Page 130 - DCOM102_DMGT101_PRINCIPLES_AND_PRACTICES_OF_MANAGEMENT

Principles and Practices of Management

Notes 8. Functional organisation offers a greater scope for expansion as compared to line
organisation. It does not face the problem of limited capabilities of a few line managers.
9. The expert knowledge of the functional mangers facilitates better control and supervision
in the organisation.

Disadvantages or Demerits of Functional Organisation

1. It is unstable because it weakens the disciplinary controls, by making the workers work
under several different bosses. Thus, functional organisation violates the principle of
unity of command.
2. Under this type of organisation, there are many foremen of equal rank. This may lead to
conflicts among them.

3. The co-ordinating influence needed to ensure a smoothly functioning organisation may
involve heavy overhead expenses.
4. The inability to locate and fix responsibility may seriously affect the discipline and morale
of the workers through apparent or actual contradiction of the orders.
5. This system is very costly as a large number of specialists are required to be appointed.
6. A functional manager tends to create boundaries around himself and think only in term of
his own department rather than of the whole enterprise. This results in loss of overall
perspective in dealing with business problems.
7. It is difficult for the management to fix responsibility for unsatisfactory results.

7.4.4 Committee Organisation

Committee organisation as a method of managerial control has very little practical importance,
because it is managed by a senior member of the committee only. But the committee organisations
are widely used for the purpose of discharging advisory functions of the management.
Committees are usually relatively formal bodies with a definite structure. They have their own
organisation. To them are entrusted definite responsibility and authority.

According to Hicks, "A committee is a group of people who meet by plan to discuss or make a
decision for a particular subject."
According to Louis A Allen, "A committee is a body of persons appointed or elected to meet on
an organised basis for the consideration of matters brought before it."
A committee may formulate plans, make policy decisions or review the performance of certain
units. In some cases, it may only have the power to make recommendations to a designated
official. Whatever may be the scope of their activities, committees have come to be recognised
as an important instrument in the modern business as well as non-business organisations.

Objectives of Committees

Committees are constituted to achieve one or more of the following objectives:
1. To have consultations with various persons to secure their view-points
2. To give participation to various groups of people
3. To secure cooperation of different departments

4. To coordinate the functioning of different departments and individuals by bringing about
unity of directions.

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