19 Organizing, Span of Management

Dr.Shafali Nagpal

19.1 Learning Objective

19.2 Introduction

19.3 Importance of organising

19.4 Process of organising

19.5 Need and Importance of organising

19.6 Span of Control

19.7 Wide and Narrow span of Control

19.8 Arranging to optimize managers span

19.9 Summary

Learning Objectives

After completing this module, you will be able to:

To study the concept of organizing and control
To evaluate the effectiveness of monitoring system
To study about organizing system and procedure

When setting up another business, you should give careful consideration to planning your organization’s sound structure. This ought to be chosen by your organization’s size, industry and points. You should consider hierarchical structures as correspondence flowcharts. Misguided hierarchical structures will bring about lazy, wasteful communication in which supervisors at different levels are required to convey data to an excessive number of individuals for an excessive number of levels of endorsement. All around outlined hierarchical structures will create effective correspondence channels and empower quick, clean choices. How about we investigate a few of the most widely recognized types of hierarchical structures.

Concept

Organizing is the function of management which follows planning. It is a function in which the synchronization and combination of human, physical and financial resources take place. All the three resources are important to get results. Therefore, organizational function helps in achievement of results which in fact is important for the functioning of a concern. According to Chester Barnard, “Organizing is a function by which the concern can define the role positions, the jobs related and the coordination between authority and responsibility. Hence, a manager always has to organize to get results.

A manager performs organizing function with the help of following steps:-

Identification of activities – All the activities which have to be performed in a concern has to be identified first. For example, preparation of accounts, making sales, record keeping, quality control, inventory control, etc. All these activities have to be grouped and classified into units.
Departmentally organizing the activities – In this step, the manager tries to combine and group similar and related activities into units or departments. This organization of dividing the whole concern into independent units and departments is called departmentation.
Classifying the authority – Once the departments are made, the manager likes to classify the powers and its extent to the managers. This act of giving a rank to the managerial positions is called hierarchy. The top management is a formulation of policies, the middle-level management into departmental supervision and lower level management into supervision of supervisors. The clarification of authority helps in bringing efficiency in the running of a concern. This helps in achieving efficiency in the running of a concern. This helps in avoiding wastage of time, money, effort, in avoidance of duplication or overlapping of efforts and this helps in bringing smoothness in a concern’s working.
Co-ordination between authority and responsibility – Relationships are established among various groups to enable smooth interaction toward the achievement of the organizational goal. Each is made aware of his authority, and he/she knows whom they have to take orders from and to whom they are accountable and to whom they have to report. A clear organizational structure is drawn, and all the employees are made aware of it.

Importance of organizing

Specialization – Organizational structure is a network of relationships in which the work is divided into units and departments. This division of work is helping in bringing specialization in various activities of concern.

Well-defined jobs – Organizational structure helps in putting right men on a right job which can be done by selecting people for various departments according to their qualifications, skill and experience. This is helping in defining the jobs properly which clarifies the role of every person.

Clarifies authority – Organizational structure helps in clarifying the role positions to every manager (status quo). This can be done by clarifying the powers to every manager, and the way he has to exercise those powers should be clarified, so that misuse of powers do not take place. Well-defined jobs and responsibilities attached help in bringing efficiency into managers working. This helps in increasing productivity.

Co-ordination – Organization is a means of creating coordination among different departments of the enterprise. It creates clear-cut relationships among positions and ensures mutual co-operation among individuals. Harmony of work is brought by higher level managers exercising their authority over interconnected activities of a lower level manager.

Authority responsibility relationships can be fruitful only when there is a formal relationship between the two. For smooth running of an organization, the coordination between authority-responsibilities is essential. There should be co-ordination between different relationships. Clarity should be made for having an ultimate responsibility attached to every authority. There is a saying, “Authority without responsibility leads to ineffective behaviour and responsibility without authority makes person ineffective.” Therefore, coordination of authority- responsibility is essential.

Efficient administration – The organization structure is helpful in defining the jobs positions. The roles to be performed by different managers are clarified. Specialization is achieved through division of work. This all leads to efficient and effective administration.

