MindTap Chapter 7

Divisional Structure (Example of Disadvantage)

(Example of Disadvantage) Human resources is done separately in each of the seven units serving different geographic areas, and having seven smaller HR departments is less efficient than having one.

1. When tasks are new and few procedures are in place to guide how work should be done. 2. When few management support resources, such as technology or people, are in place.

"Under what circumstances should I hire more managers so each can have a narrower span of control?" Check all that apply.

Divisional Structure (Example of Advantage)

(Example of Advantage) Employees doing different kinds of work, such as research and development, manufacturing, and sales, tend to communicate with one another more and coordinate their activities.

Staff authority

A human resource generalist has the _______ _______ to advise supervisors on how to handle employee disciplinary actions.

Span of management

A manager with many direct subordinates has a wider _____ __ __________ than does a manager with only a few subordinates.

Work specialization

Although a high degree of _______ _______ is efficient, many companies are moving toward having employees perform multiple aspects of the work, such as not only selling a product but also providing follow-up customer service.

Functional Structure (Example of Advantage)

(Example of Advantage) The managers and employees in the manufacturing unit share a common outlook and find it easier to communicate with each other because they have similar training and experience.

Functional Structure (Example of Disadvantage)

(Example of Disadvantage) Employees in each unit tend to be focused on their work specialty rather than on the customer, so the organization can be slow to respond to changes in the business environment.

1. Benefit 2. Drawback 3. Benefit

1. By selling the five pieces of equipment each man used to perform all five steps, each worker can buy more advanced equipment necessary for his unique task. 2. Jake becomes extremely bored with hauling blankets to market over and over, and he misses getting to herd and shear the sheep. 3. If it used to take each man 4 hours to monitor one fifth of the sheep, it now takes Brian less than 20 hours to monitor all the sheep.

more decentralized

The trend recently has been for organizations to adopt ________ _____________ structures, in which employees lower in the hierarchy have more decision-making authority.

Responsibility

When your manager assigns you a task, you have the _________ to carry out that task.