UNIT THREE

ORGANIZING FUNTION
3.1 Definition
Organizing is bringing together and coordinating human and physical resources to accomplish
the objectives established in the planning process. Since no one can do everything needed to
achieve an organization’s goals, Jobs must be created and arranged in a way that gets things
done. Organizing involves developing a structure to coordinate the efforts of different people.
The purpose of the organizing function is to coordinate effort through the design of a structure of
task and authority relationships. The two key concepts are design and structure. Design implies
that managers make conscious effort to predetermine the way in which work is done by
employees; structure refers to relatively stable relationships and aspects of the organization. The
organizing function is the process of breaking down the overall task in to individual assignments
and then bringing those assignments together in units or departments and delegating authority to
a unit, or department, manager. Thus, we can describe the organizing function in terms of
dividing tasks in to jobs, and delegating authority.
Put more specifically, the organizing function has the following four distinct activities.
1. It determines what work activities have to be done to accomplish organizational
objectives
2. It classifies the type of work needed and groups the work in to manageable work units
3. It assigns the work to individuals and delegates the appropriate authority
4. It assigns a hierarchy of decision-making relationships.
Organizing results in an organization structure that can be thought of as a framework that holds
the various functions together according to the pattern determined by management. Organization
structure is a formal framework that shows a set of tasks assigned to individuals and
departments, reporting relationships including lines of authority, decision-responsibility, number
of hierarchical levels and span of management or span of control, and the design of systems to
effectively coordinate employees across departments. Organization structure is simply a diagram
or chart of all the positions in an organization and their formal relationship to one another. The
immediate value of organization chart is to illustrate an organization’s overall shape or
configuration in a comprehensive manner.

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An organization chart shows:
 The hierarchical structure that is typical of most organizations;
 The number of management layers;
 Degrees of authority, status, and compensation (indicated by a position’s location in
relation to other positions);
 How an organization’s activities are departmentalized;
 Relations between superiors and subordinates-who reports to whom; and
 How many subordinates report directly to each manager;
An organization chart does not show:
 The ongoing dynamic of workplace behavior-organization charts are static;
 Interaction between people who have no official reporting relationships;
 Personal preferences and coalitions;
 Informal communication channels; and
 Interference by others

3.2. The Importance of Organizing

The fundamental benefits of organizing include the following:
 It promotes collaboration and negotiation among individuals in a group. Thus, it
improves communication within the organization.
 It sets clear-cut lines of authority and responsibility for each individual or department.
It helps employees to know their responsibilities and concentrate on the key tasks at
hand. It specifies who is responsible for what.
 It improves the directing and controlling functions of managers.
 It enables the organization to maintain its activities coordinated so that the efforts of
managers and employees can be well integrated and directed toward an end.
 It encourages employees’ creativity, decision-making and independent thinking based
on well-defined policies, rules and procedures
4.2 Principles of organizing
There are same common principles of organizing in all organizations. These principles are:
1. The lines of authority should be clearly stated and should run from the top to the bottom of the
organization.

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 2. Each person in the organization should report to only one boss (the principle of unity of command).
3. The responsibility and authority of each supervisor should be established clearly in writing.
4. The higher authorities are responsible for the acts of their subordinates’. Top manager or immediate
superior is accountable for the acts of their subordinates.
5. The authority and responsibility should be delegated as far down the hierarchical line as objectively
possible.
6. The organizing should be simple and flexible to easily manage and quickly adapt to changing
conditions.
3.3. Basic concepts of Organizing
Organizing involves arranging human and physical resources to help attain organizational
objectives. Organizing is the development of jobs and the arrangement of them in to a structure
that will assure the duties are accomplished in a coordinated way.
3.3.1. Work Specialization
Organizations perform a wide variety of tasks. A fundamental principle to perform these tasks
more effectively is work specialization. The concept of work specialization is traced back to
Adam Smith’s discussion of division of labor and his conclusion was specialization increases
employees’ productivity. Division of labour is dividing large tasks in to smaller packages of
work to be distributed among several people. It describes the degree to which tasks in an
organization are divided into separate jobs. Division of labour is the most fundamental principle
of organizing. It involves breaking down a task in to its most basic elements, training workers in
performing specific duties, and sequencing activities so that one person’s efforts build on
another’s. Each employee performs the same task over and over again. Specialization has both
advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages of specialization
Specialization of labour has the following advantages, among other thing:
 Maximize the output of workers and machines because employees perform small and
well-defined tasks.
 Allow employees to master the task in the shortest time. Alternatively, by concentrating
on a specific activity people can become more efficient, become highly proficient, and
develop their skills to the utmost in a relatively short time.

