ACME vs OMEGA

ACME OMEGA

Organizational Mechanistic Organic

Structure
Information Flow Slow Quick
Communication Memo Meeting
Weakness Subunit orientation No formalization
Production type Mass Small
Authority Centralized Decentralized
Technical approach to Was able to reduce Failed to reduce
measure effectiveness production costs production costs
Coordination Low High

Section C | Group 1 1
 CONCLUSION
 ACME was awarded the contract:

 Although Omega’s structure was more efficient in case of faster responsiveness;

Acme did perform better for longer duration contracts

 The assemble of memory units is a highly process oriented task which was
favored by Acme’s working style

 Omega performed better at making the prototypes because of its cross-

functional teams

 Due to Acme’s vertical differentiation, it was able to have better accountability

structure which led to its cost cutting in manufacturing

 Acme’s standardized process will also help the company reduce its costs

Thus, Acme is structured to compete in mass production and cost reduction

and Omega is structured for greater flexibility and speedy manufacturing.
Section C | Group 1 2
 RECOMMENDATIONS
ACME
 Acme is a highly mechanistic company with centralized authority, formalization and
standardization of rules
 To improve product development operations, it needs to incorporate cross functional teams
which consist of personnels from all divisions
 A liaison or integrating role can also be floated to help out with the coordination problem
within the organization
 In Acme’s bureaucratic structure information flow required greater time and thus decisions
have to be slow.

OMEGA
 Omega, on the other hand is an organic organization with decentralized authority, mutual
adjustment
 In Omega’s organizational structure, the information flow was rapid and key decisions could
be taken quickly.
 Omega ensured product development even if it comes at a higher cost ( e.g. Using Japanese
part)
 Lack of proper structure results in costs going overboard
 To improve its efficiency and focus on cost cutting, it needs to come up with some structure
to ensure proper functioning of the operations
Section C | Group 1 3