Three Lenses on Organizational Analysis and Action Module 2 Three Lenses on Organizational Analysis and Action PowerPoint Presentation by Charlie Cook Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Our Personal “Schemas” Schema defined A cognitive structure that represents how individuals construct their own maps of the social world How schemas lead us astray: Schemas become outdated Schemas are resistant to change Schemas become universal rules Schemas are incomplete Class Note: Introduction Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Three Classic Lenses on Organizations Strategic Design Lens Organization Political Lens Cultural Lens Class Note: Introduction Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Choosing a View of the Organization The strategic design lens How the flow of tasks and information is designed How people are sorted into roles How these roles are related How the organization can be rationally optimized to achieve its goals Class Note: Introduction Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Choosing a View (cont’d) The political lens How power and influence are distributed and wielded How multiple stakeholders express their different preferences and get involved in (or excluded from) decisions How conflicts can be resolved Class Note: Introduction Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Choosing a View (cont’d) The cultural lens How history has shaped the assumptions and meanings of different people How certain practices take on special meaningfulness and even become rituals How stories and other artifacts shape the feel of an organization Class Note: Introduction Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

The Strategic Design Lens Organization Political Lens Cultural Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Key Elements of Organization Design Grouping (differentiation) Drawing boundaries around clusters of tasks or activities to define jobs, departments, processes Linking (integration) Creating links across organizational boundaries Alignment Positioning elements of the organization (such as rewards and incentives) to provide access to the resources and the incentives to do the tasks assigned Class Note: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Elements of Organization Design (cont’d) Task Basic element of organization design Smallest unit of activities that need to be performed if organization is to realize strategic goals. Tasks vary in: Complexity Level of routinization Interdependence Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Elements of Organization Design (cont’d) Task interdependence varies from low to high Kinds of interdependence: Pooled: interdependent tasks are undertaken at the same time Sequential: one task is completed and then handed off for the next stage Reciprocal: tasks are conducted in repeated interaction with each other Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Forms of Interdependence Pooled Sequential Reciprocal Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.1

Strategic Grouping Basic grouping structures: By expertise/function By output/product By market (geography or customer) Hybrid grouping structures: Matrix organization Front/back structure Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Functional Grouping Structure Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.2

Business or Product Division Structure Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.3

Marketing Group Structure Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.4

Functional/Product Matrix Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.5

Front/Back Structure Back End Front End Figure 2.6 Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.6

Strategic Linking Linking: designing formal/informal structures and processes to connect and coordinate units Linking mechanisms: Formal reporting structures that follow organization’s hierarchy Liaison roles Integrator roles Permanent and temporary cross-unit groups Information technology systems Planning processes Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Strategic Alignment Alignment: ensuring that units and individuals have necessary resources and motivation Alignment systems: Organization performance measurement systems Individual rewards and incentives Resource allocation Human resource development Informal systems and processes Class Notes: The Strategic Design Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Strategic Organizational Design Process Process of design involves costs: Disruption of normal flow of business Risk to long-term relationships with key customers and suppliers Stress and anxiety Reasons for organization redesign: Response to growth of organization Management succession stimulates change Required as a result of internal problems Current design no longer fits external environment Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

The Political Lens on Organizations Strategic Design Lens Organization Political Lens Cultural Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Organization as Political System Politics may be perceived as dark side of an organization Unwillingness to deal with political aspects of organization is a serious handicap for anyone trying to take action in an organizational setting Core concepts of the political perspective: Interests Power Class Notes: The Political Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Organization as Political System (cont’d) First step: recognizing that interests are important Organizational behavior grounded in interests Collective interests are those shared by others in a group or category Stakeholders: groups that have a shared “stake” affected by the organization Internal stakeholders—those within an organization External stakeholders—suppliers, customers, communities, shareholders Next step: analyzing what interests are and what priority they have individually and collectively Class Notes: The Political Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Organization as Political System (cont’d) Power: ability to influence behavior of others Sources of power: Personal characteristics Scarce and valued expertise Past performance/track record Formal position in organization Informal position in organization or social network Class Notes: The Political Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Organization as Political System (cont’d) Influence from social network often more significant than authority from formal position Key factors in power of social networks: Size of network Number of powerful people in network Position in network Redundance vs. efficiency Acting as an information bridge in a “structural hole” in an organizational network Class Notes: The Political Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Redundant vs. Efficient Networks Class Notes: The Political Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.8