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  Employees can be selected with the appropriate ability and attitude for the task to be
performed. It is easier to find qualified workers since fewer skills are required for specific
job.
 Training is easier with specialization and takes shorter period.
 It can save time that is always lost in changing from one job to another. This is because
of the fact that human body and mind simply cannot switch from one task to another
without losing some efficiency.
Disadvantages of specialization
The following are the disadvantages of specialization, among other things.
 Specialization limits the flexible use of workers from one type of work to another.
 Workers may be over qualified for the job. Thus, they lose self-esteem, motivation, and
sense of accomplishment and results in dissatisfaction manifested often through high
labour turnover and absenteeism.
 They feel bored and fatigue because they perform only a single, tiny, and repetitive or
monotonous job. Once the task is mastered, it offers no challenge.
 Specialization causes workers to think in terms of their department or function instead of
the company.
 It creates communication barriers. Specialists develop their own language and customs,
which can hamper communication across department lines.
 Different specialists often formulate rules, policies, and procedures that conflict with
those of other operational units.
3.3.2. Span of Management (Span of Control)
The concept span of control refers to the optimum number of subordinated an executive can
effectively supervise. It is the number of immediate subordinates who report directly to a
manager. It determines how closely a supervisor can monitor subordinates and it is directly
related to the horizontal dimension of managers control. According to the classical school of
management, the number of subordinates to be controlled by any executive is from 6-8 persons.
Others recommended that the span of control to be between 4-7 subordinates per manager.

However, the majority argues that as one goes up in the organization hierarchy, he/she should
have to deal with smaller number of subordinates. This is because top executives should deal
with a great variety of complex issues and ill-structured problems. Likewise, middle-level
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managers have a narrow span of control than supervisory level managers. Thus, it is advisable to
compare the advantages and disadvantages of wide and narrow span of control.
Wide Span of Management
A flat organization structure is characterized by an overall broad span of control, horizontal
dispersion, and fewer hierarchical levels. It is resulted from supervising relatively large number
of subordinates
Wide Span of Control

Production manager

Forman A Forman B Forman C Forman D Forman E Forman F

Advantages of Wide Span of Management

Wide span of management has the following advantages, among other things:
Expedites communication between managers and subordinates;
Forces managers to delegate greater responsibility and authority to their subordinates that
provide them opportunities to take initiative, responsibility, and utilize and develop their
abilities. This intern helps to develop competent and self-reliant managers;
Broadens the scope of the managers operation and management can emphasize on executive
training and development; and
Shortens the channels of communication and reduces the possibility of distortions and delay.
Narrow Span of Management
This is when supervisors need to involve closely with subordinates. It is a tall organization
structure characterized by narrow span of management and a relatively large number of
hierarchical levels. The manager manages small number of immediate subordinates. The
following organization chart depicts this type of organization structure.

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 Narrow Span of Management

Production manager

Forman G Forman H

Forman Forman Forman Forman D Forman E Forman F

A B C

Advantages of Narrow Span of Management

Narrow span of management as well has the following advantages, among other things:
It makes close supervision possible. There will be more effective managing of subordinates;
It is easy to coordinate and control activities; and
It expedites more personalized and close contact between superiors and subordinates.
4.4.3 Centralization and Decentralization
Centralization and decentralization are commonly used to refer to the concentration or dispersion
of employees, physical facilities, and decision-making power. In some organizations, top-level
managers make all the decisions and the lower level managers merely carry out the decisions
made by top managers. Others push dawn the decision making power to the lower level
managers who are close to the action.
Centralization is the concentration or systematic reservation of decision-making power at the
top of the organization. Top management makes the key decisions in the organization with little
or no input from lower-level employees. In contrast, decentralization is the transfer of
responsibility from the central government bodies to field units of the central government and
semi-autonomous private or voluntary organizations. It is the transfer of resources and public
functions from a higher level of government to lower ones. Lower-level managers and
subordinates are given the discretion to make decisions and considered as important agents in
any decision making process.

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The terms centralization and decentralization are meaningful only in a relative sense. An
organization could not operate on a completely decentralized basis, as it would lack the
coordination that ensures operating efficiency. A complete centralization, on the other hand,
would lack the needed flexibility and responsiveness to get a variety of jobs done.

