbrella under which the objectives that the earlier techniques sought to achieve are fulfilled.
Examples of work structuring from India and Abroad
Many organisations, in India and abroad, have attempted work restructuring with varying degrees of success. We shall review here a few such attempts.

Bharat Heavy Electrical Ltd., (BHEL) Hardwar
BHEL is one of the largest public enterprises in India with six major manufacturing plants and several divisions. The Hardwar unit, employing over 10,000 employees is mainly concerned with manufacture of heavy electrical equipment such as steam and hydraulic turbines, generators and other related equipment. Though, it was, 10 years old, the unit was not coming as expected and production was not satisfying
Survey undertaken in the unit to diagnose the training needs of the middle management level, it was found that in some of the key areas managers were lacking knowledge and there ere information gaps. The situation was not conducive for an effective performance of their supervisory functions. Another study to find out the linkage between the quality of family and community life and the quality of workers life, showed a clear dichotomy between the life of the workers at the workplace and their life around the family.
The above were some of the factors which contributed in undertaking a work design experiment at a favourable work site. Block V, where 25 workmen were engaged in fabrication of the upper part of condenser unit was selected, in view of its compact character, reasonable layout and the positive attitude of the manager and the shop-floor trade union leaders. The reasons for selecting the group were : (1) the condenser was an expensive piece of equipment, (2) for the setting up of the power status it was necessary that a condenser unit should be placed at the site before the steam turbine was installed and as such it should be manufactured and dispatched at least two months ahead of the completed steam turbine and (3) the productivity in the shop was not of a high order.
The workers agreed to undertake the work redesign experiment after a series of talks with internal and external consultants. The total complement of 25 workers in Block V was made up of 9 fitters, 3 fitters, 3 welders, 2 gas-cutters, 1 crane operator, 2 riggers, 2 helpers and 3 workmen involved in materials supplies.
The study of the social system of work imposed by the work organisation indicated that (a) each worker was concerned with his own trade and that none identified himself with the product itself, (b) there was invariably forced idle time because when a particular worker was working at a spot, another worker who was required to do his job in close proximity, had to wait till the first worker had finished his job and (c) there was uneven demand on the services of the materials supplies group, crane operators and riggers. When the study was undertaken in April-May 1975, productivity was certainly very low. Part of the low productivity was on account of high rates of absenteeism during months. The workers, after analyses of data generated from their own experiences, decided on two steps:
1) To set up a task force with representatives of each category of workers and the supervisor. The shop manager would also participate in the meeting if the group so wanted and an industrial engineer was also associated with the group as a resource person. The task group had a membership of 8. Two of the members would be on it permanently because of their leadership abilities and the other members would rotate (except for supervisor).
2) A new work system which would take care of the workers motivation as well as overcoming the persisting culture of low productivity was to be formulated.
Consequently, work system was evolved in which the direct production group would consist of one welder, three fitters and 1 fetters. The functions of the group is to take change of the complete task and gradually take up one another's skills by undergoing on-the-job training. The same is with the crane operator and the riggers. It was decided that the gas cutters and helpers on the one hand and materials supplies group on the other would be integrated into the new work system at a later stage. With more experience and confidence, the workers brought about another redesign of their work organisation in the month of September 1975. Here the workforce was distributed in two shifty in the following manner:

Shift 1 Shift 2
Fitters 5 4
Welders 5 6
Gas-cutter 1 1
Pettier 1 1
In addition, crane operators were there in both the shifts. Each shift group became an integrated group with one group fabricating the right side of the upper part of the condenser unit and the other fabricating the left side. The same process was started in concerned with the manufacture of the lower part of the condenser unit. A similar small-group module was designed with the task force consisting of eight members with the provision of monthly rotation.
The results of these experiments were encouraging. There were steady increases in productivity Further, the old culture of one man-one function was replaced by the acquisition of multiple skills leasing to the development a group system of working with internal monitoring of group norms, internal control work flow and work allocation, identification with the product and its quality and the gradual drop in personal idle time on account of loitering, etc. The old culture that higher status work like that of welder or a fitter would stand in the way of taking up a low status job could be overcome.

The minutes of the meetings of the task force indicate a high degree of orientation towards work-interest issues such as delay in the repair of cranes, etc as against the usual union management type of meetings in which interest related issues assume importance, one could discern a distinct qualitative shift towards problem solving orientation with a view to looking at a problem as a collective one instead of making a scapegoat the other group.
The work reorganisation experiences also led to a new supervisory role in the form of liaison with the input and output developments, service units and involvement with central planning. This became possible as a result of work groups taking substantial control over the production process including routine inspection and maintenance activities to maintaining discipline.

Explain the meaning and classification of OD interventions.

2009-06-12T22:03:00.000-07:00

Explain the meaning and classification of OD interventions. Describe how survey feed back as OD intervention technique was successful in an organisation. Briefly describe the organisation you are referring to.

ODINTERVENTION
An OD intervention can therefore be defined as "the set of structured activities in which selected organisational units (target groups or individuals) engage with a task or a sequence of taks where the task or a sequence of taks where the task goals are related directly or indirectly to organisational improvement." The OD strategy can be defined as an overall plan for relating and integrating different organisation improvement activities over a period of time to accomplish objectives.
VARIOUS TECHNIQUES AND MERITS AND DEMERITS OF OD INTERVENTION AND INTERVENTION STRATEGY USED IN ORGANISATION AND MERITS AND DEMERITS OF THIS STRATEGY.
The roots of OD lie in the famous Hawphorne experimets carried out at the Western Electric company by Elton Mayo and his associates. These experiments highlighed the importance of employee attitudes and expectations, informal work groups, norms and values and participation in decision making as influencing performance- all these still central concepts in various techniques of OD.
Though there are divergent opinions and attitudes about the nature and practice of OD, among its practitioners, a gereral consensus may be noticed among them as to what the basic chracteristics of OD are.
In any OD effort the totality of the organisation is to be taken into account. Organisation being an integrated system of sub-systems, changes in anyone sub¬systems tends to have consequences for the other sub-systems. The approach should be holistic either for proving the need for change within or for planning and implementing a change. Until the intended change is absorbed in the total system, optimal collaboration, synergism and efficiency cannot be obtained.
The theoretical body of knowledge underlying the concept and practice of OD is eclectic. Recent developments in the area of behavioural sciences, especially psychology, sociology, anthropology etc., have influenced the OD thought and practice.
The intended changes in OD programmes may be carried out at any of the sub-system levels such as:
* Structure of organisation
* Accomplishment of task
* Work environment (interpersonnel and intergroup relations, work values)
* Methods of decision making and problem solving
* UniqueTechnology

The benefits of the planned effort to the organisation are measuring in terms of improvements noticed in the performance of the sub-system where the change has been implemented, related sub-systems that have an interface with the changed sub-system, and the organisation as a whole.
a) Intended changes in the organisational structure should be initiated on the basis of a study of the existing structure-especially the formal relationships, span of control and functions performed by each individual in the context of the others. The planned change may be on the basis of what an ideal structure should be like. A better approach would be to take into cognizance the felt needs of the role incumbents. The employees may be involved in justifying problems in the existing structure and also in evolving a strategy for change. Such a participative approach would yield results as the employees are tuned to the intended change.
b) Another approach to OD is at the micro level i.e., at the job level, while the above was at the macro level. What is of concern is the designing of jobs for better performance. Job related aspects such as authority, responsibility, activities performed, overlapping roles etc., are considered for changing keeping with the attitudes, expectations of the role incumbents.
Research studies -have shown that job attitudes and job satisfaction influence performance. Jobs may be redesigned to provide variety and opportunities for satisfying higher order needs. Jobs enlargement and job enrichment are the job design methods employed as part of OD techniques.
c) OD practitioners also aim at improving the interpersonal climate. The work climate of openness, trust, and collaboration has positive influence on performance, while the climate of supicion; distrust and hostility result in low or mediocre performance. The climate should be supportive, proactive and allow for opportunities to be creeative and original.
d) Communication is the life of an organisation and effective communication is basic to internal work climate. OD efforts may be dircted to identify the gaps and problems in the formal communication network and improve the communication process. Communications network and improve the communication process. Communication network may be analysed in terms of the following
* Residential analysis: It helps in understanding how a given organisation really functions. The analyst is a 'live in' observer of the communication process.
* Participant analysis: Data is collected about how communication is actually taking place in the network by interviewing the individuals or through a questionnaire.
*Duty Study: Like a cop of observing the traffic on a high way, the analyst positions himself in the communication flow.
* Cross-section analysis: A time sampling of the communication process in the network may be carried out. However, the sampling must be repeated to get sufficient data.
*E C C O (Episodic communication channels in organisation) analysis: A trace element (i.e) a piece of communication is left in the communication network and its flow through the network is traced through time and space.
OD efforts to improve communication may deal with the elements of communication process such as 'source', 'message', and 'channel', 'receiver', process of encoding and network, in addition to communication overload.
e) Decision-making is another important area for OD intervention. What is a decision? Decision is 'action commitment'. Decisions are basic to management process and linking to various activities of the organisation. While some of the decisions are routine and programmed, the other may be unprogrammed and ad hoc. While some of them are operating decisions that are routine, programmed and executed automatically, the others are administrative decisions that are either coordinative and routine, or exceptional and ad hoc whild yield custom-based solutions.
Strategic decisions are also exceptional and have an influence on the overall organisation or a greater segment of the organisation. Necessity for strategic decision may arise due to forces in the external or internal environment, new technological input or at the initiative of the chief executive.
Involvement of the people concerned with.the issue or problem in decision making leads to acceptable answer commitment to implement the decision and better utilisation of human resources. Decisions should be based on objective analysis that include identification of the problem, collection of relevant information and selection of an appropriate solution with a greater probability of achieving the expected outcome.
f) An OD strategy is an intended change at the relevant system or sub-system level. Bring about an intended change. The techniques differ depending upon the sub-systyem that is considered for OD intervention. If the intended change is with reference to the 'people' variable, the methodologies employed are:
* Training or education involving lectures, experiential exercises, simulation, T-group training etc.
* Confrontation, where people are brought together to discuss the problem and evolve a strategy based on mutual trust and understanding of each other's position.
If the intended change is at the technological level, it is in terms of planned effort for bringing in new technology taking into account the likely consequences at the task, structure and people sub-system levels. The necessary environment for accepting and implementing the technological input should be created at the other sub-system levels.

OD interventions at the task level deal with job design parameters such as job enlargement, job enrichment, authourity, and responsibility consideration, human factor engineering etc.
At the structure level, the methodologies indued: data feed back (systematic collection of information that forms the basis for diagnosis, premising, planning etc.) Problem solving and decision making, process consultation (watching and aiding on-going processes and improving them), and OD task force establishment (setting up of teams or groups to carry out Od efforts). These interventions may be carried out by a change agent.
g) Management practices and employee reactions to these practices form the basis for organisation analysis and diagnosis and determining the appropriate intervention. The success of an intervention depends upon the acceptance of it and willingness to implement or maintain the change and its outcomes by the employees within the organisation.
h) Organisation change is not a one shot affair but a complicated and lengthy process. The type of intervention sought for, the size of the organisation, constraints, and facilities within the organisation, perceived organisational climate, attitudes and feelings of the employeees and their commitment tro change -all influence OD efforts. The typical value system of the organisation as a whole, of the management and of Ithe individual, and the values underlying change are quite significant factors influencing the success of OD activity.

Discuss the concept of organisational analysis and organisational diagnosis.

2009-06-12T21:57:00.000-07:00

Discuss the concept of organisational analysis and organisational diagnosis. Describe the different perspectives of organisational analysis by citing examples. Describe how organisational analysis is conducted in your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with. How far it was successful? Describe the organisation you are referring to.