Growth and diversification – A company’s growth are dependant on how efficiently and smoothly a concern works. Efficiency can be brought about by clarifying the role positions to the managers, co-ordination between authority and responsibility and concentrating on specialization. In addition to this, a company can diversify if its potential grows. This is possible only when the organization structure is well- defined. This is possible through a set of formal structure.

Source: http://study.com/academy/lesson/organizational-chart-and-hierarchy-definition-examples.html

The sense of security – Organizational structure clarifies the job positions. The roles assigned to every manager are clear. Co-ordination is possible. Therefore, clarity of powers helps automatically in increasing mental satisfaction and thereby a sense of security in concern. This is very important for job- satisfaction.

Scope for new changes – Where the roles and activities to be performed are clear, and every person gets independence in his working, this provides enough space to a manager to develop his talents and flourish his knowledge. A manager gets ready for taking independent decisions which can be a road or path to adoption of new techniques of production. This scope for bringing new changes into the running of an enterprise is possible only through a set of organizational structure.

The process of organizing consists of following steps

Any situation involving two or more persons working collectively requires organizing. The act of organizing involves integrating, balancing and coordinating the activities of people working together for seeking common goals.

The process of organizing involves the following steps:

1. Identification and enumeration of activities:

At the first stage of organizing process, a manager identity and determines those activities that are to be performed for achieving common goals. For example, an organization producing and distributing washing machines has to perform a large number of activities that may be related to production, distribution, finance, purchase and personnel, etc.

2. Division of activities:

After determining and enumerating activities, these are to be divided and sub-divided into small components known as jobs and tasks.

3. Grouping-up of activities:

Once the activities have been broken into small elements, these can be easily put into various groups by their relationship and similarities. For example, each job and task related to production are to be grouped up into production group, and elements that are related to marketing, finance and purchase are to be grouped-up in the respective groups.

4. Assignment of a group of activities:

After putting various activities into several groups, these are to be assigned or allotted to the various departments created for this purpose, or to the employees if the activities are limited. At the time of making such assignment, it is ensured that the department has required competence and resources for performing that group of activities.

5. Granting fundamental rights:

Assignment of a group of activities among various departments is followed by giving them sufficient rights so that they can perform assigned work satisfactorily.

The rights are granted through the process of delegation. In this process, the higher level manager gives away some of his rights in favour of other who becomes his subordinate, and it continues to the last level of management.

6. Coordinating the functioning of various departments:

In the process of organizing, attempts are also made for coordinating working of an individual with the respective department, and finally to coordinate the functioning of various departments towards the achievement of common goals.

Need and Importance of Organizing:

The organizing process creates a network of roles and relationships and provides a framework within which each employee performs the activities that have been assigned to him. His role becomes more meaningful, and he contributes effectively to achieving pre-determined objectives. Therefore, organizing is regarded as a mechanism or means to achieve planned objectives. Its importance can be outlined as under:

1. Framework to perform management functions:

Organizational structure provides a framework within which various management functions can be performed by the managers more efficiently. It is only through the relationship of superior and subordinate, which is created by organizing process that the manager plans, directs and controls activities of his subordinates.

2. Facilitates coordination:

Organizing process may also be used as a device for maintaining and achieving coordination. In organizing, the activities performed by an individual employee are related to the functioning of his department, and the functioning of various departments is harmonized for seeking common goals.

3. Leads to specialization:

Organizing is based on the concept of division of work that ultimately leads to specialization. Through it, activities are divided, grouped-up and assigned to the concerned department having requisite competence, and resources and the department develop as a specialized centre for those activities.

4. Helps in achieving efficiency:

Organizing process aims at achieving higher efficiency because it helps in making efficient utilization of both human as well as physical resources.

5. Promotes Employee development:

In a highly decentralized organizational structure, each position is strengthened by delegating required authority. As a result of it, each manager makes decisions, solves problems and tackles the situation that ultimately leads to overall development of his personality.

