Lunenburg, Fred C. Organizational Structure Mintzberg Framework

global daybook OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY VOLUME 14, NUMBER 1, 2011 agreemental bodily body structure Mintzbergs Frame action Fred C. Lunenburg Sam Houston State UniversityABSTRACT Henry Mintzberg suggests that presidential terms deal be differentiated along three grassonical dimensions (1) the attain get down of the governing body, that is, the trigger off of the institution that plays the study role in determining its advantage or failure (2) the prime organise mechanism, that is, the major method the organization uses to get up its activities and (3) the instance of decentralization used, that is, the purpose to which the organization involves subordinates in the decision- make process.Using the three elemental dimensions differentiate p guile of the organization, prime coordinating mechanism, and type of decentralizationMintzberg suggests that the dodging an organization adopts and the extent to which it practices that system result in five approximately geomorphologic var.s honest structure, mechanism bureaucracy, professional bureaucracy, divisionalized affable class, and adhocracy. Organizations exist to achieve stopping points. These goals be blue down into tasks as the basis for jobs. Jobs be grouped into de disseverments. Departments in organizations whitethorn be characterized by marketing, sales, advertising, manufacturing, and so on.Within each department, even more distinctions can be found amidst the jobs people per stimulate. Departments atomic number 18 linked to knead the organizational structure. The organizations structure gives it the form to fulfill its turn in the environment (Nelson & Quick, 2011). The term organizational structure refers to the formal configuration between individuals and groups regarding the allocation of tasks, responsibilities, and representation at bottom the organization (Galbraith, 1987 Greenberg, 2011) Very archaeozoic organizational structures were o ften based either on product or control (Oliveira & Takahashi, 2012).The intercellular substance organization structure crossed these two shipway of organizing (Galbraith, 2009 Kuprenas, 2003). Others moved beyond these early approaches and examined the relationship between organizational system and structure (Brickley, Smith, Zimmerman, & Willett, 2002). This approach began with the landmark exertion of Alfred Chandler (1962, 2003), who traced the historical development of such(prenominal) large American corporations as DuPont, Sears, and General Motors. He concluded from his issue that an organizations schema tends to influence its structure.He suggests that strategy confirmatively determines such variables as the organizations tasks, technology, and environments, and each of these influences the structure of the organization. More recently, affable scientists have augmented Chandlers thesis by contending that an organizations strategy determines its environment, technolo gy, and tasks. These variables, coupled with growth rates and power distri besidesion, affect organizational 1 outside(a) JOURNAL OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY 2_____________________________________________________________________________________ tructure (Hall & Tolbert, 2009 Miles, Snow, Meyer, & Coleman, 2011). Henry Mintzberg (1992, 2009) suggests that organizations can be differentiated along three basic dimensions (1) the strike part of the organization, that is, the part of the organization that plays the major role in determining its success or failure (2) the prime coordinating mechanism, that is, the major method the organization uses to ordinate its activities and (3) the type of decentralization used, that is, the extent to which the organization involves subordinates in the decision-making process.The key parts of an organization ar shown in Figure 1 and al miserable in the following. Strategic Apex Technostructure Middle Line musical accompanimen t Staff proceeding Core Figure 1. The key parts of an organization. ? ? ? ? The strategic apex is out manage management and its stand up staff. In trail territorial dominions, this is the superintendent of conditions and the administrative cabinet. The intelligence officer core be the workers who in truth carry out the organizations tasks. Teachers constitute the workman core in school districts. The middle track is middle- and lower-level management. Principals are the middlelevel managers in school districts.The technostructure are analysts such as engineers, accountants, planners, researchers, and staff office managers. In school districts, divisions such as instruction, business, force, public relations, research and development, and the handle constitute the technostructure. The substitute staff are the people who give up indirect gains. In school districts, similar services allow maintenance, clerical, food service, busing, level-headed counsel, and consultin g to earmark support. ? The second basic dimension of an organization is its prime coordinating mechanism. This includes the following FRED C.LUNENBURG _____________________________________________________________________________________3 ? ? ? ? ? Direct supervision means that one individual is accountable of the work of others. This concept refers to the unity of command and scalar principles. Standardization of work process exists when the content of work is specified or programmed. In school districts, this refers to job descriptions that govern the work performance of educators. Standardization of skills exists when the kind of provision necessary to do the work is specified. In school systems, this refers to state certificates requisite for the various ccupants of a school districts hierarchy. Standardization of widening exists when the results of the work are specified. Because the raw material that is processed by the operative core (teachers) consists of people (studen ts), not things, normalization of getup is more onerous to measure in schools than in other nonservice organizations. Nevertheless, a movement toward the standardization of output in schools in recent years has occurred. Examples include faculty testing of teachers, state-mandated testing of students, state-mandated curricula, prescriptive learning objectives, and other efforts toward legislated learning.Mutual valuation reserve exists when work is coordinated through free communication. Mutual adjustment or coordination is the major thrust of Likerts (1987) linking-pin concept. The third basic dimension of an organization is the type of decentralization it employs. The three types of decentralization are the following ? ? ? Vertical decentralization is the distribution of power down the chain of command, or shared authority between superordinates and subordinates in any organization. Horizontal decentralization is the extent to which non administrators (including staff) stir decisions, or shared authority between line and staff.Selective decentralization is the extent to which decision-making power is delegated to different units at bottom the organization. In school districts, these units might include instruction, business, personnel, public relations, and research and development divisions. Using the three basic dimensionskey part of the organization, prime coordinating mechanism, and type of decentralizationMintzberg suggests that the strategy an organization adopts and the extent to which it practices that strategy result in five geomorphological configurations simple structure, appliance bureaucracy, professional bureaucracy, divisionalized form, and adhocracy.Table 1 summarizes the three basic dimensions associated with each of the five structural configurations. Each organizational form is discussed in turn. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY 4__________________________________________________________________ ___________________ Table 1. Mintzbergs Five Organizational StructuresStructural flesh Simple structure Machine bureaucracy passkey bureaucracy Divisionalized form Adhocracy Prime Coordinating Mechanism Direct supervision Standardization of work processes Standardization of skills Standardization of outputs Mutual adjustment Key Part of Organization Strategic apex Technostructure Operating core Middle line Support staff Type of Decentralization Vertical and horizontal centralization express mail horizontal decentralization Vertical and horizontal decentralization Limited upright piano decentralization Selective decentralizationSimple Structure The simple structure has as its key part the strategic apex, uses direct supervision, and employs vertical and horizontal centralization. Examples of simple structures are relatively low-down corporations, new government departments, mass medium-sized retail stores, and small basal school districts. The organization consists of the pol l manager and a a couple of(prenominal) workers in the operative core. There is no technostructure, and the support staff is small workers perform overlapping tasks.For example, teachers and administrators in small elementary school districts must contract many of the duties that the technostructure and support staff perform in larger districts. Frequently, however, small elementary school districts are members of cooperatives that depict many services (i. e. , counselors, social workers) to a number of small school districts in one part of the county or state. In small school districts, the superintendent may function as both superintendent of the district and principal of a single(a) school. Superintendents in such school districts must be entrepreneurs.Because the organization is small, coordination is informal and maintained through direct supervision. Moreover, this organization can adapt to environmental changes rapidly. Goals stress innovation and long-term survival, alt hough innovation may be ambitious for rattling small rural school districts because of the lack of resources. Machine bureaucratism Machine bureaucracy has the technostructure as its key part, uses standardization of work processes as its prime coordinating mechanism, and employs limited horizontal decentralization.Machine bureaucracy has many of the characteristics of webers (1947) ideal bureaucracy and agrees Hages (1965) mechanistic organization. It has a racy degree of formalization and work specialization. Decisions are centralized. The span of management is narrow, and the organization is tallthat is, many levels exist in the chain of command from top management to the bottom of the organization. Little horizontal or lateral coordination is needed. Furthermore, elevator car bureaucracy has a large technostruture and support staff. FRED C.LUNENBURG _____________________________________________________________________________________5 Examples of machine bureaucracy are aut omobile manufacturers, steel companies, and large government organizations. The environment for a machine bureaucracy is typically invariable, and the goal is to achieve internal efficiency. Public schools possess many characteristics of machine bureaucracy, but most schools are not machine bureaucracies in the pure sense. However, large urban school districts (New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago) are close set(predicate) to machine bureaucracies than other medium-size or small school districts.Professional Bureaucracy Professional bureaucracy has the operating core as its key part, uses standardization of skills as its prime coordinating mechanism, and employs vertical and horizontal decentralization. The organization is relatively formalise but decentralized to provide autonomy to professionals. Highly proficient professionals provide nonroutine services to clients. Top management is small there are few middle managers and the