MGT 4153 Dr. Rebecca Long

What is Technology? (page 253) Long 2 Core Non-Core Work processes, techniques, machines, and actions used to transform organizational inputs (materials, information, ideas) into outputs (products and services)

Long 3 What is the difference between manufacturing technology and service technology? Manufacturing: Core technology begins with raw materials (e.g., steel, aluminum, composite metals) if their products are created using those materials. Service: (UPS) Includes production equipment to sort and transport the product and procedures to ensure that the product is delivered on time and in good condition.

Core vs Non-Core 4 Core technology is the work process that is directly related to the organization’s mission, such as teaching in a school, medical services at a medical clinic Non-core technology is a department work process that is important to the organization but is not directly related to its primary mission. (HR, Accounting, R&D, Marketing)

Joan Woodward (British industrial sociologist) Long 5 Developed a scale and organized the firms she studied according to technical complexity of the manufacturing process. Technical complexity represents the extent of mechanization of the manufacturing process. High Technical Complexity: Most of the work done by machines. Low Technical Complexity: Workers play a larger role in the production process.

Woodward’s Manufacturing Technologies Long 6 Group I (Low Technical Complexity) (organic) Small-batch and unit production (job shops, small orders, relies heavily upon the human operator) Custom work the norm. (Kelly handbags hand-sewn) Group II (Mechanistic) Large-batch and mass production (characterized by long production runs of standardized parts [traditional assembly lines]) Group III (High Technical Complexity) (Organic) Continuous process production (entire process is mechanized)

Long 7 Lean Manufacturing: Uses highly trained employees at every stage of the production process, who take a painstaking approach to details and problem solving to cut waste and improve quality. The heart of lean manufacturing is people, not machines. Employees are trained to attack waste and strive for continuous improvement in all areas. One lesson of LM is that there is always room for improvement.

Flexible Manufacturing Systems (Also called computer-integrated manufacturing, smart factories, advanced manufacturing technology, agile manufacturing, or the factory of the future. FMS links together manufacturing components that previously stood alone. Robots, machines, product design and engineering analysis are coordinated by a single computer system). Result of: Long 8 Computer-aided design (CAD) Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) Integrated Information Network

Mass & Flexible Manufacturing CharacteristicMass ProductionFMS Structure: Span of ControlWideNarrow Hierarchical levelsManyFew TasksRoutine, repetitiveAdaptive, craft- like SpecializationHighLow Decision makingCentralizedDecentralized OverallBureaucratic, mechanistic Self-regulating, organic 9

Assess Your Answer Long Lean manufacturing is a super-efficient form of manufacturing that produces products of top quality. (Uses highly trained employees at every stage of the production process, who take a painstaking approach to details and problem solving to cut waste and improve quality.) Answer: Agree. Lean manufacturing techniques have been implemented in hundreds of organizations all over the world and have led to dramatic improvements in quality, productivity, and efficiency. Lean manufacturing continues to be an important tool for manufacturing firms, and smart managers in service firms are also learning to benefit from lean thinking.

Manufacturing versus Service Technologies (page 267) 11 Manufacturing 1.Tangible product 2.Products can be inventoried for later consumption 3.Capital asset intensive 4.Little direct customer interaction 5.Human element may be less important 6.Quality is directly measured 7.Longer response time is acceptable 8.Site of facility is moderately important Manufacturing 1.Tangible product 2.Products can be inventoried for later consumption 3.Capital asset intensive 4.Little direct customer interaction 5.Human element may be less important 6.Quality is directly measured 7.Longer response time is acceptable 8.Site of facility is moderately important Service 1.Intangible product 2.Production and consumption take place simultaneously 3.Labor and knowledge intensive 4.Customer interaction generally high 5.Human element very important 6.Quality is perceived and difficult to measure 7.Rapid response time is usually necessary 8.Site of facility is extremely important Service 1.Intangible product 2.Production and consumption take place simultaneously 3.Labor and knowledge intensive 4.Customer interaction generally high 5.Human element very important 6.Quality is perceived and difficult to measure 7.Rapid response time is usually necessary 8.Site of facility is extremely important Service: Airlines, Hotels, Consultants, Healthcare, Law firms Product and Service: Fast-food outlets, Cosmetics, Real estate, Stockbrokers, Retail stores Product: Soft drink companies, Steel companies, Auto manufacturers, Food processing plants

Service versus Product Organizations ServiceProduct Structure: Separate boundary rolesFewMany Geographical dispersionMuchLittle Decision makingDecentralizedCentralized FormalizationLowerHigher Human Resources: Employee skill levelHigherLower Skill emphasisInterpersonalTechnical 12

Assess Your Answer 2. The best way for a company to provide good service is to have abundant and clear rules and procedures and make sure everyone follows them to the letter. Long 7-13 Answer: Disagree. Service employees need good interpersonal skills and a degree of autonomy to be able to satisfy each customer’s specific needs. Although many service organizations have some standard procedures for serving customers, service firms are typically low on both centralization and formalization. Abundant rules can take away both personal autonomy and the personal touch.

Department level of analysis for departments not necessarily within the technical core Analyzes the nature of departmental technology and its relationship with departmental structure, developed by Charles Perrow. He specified two dimensions of departmental activities relevant to organizational structure and process. Variety – The frequency of unexpected and novel events that occur in the conversion process. Are work processes performed the same way every time or differ from time to time? Analyzability – Can the work be reduced to mechanical steps and can participants follow an objective, computational procedure to solve problems? 14

Departmental Technologies (273) 15 CRAFT Low analyzability Low variety Examples: Performing arts Trades Fine goods mfg.

Department Technology & Structural/Management Characteristics (275) 16 Mechanistic Structure 1. High formalization 2. High centralization 3. Little training or experience 4. Wide span 5. Vertical, written communications ROUTINE Mechanistic Structure 1. High formalization 2. High centralization 3. Little training or experience 4. Wide span 5. Vertical, written communications ROUTINE Mostly Mechanistic Structure 1. Moderate formalization 2. Moderate centralization 3. Formal training 4. Moderate span 5. Written and verbal communications ENGINEERING Mostly Mechanistic Structure 1. Moderate formalization 2. Moderate centralization 3. Formal training 4. Moderate span 5. Written and verbal communications ENGINEERING Mostly Organic Structure 1. Moderate formalization 2. Moderate centralization 3. Work experience 4. Moderate to wide span 5. Horizontal, verbal communications CRAFT Mostly Organic Structure 1. Moderate formalization 2. Moderate centralization 3. Work experience 4. Moderate to wide span 5. Horizontal, verbal communications CRAFT Organic Structure 1. Low formalization 2. Low centralization 3. Training plus experience 4. Moderate to narrow span 5. Horizontal communications meetings NONROUTINE Organic Structure 1. Low formalization 2. Low centralization 3. Training plus experience 4. Moderate to narrow span 5. Horizontal communications meetings NONROUTINE

3. The design characteristics and management processes that are effective for a television station’s sales department probably would not work so well for the news department. Long 17 Answer: Agree. The news department has a nonroutine technology compared to the sales department. No one knows what newsworthy events are going to happen during the day, when or where they will happen, or how they will need to be covered. Sales tasks, particularly telephone sales to repeat customers involving standard rates for advertising, can be performed using standard procedures, but gathering and reporting news events can’t be standardized. A sales department would be characterized as routine because there is little variety and tasks are well understood. Assess Your Answer

Implications of Thompson’s Interdependence (pages 277 & 278) Long 18 Client