An organizational hierarchy of reporting relationships from the top to the bottom is referred to as the chain of command. Apart from establishing accountability, the chain of command lays out an organization’s decision-making power and the lines of authority. The chain of command in my structural organization flows in a vertical manner (Daft et. al 1986). The hierarchy ranges from the managers, to the supervisors, to the workers and finally to subordinate staff. The manager is the formal authority in the organization and is responsible for controlling the general activities of the organization. The manager expresses the formal authority which consists of hiring and sacking of main departmental heads. The manager is also tasked with the commissioning of the projects of the organization. It is also the responsibility of the manager to see to it that the operational aspects of the company proceed well.
The legal authority is bestowed upon the lawyers of the organization. The organization also boasts the legal and the security departments which represent the organization in case of any challenges involving security and court cases. These departments are entrusted to well qualified professionals who have more than 10-year experience in their fields of work. On the other hand, the contractual and accounting objectives are bestowed upon the accounting and procurement departments of the firm respectively. Whenever there is the need of a large workforce, some functional duties are reserved for collegial supervisors.
There is a level of management hierarchy that involves four departments that range from human resource department, the accounting department, the operational and the marketing department. There are a number of staff that report directly to the departmental chiefs and a breakdown is made up of four individuals in the accounting department, six persons in the operational department and four individuals in the marketing department. The departmentalization structure of the organization involves the human resource department, accounting department, operations department and the marketing department. The human resource department’s major role is to take care of the welfare the of workers; the accounting department’s responsibility is to manage the accounting functions of the organization; and the operations department is in charge of the day to day operations of the company. The marketing department is responsible for ensuring that the firm is well marketed and the products are perfectly marketed and advertised. (Dive, 2004)
The departmental heads and the manager of the organization are the ones who make the major decisions of this firm. There are weekly meetings that are held every Friday and monthly quarterly meetings that are held on the last Tuesday of every quarter of the year. These meetings serve to bring together all the departmental chiefs in order for them to set targets for the next quarter and also do a review of the key issues of the organization. Although the manager takes part in all those meetings as the team leader, all the decisions made have to be approved by him or her. The manager is the one who carries out the overall decision of the organization. Democracy is very much emphasized in my organization and therefore the workers are sometimes involved in the making of decisions of the firm. This makes them feel the sense of belonging and experience a good working climate. Nevertheless, the manager is the one who decides which direction the organization should go.
The organization operates in a centralized continuum that involves the use of a central authority where the staff reports to the central organization. The subordinate staff have their chief whom they report to. He is responsible for ensuring that their welfare is well taken care of. The chief of the subordinate staff in turn reports to the operations manager whose responsibility is to oversee the day to day operations of the firm. In case of any challenge facing the subordinate staff and the operations manager is unable to handle, he takes up the matter to the overall manager who is the central authority of the firm. All the workers in the various departments of the organization report to their departmental chiefs who in turn report to the manager of this firm. For instance, the workers in the marketing department address the marketing manager in case of any challenge. In the event that the chief of the marketing department fails to handle the issue, he takes up the matter to the overall manager of the organization. The organization’s manager, therefore, is the one who has the final say.
The line distinctions are well maintained in the organization with the hierarchy reporting to the central authority with clearly set mandates. This concept of line is the one whereby the task to be accomplished by the workers of an organization is departmentalized or divided on some intellectual basis and is coordinated through hierarchal levels subordinate-superior relationships. ("Chain of Command in Organizational Structure", 2016) The authority of the manager is well legitimated to the workers and the subordinate in this organization. The manager, who is the superior, tells the others what to do since he or she can master the techniques and knowledge required to do so intelligently. The staff distinctions are also very well maintained in my organization. More and more executive and supervisory positions are being created and functions of the labor force are divided more minutely on the basis of diversity. Local and specialized training is necessary for one to advance from one position to another. The organization is, therefore, well managed.
References
Chain of Command in Organizational Structure. (2016). Smallbusiness.chron.com. Retrieved 27 May 2016, from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/chain-command-organizational-structure-59110.html
Daft, R. L., & Lengel, R. H. (1986). Organizational information requirements and structural design. Management science, 32(5), 554-571.
Dive, B. (2004). The healthy organization. London: Kogan Page.
Introduction | The Four Lenses Strategic Framework. (2016). 4lenses.org. Retrieved 27 May 2016, from http://www.4lenses.org/setypology/intro
Span of Control in an Organization. (2016). Selfgrowth.com. Retrieved 27 May 2016, from http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/Span_of_Control_in_an_Organization.html
