Fundamental organization models

Summary and study points

It is hoped that this summary of fundamental concepts will assist in the work of organizational analysis and change. The reader may also find it especially useful to go through the potential disadvantages of each of the structures in order to consider how they might be best avoided. Some of the lessons to be drawn from organizational theory are:

• A familiarity with the fundamental structures and concepts is always useful in any discussion of organizational change.

• It is important to differentiate between organization and working methods. A classical pyramid organization with a functional structure can easily be run in project (network) form. A division organization nearly always has processes which cut across the divisions but it doesn’t have to be a matrix organization for all that.

• There is no neat theory that will tell you which organizational form is best for a particular situation, and notable exceptions exist to counter any thesis on the subject.

• In organizational theory it is important to draw the right conclusions on the connection between cause and effect. We should ask ourselves, “Is an organization successful because it has a certain structure, or has its products made it successful in spite of its structure?”