Today's world is characterized by a high rate of renewal and change, which imposes on organizations flexible designs that are consistent with the strategies and particularities of the situation. Correspondingly, the present work aims to carry out a theoretical analysis regarding organizational design, the elements to consider in the design of organizations, as well as the particularities of organizations of excellence and trends in organizational design in current organizations..
Introduction
The organizational design has been showing a high dynamism, in correspondence with the political, economic, social and technological development, as well as with the transformations carried out in the environment in which contemporary organizations operate, which, in order to survive, develop and advance towards excellence, they have to use with rationality and a vision of the future, the potential strength of their human resources.
Consequently, with these changes, the organizational design has to be oriented, so that the organizations can assimilate these new demands (Peters & Waterman 1984; Arazandi 1994) with a projection of flexibility and mobilizer of internal talents.
When the rate of change exceeds the speed with which organizations face new circumstances, established organizational designs become obsolete and can become a barrier that threatens the survival of the organization. Avoiding this constitutes an essential task for the management team, both in recognizing the need for change and in being its main agent.
Correspondingly, the present work aims to carry out a theoretical analysis regarding organizational design, the elements to consider in the design of organizations, as well as the particularities of organizations of excellence and trends in organizational design in current organizations..
Organizational design. Definition and main elements
To achieve organizations of excellence, it is necessary to develop an organizational design with quality, speed and coherence that allows the changes required by the conditions in which the organization operates to be carried out, as well as taking advantage of the opportunities that the environment offers. (Kenneth, 1983; Crosby, 1989).
The organizational design of organizations "is a comprehensive, systematic and proactive process in which the members of these organizations are involved in the design (combining personal and collective aspirations) in correspondence with the situation, in order to coherently organize organizations in such a way that fulfill your mission. " (Castellanos, 1998).
The design is: "the definition of the organization's structure to achieve the objectives." According to Pereda Marín (1993), some authors such as Mintzberg (1989); Barto Roig (1983); Pereda Marín (1993) have developed design procedures that, as a trend, start from the general objectives of the organization, presenting a high level of coincidence.
The design must:
- Provide order and clarity: reduce uncertainty and confusion within the organization and facilitate collaboration; providing a frame of reference in which the desired level of interpersonal communication can be developed, and make life within the organization more orderly, predictable and controllable. Provide continuity, by creating the conditions so that the organization as a system is not too dependent on the elements that comprise it.
The organizational design is necessary, to identify general factors and parameters that in a dialectical unit have to be taken into account in the execution of the process given the interrelation between the internal situation of the system, the context and its structuring and operation, namely:
As general factors are pointed out, size, considered by authors such as Blan Schoenherm (1971), Pugh (1969), Hall, Haas and Johnson (1976), the technology proposed by Woodward (1965), Emery and Trist (1969), Perrow (1967), the environment treated by Duques and Gaske (1998) associated with size, indicate critical operating factors such as:
- Act as a small organization. Orientation to innovation. Simplification of processes. Culture oriented to the people who integrate it and to the clients.
In this regard, Duques and Gaske (1998) suggest, among other alternatives to consider in the design, the following:
- Organize by product or service. Add value to the client. Create conditions for the development of initiative and individual creativity. Account separately for organizational units. Measure agility, sensitivity and customer service.
Regarding the parameters according to the criteria of the authors consulted and specified by Mintzberg, the following:
- Coordination mechanisms. Individual work positions.
An organization has to be designed so that the groups that operate it, can efficiently achieve their objectives in a changing environment, and under the concept that they can never be static, and that there is no way for it to work in all kinds of situations..
The grouping of units in the formal authority system with the consequent hierarchy of the organization, must be in a position to change as the goals and missions of the organization change, the structural redesign must constitute a process of continuous improvement that, as system integrates other elements of management.
There are six bases for grouping units: by knowledge and skill, by process and function, by time, by productions, by customers and by place. (Mintzberg, 1989).
Achieving the commitment, through the participation of the members of the organization in the design, allows to develop faster, more efficient and effective redesign processes, and skills in the personnel to search for solutions continuously, so that each person can be, in addition to a resource, a researcher, an apprentice, and a teacher. (Heckman, 1996).
In our opinion, the previous analyzes confirm that the organizational design must be done applying a systems approach, which includes the interrelation between the parameters of the organizational design, from a comprehensive perspective. This point of view coincides with that expressed by authors such as Rodríguez Fernández & Fernández Fernández (1989) and Mintzberg (1989).
Organizational design features and modern trends
The particularities of the organizational design and the trends that are revealed today, are the result of the emergence and evolution of a set of approaches, referred to among others by Chiavenato (1987) and Koontz & Weihrich (1991), which reflect different points of view, positions and principles for executing organizational design, and can be grouped into: centralized approaches at work, in people and in the organizational system based on conceiving the organization as an open system (Fellez Egües, 1995).
