CASE STUDY NO BOSSES AT W L GORE

CASE STUDY NO BOSSES AT W. L GORE & ASSOCIATES PRESENTERS Ø Zahid Ahmed Ø Tathir Mustafa Bhutto ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAIOR December 11, 2009

ud y St se Ca NO BOSSES AT W. L GORE & ASSOCIATES OVERVIEW • W. L Gore & Associates was founded by Wilbert L Gore in 1958 Ø Have more than 1000 products • Gore did not believe in too much hierarchy • Eliminated hierarchy and status difference • Gore believe that less number of employees can share knowledge easily

ud y St se Ca Continued…. No formal Supervisor No one has a job description Employees perform multiple task Tremendous Growth and Profit Has been an Industry Leader in innovation

ud y St se Ca Continued…. Disadvantage New comer took some time to adjust No Idea about the Boss or Supervisor Create Frustration

ud y St se Ca Questions How would you characterize Gore’s organizational structure using terms from this chapter? For Example it is mechanistic or organic? How might this structure influence Gore’s strategy? Answer: Organizational Structure 1. Mechanistic Model √ Organic Model A structure characterized by extensive departmentalization, high formalization, a limited information network and centralization A structure that is flat, use cross hierarchical and cross functional teams, has low formalization, possesses a comprehensive information network, and relies on participative decision making Since the employees did not have supervisors so they took the responsibilities in a team and tried to share more knowledge. As a result they were multitasking and more innovative. Hence that helped Gore in earnings more profit

ud y St e Ca s Questions Considering what you know about individual differences such as personality, what types of employees might respond more and less favorably to Gore’s lack of hierarchy? Answer: More Favorable to Employees 2. Ø Ø Ø Who want Freedom to develop new Ideas Who want to voice there opinion Who want to gain knowledge from Seniors Less Favorable to Employees Ø Who were new in the organization

Questions 3. What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of Gore’s structure? ADVANTAGES OF GORE’S STRUCTURE Ø Creative & innovative Ideas. Ø Information sharing & teamwork. Ø Fast decision making

DISADVANTAGES OF GORE’S STRUCTURE Ø Difficult to adjust for newcomers Ø Unclear chain of command Ø No Job Descriptions

Questions 4. How might Gore’s organizational design affect its relationship with external companies that are more hierarchical in nature ? Answer: ØDelay in response from the counterpart Ø Strict adherence to defined rules