Organisational Design (AQA A Level Business): Flashcards
Exam code: 7132
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Define organisational structure.
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Cards in this collection (26)
Define organisational structure.
An organisational structure shows the reporting relationships, roles and responsibilities of employees in a business.
A _________ is an organisation with many levels of authority, which makes decision-making and communication time-consuming.
A bureaucracy is an organisation with many levels of authority, which makes decision-making and communication time-consuming.
Define chain of command.
The chain of command is the formal line of authority that flows down from top management to lower-level employees, defining who reports to whom.
True or False?
Centralisation tends to promote flexibility and innovation.
False.
Decentralisation tends to promote flexibility and innovation, while centralisation promotes consistency and control.
Define span of control.
The span of control is the number of employees that a manager or supervisor effectively manages.
What is the main drawback of a wide span of control?
Each manager has less time to devote to each employee, which can reduce the quality of support and oversight.
What factors determine the appropriate span of control?
It depends on the complexity of the work, the experience of the employees and the management style of the business.
Define levels of hierarchy.
Levels of hierarchy refers to the number of layers of authority within an organisational structure, from the most senior to the most junior.
A business with wide spans of control needs ___ levels of hierarchy to manage the same number of employees.
A business with wide spans of control needs fewer levels of hierarchy to manage the same number of employees.
What spans of control are usually found in a tall structure?
Tall structures usually have narrow spans of control, with managers exerting significant control.
Why can decision-making be slow in a tall structure?
Information must pass through multiple layers of management, so decision-making can be slow.
True or False?
Tall structures offer more opportunities for promotion than flat structures.
True.
Tall structures offer more opportunities for promotion within the organisation, while flat structures may not provide clear opportunities for career advancement.
Why might employees in a flat structure suffer from burnout?
Employees may have to take on multiple roles and responsibilities, which can lead to burnout and staff overwhelm.
Define centralisation.
Centralisation is where decision-making authority is concentrated at the top of the organisation.
True or False?
Under centralisation, decision-making can be slow because decisions must be referred upwards through the hierarchy.
True.
Decisions are referred upwards through the hierarchy, so they can take time. Senior managers can also become overloaded, creating a bottleneck.
How does centralisation help to protect brand standards?
Decisions are consistent across all parts of the business, which reduces the risk of conflicting approaches in different locations or departments.
Define decentralisation.
Decentralisation is where decision-making authority is delegated to managers and employees lower down the organisation.
How can decentralisation benefit senior management?
Senior management is freed up to focus on longer-term strategic priorities rather than day-to-day operational decisions.
Decentralisation may require significant investment in management ______ to ensure decisions are of a high quality.
Decentralisation may require significant investment in management training to ensure decisions are of a high quality.
Define restructuring.
Restructuring involves making significant changes to the way a business is organised, including its hierarchy, departments, workforce size or allocation of responsibilities.
Define delayering.
Delayering involves removing one or more levels of management from the hierarchy.
Define downsizing.
Downsizing is reducing the overall size of the workforce through redundancies.
_________ is contracting out functions such as IT, payroll or customer service to specialist external providers.
Outsourcing is contracting out functions such as IT, payroll or customer service to specialist external providers.
What does reorganising departments involve?
It involves merging, splitting or changing teams and divisions to reflect new strategic priorities or to remove duplication.
True or False?
Restructuring always saves a business money in the short term.
False.
The costs of restructuring, such as redundancy payments, retraining and new systems, can be high in the short term, even if there are long-term savings.
Why can restructuring harm the morale of employees who keep their jobs?
Redundancies create uncertainty and anxiety among all employees, not just those directly affected. This can seriously damage morale and productivity.
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