16 Mar 2012
School
Department
Course
Professor
Groups and Organizations
Definitions
Richard Halls’ 9 Point Definition
Organization is a collectivity with:
1. A relatively identifiable boundary
2. A normative order
3. Ranks of authority (& division of labour)
4. Communication Systems
5. Membership coordinating system
6. Exists on a relatively continuous time basis
7. Exists in a particular environment
8. Engaged in activities usually related to a set of goals
9. Activities have outcomes for members, for organization and for society
Formal Organization: group designed for a special purpose and structures for maximum
efficiency
Bureaucracy: a component of formal organization, which uses rules and hierarchical
ranking to achieve efficiency
Informal Organization: the everyday norms and practices that exist in, and are an
integral part of, any form of organization
Weber’s “Ideal Type” of Bureaucratic Model
- Hierarchy of authority
- Clear division of labour
- Explicit rules/procedures
- Impersonality in personnel matters
Organizational Features
- Structure:
o Complexity: the extent to which the organization is divided into sub-units
and the ways in which these parts are distributed across vertical and
horizontal lines
o Formalization: extent to which rules and procedures are clearly articulated,
written down, and carried out as recorded
o Centralization: the allocation of decision-making power
- Culture
- Communication
Power and Leadership
Power: the ability to exercise one’s will over others
Charismatic Authority: power made legitimate by leader’s exceptional personal or
emotion appeal to followers
Traditional Authority: legitimate power conferred by custom and accepted practice