Tolbert – Chapter 1
We study organizations because we have become a society of organizations. It is important
to understand the factors that affect their operation (1). This society of organizations causes
the need to change organizations because we want to change key aspects of our lives and
society (2).
The impacts of organizations:
Individuals. Mostly within work organizations. Work organizations may e.g. determine
wages. The decisions may affect the engagement and satisfaction with life. The
organizations may also effect the worker’s family, such as the fact that flexibility leads
to self-expression in the children of the worker.
Organizations define what characteristics are valued and rewarded. Mostly these are
‘achieved’ characteristics, such as educational level. Demographic characteristics are
‘ascribed’. Both types of characteristics have effect upon the economic outcome of
individuals.
Changes in the distribution of an attribute (e.g. female or male) among organizational
members may result in changes in organizational norms tied to attributes.
Communities. Organizations are treated as independent entities, such as individuals,
therefore organizations have rights and responsibilities. Decisions of organizations,
such as the placement of universities, can have impact on communities.
Organizations may effect economic outcomes and natural environment.
Societies. Organizations have effect upon social stratification (social inequality).
However, there are different kind of organizations affecting society, which shows
compensation.
Sometimes organizations are asked to assist in the governance of other institutions;
the interest of organizations may weigh a lot in policies. The interest of the
organizations may be in contrast with individuals and society and lead to creating of
problems with which society has to cope.
Organizations causes externalities, which are mostly negative.
World. The development of technology has led to increase of multinational
organizations.
Besides the people involved in the organization there are no visible corpus. People are
likely to judge the organization upon the people involved. Organizations are trying to
influence the way in which employees respond to consumer or clients to reach more
positive interpretations.
Most effort to define organizations contain:
1. Two or more members
2. A goal or set of goals that guide members’ activities
3. Distinctive roles assigned to different members
4. An authority system that is accepted as governing decisions
However, all organizations differ in these elements and therefore it is hard to make
concrete definitions for what organizations are.
Counting the number of people involved in organizations is hard. Should part-time
workers be included and be counted the same as full-time employees?
Blau and Scott (1962) said that organizations could be characterized in terms of who the
primary beneficiaries of their goals were. They distinguished between
business organizations (owner has primary beneficiary),
mutual benefit organizations (members have primary beneficiary),
,service organizations (primary beneficiary for people who visit organization) and
commonweal organizations (members of general public have primary beneficiary).
Boundaries between organizations are not always clear
The kinds of roles that members are assigned are obviously affected by the technology
and goals of an organization.
Most contemporary organizations operate with a dominant type of authority called
‘rational-legal’.
Three main levels of analysis:
1. Individuals (personality, motives, needs)
2. Group (interaction, organizational characteristics and outcomes)
3. Organizational (size, technology, operations)
, Tolbert- chapter 2
Organizations have ports of entry (e.g. admissions office at university) and rules and
procedures which direct the behavior of members.
Structures of organizations change due to influences by successive waves of members,
interactions among the members, and changes in environmental conditions.
Chester Barnard: ‘all complex organizations are built up from units of organization, and
consist of many units of working or ‘basic’ organizations, overlaid with units of executive
organizations.’
Agreement on the definition of the structure of organizations is the inclusion of formal and
informal aspects of organizations.
Informal: norms and social expectations
Formal: official, explicit division of responsibilities, definitions and relations
Structure shapes people behavior in an organization. But they are also the source of
changes in structure over time.
This relationship is referred to as structural duality.
Key elements of Weber’s ideal type of bureaucracy:
1. Clearly defined division of labor
2. Hierarchy of authority
3. Written rules and documents
4. Separation of home and office
5. Appointment of members on basis of their qualifications
In the past these aspects were not common for organizations
Weber considered structure as key to understanding the nature of contemporary
organizations.
Contingency theory: the assumption that the effectiveness of particular structural
arrangements depended on the size, technology, and other aspects of an organization.
Structural-functionalist theory: defines the general task of sociology as explaining structures
in terms of their functions or consequences.
Dimensions of formal structure
Complexity (requires coordination and control)
o Horizontal the ways work tasks performed in an organization are
subdivided into different jobs and groups. Associated with specialization in
knowledge and skills. Each job has very narrow set of repetitive tasks.
Horizontal complexity can be measured by the number of job titles or
departments.
Horizontal complexity leads to greater efficiency and innovation. However,
complexity leads to problems of control and coordination.
o Vertical the division of decision-making tasks and supervisory
responsibilities. This is also referred to as differentiation. Can be measured by
the count of the number of job positions between the chief executive and the
employees working on the output.
o Spatial The extent to which organizations have different sites in different
physical locations. It appears when different kinds of work activities take place
in different geographical locations. Spatial complexity goes together with
We study organizations because we have become a society of organizations. It is important
to understand the factors that affect their operation (1). This society of organizations causes
the need to change organizations because we want to change key aspects of our lives and
society (2).
