Fundamentals: Structure
Structure is the definition of jobs and the reporting hierarchy (the
organization chart), as well as the processes that combine people into
teams as workflows across organizational boundaries. Structure defines
people's specialties, as well as their relationships with one another.
It determines who does what, and how people collaborate to get work
done.
Structure has two components:
* Organization charts that define
distinct lines of business and specialties.
* Workflows that assemble the right
specialists from throughout the organization on project/service
teams.
Changes in the organization chart inevitably induce changes in
workflows. Both must be designed together.
The Science of Structure
Designing effective organization charts is a science, not just a
matter of opinion.
Whether you're working on an information technology department
organizational chart, a corporate organizational structure, or a
business organizational chart for any department, the same principles
apply.
Structural Cybernetics research identified the five
fundamental building blocks of structure -- five different types of
businesses found within any corporation, company, or organization.
More on the lines of
business, the building blocks of structure....
"We've been struggling with
organizational issues for years. Our discussions were often confused,
occasionally emotional, and rarely decisive. Structural Cybernetics
brought everything into focus. It's not a rigid answer.... It's a
well-structured process with a clear language that helped our leadership
team come to consensus on a whole range of tough issues."
Bill Wilkins
Chief Information Officer
John Alden Financial Services Corp.
Research also revealed clear principles for assembling them into an
organization chart.
Overview of
principles....
These scientific principles can be used to analyze the pros and cons
of an existing (or proposed) organization chart, as well as to design a
new structure.
The result: jobs that are entrepreneurial, well focused, and have a
minimum of conflicts of interests.
High-performance Teamwork and Cross-boundary Workflows
Beyond just the organization chart, structure must consider
workflows. If people don't team across structural boundaries, the
organization will revert into "stovepipes" of self-sufficient
generalists. The structure implementation process must establish fluid
cross-boundary workflows as an integral part of the design.
High-performance workflows are based on the
business-within-a-business paradigm. Each project or service is assigned
to a "prime contractor." The first job of the prime is to arrange for
help from peers, that is, to line up any needed "subcontractors."
More on dynamic
cross-boundary workflows....
"The Structural Cybernetics
process forced us to specify our products and services, [and] our
customers and suppliers for each operating and support organization
within our [department]. This brought to light many of the
inefficiencies that we had been struggling with and allowed us to deal
with them."
William T. Houghton
President
Chevron Information Technology Company
Implementing Structural Changes
The Structural Cybernetics implementation process is radically
different from the all-too-familiar process of juggling boxes at the
top, announcing the new organization chart, and then hoping for the best
as people struggle in public for month after month to figure out how it
should work. It emphasizes leadership education and careful planning
before announcement day, so that the new organization can then "hit the
ground running."
Structural Cybernetics principles are the key to a productive
participative process. Instead of territorialism and battles of
opinions, leaders argue the trade-offs of various design alternatives in
a rational, fact-based design process.
"Once we adopted the [Structural
Cybernetics] principles, we had a framework that provided a basis for
any decision, defused the inevitable turf battles before they ever
began, and accelerated our learning process in a way that probably could
not have occurred otherwise."
John Benci
General Director, M.I.S.
The Canadian Wheat Board
Copyright © NDMA 2005. Used by permission. All rights
reserved.