6. Increases clarity of authority and responsibility:

Division of work and delegation of authority among employees, through the process of organizing, gives them a precise idea of what they are expected to perform and within what limits of authority they have to perform. It helps in boosting an employee’s morale, and he feels comfortable in work- setting.

7. Facilitates adaptation:

Organizational structure also provides a useful means to cope with changing an environment. In the event of change, necessary modification may be made in the organizing process, organizational structure and organizational goals, to bring them in conformity with the change. It may be done by maintaining flexibility in the structure and making it adaptive to changes.

SPAN OF CONTROL

The span of control simply refers to the number of employees that a manager can supervise effectively at any given time without compromising his or her performance or that of the employees he or she manages. It is very important to understand span of control and organizational structure when describing an organization. Simply, a span of control refers to the number of subordinates under the manager’s direct control. As an example, a manager with five direct reports has a span of control of five. Too many or too few direct reports is a good way to view how efficient an organization is as long as it looked at in the context of the companies organizational structure.

Is there an optimal number? What needs to be considered is the nature of the work that subordinates are performing and how much attention each requires. For example, a Call Center, the span of control can number over 100, while executive functions – with high degrees of collaboration and interaction – could productively tolerate no more than three or four. So the nature of the work being performed, and how much attention it requires should govern the assignment of personnel to a manager, and not some ideal industry goal.

Concept

The concept of “span of control,” also known as management ratio, refers to the number of subordinates controlled directly by a superior. It is a particularly important concept for small business owners to understand because small businesses often get into trouble when the founder ends up with too wide a span of control. The span of scrutiny is a topic taught in management schools and widely employed in large organizations like the military, government agencies, and educational institutions. “Yet few entrepreneurs know the term or are willing to admit any limit to the number of people they directly oversee,” explained Mark Hendricks in an article for Entrepreneur magazine. When a small business owner’s span of control becomes too large, it can limit the growth of his or her company. Even the best managers tend to lose their effectiveness when they spend all their time managing people and their issues and are unable to focus on long-term plans and competitive positioning for the business as a whole.

Expanding On the Concept of Span of Control

Span of Control means the number of subordinates that can be managed efficiently and effectively by a superior in an organization. It suggests how the relations are designed between a superior and a subordinate in an organization. The span of control is of two types:

A narrow span of control: Narrow Span of a control means a single manager or supervisor oversees few subordinates. This gives rise to a tall organizational structure.
The wide span of control: the Wide span of control means a single manager or supervisor oversees a large number of subordinates. This gives rise to a flat organizational structure.

There is an inverse relation between the span of control and the number of levels in a hierarchy in an organization, i.e., narrower the span, the greater is the number of levels in an organization.

A narrow span of control is more expensive as compared to the wide span of control as there is more number of superiors and therefore there are greater communication problems between various levels of management. The wide span of control is best suited when the employees are not widely scattered geographically, as it is easy for managers to be in touch with the subordinates and to supervise them.

In case of narrow span of control, there are comparatively more opportunities for growth as the number of levels are more. The more efficient and organized the superiors are in performing their tasks, the better it is to have a wide span of management. The less motivated and confident the employees are, the better it is to have a narrow span of management so that the supervisors can spend time with them and supervise them well. The more standardized is the nature of work, like – if the same task can be performed using same types of inputs, the better it is to have a wide span of management as more number of employees can be supervised by a single supervisor.

There is more flexibility, prompt decision making, effective communication between higher level and lower level management, and improved customer interaction in case of a wide span of management. Technological advancement such as internet, emails, mobile phones, etc. makes it easy for superiors to widen their span of control as there is more effective communication.