To minimize such problems, centralization of employees and physical facilities can be used with
decentralized decision-making or when employees and facilities are decentralized, decision-
making can be centralized. For example, when top-level management makes decision with
regard to how much labor and finance to use at operational level, the lower level management
should have the power to effectively implement their programs using those resources. While top
management makes major decisions and exercise control and coordination of activities, lower
level managers should be given authority to make minor decision about how to use the resources
efficiently. This enables the organization to succeed by exploiting more opportunities and
minimizing threats.

Advantages of Centralization
Centralization has the following advantages:
o It gives power and prestige to the chief executives;
o It permits greater uniformity of policies, practices, and decisions;
o It promotes full utilization of the main office and information specialists due to their
proximity to the top-level management;
o It minimizes duplication of functions;
o It requires less extensive planning and reporting procedures; and
Advantages of Decentralization
Decentralization has the following advantages:
o It spreads an organization’s workload. This allows top-level managers more time in strategic
planning and lower level managers an opportunity to develop their decision-making skills;
o It promotes intimate personal ties and relationships, resulting in greater employee
enthusiasm and coordination;
o The motivation of lower level managers is greater when they are entrusted to make
decisions rather than always following orders issued at a higher level;

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o It familiarizes workers with important aspects of special work;
o It increases efficiency since managers are near to the activities for which they are held
responsible and trouble spots can be located and remedied easily. and
3.4.4 Departmentation
Once jobs have been divided through work specialization, then, they will be grouped together to
form specialized activities in a logical manner that facilitates coordination.
Departmentation, therefore, is the process of dividing the overall operations of the organization
into sub-activities and then grouping these specialized activities and responsibility areas into
working groups. It is the efficient and effective grouping of jobs into meaningful work units so
as to accomplish organizational objectives
Similar activities that are closely related with a distinct function are grouped together to form
departments. It aims at achieving unit direction, effective communication, coordination, and
control.
Importance of Departmentation
 Helps to limit the size of the work to a manageable size;
 Creates independent and semi-autonomous units that give them a feeling of satisfaction and
recognition;
 Helps to fix responsibility equivalent to the delegated authority to each unit;
 Helps to develop managers that in turn develop them for higher-level positions and exercise
decision-making in their own areas of specialization; and
 Simplifies the performance appraisal of departments.
Bases of departmentation
I) Functional Departmentation
Functional departmentation is one of the most popular ways to group activities in organizations.
It is the process of grouping the activities of the organization into separate units or departments
based on the essential functions needed in the organization such as productions or operations,
marketing, finance, engineering and so on. Production department may, in turn, establish such
units as production scheduling, quality control, purchasing, and manufacturing units. Similarly,
marketing may establish sales, promotion and advertising, and logistics units; etc.
It is the responsibility of top management to identify the activities needed for the attainment of
organizational goals and then groups these activities into distinctive units, each one dealing with

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 functionally similar activities and then assign them to people who can perform them efficiently
and effectively. However, the functions in any organization differ to reflect the organization's
objectives, activities, nature of inputs, and outputs.
Functional Departmentation
General Manager

Production Finance Personnel Marketing

Quality Production Manufacturing Recruitment Training & Compensation Labor

Control Planning & selection Development Relation

Quality Quality Quality

Control Control Control
Advantages of functional departmentation
 Promotes specialization and operational efficiency. Employees who perform a common task
are grouped together so as to permit economies of scale and efficient resource use;
 Reflects basic functions involved in the organization;
 Provides unity of direction to closely related activities;
 Provides excellent coordination within functions; and
 Creates simple communication and decision network.
The Disadvantages of Functional Departmentation
 Makes horizontal coordination among various functional areas more difficult;
 Inter-departmental (marketing & production, staff & line) conflicts and rivalry commonly
occurs as each unit competes for resources;
 It simply gives emphasis on departmental goals;
 Profit responsibility cannot be assigned to functional departments. It will remain the
responsibility of top management;
 Decisions are concentrated at the top of the hierarchy, creating delay; and

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 Limited general management training for employees.
II) Product Departmentation
Organizations with diversified products are organized according to their product lines. For each
product manufactured by the enterprise, there is a separate department that looks after its
operation. Each product requires special knowledge and placed under a separate department.
Examples:
o Computer sales and computer services in the data processing division.
o Cosmetics and chemical divisions in the domestic operations appliance.
Advantages of Product Departmentation
It is easy to evaluate departments as autonomous profit centers. The head of a product
division can be held accountable for its profitable performance;
Economies of scale can be realized if a manufacturing plant produces one product;
It simplifies coordination within functional areas for rapid response;
Develops broadly trained manager;
Customers often get better service. It focuses on clients needs and this leads to greater
customer service and satisfaction; and
Disadvantages of Product Departmentation
Increases coordination problems among specialized product areas;
Leads to decreased communication among functional specialists;
Contributes to duplication of services in each division; and
Fosters parochial emphasis on product objectives.

