AIM

Bearing in mind the need to take an empirical and contingent approach to organizing, as suggested above, the aim of organization design could be defined as being to optimize the arrangements for conducting the affairs of the business. To do this it is necessary, as far as circumstances allow, to:


● clarify the overall purposes of the organization – the strategic thrusts that govern what it does and how it functions;


● define as precisely as possible the key activities required to achieve that purpose;


● group these activities logically together to avoid unnecessary overlap or duplication;


● provide for the integration of activities and the achievement of cooperative effort and teamwork in pursuit of a common purpose;


● build flexibility into the system so that organizational arrangements can adapt quickly to new situations and challenges;


● provide for the rapid communication of information throughout the organization;


● define the role and function of each organizational unit so that all concerned know how it plays its part in achieving the overall purpose;


● clarify individual roles, accountabilities and authorities;


● design jobs to make the best use of the skills and capacities of the job holders and to provide them with high levels of intrinsic motivation (job design is considered in Chapter 23);


● plan and implement organization development activities to ensure that the various processes within the organization operate in a manner that contributes to organizational effectiveness;


● set up teams and project groups as required to be responsible for specific processing, development, professional or administrative activities or for the conduct of projects.