Organization Theory/Structure and Design

Organization Theory is one of the most interesting and relevant sub-disciplines within the administrative sciences. This course provides a comprehensive view on organization theory. The real-life examples discussed throughout the course make it a useful and handy tool to understand the nuances of organization theory. The course is divided into four parts. First part starts with the detailed overview of organization theory and discusses its evolution. It, also, elaborates organizational effectiveness and the dimensions of organizational structure. Second part covers the determinants of structure. The topics discussed in this part include: strategy, organizational size, technology, environment and power control. Third part discusses about the organizational design options, bureaucracy and adhocracy. Finally, contemporary issues in organization theory covering management of environment, organizational evolution and organizational change, culture and conflict are discussed in the fourth part. Most importantly, we have tried to take a pragmatic and real-life approach to these subjects. The course aims to provide a practical and useful guide for business professionals to help them address the issues of today and the future. INTENDED AUDIENCE : M.B.A. & M.Com.PREREQUISITES : Any business graduate can opt for this course. INDUSTRIES SUPPORT : All companies, irrespective of their industry, would value this course.

Week 1: Introduction: What's It All About
An Overview (Some basic definitions, Why study organization theory, The biological metaphor); The Evolution of Organization Theory (Developing a framework, Early contributors, Type 1 theorists, Type 2 theorists, Type 3 theorists, Type 4 theorists)

Week 2: Introduction: What's It All About (contd.)
Organizational Effectiveness (Importance of organizational effectiveness, The goal-attainment approach, The systems approach, The strategic-constituencies approach, The competing-values approach, Comparing the four approaches); Dimensions of Organization Structure (Complexity, Formalization)

Week 3: The Determinants: What Causes Structure
Strategy (What is strategy, types of strategy, Classifying strategic dimensions, Chandler’s strategy-structure thesis, Contemporary strategy-structure theory, Limitations to the strategy imperative, Could strategy follow structure, The industry-structure relationship); Organization Size (Defining organization size, Advocates and critics of the size imperative, Special issues relating to size)

Week 4: The Determinants: What Causes Structure (contd.)
Technology (Influence of industry and size, The common denominator: Routineness, Work-unit level versus organizational level, Manufacturing versus service technologies, Technology and structure); Environment (Defining environment and environmental uncertainty, The environmental imperative, Environment-structure relationship); Power-Control (Strategic choice, Synthesizing power control view, Implications based on the power-control view)

Week 5: Organizational Design: Choosing the Right Structural Form
Organizational Design Options (Case for standard configurations, Common elements in organizations, Simple structure, Machine bureaucracy, Divisional structure, Adhocracy); Bureaucracy: A Closer Look (Weber’s bureaucracy, dysfunctional consequences of bureaucracy)

Week 6: Organizational Design: Choosing the Right Structural Form (contd.)
Bureaucracy: A Closer Look – contd. (Is bureaucracy a structural dinosaur?, Bureaucracies are everywhere); Adhocracy: A Closer Look (The matrix, Theory Z, Collateral form, Network structure, Other examples of adhocracy)

Week 7: Applications: Contemporary Issues In Organization Theory
Managing the Environment (Management’s quest to control its environment, Internal strategies, External strategies, Guidelines for managing the environment); Managing Organizational Change (Planned change and structural change, A model for managing organizational change, The innovating organization, Descriptive view of organizational change); Managing Organizational Conflict (Defining conflict, Conflict and organizational effectiveness, Sources of organizational conflict)

Week 8: Applications: Contemporary Issues In Organization Theory (contd.)
Managing Organizational Conflict – contd. (Resolution techniques, Stimulation techniques); Managing Organizational Culture (Defining organizational culture, Culture and organizational effectiveness, Culture: A substitute for formalization?, Creating, sustaining and transmitting culture, When cultures collide: mergers and acquisitions, Are cultures manageable?); Managing Organizational Evolution (Managing organizational growth and organizational decline)