A systematic attempt to design work was first made in the wake of emergence of machine technology and mass production system immediately after industrial revolution in Western Europe. Since then several experiments in this field have been carried out at different times by different enterprise around the world. In India too, as elsewhere, the need to bring about changes in the way work is organised has arisen from the following socio-economic conditions:
1) Organisations, today, are increasingly getting automated and using new technology to attain the organisational objectives of increased efficiency. This has had a corresponding effect on a greater specialisation, simplification, standardisation and routinisation of a larger number of jobs.
2) Transfer of technology from a developed country to our own along with the associated organisation of work which nay not fit with the prevailing socio-cultural framework of India may have an adverse effect on the social structure and system of values of the people.
3) Organisations have become larger and more bureaucratic in their functioning. This has resulted in increased authoritarianism and inflexibility of management. Decision making is becoming more and more centralised.
4) Even as organisations have continued to increase in size, became mechanistic, and more task-oriented etc. the people working in the organisation are younger, highly skilled, better educated and therefore want to be involved in decision affecting them and their work. They are today less willing to accept routine, monotonous work and look for opportunities to utilise and develop their potentialities. Thus, it
appears that the way most organisation function is in conflict with the needs and expectations of the people working in them. This failure to adequately match the needs of the organisation from an efficiency point of view with the needs of employees on whom the organisation depends are reflected in increased alienation, poor performance, absenteeism, disputes etc.
In view of such problems, it is believed, that ways of structuring jobs and managing organisations that worked earlier may not work now, simply because the people who work in such organisation will no longer put up with them. An important question facing organisations, thus, relates to how they can achieve a fit between persons and their jobs so as to obtain both high work productivity and a high quality organisational experience for the people who work in them. The answer lies in the way work is organised and managed in organisations.
TRADITIONAL APPROACHES TO THE ORGANISATION OF WORK
The traditional approach to the organisation of work has been one of rationalisation involving the specialisation and subdivision of tasks, the minimising and standardising of skills and the development of methods of management prediction and control.
The approach has long history beginning from the writings of Adam Smith who in the "Wealth of Nations" had analysed the division of labour in a pin factory.
"One man draws out the wire, another straightens it, a third cuts it, a fourth points it, a fifth grinds it at the top for receiving the head: to make the head requires two or three distinct operations: to put it on is a peculiar business, to whiten the pins is another; it is even trade by itself to put them into a paper, and the important business of making a pin is, in this manner, divided into about eighteen distinct operations, which in some manufactories, are all performed by distinct hands, though in others the same man will sometimes perform two or three of them".
Of all the principles of management expounded by the classical theorists, the principle of 'division of labour has the greatest implication for how the work is designed in organisations. The principle specifies that maximum work efficiency
will be achieved if jobs are simplified and specialised to the greatest extent possible. In other words, people in an organisation, be they workers or managers, will function more efficiently if they perform the same specialised functions repeatedly rather than spreading their energies on a number complex tasks.
BURAUCRATIC ORGANISATION THEORY
The importance of the division of labour principle was also argued by Max Weber, in his model of bureaucratic work organisation According to him the bureaucratic model of work organisation was the most efficient form of work organisation in which impersonality and rationality are developed to the highest degree. Bureaucracy, in Weber's analyses, describes a form or design of work organisation which assures predictability of the behaviour of individual in the organisation. To achieve the maximum benefits of the form, Weber believed that certain design strategies must be adopted, specifically:
1) All tasks necessary for the accomplishment of goals are divide into highly specialised jobs. Similar argument in favor of the division of labour principle was put forward, namely, that job holders could become expert in their jobs and could be held responsible for the effective performance of their duties.
2) Each task is performed according to a consistent systems of abstract rules to assure uniformity and coordination if different tasks.
3) Members of the organisation obey the law of the organisation because it is their duty and because those who administer it are superior in technical knowledge. It is also legitimised by the fact that it is delegated from the top of the hierarchy. A chain of command is thereby created.
4) Each official in the organisation conducts business in an impersonal formalistic manner, maintaining a social distance with sub ordinates and clients. This rationality and impersonality can be seen as a protection against arbitrary and abusive rule, a way of making his life in the organisation more predictable and stable and less dependent on the personal whims of an arbitrary leader. In turn, the member is expected to do his duty.
5) Employment is based technical qualifications and promotions on seniority and achievement.
The bureaucratic model of formal organisations is rarely found in pure form. Yet, in some way, all organisations exhibit some degree of one or more of its characteristics. It is a pervasive pattern of organising work in most large organisations including government and educational institutions. The reasons for this lie in the strengths of the system and its appeal to rationality and orderliness. Apart from being logical, it is the most complete system of organising work. Another important strength of bureaucracy is its ability to deal with emergency situations. Studies of floods in India by different scholars have shown how successfully the bureaucratic machinery was set into motion to deal with the problems without loss of time.
Other recent studies have also shown that bureaucracy has marked advantages for emergency administration, though having serious disadvantages for more innovative and developmental tasks. In their study of district administration, Dayal, Mathur and Bhattacharya found that bureaucracy allows grassroot administration to be carried out in a more orderly manner than other systems of management. The rationality and rule-bound approaches (typical of bureaucracy) involve the confidence of the public in its impartiality.
One may, therefore, conclude that all features of bureaucracy are built around the structure of a large-scale administration. Obviously, such organisations rely heavily upon hierarchy, specialisation, rules and impersonality with a view to accomplishing their goals efficiently. However, bureaucracy possesses several dysfunctional traits frequently overlooked by its advocates. For example, hierarchy, which theoretically purports to maintain unity of command, coordination and communication in the organisation, in practice, frequently wastes efforts of people and hampers the growth of their personality. Again, bureaucratic rules as implied in red tapism
(obstructiveness), usually become goals in themselves for human behaviour rather than means for accomplishing organisational objectives. Pai and Reddy in their
study of the Secretariat and heads of Departments, analysed 69 files to determine as to how the actual process of administration operates, how orders are given and how they are executed. The analysis revealed that government administration was highly inefficient. It was noted that the maximum time taken for the disposal of one case was 1,010 days, the average time taken being 211 days. Finally, the impersonality feature of bureaucracy overwhelms the personalities of its followers to such as extent that they eventually become" the slaves of rules, procedures and discipline.

Explain the concept of quality of working Life (QWL) in broader societal perspective.

2009-06-12T21:54:00.000-07:00

Explain the concept of quality of working Life (QWL) in broader societal perspective. Discuss how does socio-cultural conditions affects the QWL in your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with the suggest some methods to improve the QWL in the organisation. Briefly describe the organisation you are referring to.

QUALITY OF WORKING LIFE:
The Siemens Quality of Working Life movement aims "at integrating the socio-psychological requires of human beings, the original requirements and limitations of a particular technology, the process and the structure of organisation and the existing socio-culture milieu. The purpose of this movement is to make a culture of work commitment in organisation and society at large so as to ensure higher productivity satisfaction of greater job and in social life community active involvement. We have some suggestion for its betterments are:

Training
We offer extensive programs to ensure you're equipped with the latest developments and information in your area of expertise. We also provide for licensing and accreditation. Many of these initiatives have been expanded into web-based programs so that employees in different locations can receive the benefits of live instruction and classroom-like online discussions.

Development Resource Center
Available online to all employees and in-person at key sites, the Center offers more than 2,500 CD-ROM courses, video and audiocassette programs, and hundreds of books and periodicals on leadership, general management and personal development.
Assessment
New technology is also enhancing our performance assessment procedures. Using feedback from colleagues at every level, employees can identify specific areas where development is needed and then create a plan that will help achieve their career goals.
Educational Assistance Program
In addition to in-house programs, we also encourage all employees to reach their full potential through formal education. If business needs warrant, employees have the opportunity to pursue coursework and degrees with 100% tuition reimbursement.
The movement of quality working life traditionally has been closely proved with the job redesign effort based on socio-technical systems approach. However, during the 80s the anxious or Quality of Working Life has been broadened to include a number of approaches aimed at joint decision-making, collaboration and mutual respect between management and employees, increased autonomy at work place, and self-management. Thus
the Quality circles adopted by Japanese and Indian industries as well as democratization of work process through self regulating autonomous groups in the Scandinavian countries and the U.S.A. are all considered part of the Quality of Working Life movement. The following table outlines the elements of quality of working life efforts.

IN THE INDIAN CONTEXT FEATURE OF WORKING LIFE
In the context of India and other developing countries the movements of various aspects of quality working life that benefit consideration.
1. In a state of dynamic equilibrium the quality of working life of people depends on the extent to which men-work-environment relationship forms integral whole and where the level of interaction either the three is very high resulting. By adaptive action orientation it is only in a state of dynamic equilibrium and an awareness of it that the status quo orientation of people in organisations can be exchanged.
2. Those country which is developing the design of work systems therefore, will have to be such as to take into account the mutually of relationship between work organisation and the socio-cultural realities. There will, inevitably, be the need to initiative action research in variety of settings and on a big scale, which alone can provide insight into the nature and dynamics of inter linkages between the work system and the socio-cultural system.
3. Work redesign can become a powerful instrument of cultural and attitudinal change in developing countries. Definite values, attitudes and cultural attributes acquired in the new work system can manifest themselves in the socio-cultural and political system as well. Thus, while in the case of India, the bureaucratic form of work organisation reinforce the authoritarianism of traditional society, the redesigned work system based on participative principles will tend to foster democratic values in the society at big.
4. To fix idea (inculcate) new values it will be necessary and attitudes in the work place, it will also be equality desirable to design such systems that will sustain and strengthen the pre most important patterns of behaviour that already exist in a given culture. Thus, in case of India, proposed alternative form of work organisation with semi-autonomous groups as unit is more geared towards incorporating the main orientations of people as also some of the features of socio-cultural conditions to obtain today.
5. When confined to the organized sectors of industry and government the quality of working life movement, which constitute or emphasis but very minimum percentage of the whole working population, will not be able to contribute towards its ultimate goal of enlarging the quality of life of people in general. To broaden the framework it will be essential, therefore to surround the big majority of men and women who among work in unorganised sectors or as agricultural labour in rural areas and to whom even some of the basic rights have been denied. Maccoby's (1975) enunciation (pronounce clearly) of four principles: security, equity, democracy and individuation in the context of democratisation of work process are highly appropriate here. In unorganised sector most people working as agricultural labour, principles of security and equity are not applicable as in the organised sectors. Obviously then ensuring fulfillment of these basic need a pre-condition for improvement in the quality of working life in the rural areas. Labour of rural organisation, which can ensure security and equity for its members are the first step towards moving in the direction of improvement in the quality of working life. In form of suitable technology it is here that exercise or choice becomes inevitable.
In India as we gather experiences in system of redesigning work, The assessment of social technical development countries we shall be able to develop models and for planning for the future. The philosophy of work redesign does have long term lightly consequence for the gradual development of social policies of a nation. In the coming year our biggest challenge will be to design such system as will be able to resolve for the individual and for the society 'cultural contradictions' which Daniel Bell has defined as the 'double' bind of modernity' that is, effect on personality of receiving simultaneous, contradictory injunctions, if contradictory injunctions pervade through the fabric of the whole society, the result might be what Bell calls social schizophrenia.
The quality of working life movement gives a value framework and a philosophy that has a long-term conclusion for the gradual development of social policies to relate the technological choice and development of human resources such as India.

Discuss the factors fostering and impeding organisational change.

2009-06-12T21:33:00.000-07:00

Discuss the factors fostering and impeding organisational change. Identify the specific factors fostering and hindering change in your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with and suggest some methods to cope. Briefly describe the organisation you are referring to.

Bureaucratic procedures involve much paper work and routing through proper channel causing inordinate delays and frustration. The procedures are nevertheless valued, perpetuated and multiplied for their own sake as also to pass the buck to others in the chain of hierarchy as far as responsibility for failures go. The negative aspects of bureaucracy's can however be overcome if the individual need and organizational goals are properly reckoned. Whatever the progress in the thinking about and in the actual working of modern organisations, bureaucracy has remained an integral and concomitants feature. There is no use wishing it away. There is every need to understand it better and cope with the need for order and orderly procedures, and point to hierarchy, specialisation, structure, order and certainty among others as essential features of organisations.
Among the several proponents of the Administrative theory, the earliest and significant contribution came from Henri F Fayol, a French industrialist, in 1916. The 14 principles that capture the essence of the administrative theory could be summarised as follows:
Division of work: A division of work or specialization gives higher productivity because one can work at activities in which one is comparatively highly skilled.
Authority and responsibility. Authority is the right to give orders. An organisational member has responsibility to accomplish the organisational objectives of his position. Appropriate sanctions are required to encourage good and to discourage poor performance.
Discipline. There must be respect for and obedience to the rules and objectives of the organisation.
Unity of command. To reduce confusion and conflicts each member should receive orders from and be responsible to only one superior.
Unity of direction. An organisation is effective when members work together toward the same objectives.
Subordination of individual interest to general interest. The interests of one employee or group of employees should not prevail over that of the organisation.
Remuneration of personnel. Pay should be fair and should reward good performance.
Centralisation. A good balance should be found between centralisation and decentralisation.
Scalar chain. There is scalar chain or hierarchy dictated by the principle of unify of command linking all members of the organisation from the top to the bottom.
Order. There is a place for everything and everyone which ought to be so occupied. Equity. Justice, largely based on predetermined conventions, should prevail in the organisation .
Stability of tenure of personnel. Time is required for an employee to get used to new work and succeed in doing it well.
Initiative. The freedom to think out and execute plans at all levels.
Espirit de corps. "Union is strength " Fayol further explained- about the importance of planning, organising, coordinating, and control in organisation. These aspects have been further developed by subsequent writers like Earnet Dale, Herbert G Hicks, Chester I Bernard, Lyndall F Urwick and many others. It is however not proposed to review the contribution of each of these writers here.
The principles of management enunciated under the administrative theory stream of thought have the potential to comprehend and cope with the growing complexity in ortanisations to an extent in the sense that they seek to bring order,
provide structures relationships in channeling activities and processes and usher an element of certainty in actions though, of course, a maze of rules, regulations, policies, practices, etc. But the real problem is whether and to what extent they really serve as definite principles. For example, concepts such as centralisation, decentralisation and delegation suffer from superficiality and over-simplification. Several of the principles occur in pairs and there is little in theory to indicate which is the proper one to apply. Another basic problem here is that it views ortanisations as power—centered and do riot provide for underpinning the elements of a democratic form of Organisation.
Scientific Management
The third stream of classic school of thought is the scientific management. The ' principles scientific management were first developed around 1900. Among the pioneering proponents of the principles of scientific management, particular mention should be made of Frederick Winston Taylor, an engineer by profession. Whereas bureaucracy and administrative theory focused on macro aspects of the structure and processes of human ortanisations, scientific management concerned itself with micro aspects such as physical activities of work through time-and-motion study and examination of men-machine relationships. Unlike ,in the other two, the scientific management laid emphasis on activities at shop floor or work unit level than management and based its inductive reasoning on detailed study and empirical evidence. In juxtaposition the principles of bureaucracy and administrative theory were formed by synthesising experience and observation with abstract reasoning.
Taylor's principles of scientific management could be considered as an improvement over the contributions in the other two streams of thought in as much as he tried to use the engineer's discipline to reduce personal factors, randomness and rule of thumb decision-making. Though Taylor too had his share of critics and criticism, his contribution'to modem management and use of scientific methodology for decision-making and management practices are profound.
For Taylor, scientific management fundamentally consists of certain broad principles, a certain philosophy, which can be.applied in many ways, and a description of what anyone man or men may believe to be the best mechanism for applying these general principles should in no way be confused with the principles themselves.
Taylor described the following four principles of scientific management:
1. Develop a science for each element of a man's work, which replaces the old rule-of-thumb method.
1. Scientifically select and then train, teach; and develop the workman, whereas in the past he chose his own work and trained himself as best he could.
1. Management should heartily cooperate with the workers so as to ensure all the work being done in accordance with the principles of the science which has been developed.
1. There is an almost equal division of the work and the responsibility between the management and the workmen. The management should take over all work for which they are better fitted than the workmen, while in the past all of the work and the greater part of the responsibility were thrown on the workers.
The principal techniques he advocated were motion and time study, specialisation, standardisation planning, slide rules and other work-saving implements, work standards and guidelines, piece rates, wage systems, routing systems and modern cost systems. Most of the developments in the field of industrial engineering and personnel management can be traced to his work.
Taylor did not emphasise much on relations between worker and worker; worker and management. He recognised the need for a 'mental revolution'. But most people paid attention to his suggestions concerning '"efficiency experts", '"motion and time study" and speeding-up techniques to improve output and productivity. When the basic philosophy of scientific management and mental revolution did not gain the same emphasis, the scientific management movement hag began to be criticised as management gimmicks to get most out of workers. Nevertheless many of Taylor's contributions provide the essence of modern management practice. ~everal persons like Henry L Gantt, Frank and Lillian Gilbreth and Harrington Emerson made important contributions to the scientific management movement and expanded scope of the basic ideas propounded by Taylor .