Sources of Power Personal Characteristics Scarce and Valued Expertise Energy and physical stamina Focus Sensitivity to interests of others Flexibility Ability to tolerate conflict Ability to submerge one’s ego in order to get something accomplished Scarce and Valued Expertise Track Record Formal Position in Organizational Hierarchy Informal Network Position Class Notes: The Political Lens Source: Jeffrey Pfeffer, Managing with Power: Politics and Influence in Organizations (Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1992), 165–185. Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.9

Using the Political Lens Successful political strategies for taking effective action in organizations can include: Mapping interests and power Getting “buy-in” Finding allies and building a coalition Building a network Building negotiation skills Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Commitment Chart Figure 2.10 Class Notes: The Political Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.10

Stakeholder Mapping Tool Class Notes: The Political Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.11

Informal Network Network analysis shows how informal organization gets things done Network analysis focuses on three types of relationship networks: Advice network—those on whom others depend to solve problems Trust network—employees who share political information and back one another in a crisis Communication network—employees who talk about work-related matters on a regular basis The Press: Informal Network Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

The Formal Network The Press: Informal Network Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

The Advice Network The Press: Informal Network Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

The Trust Network Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. The Press: Informal Network Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

How the CEO Views the Trust Network The Press: Informal Network Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

The Trust Network According to Calder Fleming ———————— Hoberman The Press: Informal Network Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

The Cultural Lens on Organizations Strategic Design Lens Organization Political Lens Cultural Lens Class Note: The Cultural Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

A Definition of Culture Culture refers to the symbolic or expressive side of human life Actions, objects, and ideas that carry specific meanings to particular groups and hence stand for something Culture provides a template on which meanings are read and actions are based Class Note: The Cultural Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Cultural Perspective Cultural perspective focuses on meanings people assign to their respective work experiences Key to cultural perspective is symbolism Symbols: Are cultural objects or artifacts whose form, appearance, logic, and type can be categorized Are produced and used by people and groups within organizations for certain purposes Are always put forth in a particular period and context Mean different things to different people Class Note: The Cultural Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Organizational Culture Culture and control—changing culture to motivate workers: Alter the organizational structure to bring employees closer to centers of control and decision making Create preferred organizational culture directly by recruitment, selection, training, placement, etc. Promote conceptual models of thought and action for employees to follow Employees that exhibit exemplary behavior become models of desirable behavior Class Note: The Cultural Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Organizational Culture (cont’d) Subcultures Groups of people who share common identities based on characteristics that transcend or override their prescribed roles and relationships May form along class or ethnic lines because of cultural similarities Focus on subcultures emphasizes segmentation of organization culture Divisions form by organizational role, gender, religion, ethnicity, age, etc. Class Note: The Cultural Lens Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Cultural Diagnosis of Organizations Six important features of the cultural lens on organizations: Symbols and meaning Identity Social control Subcultures Cultural relativity Habits and history Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved.

Some Underlying Dimensions of Organizational Culture The organization’s relationship to its environment The nature of human activity The nature of reality and truth The nature of time The nature of human nature The nature of human relationships Homogeneity vs. diversity The Press: Organizational Culture Source: Tables adapted from Edgar H. Schein, Organizational Culture and Leadership. Copyright © 1985 by Jossey-Bass, Inc., Publishers. Used with permission. Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Table 2.2

The Action Company Paradigm The Press: Organizational Culture Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.1

The Multi-Company Paradigm The Press: Organizational Culture Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Figure 2.2

Dynacorp Organization Chart Figure 2.1 Case: Dynacorp Revisited Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Transparency 2.30

Dynacorp U.S. Customer Operations Figure 2.2 Case: Dynacorp Revisited Copyright © 2005 South-Western. All rights reserved. Transparency 2.31