Attributes of a Flat Organizational Structure (Wide Span of Control)

Pros

Encourages assignment. Supervisors should better delegate to deal with larger quantities of subordinates, and allow open doors for subordinates to go up against duties
Agile. Enhances correspondence speed and quality
Reduces costs. Savvier gave fewer levels, hence requiring fewer supervisors
Help keep the workforce from separating by concentrating on strengthening, self-governance and self-bearing

Cons

High administrative workload accompanies high Span of Control
Role disarray more probable
May develop doubt of administration

Attributes of a Tall Organizational Structure (Narrow Span of Control)

Geniuses

More quick correspondence between little groups
Groups are littler and less demanding to control/oversee
There’s a more prominent level of specialization and division of work
More and better open doors for worker advancement

Cons

Communication can take too long, hampering basic leadership
Silos may create and avoid cross-utilitarian critical thinking
Employees may feel lost and weak

Arranging to optimize managers’ span of control

Setting up the ideal span of control for chiefs is a standout amongst essential assignments in organizing associations. Finding the ideal span includes adjusting the relative preferences and impediments of holding obligation regarding choices and appointing those choices. When all is said in done, thinks about have demonstrated that the bigger the association, the fewer individuals should answer to the top individual. Administrators ought to likewise have less immediate reports if those subordinates communicate with each other regularly. In this circumstance, the administrator ends up to organize both his or her association with the subordinates and the subordinates’ associations with each other.

Some different elements influencing the ideal span of control incorporate whether specialists perform assignments of a normal sort (which may allow a more extensive span of control) or of awesome assortment and intricacy (which may require a smaller span of control), and whether the general business circumstance is steady (which would show a more extensive span) or dynamic (which would require a smaller span). Different circumstances in which a more extensive span of control may be conceivable incorporate when the chief delegates viably; when there are staff collaborators to screen cooperation’s between the administrator and subordinates; when subordinates are able, all around prepared, and ready to work freely; and when subordinates’ objectives are all around lined up with those of different laborers and the association.

There are points of interest and drawbacks to various ranges of control. A thin span of control tends to give supervisors close control over operations and to encourage quick correspondence amongst chiefs and workers. Then again, a restricted span of control can likewise make a circumstance where chiefs are excessively required in their subordinates’ work, which can decrease advancement and confidence among representatives. A wide span of control powers chiefs to grow clear objectives and strategies, appoint assignments viably, and select and prepare workers precisely. Since representatives get less supervision, they tend to assume greater liability and have higher confidence with a wide span of control. Then again, administrators with a wide span of control may wind up plainly over-burden with work, experience difficulty deciding, and lose control over their subordinates.

With these components to consider, entrepreneurs may progress toward becoming overpowered with the assignment of finding the ideal span of control. Hendricks guaranteed that assessing the circumstance and settling on a choice ought not to be excessively troublesome. “The general guideline that an official ought to administer three to six individuals specifically held up genuinely well against challenges from productivity specialists, group building fanatics, innovation buffs, strengthening promoters, egotists, and others resolved to expand the acknowledged span of control,” Hendricks composed. “On the off chance that the figuring is excessively for you, simply investigate the measure of hours you’re working. At the point when a workday for the general population at the top is twice what they are going after, a span of control is askew.”

For entrepreneurs who feel that they have an excessive number of direct reports and need to lessen their span of control, the arrangement may include either procuring centre supervisors to go up against a part of the proprietor’s duties, or revamping the revealing structure of the organization. In either case, entrepreneurs must adjust their particular capacities and workload against the need to control costs. Diminishing the business person’s span of control may include the expenses of paying extra pay rates for new contracts or preparing existing workers to go up against supervisory obligations. In spite of the potential costs included, Hendricks contended that altering the range of control toward the ideal level can prompt huge upgrades for private ventures. “There’s the genuine plausibility that is focusing on a span of scrutiny could usher your business into another time of fast, maintained, beneficial development,” he told business people. “You could even discover keeping your business less demanding and more fun.”

Summary

The span of control simply refers to the number of employees that a manager can supervise effectively at any given time without compromising his or her performance or that of the employees he or she manages. It is very important to understand span of control and organizational structure when describing an organization. The organizing process creates a network of roles and relationships and provides a framework within which each employee performs the activities that have been assigned to them. Thus understanding span of control makes role of manager more meaningful in achieving pre-determined objectives.

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References

Harrison, Simon. “Is There a Right Span of Control?” Business Review. February 2004. Hendricks, Mark. “Span Control.” Entrepreneur. January 2001.
Visser, Bauke. “Organizational Communication Structure and Performance.” Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization. June 2000.
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