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Organizational Team Structure

As an organization grows, its structure becomes increasingly important. A large organization can't be managed properly unless it has a strong internal structure. There are several ways to structure an organization, including by function or by department. One of the most common is a team structure. A team is composed of employees who work together on a specific project; it's a pragmatic way to group employees.

Cross-functional

A team structure is cross-functional. It combines workers with various skills, like management, administrative assistants and sales. Interdepartmental

Cross-functional teams are also interdepartmental; this means that people from various departments are included. For example, staff from marketing may work with staff from accounting on a Advantages

A team structure has the advantage of speeding up the work flow and lowering costs. It also generally improves employee motivation and eliminates unnecessary layers of management. Disadvantages

The disadvantages to a team structure are that it increases the time spent in meetings, and that time management is more challenging. What's more, staff may feel that their work with the team conflicts with their work in their department.

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Lean Organizational Structure

Lean production is a Japanese system that helps cut down on costs in manufacturing plants and factories. A company that implements lean techniques should also adopt a lean organizational structure.

Identification

In a lean organizational structure, the organizational arrangement should flow along product and process lines rather than on functional areas. For instance, some lean companies set up integrated product and process teams as self-organized work teams. A dedicated team for each product family could include expertise from different functional areas such as marketing, purchasing, manufacturing, quality assurance and customer relations. Reporting Structure

Work teams in lean organizational structures should not be set up to report through many layers in a hierarchy. Instead, the reporting structure should focus on a connected set of activities in a horizontal stream. Benefits

A lean organizational structure helps promote lean objectives such as minimizing waste through continuous improvement. This sort of structure reduces the need for nonessential functions and enhances efficiency and flexibility.

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Flat Organizational Structure

An organizational structure is used by companies to define their hierarchical structure and authorityresponsibility diagrams. There are two main forms of organizational structure--the flat, or horizontal, structure and the tall, or vertical, structure.

Features

In a flat organization structure, there are few levels of command that exist between the employee and the top management. This structure is best suited to small organizations. Function This structure is used by organizations where employees are vested with decision-making powers. Hotels, spas, restaurants and beauty parlours use this structure. The employees are required to use their judgement and customize the product as per the customers specifications. Significance

This structure completely does away with bureaucracy and middle men. The management entrusts work directly to the employees. The employees in turn carry out work as per their discretion or turn directly to the top management for advice when doubts occur. Advantages

Communication flows are greatly enhanced here. The management and the employees work together toward achieving organizational goals and objectives. As the roles of middle men are eliminated, the company does not end up paying unnecessary salaries. Also, as the employees use their judgment and discretion in carrying out work, the response times are very fast. Disadvantages

The main problem here is that an employee might be reporting to more than one superior. There is no clarity on whose work he must complete first. Also, this structure is suited only to small organizations that have limited numbers of employees.

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Product Life Cycle

The product life cycle is an important concept in marketing. It describes the stages a product goes through from when it was first thought of until it finally is removed from the market. Not all products reach this final stage. Some continue to grow and others rise and fall.

The main stages of the product life cycle are:

Introduction researching, developing and then launching the product Growth when sales are increasing at their fastest rate Maturity sales are near their highest, but the rate of growth is slowing down, e.g. new competitors in market or saturation Decline final stage of the cycle, when sales begin to fall

This can be illustrated by looking at the sales during the time period of the product. A branded good can enjoy continuous growth, such as Microsoft, because the product is being constantly improved and advertised, and maintains a strong brand loyalty. Extension strategies extend the life of the product before it goes into decline. Again businesses use marketing techniques to improve sales. Examples of the techniques are:

Advertising try to gain a new audience or remind the current audience Price reduction more attractive to customers Adding value add new features to the current product, e.g. video messaging on mobile phones Explore new markets try selling abroad New packaging brightening up old packaging, or subtle changes such as putting crisps in foil packets or Seventies music compilations

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