Describe different types of organisational structure and examine the relative merits and demerits of different structures.

2009-06-12T21:25:00.000-07:00

Describe different types of organisational structure and examine the relative merits and demerits of different structures. Discuss and review the structure of your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with.

THE TYPOLOGY OF ORGANIZATION STRUCTURES IS AS FOLLOWS: Formal Informal Organisation
Various organisations normally develop al least some formal procedures for regulating relation's between members, among members and their organisations. Status is bestowed on persons. Norms are laid down, usually they are imposed from above. Relationships are prescribed and communications flow vertically or horizontally among members.
Informal relations, to begin with, are unstructured and not given. Relationships are not prescribed, but sought by members in a group. Unofficial norms evolve in informal organisation out of consensus in a group. Interaction between or among members in an informal organisation is voluntary.
In any organisation, informal organisation coexists with the formal organisation. Informal organisation has both functional and dysfunctional aspects while in formal organisation the functional aspects have received much attention; in informal organisation, dysfunctional

aspects such as conflict objectives, interruption of output, inertia and resistance to change have received wide attention. With the result, there is often a misconception about the counter-productive role of informal organisations.
In realistically, informal organisation can reinforce and facilitate the functional aspects of formal organisation in the following ways:
1. It is a very handy channel for communication in the organisation, if properly used. It can become an effective supplement to the formal system of communication.
2. It blends with the formal system and facilitates easier, speedier and effective flow of work.
3. It provides satisfaction and stability to work groups.
4. It reduces the adverse impacts of the rigidity of formal organisation.
Centralization And Decentralization
Centralization refers to consolidation decision-making in one coordination head. Decentralisation refers to delegation of decision making to subordinate units. Both centralisation and decentralisation are intended to improve organisational effectiveness. Theories are of little avail in suggesting which is the proper thing to do in a given situation. At one point Hyundai Motor Company suffered because of centralisation and Simple Motors because of decentralisation.
If one were discerning enough, it is possible to identify two basic types of centralisation and decentralisations.
a) Geographic/territorial concentration (centralisation) or dispersal (decentralisation or operation. If all operations are under one roof or I one geographic region, Geographic regions could refer to a city (eg. Banglore), State (Karnatka), country (India) or continent (Asia).

b) Functional concentration or decentralisation. As an example, personnel functions in an organisation could be concentrated in one separate department or handled in various functional departments.
Therefore, from a practical point of view, merely by looking at charts it is difficult to determine to what extent authority is concentrated or dispersed. There is need therefore to analytically understand how the chain of command operates into organisation. In realistically centralized form will have little amount of decentralization and vice versa. The difference is one of degree. " Centralized decentralization" seems to be the dominating mode in organisation design and structure.

The responsibility attaching to the chief executive of particular operation shall in no way be limited. Each such organisation headed by its chief executive shall be

complete in every necessary function and enabled to exercise its full initiative and logical development (Decentralisation of operations)
2. Many central organisation functions are absolutely essential to the logical development and proper coordination of the Corporation's activities: Centralised staff services to advise the line on specialized phases of the work, and central measurement of results of check the exercise of delegated responsibility.
Vertical And Horiozontal Structures:
The classical bureaucratic model of organisation though pervasive, has been considered inappropriate to the changing requirements of modern times. A bureaucratic organisation was considered to be too inflexible and hierarchical to adapt to the changes occurring in organisations and technology. A tall organisation structure means a series of narrow spans of control, and a flat one incorporates wide spans of control, and a flat one incorporates wide spans and limited layers of control at horizontal levels. Both the structures have their advantages and disadvantages. They should be viewed on relevant concepts and not as ideal absolutes. A tall structure calls for control and close supervision over the subordinates. But close supervision may not necessarily produce better control. Similarly in a flat organisation with wide spans, it may not be possible to keep close control over subordinates but it provides for decentralisation, individual initiative and self-control. Tall structures are less favorably viewed in modern organisation analysis. From a behavioral point of view it is held that self-control is better than imposed control. The choice in this regard however rests ultimately on management assumptions about individuals and groups in organisations.
complete in every necessary function and enabled to exercise its full initiative and logical development (Decentralisation of operations)
2. Many central organisation functions are absolutely essential to the logical development and proper coordination of the Corporation's activities: Centralised staff services to advise the line on specialized phases of the work, and central measurement of results of check the exercise of delegated responsibility.
Vertical And Horiozontal Structures:
The classical bureaucratic model of organisation though pervasive, has been considered inappropriate to the changing requirements of modern times. A bureaucratic organisation was considered to be too inflexible and hierarchical to adapt to the changes occurring in organisations and technology. A tall organisation structure means a series of narrow spans of control, and a flat one incorporates wide spans of control, and a flat one incorporates wide spans and limited layers of control at horizontal levels. Both the structures have their advantages and disadvantages. They should be viewed on relevant concepts and not as ideal absolutes. A tall structure calls for control and close supervision over the subordinates. But close supervision may not necessarily produce better control. Similarly in a flat organisation with wide spans, it may not be possible to keep close control over subordinates but it provides for decentralisation, individual initiative and self-control. Tall structures are less favorably viewed in modern organisation analysis. From a behavioral point of view it is held that self-control is better than imposed control. The choice in this regard however rests ultimately on management assumptions about individuals and groups in organisations.
c) Those people who have the alternate right for the execution with prescribed qualification and methodological provision for the fulfillment of the duties.
2) Hierarchy: The paramedical structures of Hierarchical authority is common to all bureaucracies. Each and every position in the hierarchy covering an area over which has totally jurisdiction in terms of division of work, authority, and responsibility. The starting at the top power and authority are delegated downward from each supervisor to his subordinates. The system firmly orders supervision of the lower offices by the higher ones, with provision for appeal of decisions of a lower office to its higher authority according the procedure of laid down.
3) Paper Work: The process is recorded in a wide array of written documents and preserved in their original and draft form.
4) Expert training and academic qualification: Recruitment is based on qualification and ability. Knowledge are learnt through experience and training. Increment or promotion is based on seniority and merits. Job security is conformity with rules ensures. Knowledge of rules requires a special technical training which the official process.
5) Functional aspects: Subject to this limitation the following can be considered as the functional aspects of an 'Ideal' bureaucracy:
A) Specialisation: At the different levels in the organisational bureaucracy be it in industries or services comparing with an assembly line which each member his special functions in a adequate manner. Routine work is assigning with fixed responsibilities providing for an element specialisation.
B) Structure: Through structuring the duties and responsibilities and reporting in a differentiate hierarchy that organisation is provided a form or structure. Structure sets the pace and framework for organisational processes.
C) Rationality: The criteria for decision making in routine situation is prescribed ahead of events emphasising consistency in dealing with Organisational questions a measure of objectivity is totally sired in the organisation.
D) Democracy: Organisation makes by bureaucracy more democratic by emphasising more on qualification and technical for competence for purposes of recruitment and highlighting the jurisdictional roles of people at all levels in a hierarchy. The level in the hierarchy the processes are guided by laid down rules, regulation policy practices, or other privileged treatment.
Demerits of the bureaucracy of the organisation:
The more prominent among the dysfunctional aspects include the following:
A) Rigidity: Steps of bureaucracy argue that rules are often rigid and inflexible, encouraging status and breeding resistance to change. Compliance with rules may provide the cover to avoiding the responsibility for failures.
B) No personality: Bureaucracy encouraging mechanical way of doing things.giving primacy to organisational rules and regulations than individual needs and emotions.The office a person holds is important than the person per se.
C) Displacement of objectives: Rules purely devise to get organisational goals at each level became an end in themselves independent of organisational goals. Samsung calls such bureaucratic behaviour as a process of "inversion of ends and means".When objectives gets so displaced it is often difficult for managers at higher level or even for the other constituents of the organisations such as consumers and stock holders to seek redress.
Empire building: As Max Weber observed, once it is fully established, it is to broken bureaucracy even if it has outlived its utility. A common tendency is to relate power and prestige with the number of subordinate's person has. Therefore the effort, more often than not, is to increase the number of people employed under one's control.

Discuss the meaning and methods of OD intervention.

2009-06-12T21:19:00.000-07:00

Discuss the meaning and methods of OD intervention. Describe how OD intervention method is being used by your or an organisation you are familiar with citing examples. Briefly describe the organisation you are referring to.

Definition of OD intervention
an od intervention can be defined as “the set of structured activities in which selected organization units engage with a task or a sequence of tasks where the task goals are related directly or indirectly to organizational improvement in an od intervention the entire process of diagnosis, alternative generation and making action choices are jointly conducted and od will also examine the process of such diagnosis, action planning and implementation.
Characteristics of od intervention
First An od intervention will focus on the organizational processes apart from the substantive content of an activity.
Secondly an od intervention would generally focus on a work team as the unit of analysis and change towards effective behaviour
Thirdly od would normally view change as an on-going process and would rely on a collaborative management of work culture.
Method of OD intervention – While a wide range of OD interventions is available to a practitioner and a change agent, presenting them all would only lead to an avoidable confusion. Nor can all interventions be used in any one OD programme. Most authors have therefore developed a typology to comprehend the range and applicability of OD interventions. Analysis of these typologies indicates that they are centred aroud one or more of the following dimensions :

A. Target - What organisational segment is planned to be examined and
changed?

B. Focus - What planned to be changed? Is it the task system or behaviour
etc.?

C. Strategy - How is the change planned to be brought about ?

Od intervention used in BHEL-BLOCK5 PAGE33-34(M)

In order to develop & improve the effectiveness of the human resources in the Organisation, a committee called ‘Human Resources Committee’ was first constituted by BHEL in Bhopal in 1976. The committee is the central body and plays the central role in implementation of all OD efforts. With the help of external and internal resource persons, a number of programmes/workshops have been Organised for the development of the members of this committee improving their problem solving capabilities and decision making. The range of OD interventions are described below.

Job Redesign and Work commitment as an OD intervention

In one of the BHEL units (Hardwar) Job redesign was taken up and as an OD intervention in 1975. This experiment was pursued for around 4 years and very encouraging results were obtained.

i) A more satisfying job, due to increased variety and relief from boredom and monotony
ii) Personal growth for all, by learning additional skills of other trends and acquiring leadership Qualities
iii) Reduction in health/safety hazards
iv) An atmosphere with less tension and jealousy
v) An improved team spirit and morale resulting in improved communication and human relationship
vi) Increased self esteem and pride among the workers.

Workshops were conducted and it was found to be very useful and threw up more questions for wider debate and discussions. By using survey method, a list of programmes or subjects or themes is sent to various. H. O. Ds who respond by ticking the appropriate ones for their executives. As a result of various diagnostic exercises some critical needs of training and development are identified. The workshops on various themes also give valuable idea of the areas requiring more thrust by way of training and development and specific training and development needs are thus identified.