III) Geographic (Territorial) Departmentation

This is grouping of activities based upon location, area or territory. This method becomes
feasible when nearness to local conditions appears to offer advantages such as in terms of saving
time and cost of operation. It provides good arrangement for training and developing, executives
in a certain area. However, it necessitates the employment of large number of managers.
Advantages of Geographic Departmentation
 Allow units to adapt to local circumstances;
 Takes advantage of local, political, and cultural differences;
 Encouages logistics efficiency (transportation costs are lower);

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 Lessons risk of performing all activities in one location;
 Encourages decentralized decision-making; and
Disadvantages of Geographic Departmentation
 Require large number of general managers;
 Duplicates staff services or efforts;
 Hinders top manager’s control of local operations; and
 Creates conflict between local unit and overall organization interests.

IV) Customer Departmentation

This is when great emphasis is placed on effectively serving different groups of customers.
When an organization’s clients have very different needs and the organization seeks to provide
to their specific requirements, this approach becomes more valuable.
Examples of customer departmentation:
o Full time students and par-time students in the university;
o Wholesalers and retailers, government and private sector customers, bank loans for
military, students, business, personal, etc.
Establishing departments by customers, however, is not a primary form of departmentation. It is
often used within some other framework. For example, a manufacturer of office equipment
(duplicating machines, calculators, cash registers, and so on) may use functional departmentation
as its primary type but within the manufacturing or marketing divisions, it may use customer
departmentation.
The problems of customer departmentation may include the following:
o It results in duplication of activities and makes coordination difficult;
o Hinders the establishment of uniform companywide practices;
o May cause customer groups to develop at unequal paces leading to under utilization of
resources.

V) Process Departmentation

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This is when special skill is needed to operate different machines. Manufacturing firms
commonly group activities according to the product’s manufacturing process. The physical
layout of a typical manufacturing plant permits raw material to enter the plant, move through the
various manufacturing processes, and exit as a finished product. It is most commonly found in
production departments and frequently at operative levels. The following are common examples
of process organizing:
Punching, heating, welding, assembling and finishing m metal products.
Sawing, painting and milling, assembling, lacquering and sanding, finishing, and inspection and
shipping under cabinet manufacturing plant production.
Economic and technologic considerations are the most important reasons for the adoption of
process departmentation. It has the advantage of applying specialized skills and maintaining the
life of the machine or equipment for a long period of time. It offers a basis for the homogenous
categorization of work activities. However, it makes coordination difficult and sometimes results
in conflicts between the heads of different processing units.
3.4.5 Authority and Responsibility
Can you recall of the fourteen principles of Henery Fayol? In those he defined authority as the
right to give orders and the power to exact obedience. It is the power to make decisions, which
guide the actions of others. Thus a person with authority influences the behavior of others.
Authority is derived from the person’s official position in the organization. Managers acquire
authority by virtue of the rank or title associated with their organizational position, not because
of their personal characteristics. Higher-level positions have greater authority and this
authority decreases all the way to the bottom of the chart. In practice, the amount of authority a
manager can exercise depends on his or her boss's willingness to let him or her make decisions.
Responsibility, on the other hand, is the obligation of an individual to carry out assigned duties
to the best of his or her ability. It is what one is expected to perform a duty as required by the
superiors or as prescribed by the job. Managers with authority are responsible for other people,
money, and resources.

Unlike authority, responsibility cannot be assigned or given away. It must be willingly

accepted. Responsibility exists when a person with authority accepts the obligations to perform

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the work. Thus, authority should be given only to managers who are willing to assume an
equal amount of responsibility.

