Unit 1 Revision

UNIT 1: Departments

Line relationship a relationship an employee has with a person (directly) above or below them.

Lateral relationship is employees on the same level of management

Chain of Command is the way instructions are passed down an organisation

Span of Control is number of people who report directly to a manager

Tall Structures
Advantages
· More opportunities for promotion
· More staff available for delegation of tasks
Employees know who their supervisor is

Disadvantages
· Decision making is slow
· Long lines of communication
Feeling of too many bosses

Flat Structures
Advantages:
Ø Employees are more likely to show initiative.
Ø Employees more likely to be involved in decision-making.
Ø Less time to reach decisions.
Ø Less time to communicate decisions.

Disadvantages:
Ø Fewer opportunities for promotion to management levels
Ø Workload increase for employees

Centralisation is locating a service in one area of the building.

Advantages of Centralisation
Ø Efficient service can be provided by specialist staff.
Ø Creates more space in departments.
Ø Fewer people to supervise and employ.

Outsourcing is when a job is given to a company outwith the firm
Advantages are:
Ø professionally done
Ø may be cheaper

Downsizing is reducing the number of employees in a business.

Restructuring is changing the organisational structure of the business. (i.e. from Tall to Flat)

Advantages of Restructuring
Ø To reduce costs – staffing / equipment / running
Ø To become more efficient / productive
Ø To improve communications within the org

Job Description
· Job Description contains basic information about the job, e.g. the job title, duties, responsibilities, location, salary etc.

Person Specification
· Person Specification contains what is needed to do the job, e.g. qualifications, qualities and skills.

Job Description and Person Specification are used:
They need to be updated as the job might change, e.g. the duties, the pay etc and this needs to be highlighted in the documentation.