Businesses need an organizational structure to be very effective

Introduction

Every organization must have an organizational structure to be very effective. But what comes to your mind when you hear the word organizational structure?  It’s a form of structure that determines the hierarchy and the exposure structure in every organization. In other words, who reports to whom? Some companies refer to this as the organizational chart. It consists of activities such as task allocation, coordination and supervision, which are directed towards which individuals see their organization and its environment. An organization can be structured in many different ways, depending on their objectives. The structure of an organization will determine the modes in which it operates and performs.

Organizational structure refers to the way an organization is made up to improve the people and work for its activities can be conducted and its goals are met.  If the work group is very small and the communication is face to face its regular, a formal structure can be pointless, but it is in a larger organization the decisions have to be made about the assigning of the various tasks. All procedures are already established that assign responsibilities for all different functions. This is the decisions that can find out the organizational structure.

Body

In this busy society, people rarely have time to plan events. Most of them rely on Event Management companies to do all the preparation and the work for them. These companies range from corporate events, corporate meetings and conferences, marketing programs, special hospitality events like concerts, fashion shows and even personal events such as weddings, anniversaries and birthdays.

An event management, according to the Wikipedia, involves studying the complexity of the brand or service, identifying the market, devising the concept, planning the logistics and coordinating the technical aspects before actually executing the proposed event.

For the purpose of this project, I would be focusing on a Wedding Planning Company. This particular company will be providing services to couples who are planning to get married. The services may be to offer a complete wedding planning service, wedding day coordination and wedding consultations.

To be able to succeed, this particular company would need different departments for booking, organizing and deploying subcontractors.

Types of organizational structure

In simplified terms, an organizational structure is a plan that shows the organization of work and the systematic arrangement of work. There are different types of organizational structures. These will be discussed in the next paragraphs.

1.2.1.1 Traditional Structures

A traditional structure is a structure that is based on functional division and departments. This follows the organization’s rules and procedures. It is characterized by having precise authority lines for all levels in the management. Examples of traditional structures are the following:

Line Structure

Figure Line Structure Organizational ChartA line structure is the kind of structure that has a very specific line of command. The top management has complete control, and the chain of command is clear and simple. This is suitable for smaller organizations like small accounting firms and law offices. This allows for easy decision making, and also very informal in nature. They have fewer departments, which makes the entire organization a very decentralized one.1001032706-01

Line and Staff Structure

Although line structure is suitable for most organizations, especially small ones, it is not effective for larger companies. This is where the line and staff organizational structure comes into play. Line and staff structure combines the line structure where information and approvals come from top to bottom, with staff departments for support and specialization. Line and staff organizational structures are more centralized. Managers of line and staff have authority over their subordinates, but staff managers have no authority over line managers and their subordinates. The decision making process becomes slower in this type of organizational structure because of the layers and guidelines that are typical to it, and let’s not forget the formality involved.

Figure Line and Staff Organizational Chart

Functional structure

This kind of organizational structure classifies people according to the function they perform in their professional life or according to the functions performed by them in the organization. The organization chart for a functional based organization consists of Vice President, Sales department, Customer Service Department, Engineering or production department, Accounting department and Administrative department.http://www.csulb.edu/projects/wasc/WASC_accreditation_2006-11/capacity_review/appendix/appendix-II-1_clip_image002.jpg

Figure Functional Structure

1.2.1.2. Divisional Structure

This is the kind of structure that is based on the different divisions in the organization. These structures can be further divided into:

Product structure

A product structure Organization is based on arranging employees and work on the basis of the different types of products. If the company produces three different types of products, they will have three different divisions for these products.

http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~renglish/473/notes/chapt04/product_organization.gif

Figure 4 Product Structure

Market Structure

Market structure is used to group employees on the basis of specific market the company sells in. A company could have 3 different markets they use and according to this structure, each would be a separate division in the structure.http://marketingmanagement.blogsome.com/images/CISCOSystems-OrganizationStructure-1.jpg

Figure 5 Market Structure

Geographic structure

Large organizations have offices at different place, for example there could be a north zone, south zone, west and east zone. The organizational structure would then follow a zonal region structure.

Figure 6 Geographic Structure

1.2.1.3. Matrix structure

This is a structure, which is a combination of function, and product structures. This combines both the best of both worlds to make an efficient organizational structure. This structure is the most complex organizational structure.

It is important to find an organizational structure that works best for the organization, as the wrong set up could prevent proper functioning in the organization.

Figure 7 Matrix Structure

1.2.2 My choice of Organizational Structure

Assuming that I would establish a Wedding Planning Company and after studying the different types of Organizational Structure, I would choose to initially have a Line Organizational Structure.

Since the Wedding Planning Company caters to a single specific event, a wide range departments would not be necessary. I am only offering one range of product so a product structure would be out of place. There is also no need for me to separate my market since I would initially be catering to only one market: couples who are planning to get married, therefore a Market structure is not necessary at the moment. Since the business has just been set up, it would definitely be good to start with one branch so a Geographical Structure would not be necessary yet. A matrix structure would also be too complicated for this business of mine. Maybe when I expand and incorporates all other events and open in other areas, I might need that structure of organization.

1.3. Conclusion

Starting a company would normally start small. A Sole Proprietorship would be more than enough. Being a small company, with me as the owner, would not need a very complex structure like a matrix. I might have to start with a small group of couples who are in need of a specific service or products. I might have a few number of staff with me. I will have one staff in charge for Marketing, Planning and Coordinating and Financing. In order for my business to succeed however, I should have a number of subcontractors who would be providing my clients with their own services like catering, souvenir shops, photography or videography. These subcontractors would be giving me the best deals as possible as I present them to my clients.

As my business grows, however, a Line structure would not be sufficient to run the business smoothly. I might have to expand my structure further and maybe use the line and staff structure. Since I am just new to the industry, I would have to put more effort in getting my business known to the market and slowly build from there.

As my business grows, the role of each of my staff would shift from say doing it themselves to managing a number of people in a department. I might even think of putting them in team first before a whole department would be stabilized.