Friday, September 09, 2005
Chapter 13 notes
Organizational Structure - Well, I am happy to say that I have lived through just about all of them and some sorts of hybrids. Consulting over the last 6 years has blurred the lines of organization, but I really liked the picture Professor Newman put on the whiteboard "Make those below you, alongside you and above you successful, and you too will be successful". I work in a mostly bureaucratic, decentralized, virtual organization. I am with a software company providing services to a customer. I have not had a desk or an office at my employer for over 6 years. I travel with my bag and cell phone. Many customers give me a home. From a hardwall office to the edge of a printer table, usually some sort of cubicle, but I rely mostly on technology for my office. I was kind of surprised about the answer the book gave on virtual organizations. Which were more about outsourcing and off shoring than about lack of physical interaction and location. Many people in my profession are simply people. No office, no central location, constantly on the road. Connected occasionally, but usually comingled in organizations as subject matter experts. None of the organization definitions in the book discussed this, which was kind of odd. The boundaryless organization sounded like it was the closest to it, but appears to have a lot of holes in its technique as well. In time of crisis, a chain of command giving clear orders is essential. The organic structure like we saw in New Orleans for the response to Hurricane Katrina did not work. Should federal authorities handle the problem? should the municipalities? mayor gives one order, the chief of police another conflicting order, National guard another, the govenor another.... Each structure finds its fit through size, market, competitive forces and evolution. I've seen too many companies try to do things based on another companies success and touting. I imagine we must try on each one to see how it fits, but I think for my 4 options, my structure would be an updated definition of the virtual organization based on the technical employee's environment and needs to collaborate effectively.
