Mintzbergs design parameters Pl Srgaard Telenor RD and

Mintzberg’s design parameters Pål Sørgaard, Telenor R&D and If. I INF 5250 September 5, 2005

Remember: a book about designing organisations l One way to describe possible designs is to use a set of design parameters (3. 2 GHz, 512 MB, 120 GB, 4 USB 2. 0) l Mintzberg defines a set of 9 design parameters l These are covered in chapters 2 -5 l Overview table 2. 1 page 27 l Corresponding design questions p 25 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 2

Use the design questions! l Try to establish the design parameters for your organisation l Example: – Design parameter: training and indoctrination – Related concept (table 2. 1): standardisation of skills – Design question (p 25): What skills and knowledge should be required for each position? – Translate into analysis question: How are positions defined in terms of skills and knowledge? – Collect data: look at job descriptions, vacancies in the paper/on the web, ask questions about this in an interview – Establish answer: e. g. main training at universities, but knowledge of the company must be acquired 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 3

Job specialisation (ch 2, p 26) How many tasks should a given position in the organisation contain, and how specialised should each task be? l Coordination mechanism: standardisation of work content l Horizontal specialisation l – basic division of labour – the typical split between different specialities and talents l Vertical specialisation – split between performance of the work from its administration – relation to discussion of Taylorism, scientific management, and job enlargement Variation between the different parts of the organisation l Think of examples from summer jobs, etc l 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 4

Behaviour formalisation (ch 2, p 33) To what extent should the work content of each position be standardised? l Coordination mechanism: standardisation of work content l Can take place l – by position (e. g. , job description) – by work flow (e. g. , put orders here!) – by rules (e. g. , dress code, code of conduct, use this form) Useful for manageability, efficiency and equal treatment of clients l Relevance to core values of bureaucracy (Max Weber) l Variation by part of organisation, most common in the operating core l 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 5

Training and indoctrination (ch 2, p 39) What skills and knowledge should be required for each position? l Coordination mechanism: standardisation of skills l Training: the teaching of job-related skills and knowledge l – Training through apprentice system or schools? – Professionals in the operating core? l Indoctrination: the process by which organisational norms are acquired – Values can be taught at school – In house programs? – Some agencies train their own people, but fewer than before l Variation by part of the organisation, e. g. common in the technostructure, variation in the operating core 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 6

Unit grouping (ch 3, p 46) On what basis should positions be grouped into units and units into larger units? l This is what we typically see in an organisation chart l Coordination mechanism: direct supervision and also mutual adjustment l Related concepts l – Administrative division of labour – Formal authority – Informal communication 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 7

Bases for grouping l Possible bases for unit grouping: – – – l knowledge and skill work process and function time output client place Summarised in – market grouping (output, client, place) – functional grouping (knowledge, skill, process, function) 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 8

Criteria for grouping l Work flow interdependencies – pooled (shared resource) – sequential – reciprocal l Process interdependencies – related to shared specialisation, consulting each other l Scale interdependencies – e. g. to exploit economies of scale l Social interdependencies – also a reality! 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 9

Market grouping vs functional grouping l This is one of the classical dilemmas – Telenor Mobil (Norway) part of Telenor Mobile (international) or Telenor Nordic l Functional grouping – Main concern with process and scale interdependencies – Encourages specialisation – Weak on customer focus and coordination of work flow (relies on direct supervision) l Market grouping – Main concern with whole product, meeting the customer, handling of complex work flows – Reduced quality of specialised work – Cannot take the same advantage of economies of scale 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 10

Unit size (ch 3, p 65) How large should each unit be; how many people should report to a given manager? l Coordination mechanism: direct supervision and also mutual adjustment l Related to informal communication and “span of control” l If using direct supervision: how many can you control? l If working tightly together: what size works best? l Unit size driven up by standardisation, employees’ need for autonomy, and need for short communication chains l Unit size driven down by need for close direct supervision, mutual adjustment, other tasks of the manager, and employees’ need for consultation, advice and feedback l 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 11

Planning and control systems (ch 4, p 73) To what extent should the output of each position or unit be standardised? l Coordination mechanism: standardisation of output l Heard of “mål- og resultatstyring”? l This was modern when the limitations of scientific management were realised l – fad of the 40 ies and 50 ies 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 12

Performance control Often after the fact l Typically a financial focus l Normally supported by IT (MIS: management information system) l Most applicable when units are relatively independent l – interdependencies mainly pooled, e. g. financial resources – units typically grouped on the basis of market 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 13

Action planning Goes into the units l Nonroutine decisions and actions planned in advance l Plans for l – building a ship – fighting a battle – starting a gsm-operation in Pakistan 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 14

Liaison devices (ch 4, p 81) What mechanisms should be established to facilitate mutual adjustment among positions and units? l Coordination mechanism: mutual adjustment l When standardisation and direct supervision are insufficient l Used to overcome the limitation present in any hierarchical structure l Various mechanisms available to support mutual adjustment l Fad of the 60 ies (and later!) l Excellently treated by Jay Galbraith l – core concept: task uncertainty 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 15

Some liaison devices Liaison positions (no funds) l Task forces and standing committees l Integrating managers (with funds) l Matrix structures l – regional and functional responsibilities in Oslo l The devices can be used to handle market issues in functionally grouped organisation or to handle functional issues in a market based organisation 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 16

Vertical decentralisation (ch 5, p 101) How much decision-making power should be delegated to the managers down the line of authority? l We focus on decentralisation of authority (not issues of location) l Often referred to as delegation l Coordination mechanism: mutual adjustment (between managers that have the power needed) l 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 17

Horizontal decentralisation (ch 5, p 105) How much decision-making power should pass from the line manager to the staff specialists and operators? l Coordination mechanisms: standardisation l Power to the analysts (decentralisation to people in the technostructure that set the standards) l Power to the experts (in R&D , in the operating core, etc) l 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 18

Five models for decentralisation, see figure 5 -4 A. B. Vertical and horizontal centralisation Limited horizontal decentralisation (selective) – typically to the technostructure C. Limited vertical decentralisation (parallel) – strong divisional leaders D. Selective vertical and horizontal decentralisation – ad hoc, as needed, highly organic E. Vertical and horizontal decentralisation – professionals in the operating core run the game l Each of these fit with one of the main configurations – See table p 153 and table 12 -2 5 September. 2005 Pål Sørgaard, R&D 19