Based on role analysis a draft system with the following objectives has been circulated by the Corporate Personnel for the comments of Personnel/Training (HRD)/Divisional Heads.

. Helping the executives to become more effective in their present and future jobs.
. Enabling the executives to perform at optimum level by determining and meeting their growth needs.
. Helping the executives to visualise their roles more clearly.
. Preventing the obsolescence of their technical and managerial skills.
. Optimising the utilization of training resources by providing appropriate inputs.
. Facilitating the design of need based programmes and identify the training and development needs.
. Preparing data bank of capabilities required for various positions.
. Facilitating job rotation, career and succession planning.

Once implemented, it will provide a valuable data base for planning, training and development activities and identifying appropriate candidates for programmes.

Performance Appraisal and Potenfial Appraisal

In BHEL it has remained so far that the role of superior was limited to evaluator or judge and the role of the appraisee was passive. Now the superiors role is being conceived as helper and counseller and the appraisee is encouraged to become more involved and committed in achieving the objectives.

Performance feedback and Counselling

The need and importance of performance feedback and counseling has been realized. Attempts are being made to cover maximum number of executives in various programme/workshops on performance feedback and counselling to enable them to practice it as an important tool for Human Resource Development. The supervisors also will be covered in such efforts.

Career Planning and Development

Time-cum-merit based promotion was practiced which is able to satisfy the individuals and organizational needs to a great extent. The employees are encouraged and helped to plan a career path. They are liberally sponsored to higher educational programmes in IIMS/IITs.

Discuss different forms of interview and its advantages and limitations.

2009-06-12T21:11:00.000-07:00

Discuss different forms of interview and its advantages and limitations. Cite an instance where interview method helped in the process of organisational analysis. Describe the organisation you are referring to.

Different Forms Of Interviews Are As Follows:
The interviews may range from highly structured forms, to totally unstructured form. Normally unstructured interview methodology is used for exploratory diagnosis purposes. In exploratory diagnosis the interviewer may simply open the interview session by saying that he is trying to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation and the interviewee may talk about anything he sees as the strength and weakness. In such cases the interview may reveal a lot of significant information about strengths and weaknesses. The issues he chooses to speak himself may reveal the concerns of employees. Unstructured interviews also could be used for probing in relation to specific issues. In such probing every question asked by the interviewer depends on the responses given by the interviewee earlier. Unstructured interviews require skilled interviewers.

Semi-structured interviews may consist of a list of pre-determined set of questions the interviewer has with him and seeking answers of these questions. These interviews are useful for hypothesis testing and probing.

Highly structured interviews are almost like questionnaires. They may infect take the form of verbal administration of questionnaires or asking a series of open-ended questions which are pre-determined. These forms of interviews are useful if the respondent cannot answer questionnaire or if the respondent is likely to give better quality responses in interview settings than in writing, idea generating, influencing, probing for more insights etc.

Conduct Interviews For Analyzing
In the case of medical diagnosis the patient goes to the doctor with a problem and hence in his own interest he gives all information whereas in organizational diagnosis although the top management who goes to the consultant may give all information, the other interviewees may not have the same need as the top management and hence may not be willing to volunteer information. Alternately they may destroy data depending on their attitudes to top management, the consultant, and the study. Therefore it is very important for the interviewer to establish credibility and build rapport.

Before interviews are conducted it is useful and even necessary for the top management to legitimise the diagnostic study by informing all those who are to participate in it. Such a legitimisation could be done either through an announcement giving details of the study, its purposes, the consultants or interviewing team members and the help they need from the employees etc.

After such a legitimisation, in the interview process itself the interviewers should clarify once again the purposes and assure the confidentiality of responses. Aggressive postures trying to impress the interviewee by talking about the closeness of the interviewer to top management, lecturing, demanding, criticising others, expression of interviewers opinions even before the interview starts etc. are behaviors that hinder rapport building. Starting with general and non-threatening issues, talking about the background of the interviewer himself, getting to know each other, pleasantries etc. help in establishing rapport.

Using open-ended questions, information seeking questions and suggestive questions helps in probing and discovering many unknowns. Sometimes during the interview process paraphrasing the responses given by the interviewee may help improving the listening process and understanding process.

It is useful to conduct diagnostic interviews in settings, which are free form noise and other disturbances. A peaceful atmosphere always enhances the quality of data collected. In case of probing interviews the interviewer should constantly guard himself against the danger of putting ideas into the mind of the interviewee. Normally after interviewing a few, the interviewer starts developing hypothesis, Presenting these hypothesis impatiently to the subsequent interviewers may endanger the diagnostic process.

Interview data are relatively more difficult to code and analyze as compared to questionnaire data. Since interview data are qualitative data after few interviews are completed it may be useful to develop a coding/analysis scheme. It is useful to categories all responses into those coding categories. Number of person giving a particular hypothesis etc. can be indicated.

The greatest advantage of interviews is the amount of insight it can provide into organisational processes. Many hypothesis can be generated and tested spontaneously during interviews. Interview data obtained from a small sample of individuals using semi-structured interviews is presented at the end as an illustration. The reader may have a feel of a diagnostic report given in the appendix.

What is organisational diagnosis? Describe the steps and methods of organisational analysis.

2009-06-12T21:04:00.000-07:00

What is organisational diagnosis? Describe the steps and methods of organisational analysis. Discuss the process of organisational analysis with reference to your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with. Briefly describe the organisation you are referring to.

Organisational diagnosis
Organisation is a framework that works when operated by people. The purpose or mission of an organisation provides the direction in which it moves. An organisation has several parts each having its own independent minds and they may not always function in a fully unified way. An organisation can put itself through periodic check ups or diagnostic exercises to assess its growth, dynamism, strength, weaknesses etc.
Most of the calculated management decisions are based on some sort of diagnosis. Every manager irrespective of his level, is in a continuous cycle of diagnosis-decision-action –evaluation, so long as his decisions and actions are not impulsive.
Organisational diagnosis is an exercise attempted to make an analysis of the organisation, its structure, subsystems and processes in order to identify the strengths and weaknesses of its structural components and processes and use it as a base for developing plans to improve and/or maximise the dynamism and effectiveness of the organisation
Organisational diagnosis could be done as a periodic routine exercise like the case of periodic medical check up of an individual or may be undertaken whenever there is a cognizable problem that is affecting the functioning of an organisation.
Steps, method and process of organization analysis
Steps – Analysing the organisation, in terms of its components and their functioning is the first step in a comprehensive diagnosis.

Every organisation can be conceived as consisting of various subsystems or parts. Effective functioning of each of these parts is essential for effective functioning of the organisation. In addition the coordinated functioning of these subsystems also contributes to organizational effectiveness. For making organizational diagnosis the strengths, weaknesses and potential of each of the subsystems need to be examined. In addition the various processes that contribute to the effective functioning of the organisation as a whole need to be examined.
As emphasized by Bechard “The development of a strategy for sysmatic improvement of an organisation demands an examination of the present state of things. Such an analysis usually looks at two broad areas. One is a diagnosis of the various subsystems that make up the total organisation. These subsystems may be natural “teams” such as top management, the production department, or a research group; or they may be levels such as top management, middle management or the work force.
“The second area of diagnosis is the organisation processes that are occurring. These include decision-making processes, communication pattern and styles, relationships between interfacing groups, the management of conflict, the setting of goals and planning methods.

Thus organizational analysis may either focus on the structural aspects (subsystems, various components etc.) or on processes. The following is an illustrative list of the various subsystems of an organisation and the processes which could form a focus of diagnosis.
Methods of Organisational Analysis – The Professional Management and the OD perspective encompass the Economic, Political and Sociological and Social Psychological perspectives. These are also more modern and are being more frequently used. Among these two of the professional management perspective is vast and covers the entire management field. Since the focus of this course is on Organisation Design and Development, the OD or the Applied Behavioural Science Perspective is more appropriate for discussion here. Hence in the subsequent part of this unit and subsequent unit more details are presented relating to the organisation development.
There are many ways of analyzing and diagnosing organisations and their phenomena. The following are the most frequently used methods :

1. Questionnaires
2. Interviews
3. Observation
4. Analysis of records, circulars, appraisal reports and other organizational literture.
5. Analysis of hard data of organisations and various units
6. Task forces and task groups
7. Problem identification/problem solving workshops
8. Seminars, symposia and training programme
9. Recording and examining critical incidents, events.

The purpose of the analysis is “Organisational Diagnosis” . Diagnosis gives the state of the organisation or one or more of its subsystems and points out the scope for improvements that could be made for achieving organizational effectiveness. Hence the methodologies presented are limited to this goal.

Organisations can be analysed with different perspectives in mind. The perspectives one takes depends both on the purpose for which the analysis is being done and the professional background of the people doing organizational analysis. The following perspectives could be used for analyzing organisations :
1. Economics Perspective
2. Political Science Perspective
3. Sociology and Social Psychology Perspective
4. Management Perspective
5. Applied Behavioural Science or OD Perspective

Economic Analysis of Organisations - The economic analysis forcuses primarily on the use of money, allocation of resources, distribution and consumption patterns, pricing decisions etc. Economic analysis of organisations is particularly helpful for the first three objectives mentioned earlier. It helps streamlining the organizational efficiency, eliminating wastes and gives insight while planning for growth, diversification etc. However, when it comes to problems not all types of organizational problems can be answered by economic analysis.

Political Analysis – Political analysis deals with the tactics and strategies employed by the individuals and groups in the organisation as well as the organisation itself in the quest for power. Like economic analysis, political analysis of organisations is useful for understanding the organisation. Political analysis helps understanding many softer and strategic dimensions of an organisation. However, it has limitations in providing guidelines for the planning of growth and diversification of an organisation. It helps immensely in understanding organizational dynamics. However, such an understanding may become one-sided unless it is enriched with other perspectives.

Sociological and Social Psychology based Analysis – Sociological and social psychological perspective focuses on the social behaviour of individuals and groups inn the organisation. The formation of groups, habits, norms and values of the organisation, the process of socialization, conflicts, strikes, protest behaviour etc. issues are studied.
Professional Management Perspective in Organisational Analysis – For a long time management was not accepted as a separate discipline. With rise of management schools all over the world a new class of people with professional management background and skills have emerged. With the availability of a large number of professional trained managers and management scientists there is a professional management perspective that is emerging. This perspective focuses on various management dimensions of organisational life. Each branch of management can analyse a significant part of organisation’s functioning. The branches normally include Business policy and Strategy Management, Production and Operations Management, Personnel Management, Marketing, Finance and Accounts, Organisational Structures and Dynamics and Managerial Economics.

OD or Applied Behavioural Science Perspective – While applied behavioural science is a part of the Professional Management Perspective, with the availability of specialized knowledge in the field and the extent of human issues occurring in organisationl life has made it a distinctive necessity. Most often when a managerial perspective is taken an analyst is tempted to focus on dimensions like the materials and money as they are easy to deal with and get concrete results. It is easy to talk of investment decisions, introduction of computers, streamlining information system, introducing performance budgeting, advertising, pricing decisions etc. There are so many such variables the human processes and up becoming one such set. In reality it is an important set because it is people who are behind these decision and who need to implement them. Fortunately a lot of technology and skills are available from the applied behavioural science field. The OD perspective focuses on the human process dimensions of organizational functioning. The OD perspective primarily focuses on examining the attitudes, norms, values, systems, processes etc. that exist in the organisation. The OD perspective is essentially useful for organizational problem solving and organizational renewal. It is useful for every organisation to undertake periodic renewal exercises so that they can examine various organizational processes and strengthen the functioning of an organisation.

Discuss the meaning, purpose and approaches of job design with suitable examples.

2009-06-12T21:03:00.000-07:00

Discuss the meaning, purpose and approaches of job design with suitable examples. Describe how job design is carried out in your organisation or an organisation you are referring to.

A systematic attempt to design work was first made in the wake of emergence of machine technology and mass production system immediately after industrial revolution in Western Europe. Since then several experiments in this field have been carried out at different times by different enterprises around the world. In India too as elsewhere, the need to bring about changes in the way work is organized has a risen from the following socio-economic conditions:

(1) Organisations, today, are increasingly getting automated and using new technology to attain the organizational objectives of increased efficiency. This has had a corresponding effect on a greater specialization, simplification, standardization and routinisation of a larger number of jobs.
(2) Transfer of technology from a developed country to our own along with the associated organization of work which may not fit with the prevailing socio-cultural framework of India may have an adverse effect on the social structure and system of values of the people.
(3) Organisations have become larger and more bureaucratic in their functioning. This has resulted in increased authoritarianism and inflexibility of management. Decision-making is becoming more and more centralised.
(4) Even as organizations have continued to increase in size, became mechanistic, and more task-oriented etc. the people working in the organization re younger, highly skilled, better educated and therefore want to be involved in decisions affecting them and their work. They are today less willing to accept routing, monotonous work and look for opportunities to utilise and develop their potentialities. Thus, it appears that the way most organization function is in conflict with the needs and expectations of the people working in them. This failure to adequately match the needs of the organisation from an efficiency point of view with the needs of employees on whom the organisation depends are reflected in increased alienation. Poor performance, absenteeism, disputes etc.

