ch. 8 elements of an organization

centralized authority

important decisions are made by higher level managers

responsibility

is the obligation you have to perform the tasks assigned to you

delegation

is the process of assigning managerial authority and responsibility to managers and employee lower in the hierarchy

coordinated effort

the coordination of individual efforts into a group or organization-wide effort

division of labor

also know as work specialization; is the arrangement of having discrete parts of a task done by different people

staff personnel

have authority functions; they provide advice recommendations, and research to line managers

line managers

have authority to make decisions are usually have people reporting to them

decentralized authority

important decisions are made by middle level and supervisory level managers

unity of command

in which an employee should report to no more than on manager

organization chart

is a box-and-line illustration showing the formal lines of authority and organizations official positions or work specializations

organization

is a system of consciously coordinated activities or forces of two or more people

accountabillity

managers must report and justify work results to the mangers above them

hierarchy of authority

or chain of command: is a control mechanism for making sure the right people do the right things at the right time

span of control

refers to the number of people reporting directly to a given manager: or span of management

authority

refers to the right inherent in a managerial position to make decisions, give orders, and utilize resources

common purpose

unifies employees or members and gives everyone an understanding of the organizations reason for being