The impacts of organizations:
Individuals. Mostly within work organizations. Work organizations may e.g. determine
wages. The decisions may affect the engagement and satisfaction with life. The
organizations may also effect the worker’s family, such as the fact that flexibility leads
to self-expression in the children of the worker.
Organizations define what characteristics are valued and rewarded. Mostly these are
‘achieved’ characteristics, such as educational level. Demographic characteristics are
‘ascribed’. Both types of characteristics have effect upon the economic outcome of
individuals.
Changes in the distribution of an attribute (e.g. female or male) among organizational
members may result in changes in organizational norms tied to attributes.
Communities. Organizations are treated as independent entities, such as individuals,
therefore organizations have rights and responsibilities. Decisions of organizations,
such as the placement of universities, can have impact on communities.
Organizations may effect economic outcomes and natural environment.
Societies. Organizations have effect upon social stratification (social inequality).
However, there are different kind of organizations affecting society, which shows
compensation.
Sometimes organizations are asked to assist in the governance of other institutions;
the interest of organizations may weigh a lot in policies. The interest of the
organizations may be in contrast with individuals and society and lead to creating of
problems with which society has to cope.
Organizations causes externalities, which are mostly negative.
World. The development of technology has led to increase of multinational
organizations.
Besides the people involved in the organization there are no visible corpus. People are
likely to judge the organization upon the people involved. Organizations are trying to
influence the way in which employees respond to consumer or clients to reach more
positive interpretations.
Most effort to define organizations contain:
1. Two or more members
2. A goal or set of goals that guide members’ activities
3. Distinctive roles assigned to different members
4. An authority system that is accepted as governing decisions
However, all organizations differ in these elements and therefore it is hard to make
concrete definitions for what organizations are.
Counting the number of people involved in organizations is hard. Should part-time
workers be included and be counted the same as full-time employees?
Blau and Scott (1962) said that organizations could be characterized in terms of who the
primary beneficiaries of their goals were. They distinguished between
business organizations (owner has primary beneficiary),
mutual benefit organizations (members have primary beneficiary),
,service organizations (primary beneficiary for people who visit organization) and
commonweal organizations (members of general public have primary beneficiary).
Boundaries between organizations are not always clear
The kinds of roles that members are assigned are obviously affected by the technology
and goals of an organization.
Most contemporary organizations operate with a dominant type of authority called
‘rational-legal’.
Three main levels of analysis:
1. Individuals (personality, motives, needs)
2. Group (interaction, organizational characteristics and outcomes)
3. Organizational (size, technology, operations)
, Tolbert- chapter 2
Organizations have ports of entry (e.g. admissions office at university) and rules and
procedures which direct the behavior of members.
Structures of organizations change due to influences by successive waves of members,
interactions among the members, and changes in environmental conditions.
Chester Barnard: ‘all complex organizations are built up from units of organization, and
consist of many units of working or ‘basic’ organizations, overlaid with units of executive
organizations.’
Agreement on the definition of the structure of organizations is the inclusion of formal and
informal aspects of organizations.
Informal: norms and social expectations
Formal: official, explicit division of responsibilities, definitions and relations
Structure shapes people behavior in an organization. But they are also the source of
changes in structure over time.
This relationship is referred to as structural duality.
Key elements of Weber’s ideal type of bureaucracy:
1. Clearly defined division of labor
2. Hierarchy of authority
3. Written rules and documents
4. Separation of home and office
5. Appointment of members on basis of their qualifications
In the past these aspects were not common for organizations
Weber considered structure as key to understanding the nature of contemporary
organizations.
Contingency theory: the assumption that the effectiveness of particular structural
arrangements depended on the size, technology, and other aspects of an organization.
Structural-functionalist theory: defines the general task of sociology as explaining structures
in terms of their functions or consequences.
Dimensions of formal structure
Complexity (requires coordination and control)
o Horizontal the ways work tasks performed in an organization are
subdivided into different jobs and groups. Associated with specialization in
knowledge and skills. Each job has very narrow set of repetitive tasks.
Horizontal complexity can be measured by the number of job titles or
departments.
Horizontal complexity leads to greater efficiency and innovation. However,
complexity leads to problems of control and coordination.
o Vertical the division of decision-making tasks and supervisory
responsibilities. This is also referred to as differentiation. Can be measured by
the count of the number of job positions between the chief executive and the
employees working on the output.
o Spatial The extent to which organizations have different sites in different
physical locations. It appears when different kinds of work activities take place
in different geographical locations. Spatial complexity goes together with
