6.3.1 Making human resource decisions: improving
organisational design and managing the human resource flow
What we are learning: The meaning, advantages & disadvantages of
different types of organizational structures to include: functional, product
based, regional and matrix structure.
• The implications of organisational design include:
• authority
• span
• hierarchy
• delegation
• centralisation and decentralisation.
Make a list of at least 15 different jobs you would expect to be found
in a company like Cameron Balloons
,Organisational design
• Organisational design is the process of ensuring the organisation is arranged in the
best way to achieve their short term and long term objectives. This involves :
Authority the power of an employee to instruct subordinates, make decisions and
control the use of resources. Authority can be:
Centralised i.e. maintained by a few at the centre of the organisation
Decentralised i.e. spread across the organisation
Authority can act as a motivator: many staff become more engaged and
enthusiastic about work when given responsibility for decisions
Span of Control the number of subordinates that a manager or supervisor directly
responsible for
If a manager has many subordinates this is called a wide span of control
If they have few subordinates this is called a narrow span of control
Layers in the the number of levels of management and supervision within a business.
Hierarchy The Hierarchy shows the ‘Chain of command’: who is responsible for who in
the business
Organisational is the way in which the workforce within a firm is organised, including job
structure roles and communication flows
Organisational provide a visual representation of the organisational structure: the ‘chain of
charts command’
, Organisational Structure Charts
Charts that identify who is Responsible for different areas of the organisation
Communication: it identifies and makes it clear to all how information passes
through the business
Authority refers to the power staff have to perform a role, control a task and
make decisions.
Responsibility identifies who must ensure a particular task is completed well.
A Line Manager can ‘delegate’ authority to a subordinate within the structure
for a particular task but the manager will still be responsible for making sure it
is done to a good standard and be accountable if something goes wrong
organisational design and managing the human resource flow
What we are learning: The meaning, advantages & disadvantages of
different types of organizational structures to include: functional, product
based, regional and matrix structure.
• The implications of organisational design include:
• authority
• span
• hierarchy
• delegation
• centralisation and decentralisation.
Make a list of at least 15 different jobs you would expect to be found
in a company like Cameron Balloons
,Organisational design
• Organisational design is the process of ensuring the organisation is arranged in the
best way to achieve their short term and long term objectives. This involves :
Authority the power of an employee to instruct subordinates, make decisions and
control the use of resources. Authority can be:
Centralised i.e. maintained by a few at the centre of the organisation
Decentralised i.e. spread across the organisation
Authority can act as a motivator: many staff become more engaged and
enthusiastic about work when given responsibility for decisions
Span of Control the number of subordinates that a manager or supervisor directly
responsible for
If a manager has many subordinates this is called a wide span of control
If they have few subordinates this is called a narrow span of control
Layers in the the number of levels of management and supervision within a business.
Hierarchy The Hierarchy shows the ‘Chain of command’: who is responsible for who in
the business
Organisational is the way in which the workforce within a firm is organised, including job
structure roles and communication flows
Organisational provide a visual representation of the organisational structure: the ‘chain of
charts command’
, Organisational Structure Charts
Charts that identify who is Responsible for different areas of the organisation
Communication: it identifies and makes it clear to all how information passes
through the business
Authority refers to the power staff have to perform a role, control a task and
make decisions.
Responsibility identifies who must ensure a particular task is completed well.
A Line Manager can ‘delegate’ authority to a subordinate within the structure
for a particular task but the manager will still be responsible for making sure it
is done to a good standard and be accountable if something goes wrong