In view of such problems, it is believed, that ways of structuring jobs and managing organisations that worked earlier may not work now, simply because the people who work in such organisations will no longer put up with them. An important question facing organisations, thus, relates to how they can achieve a fit between persons and their jobs so as to obtain both high work productivity and a high quality organisational experience for the people who work in them. The answer lies in the way work is organised and managed in organisation.
The traditional approach to the organisation of work has been one of rationalisation, involving the specialization and subdivision of tasks, the minimizing and standardising of skills and the development of methods of management prediction and control.

The approach has a long history beginning from the writings of Adam Smith who in the “Wealth of Nations” had analysed the division of labour in a pin factory.

“One man draws out the wire, another straightens it, a third cuts it, a fourth points it, a fifth grinds it at the top for receiving the head: to make the head requires two or three distinct operations: to put it on is a peculiar business, to whiten the pins is another; it is even a trade by itself to put them into a paper, and the important business of making a pin is, in this manner, divided into about eighteen distinct operations, which in some manufactories, are all performed by distinct hands, though in others the same man will sometimes perform two or three of them”.

Of all the principles of management expounded by the classical theorists, the principle of ‘division of labour has the greatest implication for how the work is designed in organistions. The principle specifies that maximum work efficiency will be achieved if jobs are simplified and specialised to the greatest extent possible. In other words, people in an organisation, be they workers or managers, will function more efficiently if they perform the same specialized functions repeatedly rather than spreading their energies on a number of complex tasks.

The importance of the division of labour principle was also argued by Max Weber, in his model of bureaucratic work organisation. According to him the bureaucratic model of work organisation was the most efficient form of work organisation in which impersonality and rationality are developed to the highest degree. Bureaucracy, in Weber’s analyses, describes a form or design of work organsiation which assures predictability of the behaviour of individuals in the organisation. To achieve the maximum benefits of the form, Weber believed that certain design strategies must be adopted, specifically:

(1) All tasks necessary for the accomplishment of goals are divided into highly specialized jobs. Similar argument in favour of the division of labour principle was put forward, namely, that job holders could become expert in their jobs and could be held responsible for the effective performance of their duties.
(2) Each task is performed according to a consistent system of abstract rules to assure uniformity and coordination of different tasks.
(3) Members of the organistion obey the law of the organisation because it is their duty and because those who administer it are superior in technical knowledge. It is also legitimized by the fact that it is delegated from the top of the hierarchy. A chain of command is thereby created.
(4) Each official in the organisation conducts business in an impersonal formalistic manner, maintaining a social distance with subordinates and clients. This rationality and impersonality can be seen as protection against arbitrary and abusive rule, a way of making his life in the organisation more predictable and stable and less dependent on the personal whims of an arbitrary leader. In turn, the member is expected to do his duty.
(5) Employment is based on technical qualifications and promotions on seniority and achievement.

Describe the evolutionary process of organisation design.

2009-06-12T20:55:00.000-07:00

Describe the evolutionary process of organisation design. Outline the universal perspectives of organisation design by referring to few organisational experiences. Briefly describe the organisation you are referring to.

Organization design-A process for improving the probability that an organization will be successful.
More specifically, Organization Design is a formal, guided process for integrating the people, information and technology of an organization. It is used to match the form of the organization as closely as possible to the purpose(s) the organization seeks to achieve. Through the design process, organizations act to improve the probability that the collective efforts of members will be successful.
Typically, design is approached as an internal change under the guidance of an external facilitator. Managers and members work together to define the needs of the organization then create systems to meet those needs most effectively. The facilitator assures that a systematic process is followed and encourages creative thinking.
Hierarchical Systems
Western organizations have been heavily influenced by the command and control structure of ancient military organizations, and by the turn of the century introduction of Scientific Management. Most organizations today are designed as a bureaucracy in which authority and responsibility are arranged in a hierarchy. Within the hierarchy rules, policies, and procedures are uniformly and impersonally applied to exert control over member behaviors. Activity is organized within sub-units (bureaus, or departments) in which people perform specialized functions such as manufacturing, sales, or accounting. People who perform similar tasks are clustered together.
The same basic organizational form is assumed to be appropriate for any organization, be it a government, school, business, church, or fraternity. It is familiar, predictable, and rational. It is what comes immediately to mind when we discover that ...we really have to get organized!
As familiar and rational as the functional hierarchy may be, there are distinct disadvantages to blindly applying the same form of organization to all purposeful groups. To understand the problem, begin by observing that different groups wish to achieve different outcomes. Second, observe that different groups have different members, and that each group possesses a different culture. These differences in desired outcomes, and in people, should alert us to the danger of assuming there is any single best way of organizing. To be complete, however, also observe that different groups will likely choose different methods through which they will achieve their purpose. Service groups will choose different methods than manufacturing groups, and both will choose different methods than groups whose purpose is primarily social. One structure cannot possibly fit all.
, the form of organization must be matched to the purpose it seeks to achieve.
The Design Process
Organization design begins with the creation of a strategy — a set of decision guidelines by which members will choose appropriate actions. The strategy is derived from clear, concise statements of purpose, and vision, and from the organization’s basic philosophy. Strategy unifies the intent of the organization and focuses members toward actions designed to accomplish desired outcomes. The strategy encourages actions that support the purpose and discourages those that do not.
Creating a strategy is planning, not organizing. To organize we must connect people with each other in meaningful and purposeful ways. Further, we must connect people with the information and technology necessary for them to be successful. Organization structure defines the formal relationships among people and specifies both their roles and their responsibilities. Administrative systems govern the organization through guidelines, procedures and policies. Information and technology define the process(es) through which members achieve outcomes. Each element must support each of the others and together they must support the organization’s purpose.
Exercising Choice
Organizations are an invention of man. They are contrived social systems through which groups seek to exert influence or achieve a stated purpose. People choose to organize when they recognize that by acting alone they are limited in their ability to achieve. We sense that by acting in concert we may overcome our individual limitations.
When we organize we seek to direct, or pattern, the activities of a group of people toward a common outcome. How this pattern is designed and implemented greatly influences effectiveness. Patterns of activity that are complementary and interdependent are more likely to result in the achievement of intended outcomes. In contrast, activity patterns that are unrelated and independent are more likely to produce unpredictable, and often unintended results.
The process of organization design matches people, information, and technology to the purpose, vision, and strategy of the organization. Structure is designed to enhance communication and information flow among people. Systems are designed to encourage individual responsibility and decision making. Technology is used to enhance human capabilities to accomplish meaningful work. The end product is an integrated system of people and resources, tailored to the specific direction of the organization.

Describe different approaches to organisation and their relevance. Explain 7Ss Model and it’s significance in organisations.

2009-06-12T20:48:00.000-07:00

Describe different approaches to organisation and their relevance. Explain 7Ss Model and it’s significance in organisations. Discuss with suitable examples.

The basic elements of organisations have remained the same over the years. Organisations have purposes (be they explicit or implicit), attract people, acquire and use resources to achieve the objectives, use some form of structure to divide (division of labour) and coordinate activities, and rely on certain positions/people to lead or manage others. While the elements of organizations are the same as ever before, the purposes o\f organisation, structures, ways of doing things, methods of coordination and control have always varied widely over the years and even at the same time amongst different organisations. For example, public sector organisation in India with there multiple objectives in early years were not roused by the profit motive but are now required to make surpluses. At a given point in the time of history. Ford Motors relied more on centralization and General Motors on decentralization. The crucial aspect that accounts for the differences is how an organisation adapts itself to the environment. Organisation being part of the society affects and is affected by the changes in society. The changes could be social, economic, technical, legal or political; they could be in input (labour, capital, materials etc.) or output markets.

It is essential to develop a perspective understanding about organisations because human behaviour and organisational behaviour are influenced by the people in organisations and the specific characteristics in the basic elements in the organisations and the way they adapt themselves to the environment. There is considerable body of knowledge and literature, called organisation theories, developed over the years reflecting what goes on in organisations. Organisation theories are sets of propositions which seek to explain or predict how individuals and groups behave indifferent organisational structures
and circumstances.

Basically we have the three types of approaches to organisation
1. Classical
2. neo-classical
3. modern approach
Now we will describe

Classical Viewpoint:
these concepts have come to be popularly known as classical concepts or classical theories of organisation. The structure of an organisation received emphasis under this school of thought. According to the classical view, “An organisation is the structure of the relationships, power, objectives, roles, activities, communications and other factors that exist when persons work together.

The streams of concepts in the “classical” mould are based on the same assumptions, but are developed rather independently. Bureaucracy as a concept, first developed by Max Weber, presents a descriptive, detached, scholarly point of view. Administrative theories not only described macro aspects of organisations but also focused on principles and practice for better performance. Scientific management thought focused mainly in micro aspects like individual worker, foreman, work process, etc. The classical theorists on the whole, with scientific management stream being a minor exception, viewed organisations as mechanistic structures. Let us consider the three streams of classical theories briefly : i.e Bureaucracy, Administrative theory and Scientific Management.

Bureaucracy
Bureaucracy is the dominant feature of ancient civilizations as well as modern organisations in contemporary world. Max Weber describes an “ideal type” approach to outline the characterstics of a fully developed bureaucratic form of organisation. The features that the described as being characterstic of a bureaucracy are common to all social institutions, be they political, religious, industry, business, military, educational or government organisations. Size and complexity produce bureaucracy. As such, the rigid structures, fixed jurisdictions, impersonal rules and mundane routine, concomitant with bureaucracies often result in delays, produce inertia, encourage buck-passing, lead to wastage of resources and cause frustration. As such, in general parlance the word ‘bureaucracy’ has come to have a negative connotation and many tended to wish it away. But the features that characterize bureaucracy have become inevitable and ubiquitous with the growing size and complexity in organisations. There is need, therefore, to understand and improve bureaucracies than indulge in dysfunctional debates over their relevance.

Administrative Theory
Administrative theory is another stream of thought in the classical mould.
Among the several proponents of the Administrative theory, the earliest and significant contribution came from Henri F Fayol, a French industrialist, in 1916. The 14 principles that capture the essence of the administrative theory could be summarized as follows:

Division of work. Division of work or specialization gives higher productivity because one can work at activities in which one is comparatively highly skilled.

Authority and responsibility. Authority is the right to give orders. An organisational member has responsibility to accomplish the organisational objectives of his position. Appropriate sanctions are required to encourage good and to discourage poor performance.

Discipline. There must be respect for and obedience to the rules and objectives of the organisation.

Unity of command. To reduce confusion and conflicts each member should receive orders from and be responsible to only one superior.

Unity of direction. An organistion is effective when members work together toward the same objectives.

Subordination of individual interest to general interest. The interests of one employee or group of employees should not prevail over that of the organisation.

Remuneration of personnel. Pay should be fair and should reward good performance, decentralization.

Centralisation. A good balance should be found between centralisation and decentralization.

Scalar chain. There is scalar chain or hierarchy dictated by the principle of unity of command linking all members of the organisation from the top to the bottom.

Order. There is a place for everything and everyone which ought to be so occupied.

Equity. Justice, largely based on predetermined conventions, should prevail in the organisation.

Stability of tenure of personnel. Time is required for an employee to get used to new work and succeed in doing it well.

Initiative. The freedom to think out and execute plans at all levels.

Espirit de corps. “Union is strength”.

Scientific Management
The third stream of classic school of thought is the scientific management. Whereas bureaucracy and administrative theory focused on macro aspects of the structure and processes of human organisations, scientific management concerned itself with micro aspects such as physical activities of work through time-and-motion study
and examination of men-machine relationships. Unlike in the other two, the scientific management and based its inductive reasoning on detailed study and empirical evidence. In juxtaposition the principles of bureaucracy and administrative theory were formed by synthesising experience and observation with abstract reasoning.

Neoclassical Viewpoint
The neoclassical theory, also referred to as the human relations school of thought reflects a modification to and improvement over the classical theories. While classical theories focused more on structure and physical aspects of work the neoclassical theory recognizes the primary of psychological and social aspects of the worker as an individual and his relations within and among groups and the organisation. Though neoclassical philosophy could be traced to ancient times, it gained currency only after the world War I, particulary in the wake of the “Hawthrone experiments” at Western Electric Company by Elton Mayo during 1924 to 1932.

The neoclassical viewpoint thus gave birth to human relations movement and provided the thrust toward democratisation of organisational power structures and participative management. The emerging changes in social, economic, political and technical environment of organisations also seems to have provided the rationale for such shift in emphasis.

The neoclassical viewpoint does not replace classical concepts. The need for order, rationality, structure, etc. have been modified to highlight the importance of relaxing the rigid and impersonal structures and consider each person as an individual with feelings and social influences that effect performance on the job.

Modern (Systems) Viewpoint
Modern theories of organisation and management have been developed largely since the 1930s. The perspective here is to provide a systems viewpoint. Among the several persons who contributed to the modern theory, it was perhaps Chester I. Bernard, who in 1983, provided a comprehensive explanation of the modern view of management and organisation. He considered the individual, organisation, suppliers and consumers as part of the environment. Ten years later, Weiner;s pioneering work on cybernetics developed concepts of systems control by information feedback. He described an adaptive system (including an orgainsation) as mainly dependent upon measurement and correction through feedback. An organisation is viewed as a system consisting of five parts: inputs, process, output, feedback and environment as shown in Figure .

