Page 132 - DCOM102_DMGT101_PRINCIPLES_AND_PRACTICES_OF_MANAGEMENT

Principles and Practices of Management

Notes 3. Committees take more time in procedural matters before any decision is taken. In some
cases, slowness seriously handicaps the administration of the organisation.
4. Committees are an expensive device both in terms of cost and time.

5. When the committee findings represent a compromise of different viewpoints, they may
be found to be weak and indecisive.
6. No member of a committee can be individually held responsible for the wrong decision
taken by the committee.

7. It is very difficult to maintain secrecy regarding the deliberations and the decisions taken
by a committee, especially when there are many members in the committee.

Notes Global Organising
Organisational Structure: Organisational structure provides a route and locus for decision
making. It also provides a system, or a basis, for reporting and communication networks.
The basics of an organisation chart are similar for both domestic firms and international
firms. But since international firms have to face complex problems, the form of the
organisational structure is specific to them. The structure of an organisation becomes
complex with the growing degree of internationalisation.
Co-ordination among the branches/units: The different branches/units need to be well
co-ordinated in order to make the organisational structure effective. Proper co-ordination
smoothens communication between one branch and another. It is true that there are
impediments to effective co-ordination. Managers at different units may have varying
orientation. The geographic distance may be too much to ensure effective coordination.
Formal co-ordination can be ensured through direct contact among the managers of different
branches/units. It can also be ensured by giving a manager of a unit the responsibility for
coordinating with his counterpart in another unit. A number of international firms have
adapted the practice of direct reporting to headquarters by managers.

Case Study The Lowering of the Pirates' Flag at Apple

he combination seemed ideal. Steven P. Jobs, charismatic co-founder and chairman
of Apple Computer, Inc., Woos John Sculley, the young, dynamic president of
TPepsi-Cola USA, to be president of Apple. While Jobs oversaw technical innovation,
Sculley was to boost Apple's marketing expertise and improve its relationship with retailers
and customers. The ultimate goal was to break IBM's stronghold on the business market
for personal computers. Under Jobs, the company had almost a singular focus on products,
and Jobs had piqued the imagination of employees with predictions of "insanely great"
new computers. One of Sculley's first moves was reorganising the company's nine product-
oriented and highly decentralized divisions into two major divisions, one for the Apple II
and one, headed by Jobs himself, for the forthcoming Macintosh. The reorganisation
allowed resources to be focused on the company's two major product lines and facilitated
Sculley's emphasise on marketing them, particularly to the business community.

Contd...

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