Thought for the day:
‘Watchout for the fellow who
talks about putting things in
order! Putting things in order
always means getting other
people under your control.’
Denis Diderot (1713 – 1784)
Get an A
A
Grade
Level 4
Evaluation
To what extent, Evaluate, discuss,
justify, advise, recommend.
Apply, Examine, Analyse,
Interpret, Formulate.
Level 3
Level 2
Level 1
Application & Analysis
Understand
Knowledge
Compare, Contrast,
distinguish, prepare,
construct, calculate,
explain, comment
Define, Identify,
Complete, Outline,
describe, Classify
Target



Learning Objective
Draw, interpret and explain simple organisational
charts
• Understanding of the roles, responsibilities and
interrelationship
of people within organisations
• Understand the concepts of span of control,
hierarchy, chain of command and delegation
Comment on the central features of
organisational structure
• Show analytical awareness of the features of a
given chart
• Appreciate that organisational charts change as
a business expands
Who?
Keywords
ALL
Level 1
MOST
Level 2
SOME
Level 3
&4
De/Centralisation
Chain of
command
Delayering
Delegation
Organisational
chart
Responsibility
Span of control
Organisation Charts
All business have an internal structure – the way
human resources are organised. This is known as the
formal organisation of the business. It takes into
account:
•The relationship between individuals
•Who is in charge
•Who has the authority to make decisions
•Who carries out decisions
•How information is communicated
School
Organisation
Chart
Organisation Charts
• Organisational charts are used to illustrate
the structure of the business.
Structure and Hierarchy
• .. Are shown by an
organisational chart
• Traditional business have a
series of levels, where each level
has a responsibility and
authority over level below them.
This is called a hierarchy.
• An organisational chart sets out
who has authority to make
decisions and the responsibility
for making them.
Structure and Hierarchy
• It shows who individuals are accountable to –
who is directly above them in the hierarchy.
Organisation
Charts
Why have a chart?
Why do business draw such charts:
• To spot communication problems.
• Help individuals see their position in a
business
• Pinpoint areas where specialists are needed
• Show how different sections of the firm relate
together
Structures can be ‘tall’ or ‘flat’
• Organisations that has lots of levels in their
hierarchy are called ‘tall’. They have a large
number of people between the ‘top’ and the
‘bottom’.
• Tall structures have a long ‘chain of command’
Chain of command
The HIERARCHY in a business is the order or
levels of management in a business from the lowest
to the highest rank.
It shows the CHAIN OF COMMAND within the
organisation – the way the authority is organised.
Orders passed down the levels the information
passed up.
The chain of command is the communication and
authority up and down the hierarchy.
Structures can be ‘tall’ or ‘flat’
• If the structure is too tall, it affect
communication.
• Messages take a long time to get from one
end of the chain of command to the other,
and they can get distorted along the way.
• Decision take a long time to make.
• And.. There is a lot of paper work.
Structures can be ‘tall’ or ‘flat’
• ‘Flat’ organisations only have a few levels in
the hierarchy.
• If the structure is too flat, then managers can
get overwhelmed by too many people
reporting to them.
Span of control
This refers to the number of subordinates
working under a superior or manager.
A narrow span of control has the advantage of a
firm of close supervision, better coordination
of activities, better communication – monitor
more closely
A wide span of control allows independent
decision making. – hard to manage effectively
Broad (wide) vs Narrow span of
control
• Too narrow – staff become de-motivated –
being over-managed
• Too broad – hard to manage effectively.
Activity
Construct an organisation chart of AIS.
Identify:
Chain of command
Span of control
Delegation
Responsibility
‘What are the advantages and disadvantages of
this structure?’
Activity
Job Roles
Investigate:
The key responsibility of the following person –
• Director
• Manager
• Employee
Plenary
Level achieved_____
What do you now know as a
result of today’s lesson?
What are your areas for improvement?
What are you going to do about this?