Input Process Outputs

The GST approach suggests the following nine levels of systems complexity:
1. The most basic level is the static structure. It could be termed the level of frameworks. An example would be the anatomy of the universe.
2. The second level is the simple dynamic system. It incorporates necessary Predetermined motions. This could be termed the level of clockworks.
3. The next level is a cybernetic system characterized by automatic feedback Control mechanisms. This could be thought of as the level of clockworks.
4. The fourth level is called the “open-systems” level. It is a self-maintaining Structure and is the level where life begins to differentiate from nonlife. This is the level of the cell.
5. The fifth level can be termed the “genetic-societal” level. It is typified by the plant and occupies the empirical world of the botanist.
6. The next is the animal level, which is characterized by increased mobility, Teleological behaviour, and self-awareness.
7. The seventh level is the human level. The major difference between the human level and the animal level is the human’s possession of self-consciousness.
8. The next level is that of social organisations. The important unit in a social organisation is not the human per se but rather the organisatonal role that the person assumes.
9. The ninth and last level is reserved for transcendental systems. This allows for ultimates, absolute and the inescapable unknowables.

Each level is more complex than the one that precedes it. However, no stage is as yet fully developed and knowledge about different levels is for varying degrees. Beyond the second level none of the theories are comprehensive or fully meaningful. Over the last here decades further developments in research into organisations may have added to the existing knowledge, but human organisations continue to be extremely complex.

The systems approach points to the interdependent nature of everything that forms part of or concerns an organisation. A system is composed of elements which are related to and dependent upon one another and which, when in interaction, from a unitary whole.

Systems framework covers both general and specialized systems and closed and open analysis. A general systems approach to the management processes deals with formal organisation and concepts relating to different disciplines such as technical, social, psychological and philosophical. Specific management systems deal with aspects relating to organisation structure, job design, specific functions of management, etc.

A closed system operates in a closed loop, devoid of external inputs. An open system, in contrast, is a dynamic input-output system “in continual interaction with environment to achieve a steady state of dynamic equilibrium while still retaining the capacity for work or energy transformation”.

While the classical theorists recognised only a closed system viewpoint, the modern theorists believe in organisations as open systems. The work of D.Katz and R L Kahn provided the intellectual basis to merge classical, neoclassical and modern viewpoints.

Here below we are describing the different approaches to organisation in relevence of 7s model.

The 7-S-Model is better known as McKinsey 7-S. This is because the two persons who developed this model, Tom Peters and Robert Waterman, have been consultants at McKinsey & Co at that time. Thy published their 7-S-Model in their article “Structure Is Not Organization” (1980) and in their books “The Art of Japanese Management” (1981) and “In Search of Excellence” (1982).

The model starts on the premise that an organization is not just Structure, but consists of seven elements:

Those seven elements are distinguished in so called hard S’s and soft S’s. The hard elements (green circles) are feasible and easy to identify. They can be found in strategy statements, corporate plans, organizational charts and other documentations.
The four soft S’s however, are hardly feasible. They are difficult to describe since capabilities, values and elements of corporate culture are continuously developing and changing. They are highly determined by the people at work in the organization. Therefore it is much more difficult to plan or to influence the characteristics of the soft elements. Although the soft factors are below the surface, they can have a great impact of the hard Structures, Strategies and Systems of the organization.

Description

The Hard S’s
Strategy Actions a company plans in response to or anticipation of changes in its external environment.
Structure Basis for specialization and co-ordination influenced primarily by strategy and by organization size and diversity.
Systems Formal and informal procedures that support the strategy and structure. (Systems are more powerful than they are given credit)
The Soft S’s
Style / Culture The culture of the organization, consisting of two components:
• Organizational Culture: the dominant values and beliefs, and norms, which develop over time and become relatively enduring features of organizational life.
• Management Style: more a matter of what managers do than what they say; How do a company’s managers spend their time? What are they focusing attention on? Symbolism – the creation and maintenance (or sometimes deconstruction) of meaning is a fundamental responsibility of managers.
Staff The people/human resource management – processes used to develop managers, socialization processes, ways of shaping basic values of management cadre, ways of introducing young recruits to the company, ways of helping to manage the careers of employees
Skills The distinctive competences – what the company does best, ways of expanding or shifting competences
Shared Values / Superordinate Goals Guiding concepts, fundamental ideas around which a business is built – must be simple, usually stated at abstract level, have great meaning inside the organization even though outsiders may not see or understand them.

Effective organizations achieve a fit between these seven elements. This criterion is the origin of the other name of the model: Diagnostic Model for Organizational Effectiveness.
If one element changes then this will affect all the others. For example, a change in HR-systems like internal career plans and management training will have an impact on organizational culture (management style) and thus will affect structures, processes, and finally characteristic competences of the organization.

In change processes, many organizations focus their efforts on the hard S’s, Strategy, Structure and Systems. They care less for the soft S’s, Skills, Staff, Style and Shared Values. Peters and Waterman in “In Search of Excellence” commented however, that most successful companies work hard at these soft S’s. The soft factors can make or break a successful change process, since new structures and strategies are difficult to build upon inappropriate cultures and values. These problems often come up in the dissatisfying results of spectacular mega-mergers. The lack of success and synergies in such mergers is often based in a clash of completely different cultures, values, and styles, which make it difficult to establish effective common systems and structures.

The 7-S Model is a valuable tool to initiate change processes and to give them direction. A helpful application is to determine the current state of each element and to compare this with the ideal state. Based in this it is possible to develop action plans to achieve the intended state.

What are the skills required for becoming a successful change agent?

2009-06-12T20:22:00.000-07:00

What are the skills required for becoming a successful change agent? Illustrate certain instances where change agent played a successful role in your organisation or organisation you are familiar with.

SKILLS OF A CHANGE AGENT
The different skills that a change agent ought to possess are classified under three broad categories: cognitive skills, action skills, and communication skills. These are not watertight compartment categories; skills under a given category may overlap with the others. Hence the classification attempted below is more of an approximation but at the same time helps in knowing the diverse skills that a change agent should possess and the diverse roles that he plays. The basis for classification is the list of change agent skills suggested in the OD literature of the LTN Institute of Applied Natural Science, U.S.A.

The Steps To Evaluate The Change Process In The Organisation If Any Charge Attempts.
Cognitive skills
Self-understanding: The change agent should be able to analyze and comprehend his own motivation in perceiving a need for change and the desire to bring about a change. He should be able to determine his own strategic role in the light of the contest and his abilities

Conceptualization
• The change agent should be able to determine the possible Units of change.
•Any change tends to have consequences to other sub-systems, and related positions and
role set members.
• He should clearly define objectives with reference to the intended change.
• He must conduct an anticipatory practice in carrying out a stepwise plan.
• He must be capable of eliciting and eliminating alternatives and provide for replanning
and assessment at later stages.
• He must be able to anticipate the mistake, resistance to change and devise ways and
means of overcoming both.
• He must be able to anticipate the degree of willingness among clients to the intended
changes.

Evaluation
The change agent should possess skills of assessment or evaluation. He should be able to assess the client group in terms of its nature, expectations, and internal dynamics. As well as the utility of the evaluative measures. Specifically the required skills of evaluations are:
•determining the size, character, structural make up of the client group.
•determining the degree or extent of felt need for change
•skill in using diagnostic instruments appropriate to the problem, such as: surveys, rating
scales, observation etc.
•evaluation of the problem, causes etc., on an objective basis and not in terms of one’s
own likes and dislikes.
•diagnose of causes of failure and perhaps success also.
•identify the methods of change the clients believe as appropriate.

Action Skills
The change agent plays the roles of a consultant, counselor, facilitator, trainer etc.
As a Counsellor,he should possess skills, such as:
•making catharsis possible if it is be a starting point for a change process (catharsis refers
To giving an opportunity to the client to give vent to his feelings, in other words
‘Unburden his heart’)
•helping the clients examine their attitudes, expectations and motivations.
•dealing with the client’s ideology, myths, values etc., wisely and effectively. Resistance
will develop to change efforts. The change agent should orient the change
effort in such a way that it fits with client’s frame of reference.
•clarifying the nature of relationship and inter-dependence between the client and the
change agent.
The change agent, as a facilitator:
•raises the level of aspiration of the clients. These aspirations however, should be
realistic. The change effort should be perceived to have a reinforcing value to the
client’s increased aspirations.
•develops an awareness of the potentialities of the change, thereby developing positive
expectations towards change.
•creates willingness and a sense of responsibility to engage in the change, thereby enlist
their active participation.
•encourage them to use a step-wise plan and also have patience in its execution.
•develops an awareness of possible sources of help in the change activity.

The change agent, as a consultant is required to:
•make a step-wise plan. The change is in terms of a number of stages or steps, one
leading to another than something that is sudden or drastic.
•make use of appropriate techniques or methods to arrive at group consensus.
•examine decisions in terms of their ‘pros and cons’.
•evaluate the progress made at each of the stages and determine what has been achieved
and what yet to be achieved etc.
•build and maintain morale and team spirit of the clients during the change efforts.
The changing agent, as a communicator is concerned with the spread of change information and the ultimate adoption of the change by the ‘client’s’ system. He should have the necessary persuasive skills to enable the client system realise the need for change and the importance of the change to organisational effectiveness. The opinion leaders at the various organisational levels. His ability to communicate effectively can be gauged in terms of the extent to which he is able to enlist the ‘client’s’ support for the rapidly change and create in them the responsibility to participate and implementation the change effort. To be a successful communicator the change agent should:

• should clear as to what are the goals and objectives of each of his communication
attempts.
•develop his communication plan so that it is consonant with the clients needs, attitudes
and belief system.
•should persuasive to minimize rejection without giving the feeling of forcing or driving
one’s ideas on the clients.
•obtain feedback to determine the effectiveness of communication form time to time.
•make strategic use of informal communication networks so that the formal change
efforts are supported and not resisted.

What is organisational development (OD)? Explain the stages and essentials of success of OD.

2009-06-12T20:14:00.000-07:00

What is organisational development (OD)? Explain the stages and essentials of success of OD citing suitable examples.

DEFINITION OF ORGANISATION DEVELOPMENT :
OD may be defined as a systematic , integrated and planned approach to improve the effectiveness of the enterprise. It is designed to solve problems that adversely affect the operational efficiency at all levels is based on scientific awareness of human behavior and organization dynamics. Being an organization wide effort, it is directed towards more participative management and integration of individual goals with organization goals. OD is intended to create an internal environment of openness, trust, mutual confidence and collaboration and to help the members of the organization to interact more effectively in the pursuit of organizational goals. Thus the organization is enabled to cope effectively with external forces in the environment.

OBJECTIVES OF ORGANISATION DEVELOPMENT :
The objectives of OD may be stated as follows:
• Improved organizational performance as measured by profitability, market share, innovativeness etc.
• Better adaptability of the organization to its environment .
• Willingness of the members to face organizational problems and contribute creative solutions to these problems .
• Improvement in internal behavior patterns such as interpersonal relations, intergroup relations, intergroup relations, level of trust and support among role members, understanding one’s own self and others, openness and meaningful communication and involvement in planning for organizational development.

MODELS OF ORGANISATION DEVELOPMENT
Three models of OD are quite popular.
Lwein’s model :
This organizations have an internal equilibrium. Before introducing a change organization should be prepared for the change, otherwise there will be resistance to change attempts. Readying for change would mean disturbing the existing equilibrium i.e., unfreezing or creating motivation to change The change is then introduced which is a new or modified response to solve the organization problems. The change moves the organization to a new equilibrium at which the organization has to be stabilized so that is does not revert to the earlier equilibrium.
Refreezing refers to this process of stabilizing and integrating the change into behavioral pat terns, interpersonal relationships, and individual personalities.
Unfreezing-Changing –Freezing Model
Unfreezing: Creating the need for change, motivating people for change and minimizing resistance to change.
Changing: Transition from old behavior to experimentation with new behavior in terms of cognitive redefinition through identification and scanning .
Re-Freezing: Stabilizing and integrating the change by reinforcing the new behaviors and integrating them into format and interpersonal relationships and in one’s personality.
Larry Griener’s Model
Change according to this model is in terms of certain sequential stages(Fig.).The change process is initiated by external pressure or stimulus on the top management and it is motivated to take action. The succeeding stages of intervention by a change agent are: diagnosis of the problem, invention of a new solution, experimentation with new solution, experimentation with new solution and reinforcement from positive result.

H.J. Leavitt’s model
Leavitt’s model focuses on the interactive nature of the various sub- system in a change process. Organization is a system of four interacting sub-system: task, structure, people and technology. Change in anyone of the sub-system tends to have consequences for the other sub-systems. Hence OD effort should not only focus on the intended change but also the effects of change on the other sub-systems.
Moreover, change can be brought out in any of the sub-systems depending upon the diagnosis of the situation. The planned change may be interpersonal training of the required of the required sort or technological change or structural modification or task modification

In Richardson Hindustan, for four years of Organization development perceivable change was observed in the C.E. and also in a number of managers as a result of the feedback given.
A number of action’ were taken at the top layer, supervisory layer and among unions and workers in the company with equal emphasis given to all these groups of people. In other words, supervisors, union and workers were as high in priority as the other managers.

