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Chapter 9: Power-controlPower-control: an organisation’s structure, at any given time is to a large extent the result of those in
power selecting a structure that will, to the maximum degree possible, maintain and enhance their
control.
John Child’s strategic choice: Although managers’ discretion is curtailed to some extent, there is still
considerable scope for them to make choices favourable to themselves. 4 basic point that limit the
choices that mangers have:
- Decision makers have more autonomy than that implied by those arguing for the dominance
of environmental, technological or other forces.
- Organisational effectiveness should be construed as a range instead of a point.
- Organisations often have the power to manipulate and control their environments.
- Perceptions and evaluations of events are an important intervening link between
environments and the actions of organisations.
Rationality: the belief that decisions are goal-directed and consistent
Non-rationality: a process of decision making that does not follow the principles of logical deduction
and decision optimisation
Irrationality: decision appears to be inappropriate in the circumstances
Dominant collation: the group within an organisation with the power to influence the outcomes of
decisions
Authority: the right to act, or to command others to act, towards the attainment of goals
Power: an individual’s capacity to influence decisions
- The higher one moves in an organisation (an increase in authority), the closer one
automatically moves towards the power core.
- It is not necessary o have authority to wield power, because one can move horizontally
inward towards the power core without moving up the hierarchy.
Legacy systems: existing systems, rules, procedures, roles, responsibilities and ways of doing things
that are accepted practice within an organisation. Contribute to smooth operation of the
organisation, established ways can predetermine courses of action
Network centrality: the degree to which a position in an organisation allows an individual to integrate
other functions or reduce organisation dependencies.
Power-control thesis: an organisation’s structure, at any given time, is to a large extent the result of
those in power selecting a structure that will maintain and enhance their control.
5 areas in which structure creates political arenas in organisations:
- Position in the hierarchy: status, and therefore influence, is closely attached to the position
of a department head in the organisation’s hierarchy
- Resource allocation: typically, resources are allocated to departments or divisions as part of a
budget, the better funded the department, the more status it has and the more likely it is to
influence decisions
- Interdepartmental coordination: relationships between departments are part of
organisational life
- Responsibility exceeding authority: a principle of sound management is that authority should
always equal responsibility (rarely applies)
- Structural change: all structural change leads to managers and departments redefining their
authority and power relationships
, Political tactics to exercise power:
- Building collations
- Define the nature of the problem
- Enhancing legitimacy and expertise: a manager’s or department’s power is greatly enhanced
when they do their job well and when they have a good reputation for task knowledge and
achievement
- Making preferences explicit, but keeping power implicit
- Expanding networks of influence: co-opting, bringing dissenters and opponents into the
network of influence
Constrains (strategy, size, technology, environment + ‘satisficing’ level of organisational
effectiveness) -> Structural alternatives (influenced by the decision made by the dominant coalition +
self-interest dominant coalition) -> emergent structure
Organisational slack: a cushion of excess resources (on top of the minimum required for
organisational effectiveness) that enables an organisation to adjust to environmental change without
changing the organisation
Within the power-control view those in power will choose structures that maintain their control,
within its discretionary range, they will select the most mechanistic alternative.
Pseudo-decentralisation: top management will create the appearance of delegating decisions
downwards but will use information technology or other means to scrutinise the decisions which
have been made.
Levels of the organisation at which each of the contingences is likely to have it greatest influence:
- Size: influence multidimensional, affects the way in which organisations are structured and
managed at all levels of the organisation
- Strategy: influence mostly felt at the top and the middle of the organisation
- Technology: greatest impact at the individual and work-group level
- Environment: greatest structural impact middle of organisation’s hierarchy; middle managers
bear the greater part of the task of adjusting to environmental change
- Power: greatest impact on the top of an organisation
Chapter 10: The challenge of finding an appropriate structure
Functions of structure:
- Implement strategy
- Define areas of responsibility: evaluating performance + allocating rewards
- Provide control mechanisms: maintains unity of purpose of organisation
- Facilitating flow of production
- Promote coordination and information flows
- Monitor and respond to environmental change
- Maintain and promote organisational knowledge
Sources of change over the past 25 years:
- Deregulation and privatisation
- Promotion of competition
- Growth of globalisation
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