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21221 Organisational Structure and Change

UTS: Business: Management
Credit points: 6 cp

Subject level: Undergraduate

Result Type: Grade and marks

Requisite(s): 21129 Managing People and Organisations OR 22157 Australian Corporate Environment OR 48260 Engineering Project Management OR 16910 Project Management 1
These requisites may not apply to students in certain courses.
There are also course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.

Handbook description

This subject considers the various structural forms that organisations may take and the pressures which lead to their adoption. It covers the strengths and weaknesses, as well as the challenges, of managing each form. Various change models are examined, and the interaction of the organisational change process with the forces driving change is considered. The impact of internationalisation and current organisational design issues are discussed.

Subject objectives/outcomes

On successful completion of this subject students should be able to:

  1. demonstrate a knowledge of organisational effectiveness and how it may be assessed
  2. identify and discuss the applicability of the various basic organisational structural forms
  3. analyse the contingencies which influence the structure of organisations (e.g. environment, technology, strategy etc.)
  4. analyse organisational characteristics such as culture, change and life cycle issues
  5. relate the material to current organisational practice.

Contribution to graduate profile

Organisational Structure and Change is a macro-organisational subject which is designed to provide students with a firm understanding of how organisation structure and design contributes to the achievement of the organisation's goals. After completing the subject, students should be aware of the choices which may be made in relation to the structure and design of organisations and how these contribute to effectiveness. Additional organisational issues such as culture, change, growth and decline are discussed as a means of providing students concepts which extend the understanding of organisations. The subject is approached in such a way as to expand understanding of management processes. The relationship between macro-organisational issues and effective HRM practices is also highlighted.

Teaching and learning strategies

The subject is delivered through a combination of face-to-face teaching strategies, discussions, videos and student centred reading. A typical three-hour session involves approximately a one-hour face-to-face presentation. The balance of the time is taken with case studies and student presentations. The reading of appropriate course material is an essential component of the teaching strategy.

Content

  • Organisational effectiveness and how to measure it
  • The basic structural forms and their strengths and weaknesses
  • How the contingencies of technology, environment, size, strategy and power affect structure
  • The dynamics of the organisational life cycle, growth and decline
  • Organisational culture and change and the change process
  • The emergence of new organisational forms.

Assessment

Assessment item 1: Class presentation and written submission (group)

Objective(s): 5
Weighting: 20%
Task: Students are required to select a topic of interest to them from the lecture schedule, and then relate the theoretical material to an application selected from the business world. The findings of similarities and differences are then presented to the class and submitted in written form. This assessment addresses objective 5.

Assessment item 2: Case study (individual)

Objective(s): 2-5
Weighting: 20%
Task: Students must complete a case study which is drawn from current business experience. As part of the case study students must relate practical material to an appropriate theoretical construct and undertake additional research in relation to the topic. This assessment addresses objectives 2 to 5.

Assessment item 3: Final examination (individual)

Weighting: 60%

Required text(s)

Robbins, SP and Barnwell, NS, 2006, Organisation Theory: Concepts and Cases, 5th edn, Prentice Hall Sydney

Faculty of Business, 2006, Guide to Writing Assignments, Faculty of Business, University of Technology, Sydney.

Indicative references

Bolman L.G. and Deal T., (2003) Reframing Organisations: Artistry, Choice and Leadership, Third Edition, Jossey Bass, San Francisco

Daft R.L., (2006), Organisational Theory and Design, Ninth Edition, South Western Cincinatti OH. (Any previous edition would be useful.)

Donaldson, L., 2001 The Contingency Theory of Organizations, Sage, Thousand Oaks; Ca.

Evan, W. M., 1993, Organization Theory: Research and Design, Macmillan, New York.

Galbraith, J. 2001 Designing Organizations: An Executive guide to Strategy, Strategy, Structure and Process New York Jossey-Bass

Gerstner, L.V. 2002 Who Says Elephants Can't Dance London Harper Business

Goold, M. and Campbell, A., 2002 Designing Effective Organizations: How to Create Structured Networks, London, Jossey-Bass.

Goold, M. and Campbell, A., 2002, Do You Have a Well Designed Organization? Harvard Business Review, March, pp117-124.

Hancock, P. and Tyler, M., 2001, Work, Postmodernism and Organization: A Critical Introduction, Sage, London.

Harrison, M.T. and Beyer, J.M., 1993 The Cultures of Work Organizations Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs N.J.

Hatch, M. J., 1997, Organization Theory: Modern, Symbolic and Postmodern Perspectives, Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Hodge, B.J., Anthony, W.P. and Gales, L.M. 2002, Organization Theory: A Strategic Approach, Sixth Ed. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.

Jones, G.R. 2003 Organizational Theory, Design and Change Fourth Ed. Pearson Education Upper Saddle River NJ

Kanter, R.M., Stein, B.A., and Todd, D.J., 1992, The Challenge of Organisational Change: How Companies Experience it and Leaders Guide it, Free Press, New York.

Kao, J.J., 1991, The Entrepreneural Organisation, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.

Kotter, J.P. and Heskett, J.L., 1992, Corporate Culture and Performance, Free Press, New York

Mintzberg, H., 1993 Structuring in Fives: Designing Effective Organisations, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs N.J.

Morgan, G., 1997 Images of Organisations, Sage, Thousand Oaks Ca.

Nadler, D. A. and Tushman, M.L., 1997, Competing by Design: The Power of Organizational Architecture, Oxford University, Press Oxford.

Ostroff, F., 1999 The Horizontal Organization, Oxford University Press, New York.

Pettigrew, A. (ed) 2003 Innovative Forms of Organizing Sage London

Sampson, A., 1995, The Company Man: The Rise and Fall of Corporate Life, Harper Collins, London.

Semler, R., 1993 Maverick: The Success Story Behind the World's Most Unusual Workplace, Warner, New York.

Senge, P.M., 1992, The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organisation, Random House, Sydney.

Schein, E. 1996 Organizational Culture and Leadership San Francisco Jossey-Bass

Welch, J. and Byrne, J., 2001 Jack: What I've Learned Leading a Great Company and Great People, Headline, New York.

Williamson, O., (Ed) 1995, Organization Theory: From Chester Barnard to the Present and Beyond, Oxford University Press, New York.

There are a number of academic journals covering organisational issues. These include Administrative Science Quarterly, Organizational Dynamics, Organizational Studies, California Management Review, Academy of Management Journal and Academy of Management Review. The Harvard Business Review also carries articles relevant to the matters discussed in this subject. Journals aimed at a managerial audience, such as The Economist, Business Review Weekly, Business Week, Management Today and The Australian Financial Review are very useful as a source of organisation structures. But specific issues are normally embedded in articles covering such issues as strategy.