Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
school Superintendent Walt Rulffes, “There are powerful indicators from the first-year em-
powerment school results that, given the right conditions and some additional funding,
empowerment schools can dramatically improve student performance.”
Information systems can be a key element in empowering employees because they provide
the information employees need to make decisions. The employees might also be empowered
to develop or use their own personal information systems, such as a simple forecasting model
or spreadsheet.
Project and Team Organizational Structures
A
project organizational structure
is centered on major products or services. For example,
in a manufacturing firm that produces baby food and other baby products, each line is pro-
duced by a separate unit. Traditional functions such as marketing, finance, and production are
positioned within these major units (see Figure 2.6). Many project teams are temporary—
when the project is complete, the members go on to new teams formed for another project.
project organizational
structure
A structure centered on major
products or services.
Figure 2.6
B. Worth
President,
Baby Products Company
A Project Organizational
Structure
T. Walker,
Senior VP,
Baby Food Project
W. Butler,
Senior VP,
Diaper Project
O. Teco,
Senior VP,
Communications
and Stroller Project
VP,
Finance
VP,
Marketing
VP,
Production
VP,
Sales
VP,
Finance
VP,
Marketing
VP,
Production
VP,
Sales
VP,
Finance
VP,
Marketing
VP,
Production
VP,
Sales
The
team organizational structure
is centered on work teams or groups. In some cases,
these teams are small; in others, they are very large. Typically, each team has a leader who
reports to an upper-level manager. Depending on its tasks, the team can be temporary or
permanent. A healthcare company, for example, can form small teams to organize its ad-
ministrators, physicians, and others to work with individual patients.
team organizational structure
A structure centered on work teams
or groups.
Virtual Organizational Structure and Collaborative Work
A
virtual organizational structure
employs individuals, groups, or complete business units
in geographically dispersed areas that can last for a few weeks or years, often requiring
of the best available people to solve important organizational problems.
These people might be in different countries, operating in different time zones. In other
words, virtual organizational structures allow work to be separated from location and time.
Work can be done anywhere, anytime. People might never meet physically, which explains
the use of the word
virtual,
and highlights the difference between virtual organizations and
traditional ones that have operations in more than one location—a virtual organization is
geographically distributed, and uses information technology to communicate and coordinate
the work. In some cases, a virtual organization is temporary, lasting only a few weeks or
months. In others, it can last for years or decades.
Successful virtual organizational structures share key characteristics. One strategy is to
have in-house employees concentrate on the firm's core businesses and use virtual employees,
groups, or businesses to do everything else. Using information systems to manage the activ-
ities of a virtual structure is essential, often requiring specialized software to coordinate joint
work. Even with sophisticated IS tools, teams still need face-to-face meetings, especially at
the beginning of new projects. Some virtual workers that travel around the country or the
globe to different client sites, however, experience increased stress and difficulty in handling
virtual organizational
structure
A structure that employs individu-
als, groups, or complete business
units in geographically dispersed
areas that can last for a few weeks
or years, often requiring telecom-
munications or the Internet.