technostructure is generally small. However, the s upport staff is typically large to provide clerical and maintenance support for the professional operating core.The goals of professional bureaucracies are to innovate and provide high-quality services. Existing in complex but stable environments, they are generally moderate to large in size. Coordination problems are common. Examples of this form of organization include universities, hospitals, and large law firms. Some public school districts have many characteristics of the professional bureaucracy, especially its aspects of professionalism, teacher autonomy, and structural looseness. For example, schools are formal organizations, which provide complex services through super trained professionals in an atmosphere of structural looseness.These characteristics tend to broaden the limits of individual diplomacy and performance. Like attorneys, physicians, and university professors, teachers perform in classroom settings in relative closing off from colleagues and superiors, while remaining in close contact with their students. Furthermore, teachers are highly trained professionals who provide information to their students in accordance with their own style, and they are usually flexible in the delivery of content even within the constraints of the state- and district-mandated curriculum.Moreover, like some staff administrators, teachers, tend to identify more with their professions than with the organization. Divisionalized signifier The divisionalized form has the middle line as its key part, uses standardization of output as it prime coordinating mechanism, and employs limited vertical decentralization. Decision making is decentralized at the divisional level. There is little coordination among the discriminate divisions. Corporate-level personnel provide some coordination. Thus, each division itself is relatively centralized and tends to resemble a machine bureaucracy.The technostructure is located at corporate headquarters to provide services INTERNATI ONAL JOURNAL OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY 6_____________________________________________________________________________________ to all divisions support staff is located within each division. Large corporations are credibly to adopt the divisionalized form. Most school districts typically do not gather the divisionalized form. The exceptions are those very large school districts that have diversified service divisions distinctly separated into individual units or schools. For example, a school istrict may resemble the divisionalized form when it has separate schools for the physically handicapped, emotionally disturbed, and learning modify a skills center for the potential dropout a special school for art and music students and so on. The identifying feature of these school districts is that they have separate schools within a single school district, which have separate administrative staffs, budgets, and so on. Elementary and secondary school districts that ha ve consolidated but bear separate administrative structures with one school board are excessively examples of the divisionalized form.As might be expected, the primary reason for a school district to adopt this form of structure is service diversity while retaining separate administrative structures. Adhocracy The adhocracy has the support staff as its key part, uses mutual adjustment as a means of coordination, and maintains selective patterns of decentralization. The structure tends to be low in formalization and decentralization. The technostucture is small because technical specialists are involved in the organizations operative core. The support staff is large to support the complex structure.Adhocracies engage in nonroutine tasks and use sophisticated technology. The primary goal is innovation and rapid adaptation to changing environments. Adhocracies typically are medium sized, must be adaptable, and use resources efficiently. Examples of adhocracies include aerospace and e lectronics industries, research and development firms, and very innovative school districts. No school districts are pure adhocracies, but medium-sized school districts in very wealthy communities may have some of the characteristics of an adhocracy. The adhocracy is somewhat similar to Hages (1965) organic organization.Strategy and Structure The work begun by Chandler and extended by Mintzberg has laid the groundwork for an judgement of the relationship between an organizations strategy and its structure. The link between strategy and structure is still in its infancy stage. Further research in this area, particularly in service organizations like schools, will enhance school administrators understanding of school organizations (Lunenburg & Ornstein, 2012). In the meantime, school leaders must recognize that organization strategy and structure are related. FRED C.LUNENBURG _____________________________________________________________________________________7 Conclusion Henry Mintz berg (1992, 2009) suggests that organizations can be differentiated along three basic dimensions (1) the key part of the organization, that is, the part of the organization that plays the major role in determining its success or failure (2) the prime coordinating mechanism, that is, the major method the organization uses to coordinate its activities and (3) the type of decentralization used, that is, the extent to which the organization involves subordinates in the decision-making process.Using the three basic dimensionskey part of the organization, prime coordinating mechanism, and type of decentralizationMintzberg suggests that the strategy an organization adopts and the extent to which it practices that strategy result in five structural configurations simple structure, machine bureaucracy, professional bureaucracy, divisionalized form, and adhocracy. 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