Organization Effectiveness and SuccessAbstract
This paper
presents a critical discussion about the roles and importance of technology to
improve the organizational effectiveness and efficiency. The impact of
technology on the organization structure is really high and it facilitates the
firms to create a unique and innovative structure. Different ways of measuring
the success and effectiveness of the organizational structure are discussed in
the paper. Along with this, the four life cycle stage and their impact on the
organizational structure and effectiveness are discussed by using a real life
example. The firm should use these life cycle stages to manage the effective
and efficient organizational structure.Introduction
All the business
organizations have to focus on the constituencies and contingencies to become
both effective and successful. The external environmental changes and
technology revolution have a drastic impact on the performances of the business
organizations (Draft, 2012). The main purpose of this paper is to explore the
impact of technology on the structure of the firm to improve effectiveness and
make the firm successful. In this regard, comprehensive information about the
different ways to measure success in different stage of life cycle of the firm
are discussed along with the contingency and constituency factors. Different
studies are also evaluated to explore valid and reliable information.Technology Affects the Organization’s
Design, Efficiency and Effectiveness
Nowadays, the revolution
of the internet and wirelessnetworking technology has changed the perspective
of business industries. Immense growth and development of e-commerce and
m-commerce business model has also impacted the design, efficient and effectiveness
of business organizations (Prasad, Green & Heales, 2012). Similarly, Jiang
& Liu (2015) asserted that technology revolution has facilitated the
business organization to focus on the fundamental structure and design and
improve the efficiency and effectiveness to execute smooth operations. The
technology can be explained as the application of knowledge, which enables the
business associates to execute the work structure and align different tasks.
The role of
technology in organizational design and effectiveness is really noteworthy
because it increases the capabilities of the firm to perform its business
activities and functions in the best possible manner (Cameron, 2010). Innovation and expansion in technology
provide numerous opportunities to the business organization to improve the
organizational structure and management business through virtualdesign,
e-business and mobile business models. Further, the technology also assists the
firm to build the architectural design. Technology makes it feasible for the
business organization to align all the functional and project departments of
the organization in different types of organizational design and structure (Prasad,
Green & Heales, 2012).
Along with this,
it is remarkable to emphasize the due to technology, it has become possible for
the business firms to manage a flow of communication between different
departments so that the resources can be shared on time and the effectiveness
of the projects can be enhanced (Jiang & Liu, 2015). It is because all the
operations are technologically associated with each other.
Moreover, the
organizational efficiency is also improved with the use of technology because it
is related to the use of available resources of the company to attain standard
objectives at a particular level (Cameron,
2010). Adoption of suitable technologyfacilitates the firm to follow a reliable
and risk free process for allocating resources and developing products and
services for the users. Technology improves the way of using the available
resources, which eventually improves the organizational efficiency (Jiang &
Liu, 2015).
Organizational Structure of an Organization
and Ways to Measure Effectiveness and Success:
Different organizations have
different structure as per their goals and objectives and availability of the
resources. One of the leading business organizations in the internet industry,
Google Inc. has a functional organizational structure. The company is highly
successful and Google is divided into different functional departments such as
marketing, HR, finance, etc. according to geographic locations. A proper
channel of the communication is used and people enjoyed the working
environment. In Google Inc., the effectiveness of different operations and
functions of the business can be measured through comparison of its achieved
targets with set standards that gives a proper view about organizational
effectiveness. These targets can be expressed in terms of profitability,
growth, training, productivity, cost efficiency, customer satisfaction,
employee performance, revenues, brand image, etc. (Cameron, 2010).
Google focuses on the development
of a strong culture and provided an open communication platform to the
employees to share their views and perceptions with each other. The company has
a flexible culture in which the employees can manage their work as per their
comfort and it offers a work life balance to them. It is also considerable to
explore that the functional organizational structure allows the company to
manage different tasks on time and utilize the available resources in an
effective manner (Westerman, McFarlan & Iansiti, 2006). The leaders of the
firm are capable to motivate the employees to perform according to the environmental
changes. The functional structure of the company is easy to modify according to
the external change and manage the performances (Jiang & Liu, 2015). The
firm can also execute different performance management techniques such as
management by objectives and 360 degree feedback and other contingency approach
to improve the structural efficiency and success.
Organization’s Life Cycle and
Recommend Changes for Improved Efficiency and Effectiveness
All the business firms create a
well-designed structure to delegate different roles and authorities to
different people, so that the goals and objectives can be achieved. In order to
manage the day to day changes and challenges available in the global market,
all the business firms go through different stages of a life cycle. The
organizational life cycle is based on a natural progression. According to Daft
(2012), the four stages of organizational life cycle are entrepreneurial stage,
collectivity stage, formalization and elaboration stage. All of these stages facilitate
the organization to survive in the unpredictable environment and enjoy huge
growth, from creating the mission to strategy implementation; all the
activities are considered in the life cycle.
In the first stage of the life
cycle is related to the survival of the firm. The business organizations
develop different activities and practices to introduce a wide range of
products and services to the customers as per their needs and requirements. It
requires a strong supervision of the executives (Daft, 2012). The second stage
is associated with the defining clear goals and direction for the employees for
completing the projects and achieving targets on time and for the expansion of
business. The third stage is important for the implementation of different rules
and regulations to influence the working behaviors of the employees to attain
the mission and vision by following the values. In addition, the last stage of
the life cycle is critical for executing specific strategies and actions to
complete different tasks and attain goals (Daft, 2010). These strategies are
developed to manage environmental changes like operational weaknesses, issue in
manufacturing, supply chain problems, and delay in the delivery, customer
feedback and services and so on.
On the other hand, if the business
firms want to increase their effectiveness and efficiency, it is important to
follow the organizational life cycle. Adoption of step by step proves at the
time of making structure and aligning this with the life cycle provide advantages
to the firm to balance internal and external changes and reduces the risk of
organizational failure (Singh, 2006).References
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