3.4.5 Delegation
Delegation means conferring authority from one manager or organization level to another in
order to accomplish particular assignments. It is the process of allocating tasks to subordinates,
giving them adequate authority to carry out those assignments, and making them obligated to
complete the tasks satisfactorily.
The Importance of Delegation of Authority
Most organizations today encourage managers to delegate authority to the lowest possible level
to provide maximum flexibility, to meet customer needs, and adapt to the environment. They are
encouraged to delegate authority although they often find it difficult. By delegating authority,
managers can extend their reach and perform more duties. It has the following benefits:
 Enables managers to perform higher-level work. It frees a manager from some time
consuming duties that can be adequately handled by subordinates and lets the manager
devote more time to problems requiring his or her full attention.
 Results better decisions, as lower level managers are close to the problem and the
information necessary to make better decisions. Decisions made by lower level managers are
usually timelier than those that go through several layers of management.
 Improves morale and enterprise sprit of subordinates. Subordinate managers can reach their
full potential only if given the chance to make decisions and assume responsibility for them.
 Without delegation, the chief executive, would be the only management member of the
enterprise. There would be no organization structure and a manager that is responsible to
perform more work than he or she can actually do.
 Delegation can develop subordinates: When managers leave or taken out of the
organizational position (through promotion, illness, resignation, death), it is easy to replace
them. Delegation gives training experience for supportive managers.
Factors Determining Delegation
The following factors are believed to have effects on delegation:
 Mental and physical capacity of subordinates to carry out the desired task. That is, the
competency to carry out and exercise the delegated authority. Some managers lack

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 confidence in their subordinates or fear the consequences or criticism of having subordinates
make bad decisions.
 The willingness and attitude of subordinates to accept responsibility to perform the intended
work.
 The willingness of managers to delegate authority and limit the degree of decentralization or
the desire to do the job by himself or herself.
 Some managers desire to dominate others and they think that by delegating authority we will
lose importance and position in the organization.
 The amount and quality of information on which subordinates base their decisions.
 The nature and amount of work to be carried out by subordinates determines the delegation
of authority.
The Process of Delegation
Delegation could be taken as a process involving series of activities or steps. The three core
steps in the process of delegation include:
1. Identify and assign the tasks: The first step in the process of delegation is that the superior
must clearly indicate what he wants his subordinates to do. This requires a detail study of the
work and its various elements. He will then decide which tasks to perform himself and which
to entrust to subordinates based on the principle that task brings responsibility.
2. Grant the authority to people who will perform the work: Actual delegation will take
place when the required authority is granted and made known to the delegate. The superior
should be very clear about the authority, which he has to delegate. He should decide what
part of authority should be given to the delegate. The authority to be granted should be exact,
neither more nor less.
3. Make the workers responsible for the job: This is the follow-up part of delegation. The
manager has to see whether the delegated authority is exercised properly or not. The
subordinates must be made to report to the superiors about the tasks performed so that the
superiors can assess the success of the delegation based on this reports.
Basic Principles or Guidelines of Delegation
The following are some of the principles or guidelines for effective delegation to take place:
Authority and responsibility should be equivalent: The authority delegated should be
adequate to the accomplishment of the expected result. Managers should be assigned

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 authority with equivalent responsibility. When they have responsibility for the outcomes of
the task but little authority, the job is possible but difficult. They rely on persuasion and luck.
When managers have authority exceeding responsibility, they may become tyrants, using
authority toward frivolous outcomes.
Avoid dual subordination /or maintain unity of command. This is because subordinates
cannot receive orders from more than one superior and responsibility cannot be fixed
accurately.
lthough authority and responsibility might be delegated, they can never be abdicated,
misused, or arbitrarily acted rather they are subjected to the policies, rules, procedures of the
organization and the limits set by superiors.
The delegated authority can be increased, reduced, or totally overturn back from the
subordinates when there are changes in the structure of the organization, its policies, and
procedures.
Delegation can be dawn ward, upward, or sidewise.

Forms of Organization Structure

Line Organization
Historically, this is the oldest and the simplest form of organization. All other kinds of structures
are modifications of line structures. It is characterized by vertical relationships, which connects
jobs and positions at each level with those above and below it. It thus, creates a network of
hierarchy throughout the organization based on a chain of command. A superior makes a
decision and tells to a subordinate who in turn make decisions and tells to operative workers. It
forms a line from the very top (chief executive) to the very bottom level of the organization. It is
uninterrupted flow of authority relationships and communication flows.
Line units are those that contribute directly to accomplishing an organization's goals. Thus,
managers, who work in line units, have line authority that follows an organization's direct chain
of command, starting from board of directors and extending dawn through intervening layers to
first-line managers. Therefore, production, sales, and finance are considered the major line units
in a manufacturing firm because they contribute directly to achieving the objectives of producing
and selling goods at profit. Similarly, infantry, artillery, and armor are line units in an army
because they contribute directly to achieving the objectives of meeting and defeating an enemy.

