Organizational Design
Lecture 1: Introduction and framework for assessing design approaches
1. The course: objective of Organizational Design
2. Lay-out of the course: two parts
3. Framework for assessing design approaches
Worren is important for the exam, that’s why he included it in the learning literature, it
underpins the framework
1. The objective of Organizational Design
Threefold purpose of the course:
1. Introduce and assess different design approaches
2. Enable assessment of design approaches (old, current, yet to come) by means of a general
framework
3. Application of design approaches to a relevant domain: healthcare
S: society
I: infrastructure
SP: social practices
Social practices can become rooted into the infrastructure. This course is more on the
infrastructure side of the organization. Consist of structure, HR (rules and regulations
according to human resources) and Technology (broad concepts).
Intervention Cycle
Analytical tool which consultants, managers etc. use to solve organizational challenges or
difficulties. This is on a day to day bases. The first step is to make a change what problem to
focus on (look to the problem behind the problem). This is the case that these managers
picking the problem what’s the most pressing in needs of solution, this is the problem to focus
on. They try to come up with a framework which assesses this problem. So, what is actually
happening here? So, problem choice and the analysis are the diagnosis.
1
,Based on this diagnose it’s the idea that they plan a certain decision with regard to changing
the organization. This will result in a design or redesign of the organization. It’s execution.
You cannot evolve or continue if you do not check whether the intervention worked, so the
evaluation. In reality there are several feedback loops, but from a distance, it can look like
this. Sequentially diagnose and follow up with design, change and evaluation. Can be
performed by all kind of design theories. Because of this, the course is static. It is a snap shot
of the organization and a potential solution is provided.
2. Lay-out of the course: two parts
1. The first part is dedicated to discussing, assessing, and comparing design approaches
2. The second part is dedicated to applying these approaches in the context of healthcare
Part 1: design approaches
- Framework for assessing design approaches (Lecture 1)
- Ideas from James Thompson (Lecture 2)
- Sociotechnical design (Lecture 3)
- Configurational approach (Lecture 4)
- Lean production (Lecture 5)
Part 2: Applying approaches in the context of healthcare)
- Disruptive innovation (Lecture 7)
- Facilitated networks (Lecture 8)
- Value added processes and Solution shops (Lecture 9)
- Current challenges in healthcare:
o Expensive and inefficient
o Often not in sync with patient needs
o System is under pressure (e.g. aging of the population)
- Relevance of the context:
o Healthcare is an important societal value
o Providing this value in a proper way can be framed as a design challenge
o You are involved as (future) employees/clients/stakeholders
3. Framework for assessing design approaches
3.1 General requirements of org. design approaches
3.2 Pragmatic validity
3.3 Three representational modes of pragmatic validity
Organizational design
- Applied discipline informed by literature of the organization sciences.
- Rooted in a diverse knowledge base (economics, psychology, sociology, management,
information technology, systems theory)
- Both science and art
- Includes, but is not limited to, organizational structure
2
,Organizational structure:
- The network of executed tasks related to orders
- Network comes into existence due to grouping and allocation of activities into tasks that
can be performed by capacities: by capacities you think about entities in organizations, we
are talking here about human capacities. Individual employees in the organizations (first
form). Second form is a group of employees and the third form is a department. He paints
a picture with three activities and three capacities. Like in the Intervention course.
Capacity 1 makes activity 1. Capacity 2 makes activity 2.
3.1 General requirements of org. design approaches
Approaches supporting organizational design should provide insight into:
1. Relevant V’s (against the background of the goals/mission) (V = variable): variable has
more or less a quantifiable character. So, that we have an element of navigation to which
we have to configure to the organization.
2. Relevant P’s (P = parameter): more or less a tangible character
3. The causal/conceptual relationship between relevant P’s and V’s (how/why): there’s a
distinction between causal (value of parameter and how it’s influenced the variable) but it
could also be that the relationship is more conceptual. That a certain set of parameters in
a certain situation works really well to contribute to these variables.
4. Have pragmatic validity (Worren et al., 2002): what is pragmatic validity of knowledge?
It’s about when is theory helpful for designers/managers.
The variables are more or less the depended variable and the parameters are the independent
variable.
3.2 Pragmatic validity
- The pragmatic validity of knowledge (theories / approaches) can be judged by the extent
to which goals or intended consequences (diagnosis / design) can be achieved by
producing certain actions or using particular instruments (are approaches useful in
practice?)
- You could translate this to a situation to claim if this is relevant for the operation manager
of consultant. There are three ways to determine the theory:
o Focus on different ways in which knowledge (theory) can be represented
o Three representational modes: propositional, narrative or visual (see below)
o Individual theories/approaches can be represented in different ways, however,
there may be dominant modes. Which is taking the upper hand? Theories can be
characterized in what dominates these
- “The usefulness of knowledge will depend on the degree of fit with such characteristics as
o The type of problem or decision being considered
o The phase in the process
o Organizational contextual factors
3.3 Three representational modes of pragmatic validity
Mode or representation Description
Propositional Prescriptive statements about potential managerial actions and
outcomes
Narrative Stories and anecdotes that illustrate a particular concept or
suggest a course of action
Visual Diagrams and other visual depictions of conceptual models
3
, Propositional
A theory can be proposed in practice when it provides clear guidelines for manager on how to
go about with a design problem (propositional). This theory can inform the manager with a
proposition of the guidelines of the theories. Can be useful for managers but there are
downsides from this kind of view:
- It’s about sacrificing breadth for depth (so generalized). Only holds for certain sets of
organization or certain sets of design problems.
- It’s beneficial for managers, but only for few managers.
Narrative mode
Another way to be relevant for managers is the narrative mode: all kinds of stories or
anecdotes that illustrate a particular concept or suggest a course of action. Managers can
reach out to theories with narratives characters to enthusiast people into the process. So: in
this situation it was very useful, and they used this step. So, a high level of legitimacy
described in the theory.
- This is completely opposite to the propositional.
- Narratives is applicable for a wide audience but are not specific. So, managers need to
make the translation from the theory to the organization.
- So, sacrificing depth by the costs of breath.
Visual model
Can be useful for managers in a sense that they can use it for boundaries objects. If he
presents a conceptual framework in how to compare the theories. So, he can use this model in
the discussion so we’re all on the same way. Some theories have a nice outlay of pictures
which can be applied by crossing certain boundaries in functionalities.
Downside:
- Too abstract for the actual representation. Could be a simplification what’s actually
going on. (he says: you have to look into this direction).
In many cases, one of these modes of representations are dominant.
Overview of Thompson, Mintzberg, STSD and Lean See also assignment 4
What are the core ideas of these theories
Thompson
The main take away of Thompson is that organizations at the same time strive for
predictability of the technical core (PP) but at the same time do it for adaptability and they do
that in different ways. Striving for predictability has to do with design and structure (CH
4+5). Be as adaptable as possible (complete adaptable is impossible) by maneuvering in that
particular task environment in that particular way (CH 1+3)
Mintzberg
Two basic ideas 1) internal fit 2) external fit. Internal fit between elements of design and
contingencies in the environment (external). The point is then specific configuration fit
particular contingencies.
STSD
There is a difference between 1) analytical concepts: structure parameters that were able to
relate characteristics of organizational structure to the outcome of an organization (3 Q’s) 2)
design rules here we have sequence rules and design rules. The sequence rules are the P C
I structure: start with production structure, than control structure and then information
structure. Design rules are with macro from micro level and the other way around for the
control structure.
4
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