Monetary compensation, internal promotions and recognition of performance were amongst the first steps that were taken for supervisory and Executive staff. Gradually people were enrolled in task forces, special assignments and projects and for case writing. The live case studies developed were effectively used in training workshops. Emphasis was laid on ‘on-the-job’ training and slightly diverse work assignments before going into job rotation.
The real last test of whether the company will succeed in moving towards the objectives and philosophy that was stated was in the kind of sprit and willingness that is required in the chief Executive, the principal change agent in the company. In the context, the chief Executive has a kind of restlessness about the exercise and a unique quality of being open to feedback. It was found that changing organisation structure or design will not solve problems of collaboration but genuine support from all functions to an organisational objective will help.
Development of Workers
Training as many people as possible in supervisory and executive ranks in counseling skills was done in development of workers. A model was get in moving industrial relations to supervisory levels and personnel has taken a supporting role than that of front line negotiator.
Supervisory Development
Supervisory group was integrated into management and it. Was not treated as a different entity. This was made possible by making them participate in several management forums such as strategic planning, communication meetings, negotiations subcommittees for wage contracts, the annual dinner, by changing performance appraisal system to be in line with executives, giving them assignments which call for higher responsibility, permitting across to company information was given to them through experiential workshops in resolving IR problems on the shop floor. Supervisors were allowed to act on their own and many times condoned their mistakes. Now a worker approaches a supervisor and not be personnel department or the works manager for his problems. Three workshops or IR strategy was held where line management and personnel have participated together.

How do you construct a questionnaire for the purpose of organisational diagnosis?

2009-06-12T20:06:00.000-07:00

How do you construct a questionnaire for the purpose of organisational diagnosis? Discuss this with reference to your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with. Describe the organisation you are referring to.

Organisational diagnosis
Organisation is a framework that works when operated by people. The purpose or mission of an organisation provides the direction in which it moves. An organisation has several parts each having its own independent minds and they may not always function in a fully unified way. An organisation can put itself through periodic check ups or diagnostic exercises to assess its growth, dynamism, strength, weaknesses etc.
Most of the calculated management decisions are based on some sort of diagnosis. Every manager irrespective of his level, is in a continuous cycle of diagnosis-decision-action –evaluation, so long as his decisions and actions are not impulsive.
Organisational diagnosis is an exercise attempted to make an analysis of the organisation, its structure, subsystems and processes in order to identify the strengths and weaknesses of its structural components and processes and use it as a base for developing plans to improve and/or maximise the dynamism and effectiveness of the organisation
Organisational diagnosis could be done as a periodic routine exercise like the case of periodic medical check up of an individual or may be undertaken whenever there is a cognizable problem that is affecting the functioning of an organisation.
The approaches to organisational diagnosis vary not only with the nature of relationship between the diagnostic and the organisation, but in a very substantive way depends on: (a) the preferred domain of diagnosis,(b) the methodology adopted in diagnosing, and (c) the assumptions in diagnosing.
Since, I am working as Manager (HRD) with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL).Today, BSNL is the No. 1 Telecommunications Company and the largest Public Sector Undertaking of India and its responsibilities include improvement of the already impeccable quality of telecom services, expansion of telecom network, introduction of new telecom services in all villages and instilling confidence among its customers.
Responsibilities that BSNL has managed to shoulder remarkably, deftly. Today with a 43million line capacity, 99.9% of its exchanges digital, nation wide Network management & surveillance system (NMSS) to control telecom traffic and nearly 3,55,632 route kms of OFC network, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd is a name to reckon with in the world of connectivity. Along with its vast customer base, BSNL's financial and asset bases too are vast and strong.
Being a Personnel Manager of such a large organization, I am quite aware of the process of workshop method being followed in our organisation for organisational diagnosis.

Questionnaire is a very useful diagnostic tool. There are several questionnaire developed by organisational scientists in our country that are useful for diagnostic purposes. These questionnaire could be used with appropriate modifications to suit the diagnostic needs of each organisation. It is advisable to develop organisation specific questionnaire for diagnosing problems unique to the organisation. Comparative data may be available if standardised questionnaire are used for general diagnosis purposes. Participative methods of developing questionnaire enhance the quality of questionnaire through increasing the organisational relevance of items.

Ready made questionnaire have some limitations and some advantages. One advantage is that they are normally standardised and data from other organisations (norms etc.) may be available for interpretation and comparison purposes. The main disadvantage is that they may not suit the needs of an organisation seeking diagnosis. For example, most of the available questionnaire are developed in business settings and hence may be of limited value to educational and such other organisations. Secondly an organisation may be interested in having a look at a few specific aspects than studying everything outlined in the questionnaire.

• Questionnaire for organisational diagnosis normally measure the perceptions of employees or participants in an organisation. It is the aggregate of these perceptions that indicate the organisational strengths and short-comings.
• The employees/participants of an organisation sometimes are in a good position to provide dimensions/variables on which questionnaire can be framed. For example, to diagnose the organisational health of an agriculture university a group of scientists of that university were assembled and requested to make statements about what in their opinion is good and bad in the university. All their statements were collected, edited and a questionnaire was made. Subsequently it was administered to all the scientists in the university. Thus interviews/group discussions/meetings/workshops help in developing questionnaire.
• Another form of developing a questionnaire is to sample test any standardised questionnaire on a group of respondents. The respondents could be asked to indicate variables/items that should be used for diagnosis.
• In preparing a questionnaire, structured questionnaire are more easy to analyse data and for providing statistical information.

Discuss the impact of information technology on organizing work, on the basis of your experience.

2009-06-12T19:54:00.000-07:00

Discuss the impact of information technology on organizing work, on the basis of your experience. Explain how it can enable new methods of working. Illustrate referring to your own organisation or an organisation you are familiar with. Briefly describe the organisation you are referring to.

The impact that Information Technology brought to our daily life, and how it shaped our environment is something of a wide scope to explore. And when asked how the impact should be managed, the sky is again its limit. Within my limited scope of background and experience, I am only capable to touch some part, within which there are also room for discussion and confirmation from the participants and experts attending this seminar. I feel honorable to be invited by the committee of this very reputable event, and I will devote my best knowledge to actively contribute in the discussions.
Information Technology as any other technology or means to ease our life is not neutral to the culture of mankind. With its inherent power, those who have it firmly in their hands can control the world, and can express their dominance to others. In relation to it, I would like to quote Dr. Olaf Stapleton and Gregory Bateson :"When one species attains the position of dominance over all the other, i.e. the ecology of this planet, and if that species is both egocentrically greedy and has a powerful set of technologies through which to amplify the expression of that greed, then unless that dominant species can find a way to limit or transform its egocentric greediness into something more wholesome, it will found its planetary nest as surely the night follows the day, perhaps even to its own extinction"
Developed, as well as developing countries alike, are all responsible for the sustainment of our planet earth. The convergence of information technology, telecommunication, and information content, has shown its initial impact, where each of us in line with the mature level of our understanding, simply becomes a node of the network. Orchestrated dynamism is the name of the game, when one like to visualize the related arrangement among the "borderless" nation as expressed by Dr. Kenichi Ohmae. The performance of one node wherever it is located will influence the quality of the whole network, or it should be cut-off from the system. If too many nodes are eliminated, the whole network will at the end bear the strategic costs, because imbalance occurs and as common in close correlation to the law of nature, the ecological system will suffer. It is in fact a common sense when managing the impact of Information Technology should also consider these interrelationships.
To ease my presentation within the limited time-frame, I will systematize it into some tenets that although discretely expressed, is expected to contain significant interrelationships as building blocks for further elaboration in the discussions.
Tenets
Following are some tenets which I consider relevant to be raised for further elaboration in the effort to update our strategic thinking.

1. Digitalization of the electronic related industries are the basic building block that had brought significant changes in our economic vision.
At the technical level, digitalization is a straightforward precondition. When it was widely implemented in telecommunication, computer technology and other related industries, it brought forward to the surface possibilities of convergence among these various industries. The impact is a complete restructuring of many concepts including the conventional economic treatments of supply and demand, and the value aspects of economic commodities.
a. We can see the utilization of knowledge workers in Mainland China by the United States without needing to bring those workers physically to the States. They still stay in China, pay taxes there, thus contribute, to the economy of China. They got work assignments from the states, transported their product to that country almost instantly, without either party needed to move back and forth. They also contribute to the economy of the United States, and become the so called economic alien or popularized as virtual alien. All the transportation means used are the net, the global network. This can only be achieved if all the required ingredients of the products are easily transportable and possesses common character of dimension. Digitizing has made this dream come true. It brought telecommunication, Information Technology and Information Content converge. Text, graphics,sound, images in the form of still as well as moving pictures become common dimension so that processing and transmission can easily be achieved. And as the product in the form of contained knowledge is produced, the next step is simply finding the best suitable mechanism to physically produce it. All these new recruits are China trained and educated, in accordance with their own education system. Although there might exist some difference in pay of the workers in the United States than in China with the same level of capability, the arrangement has brought a Win-Win condition for both economy.
b. Digit which does not posses any physical dimension, but contains enormous size of knowledge has also change the way we are looking at things. An integrated circuit in the form of chips or microprocessor contains information. If the size of the same chip is reduced a thousand times less, but with the same content of information, the economic value of that particular chip is the same. One can experiment by halving the size of an automobile and expect the economic value to be the same or even halved. It never works. If the same information is embedded in a bigger size of media, say in a big tape reel, the only insignificant difference in the economic value is its carrying media, however the content which is information with the embedded knowledge is independent of the size and type of the carrying media.
c. The transporting of bits - the basic ingredient of digit - has in fact caused the economic model of pricing almost fall apart. Dr. Negroponte has shown that tariffs are determined per minute, per mile, or per bit, all three of which are rapidly becoming bogus measures. According to Dr. Negroponte, the system is being ruptured by the wild extremes of time ( a microsecond - which is a millionth of a second - to a day), distance ( a few feet to fifty thousand miles), and numbers of bits (one to 20 billion) . A simple communication device which is called modem that can transmit 2400 bits per second, compare to the same device with a 14,400 bits per second is a straightforward example of how many information the latter can transmit in the same amount of time period compared to the other. If the same tariff hold for both, it would be more economical to use the latter. This again shows to us how our economic rules must be rescripted to allocate the impact of digitizing.

2. Miniaturization and digitizing within the Information Technology domain leads toward the birth of commodities that are subtle, lighter, low energy consumption, and less-impact to the environment, which match beautifully to the new required conditions of a sustained ecological system.
Two critical issues faced by the world to day as we are moving toward the 21st century are, the exponential growth on our planet and the ecological load that growth creates. The other critical issue is the ephemeralization of technology. Dr. Oliver W. Markley , has smartly visualized the coming Global Consciousness Era following the Information era that we are now entering or going to leave behind.
Exhibit-1, shows the time frame it took within the development eras. It took thousands of years to change form nomadic era to agricultural. Then hundred of years from agricultural to industrial, and only decades from industrial to the information era. As the knowledge of people grows exponentially, so did the capability to exploit the limited resources of the planet earth. Fortunately, innovation and creativity which always flourish in line with the growth of knowledge gave birth to groups demanding proper balancing of development by sustaining the ecology of resources. Ephemeralization of technology will occur in two ways. The first is the physical or explicit domain where researchers are now working in the range of nano dimension (10- 9 cm). Nanotechnology is about building molecules an atom at a time - mass production at the molecular level.
The second path to the ephemeralization of technology is through noetic technology. Noetic is a Greek word that refers to science of the intellect. The bridge from the third to the fourth wave is beginning to evolve with the development of virtual reality and biofeedback.
Moreover the two chains must be managed distinctly but also in concert. Companies tend to adopt value-adding information processes in three stages.
First : visibility. Companies acquire an ability to "see" physical operations more effectively through information. At this stage managers use large-scale information technology systems to coordinate activities in their physical value chains, in the process laying the foundation for a virtual value chain.
Second : mirroring capability. Companies substitute virtual activities for physical ones; they begin to create a parallel value chain in the marketspace.
Third :value matrix. Business use information to establish new customer relationships. At this third stage, managers draw on the flow of information in their virtual value chain to deliver value to customers in the new ways. In effect, they apply the generic value adding activities to their virtual value chain and thereby exploit what we call value matrix.
Managers must focus consciously on the principles that guide value creation and extraction across the two value chain separately and in combination. They are fundamentally different. The physical value chain is composed of a linear sequence of activities with defined points of input and output. By contrast, the virtual value chain is non-linear - a matrix of potential inputs and outputs that can be assessed and distributed through a wide variety of channels. A company's executives must embrace an updated set of guiding principles because in the marketspace many of the business axioms that have guided managers no longer apply.