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 Line Organization

General Manager

Sales Manager Production Manager Finance Manager

Sales worker Production Worker Finance Worker

I) Advantages of Line Organization

The line organization has the following advantages:
o Simplicity and clarity: Authority and responsibility relationships flow from top to bottom in
a clear and identifiable manner. Authority and responsibility are easily traceable.
o Speed: A superior has a direct command over subordinates and each member knows from
whom to receive orders and to whom they report. Instructions, orders, assignments and
performance reports flow downward and upward.
o Less expensive: As there are no staff specialists, it is inexpensive.
o Stability: It is consistent with unity of direction and unity of command.
o It makes a person responsible for the work of a unit and the goals of the organization.
o It ensures flexibility to suit to lacks upward flow of information changing conditions.
o As a single person manages all the activities in a department, coordination becomes easy.
II) Disadvantages of Line Organization
Despite all the above advantages, the line organization has the following disadvantages:
o In the absence of staff specialists, few executives/line managers are overloaded, required to
perform all of the functions related to their jobs and work the details of operation.
o It lacks specialization as each department looks after its own staff function, as the
organization grows and jobs become complex, requiring varied kinds of abilities and skills
for effective performance, line managers find it difficult to cope fully with their job.
o As only one-person controls ail the activities of the department, favoritism and nepotism
would likely to grow.

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 o The communication system is one way flowing from top to bottom.
o The operation of the organization will be totally disrupted in the absence of superiors
replacing management members.

Line and Staff organization

When organizations grow in scope and complexity, it becomes necessary to seek the assistance
of specialized staff. Line and staff authority allows staff units to provide specialized expertise,
advice, support, or service to line managers in the effective performance of their functions. They
have no general command authority over line mangers but within their own units staff
specialists are related with one another in a scalar chain.

The staff units contribute indirectly to accomplishing an organization's goals. Each staff is a
specialist in his/her area and operates with considerable independence. In most enterprise staff
is used to get help in handling details, offering counseling on specific managerial problems,
and locating data for decisions.

They are customarily indicated on organization charts by a broken line. This shows that they
fall outside an organization's direct chain of command. The figure below shows a combined
line and staff relationships.

Line and Staff Relationship

General manager

Legal council Public Relation

Sales manager Production Personal manager

manager

Advantages of Line and Staff Organization

The line and staff organization has the following advantages:

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o Line managers receive specialized advice and service from staff specialists.
o Line managers can concentrate more on their own specialty. It reduces their burden and
limits their functions.
o It reduces relaying on one manager or discourages the disadvantages of one-man control
system.
o It separates staff (manual) and line (mental) function that facilitate mass production. It
increases the speed and quality of line manager’s work.
o Decisions can be easily implemented and controlled.
o The services of the staff can train line officers.
Disadvantages of Line and Staff Organization
Despite all the above advantages, the line and staff organization has the following disadvantages:
o It makes the organizational relationships more complex and complicate coordination,
communication and control problems. Since staff specialists operate with considerable
independence, it is difficult to control them and enforce their direction to the end.
o It violated the unity of command principle. As workers are working under different bosses,
it is difficult to maintain discipline and order among them. It often creates conflict. The line
managers often regard staff advice as interference.
o It is difficult to trace responsibility and causes of poor performance.
o It is difficult to find specialized skill in all fields.
o Line managers may depend too much on staff experts. Due to this, line managers lose
judgment and initiative.
o If the staff recommendations are not well taken, staff specialists may be dissatisfied and be
inactive in the future.
o Since the staff has no responsibility for their advice, they will not take care of their advice.
The Principles of Line and Staff Relationships
 The principle of staff advice: The staff has no the right of command rather the right of
advice, suggestion, and recommendation. If the staff gives orders it violates unity of
command or breaks integrity.
 The principle of limiting the staff economy: In order for a line to perform with maximum
efficiency, the staff should operate with less than maximum cost or expense.

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 The principle of staff independence: The staff personnel must be sufficiently secured so that
they can provide worthy and confidential advice.
 Generally, line and staff relationship work with a principle "the staff thinks while the line
acts."

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