1.5 - About University

4.1D ESIGNING P RODUCTIVE O RGANIZATIONSInspired by Bernie Novokowsky, Peter Drucker, Jay Galbraith, David Hanna,Susan Mohrman, and Thomas Cummings.“Structure is a very powerful shaper of behavior. It’s like the strange pumpkin I once saw at a country fair. It hadbeen grown in a four-cornered Mason jar. The jar had since been broken and removed. The remaining pumpkinwas shaped exactly like a small Mason jar. Beside it was a pumpkin from the same batch of seeds that wasallowed to grow without constraints. It was five times bigger. Organization structures and systems have thesame effect on the people in them. They either limit or liberate their performance potential.”—Jim Clemmer, PATHWAYS TO PERFORMANCEWhen it comes to designing an organizational structure there is no such thing as “one size fitsall.” On this matter, Peter Drucker, arguably the most distinguished organizational guru of ourtime, is unequivocal: “There is no such thing as the one right organization [design]. There areonly organizations, each of which has distinct strengths, distinct limitations, and specificapplications.” This tool will provide you with the overall design of an organization, division,or workgroup, including a systemic model for organizational design.Organizational design needs to:1. Support organizational aims. An organization’s high-level thinking as expressed in itsvision, mission, and values must lead to solid business results. For example, if customerservice is a highly valued organizational aim, then the organization must be widelyorganized to deliver outstanding customer service. [☛ 2.5 Values, 2.6 Clarifying Purpose]2. Be systemic. Many organizational designs fall short because the elements of the designdon’t fit with and support each other. Nor do they support the larger system. A goodorganization design facilitates: a) access to information, b) decision making by thosewith the best information, and c) the ability to take appropriate action in the face ofchange. [☛ 2.1 Systems Thinking]3. Focus from the outside-in.Organization design startswith an assessment➠ Clarify customer/client needs.➠ Map stakeholder groups.➠ Understand relevant environmental forces.[☛ 3.3 Environmental Scan]Key questions✔ Who does this organization serve?✔ Who are the groups who have a stake in success?✔ What are the driving or competitive forces in thesociety around the organization?4. Be easy to understand and communicate. The organization should be readily understandable:inside (to employees) and outside (to customers and other stakeholders). Peopleneed to be able to work the system quickly and easily. [☛5.1 Change Equation,8.3 Organizational Communication]5. Be flexible. Only stone-age organizations can be cast in stone. Organizations need to beable to turn on a dime so they can reorganize to deal with environmental changes orto capture opportunities. [☛ 1.10 GAS Model]SECTION 4 TOOLS FOR DESIGNING PRODUCTIVE PROCESSES AND ORGANIZATIONS 101