3. Virtual value chain which arise as a direct consequence of Information Technology development, is an empowered means to the conventional physical value chain.
The economic logic of the two chains is different : conventional understanding of the economic of scale and scope does not apply to the virtual value chain (VVC) in the same way as it does to the physical value chain (PVC). Moreover the two chains must be managed distinctly but also in concert. Companies tend to adopt value-adding information processes in three stages.
First : visibility. Companies acquire an ability to "see" physical operations more effectively through information. At this stage managers use large-scale information technology systems to coordinate activities in their physical value chains, in the process laying the foundation for a virtual value chain.
Second : mirroring capability. Companies substitute virtual activities for physical ones; they begin to create a parallel value chain in the marketspace.
Third :value matrix. Business use information to establish new customer relationships. At this third stage, managers draw on the flow of information in their virtual value chain to deliver value to customers in the new ways. In effect, they apply the generic value adding activities to their virtual value chain and thereby exploit what we call value matrix.
Managers must focus consciously on the principles that guide value creation and extraction across the two value chain separately and in combination. They are fundamentally different. The physical value chain is composed of a linear sequence of activities with defined points of input and output. By contrast, the virtual value chain is non-linear - a matrix of potential inputs and outputs that can be assessed and distributed through a wide variety of channels. A company's executives must embrace an updated set of guiding principles because in the marketspace many of the business axioms that have guided managers no longer apply.

4. Organizations with digital assets may be able to reharvest them through a potentially infinite number of transactions.
The following five principles apply to digitalization as suggested by Jeffrey F. Rayport and John J. Sviokla4:
a. The law of digital assets. Digital assets unlike physical ones, are not used up in their consumption. They may be reharvest through a potentially infinite number of transactions. Organization using the traditional chemical means in processing images, can not compete with the digital technology with respect to the speed of processing, and the number of locations that it can be reached.
b. New economics of scale. The virtual value chain redefines economics of scale, allowing small organization to achieve low unit costs for products and services in markets dominated by big organizations.
c. New economics of scope. In the marketspace, businesses can redefine economics of scope by drawing on a scope by drawing on a single set of digital assets to provide value across man different and disparate markets. Using the virtual value chain, the business can coordinate across markets and provide a broader line of high-quality products and services.
d. Transaction cost compression. Transaction cost along the VVC are lower than their counterparts on the PVC, and they continue to decrease sharply as the processing capacity per unit of cost for microprocessors doubled every 18 months. In 1960, it costs about $ 1.- to keep information about an individual customer. Today, it is only less than one cent per customer.
e. Rebalancing supply and demand. These four axioms above combined, creates a shift on the world business' demands from supply - to demand-side. As companies gather, organize, select, synthesize, and distribute information in the marketspace while managing raw and manufactured goods in the marketplace, they have the opportunity to sense and respond to customer's desires, rather than simply making and selling product and services.

5. The network is emerging as the signature form of organization in the Information age, just as bureaucracy stamped the industrial age, hierarchy controlled the Agricultural Era, and the small group roamed in the Nomadic Era Organizational structure flourished from the agricultural and the industrial era.

6. We are empowered to manage our areas of responsibility. We work together to achieve common goals for business success. Full participation, cooperation, and open communication lead to superior results. What all this means for managers is that they must consciously focus on the principles that guide value creation.

Information is not controlled by management hierarchy, but is readily and quickly available to all employees, empowering them to be direct participants in the management of the business. Such changes are driven by advances in computers and microelectronics. As per- sonal computers and compu-ter networks become com-monplace, employees gain a personal information access and processing capacity that is unprecedented. Knowledge is the key to organizational performance. The link between infor-mation technology, knowledge and organizational performance is clear.

7. Information technology provides access to diverse sources for specialized information and enhances our ability to analyze, manage, and apply this information to our work. While the link between teams, knowledge and organizational performance may be less obvious, it is just as important. If teamwork is the key to effective organizations, information is the key to effective teamwork.

8. A global change is underway, a social upheavel in organization that involves everyone. It shakes every place of work, quakes the foundations of our biggest institutions, and our smallest groups, even sends quivers into our homes and communities. It swirls through organizations of all sizes, in all sectors, in all countries, regardless of gender, race, creed, or economic status. Does this means we need to clear out the old, to make the way for the new ? Organizations will have to learn how to share important information with all employees. The backlash will mushroom against purely high-tech approaches to resolving and meeting challenges. At the management level of organization, relation between people tend to move away from hierarchycal and bureaucratic forms, into an equal valued and humanistic relation. Social capital will be seen as a new source of wealth. However, we should keep in mind that we don't arrive in the next century without a heritage.

9. Today's generation straddle two eras, the graying industrial one behind and the sleek information one ahead. Just a decade ago, this was Sunday supplement speculation, to day it is a mainstream. Collectively we are in the middle of a transition. Too far in to go back, yet not far enough along to see how it's going to turn out. In such a condition, we naturally live within several type of waves. If we are realistic, the hierarchy, the top-down pyramid, still holds final rule. Even as virtually everyone vigorously complains about it and finds ways to skirt it, bureaucracy, with its neatly stacked, specialized boxes, continues to spew out more policies and procedures, rules and regulations. Small groups and teams are in - form the shop floor and front desk to the executive suite and boardroom. At the same time, new networks are forming, both within and among older organizational forms. Bureaucracies need to be transformed rather than replaced. And new relationships erupt spontaneously among the departmental boxes as connections multiply. It shows that a real network relation involve various type of organizational development status and values. This model derived from Jessica & Jeffrey Stamps , is a realistic model occuring today. This kind of network relation entertains the interest of various development status, including the developed as well as developing countries, whereby the impact of IT development can be more realistically approached and tamed.

Final Remark

With respect to the impact of information technology, we are at the cross-road to move ahead. When we try to reach certain consensus, on the standard of information interconnection we will realize that there are so many issues to be faced Among which,. the development status of information technology of a nation is one, and the educational infrastructure might be the other. Commitments and consistencies in governance with a solid leadership are the main driver. Only then can we expect, that a new individual of people will blossoms and new style of leadership is emerging, while those to be led are of a completely new ilk. The new type of people will have the following criteria : originated from a much more diverse pool, bringing vast cultural differences with them with a clear mission to maintain an equal balance and equilibrium in the interrelationship of people. To develop healthy, flexible, intelligent organizations for the 21st century in the information technology era, we need to harvest the best of the past and combine it with what is really new. And with information technology as the main driver of change, its impacts to our life and works can be of the best advantage. Surely, some learning from thousands of years of our environment and life of mankind must be worth keeping. There must be continuity as well as change.

Organisation Design

2009-05-31T10:56:00.000-07:00

Discuss the meaning and theories of Organisation Design. Describe the key factors affecting organisation design with suitable organisational examples.

New organisation designing are created either by existing organisation or by individuals who create new organisation. Experience shows that personal vision, beliefs and preference of entrepreneur on matters such as delegation determine the shape of an organisation at the time of its foundation and also over time. The shape changes depending on the nature of issues in integration and control. Aging and growth lead to complexity and uncertainty and turbulence in environment (including technology) and provide impetus to reshape or restructure organisations. Discovery of doing things in a better way or dissatisfaction with the existing structure may provide occasions and opportunity to come up with new strategies and structures. Organisations of the future are likely to emphasize on innovation. As such, the design components of an innovative organisation also merit consideration here.
For the purpose of the organisation designing strategies, the following five could be considered as critical dimensions of organisation design:

(i) Environment
(ii) Technology
(iii) Size
(iv) Ownership
(v) Social change and Human aspects

These above five aspects are briefly discussed with a view to discerning their possible effect on organisation design.

(i) Environment
An organisation should be well structured in order to support plans at all hierarchical levels. Without the structure plans cannot be implemented and goals cannot be achieved. Most organisations design a structure that suits their particular purpose and the skills of their staff. A structure needs constant attention if the organisation is to develop.
We intend to help you to understand some of the issues that management has to understand when running an organisation effectively. You will find topics such as internal and external environment, PEST analysis, SWOT analysis, 6M reporting tool, 7S framework, organisational design, organisational Chart, horizontal and vertical communication, and the mission statement.
To begin with, we may consider the broad features of environment such as whether it is relatively stable or not, the rate of change (if any), and the degree of complexity. These aspects are considered to affect the organisation and therefore the design strategy should permit an appropriate fit between the structure of an organisation and its external environment.

To sum up the extreme categories of organisational environment the major propositions are following:
• Organisations with category 1 environment have relatively amend information problems; can design long-range strategies, operations, and tactics more easily-more rapidly and in more detail - and implement them without large alternations; have relatively little internal conflict potential; possess a more mechanical structure; have clearly described and predictable, gradually changing coalitions; and have relatively few problems with their existing decision-making programmes when the environment changes.
• Organisations confronted with a category 49 environment experience the same problems as do those with a category 1 environment; but they experience a higher degree of uncertainty concerning timing in the control of internal problem states.
• Organisations confronted with a category 64 environment have large information problems; have very abstract, tentative sets of strategies, operations and tactics and cannot execute them without expecting large alternations; have very vague coalitions that change unpredictably; and are constantly redesigning decision-making programmes or constantly creating exceptions to existing decision-making programmes.
• Organisations confronted with a category 16 environment have the same problems as are experienced by organisations with a category 64 environment, but they are able to predict and control internal problem states much more easily.

Particular cell represents a separate situation. This typology is not a matrix of interdependencies. Knowing the environmental map or the direction of its movement may mean switching from one category to another.

(ii) Technology
TCS has the following offerings in this area:
S-RCP (Secure Recovery and Continuity Planning Practice):
Business operations are often interrupted by unforeseen events — a tornado that destroys communication lines, a massive computer failure, or the latest virus on the loose can bring your organisation to a grinding halt.

Our Secure Recovery and Continuity Planning (S-RCP) practice can help your organisation to face such challenges. We follow current appropriate standards and established risk management techniques to assess the business effect of unforeseen disasters.

In the context of information systems, disaster recovery entails the restoration of computing and telecommunications services after they have been disrupted by some event.

We approach disaster management in terms of a system's capability to function at an acceptable level in the face of untimely mishaps. In this context, we consider the system in the broadest possible sense to include large-scale systems and entire networks.

How can enterprises arm themselves to address the increasing risks to information security? TCS's S-RCP offering addresses this fundamental question and provides a robust framework for organisations to conduct their operations in an uninterrupted manner in the face of unforeseen disasters

The choice of technology influences how well an organisation can maximise its effectiveness. The basic structure of a TCS organisation should facilitate a technology appropriate to a chosen strategy. Thus there should be a fit between strategies concerning structure and those of environment and technology.

While technological changes affect organisation design choice and strategy and vice-versa, the options depend on a number of limitations and possibilities that the choices create. Sometimes what happens in other organisation in the same sphere of activity might force a kind of consensus on the relevant technology strategy for the organisations.

(iii) Size
The structure of an organisation is, in some ways, a function of size. With raise in size, complexity rises in an organisation and the movement from centralization to decentralization takes a full circle with centralized decentralisation for purposes of optimally designed control and coordination.

(iv) Ownership
In the past it is believed that the organisational purposes vary with the nature of ownership. But such distinctions are less pronounced these days than before. The organisation structures need not vary based on ownership, more so in form than in substance.
To classify sectorally organisations are often sought based on ‘ownership’ criterion. It is further believed that the nature of ownership influences the goals of an organisation, nature of control and attitudes to market situation.

In reality, however, the private enterprises have major public holding and public sector has an element of mixed or joint ownership and enterprise. The rise of Modern Corporation led to definite degree of divorce between ownership and control. The public sector is compelled not to ignore the profit motive altogether while the private sector is under great pressure and obligation to keep public good in mind and discharge its social objectives. Protection and monopoly are transient phases in most economic systems and there is neither pure capitalism nor pure communism anywhere. Therefore notions concerning distinctive nature of organisations in separate sectors have to be updated keeping in mind the changes in the environment of each economic system at separate points of time. The elements and features of organisation, particularly when they are seen in action, do not any longer have universal distinctiveness merely on the basis of ownership criterion.

(v) Social change and Human aspects
Though last motioned, entire five aspects, this is the most influential factor shaping and reshaping the organisation structures warranting, as indicated by the growing body of knowledge on human behaviour, a movement away from traditional control systems to systems based on consensus and commitment.

A number of basic socio-cultural conditions impinge on organisations and their functions. There is a view that in numerous cases socio-cultural restrictions have tended to be the chief cause of below development and poverty in developing societies likes India. It is true hard to measure and quantify whether and how these factors affect organisation and management systems. A definite sense of fatalism, limited aspirations and assigning a low value to time are cited as some of the characteristics of traditional societies like ours. In Hindi the words ‘tomorrow’ and ‘yesterday’ are identical, only distinguished by usage. Both mean one day from now. As the noted social anthropologist Margaret Mead pointed out in her study on Spanish Americans, in traditional societies there is an unable to move easily resistance to change as based on the belief that “it has been so whole along and it continues to be so”.

Group membership shapes the aspirations and desires of a good majority of the people. The joint or extended family consisting of a number of family units-father, mother, sons and their wives, children, nephews and their families living together in one roof pooling and sharing resources. Usually the eldest male member wields authority and control over the members and resources. Over the years caste related mores and taboos are gradually changing and the joint family system is undergoing erosion. While in the past authority and dependence was a part of family and cast structure, progressive strides in urbanisation and modernization have changed the system. Parochial considerations, inter-laced with religion, language and region have had adverse effects on group cohesiveness, cooperation and productivity even in organisational context. Notwithstanding the many changes in the society the dependency among masses continues. There is a tendency to show loyalty to individuals that institutions and excel in individual tasks than group performance. Discount on physical labour and a civil service premium on professional skill through occupational values.