Strategic Management | List and discuss the three levels of strategy that a large organization must develop

List and discuss the three levels of strategy that a large organization must develop.

Robbins / Coulter, MANAGEMENT, 12th edition, Pearson, 2014

www.pearson.co.uk

This is a guidance answer ... your actual answer during the exam should be longer than this answer ... 

MANAGEMENT PROCESS | Hierarchical structure of typical business organizations.

Discuss the hierarchical structure of typical business organizations.

Source: Management, 12th Edition- John R. Schermerhorn

HRM | What is human resource management and what roles do the key components of HRM play in organizations?

What is human resource management and what roles do the key components of HRM play in organizations?

ANSWER

Human resource management (HRM) involves attracting, developing, and maintaining a talented and energetic workforce to support the organization’s mission, objectives, and strategies. Attracting, developing, and maintain quality workers are the three key components of the HRM process. Attracting a quality workforce involves human resource planning, recruitment, and selection. Developing a quality workforce involves employee orientation, training and development, and performance appraisal. Maintaining a quality workforce involves career planning and development, work-life balance, compensation and benefits, employee retention and turnovers, and labor-management relations.

Source: Management, 11th Edition & 12^th Edition- John R. Schermerhorn

ORGANIZING | Explain the concepts of organization chart, formal structure, and informal structure. Why must a manager understand both the formal structure and the informal structure of an organization?

Explain the concepts of organization chart, formal structure, and informal structure. Why must a manager understand both the formal structure and the informal structure of an organization?

ANSWER

An organization chart  which is a diagram identifying key positions and job titles within an organization, as well as lines of authority and communication  provides a representation of the organization’s formal structure. The formal structure is the organization’s official structure; it reflects the official pattern of relationships in an organization. The informal structure is a “shadow” organization made up of the unofficial, but often critical, working relationships among organizational members.

By understanding the formal structure, a manager knows about the organization’s division of work, supervisory relationships, communication channels, major subunits, and levels of management. This knowledge indicates how the organization is supposed to work. However, an organization does not always operate according to the dictates of the formal structure. Knowledge of the informal structure is needed as well since the informal structure supplements rather than replaces the formal structure.

Source: Management, 11th Edition & 12^th Edition- John R. Schermerhorn

ORGANIZING | What is a social network analysis and why is it, in many ways, essential to organizational success?

What is a social network analysis and why is it, in many ways, essential to organizational  success?

ANSWER

Social network analysis is one way of identifying informal structures and their embedded social relationships. Such an analysis typically asks people to identify others whom they turn to for help most often, and with whom they communicate regularly, and who energize and de-energize them. 6 Social networks are then drawn with lines running from person to person according to frequency and type of relationship maintained. The result is an organizational map that shows how a lot of work really gets done in organizations, in contrast to the formal arrangements depicted on organization charts. This information is useful for redesigning the formal structure for better performance, and it also legitimates the informal networks people use in their daily work. Informal structures and social networks are in many ways essential to organizational success. This is especially true during times of change, when out-of-date formal structures may fail to provide the support people need to deal with new or unusual situations. Because it takes time to change or modify formal structures, the informal structure helps fill the void. The emergent and spontaneous relationships of informal structures allow people to make contacts with others who can help them get things done. Informal learning also takes place as people work and interact together throughout the workday. And, informal structures are sources of emotional support and friendship that satisfy important social needs.

Source: Management, 11th Edition & 12^th Edition- John R. Schermerhorn

Planning - Benefit Planning for Individuals and Organizations

Describe the benefits of planning for individuals and organizations.

Answer:

The benefits of planning for individuals and organizations include the following:

•       Planning improvesfocus and flexibility. Focus and flexibility are important to the performance of both people and organizations in highly competitive and dynamic environments.

•       Planning improves action orientation. Planning keeps people and organizations focused on the actions that are needed to stay competitive and to become better at what they are doing. Planning helps make people and organizations more oriented toward results, priorities, advantages, and change.

•       Planning improves coordination. Planning helps individuals, groups, and subsystems within organizations make meaningful contributions to the organization as a whole, even as they pursue their specific tasks and objectives.

•       Planning improves control. Planning facilitates control by defining objectives and desired performance results, and identifying specific actions through which they are to be pursued.

•       Planning improves time management. Each day, managers are bombarded by a multitude of tasks and demands. They work in a setting of frequent interruptions, crises, and unexpected events. Consequently, it can be easy to lose track of objectives and fall prey to “time wasters.”

Source: Management, 11th Edition - John R. Schermerhorn

Decision Making Process - Impact on Increase Use of IT

What impact is the increasing use of information technology (IT) having on organizations?

Ans:

The increasing use of information technology (IT) is dramatically affecting how organizations operate and how they interface with their environments. In terms of internal organizational aspects, IT has had the following effects:

•       Individuals and teams can communicate more easily and can electronically share information.

•       The organization can operate with fewer middle managers.

•       Organizations can be flattened and operate with fewer levels of management.

•       The speed of decision making can be increased.

•       Coordination and control among decision makers can be increased.

        In terms of relationships with their external environments, IT has helped organizations manage more effectively in the following ways:

•       IT helps with customer relationship management by providing information regarding customer needs, preferences, and satisfactions.

•       IT helps organizations in all aspects of supply chain management.

•       IT helps organizations to monitor outsourcing and other business contracts.

Source: Management, 11th Edition - John R. Schermerhorn