Organizational Design Trends:
- Organizations with a situational and flexibility approach Stability in change (Hickman & Silva, 1990; Agustina, 1994; Hammer & Champy, 1994; Hernández Cotón, 1994 and Sánchez Gallego, 1995).The role of the manager and the employee approach Given the decentralization of authority and the decrease in hierarchical levels, leadership and human resources are enhanced, which do not guarantee success on their own, but must be correctly used, which depends, among other factors, on organizational design. (Orero Jiménez, Chaparro Peláez & Pascual Miguel, 1996) Organizational architecture is now focused on achieving maximum flexibility and capacity to react to variations in the environment (Ordóñez Ordóñez, 1995). The flexibility of organizational design (Ostroff Garvin, 1991; Ordóñez Ordóñez, 1995;López Quero & Rodríguez Pérez, 1995; Muñoz Betemps, 1995; Domínguez Bidagor, 1995), implies a qualitative transformation of organizational management.
Organizations do not have to disappear, but it is possible to reform and update them continuously so that the end time or age of retirement never comes. If you want to keep ready to face the future, you cannot stop being living, pulsating and alert organisms; nothing can be considered perpetual and cannot be created to lose, according to Crosby (1989) that is why, it is necessary to achieve organizations with “biological” structures and a redefinition of work based on mission, which eliminates everything that can “ossify” structures, because in the future, given the complexity and dynamism of the environment, service, innovation, quality, the reduction of repetitive work, personnel policies, rational sizes and "flattening" will be very important, so that organizations can succeed.In the very conception of organizations, mechanisms must be provided to ensure their continuous improvement (with conventional treatments or not) or even to identify the moment from which and for their survival, a reengineering process is required (Cardona Labarga, 1986).
In correspondence with the above and taking into account the criteria of Tarragó Sabate (1985); Barcelo Matutano (1988); Guinjoan Farré & Pérez Pellicer (1990); Ohmae (1990); Peters (1992); Toffler (1993); Domínguez Bidagor (1995); Ilundaín, (1995); Hernández Cotón (1995); Alvarez Fernández (1996); Riego Fernández (1996) and Rosenberg (1997) the features that characterize trends in organizational design can be concluded.
In the field of organizational design and in correspondence with these trends, new organizational forms have been developed, among which we can highlight: shared responsibility, learning networks, high performance, horizontal and virtual (Rummler, 1988; Rockart, 1989; Peters, 1992; Novas, 1994; Ordóñez Ordóñez, 1995 and Hidalgo Nuchera, 1997).
Each of these forms has its specific features and common elements, among which are: teamwork, participation, decentralization of authority, work based on objectives, customer orientation and involvement.
The situational approach in the organizational design process
The situational or contingency approach is of particular importance in the design processes, which includes studies based on contextual determinism and studies that depart from the direction to know. (Desremeux, 1986; De Val, 1989).
Contextual determinism links the design of the organization to a set of contingent factors, to which the design must give a sustained response in the direction, link the design to the decisions of the management team and consider that the organization has the capacity to select and influence on its contingencies and is not obliged to passively assume what is imposed on it. (Mintzberg, 1989).
Therefore, it can be affirmed that the situational approach establishes how an organization should function under different conditions and, from there, establish organizational designs, Considering that the members of the organizations define in turn strategies to change or moderate contingent factors. For the purposes of this research, the basic premises of Systems Theory are also interesting, with respect to interdependence and the organic nature of the organization, as well as the need to preserve flexibility in the face of changes in the environment, the perspective Systemic contributes to achieving articulated, balanced and timely coherence that allows the organization to function effectively. (De Val, 1985; Chiavenato, 1987; Mintzberg, 1989; Pardo, 1989, Villa Cellino, 1992).
The analysis of the general factors requires to be completed with the study of the internal situation of the analyzed organization through a diagnosis, which allows determining the causes that influence the transformation of the organizations, and evaluating the performance of the organization. through three basic dimensions: the efficiency, effectiveness and satisfaction of the participants, both in general or in a comprehensive way and in a partial way (Hall, 1982, Kennert, 1983; Rodríguez Salazar, 1990 and Schmitt, 1994).
From the last years of the 20th century, organizational design has been characterized, among other aspects, by:
- The holistic nature. Decentralization of information and decision-making. Customer orientation. Organize according to the activities that make up the entity's value chain. Management coordination is carried out horizontally, multidisciplinary and based on sequence of organizational activities Flattening of organizational structures Formulation of strategies based on participation Participatory design Computerization of processes Humanistic orientation Development of transformational leadership Temporality of organizational form Consistency with environment and situation internal.
These trends, when applied in the design processes, presuppose the following characteristics as design characteristics:
- Application of the flat structure, with the possibility of much higher motivation at lower levels. Combination of self-control with the supervision of the techno-structure and higher levels of management. Amplitude and enrichment in the jobs. Integration of the structuring into the process Strategic, in a way that facilitates work based on vision. Teamwork, based on autonomous management and action in correspondence with organizational policies. Customer orientation, paying attention to the continuity of their demand. Definition of the system administrative to the design process.
Redesigns are as important as the initial design and must ensure continuous improvement, adaptation and influence to changes in the environment and the fulfillment of the mission to society. Finally, it is convenient to specify that design constitutes one of the basic elements to achieve the advancement of organizations towards excellence, which constitutes an aspiration of modern society and a condition to guarantee its progress.
Excellence in modern companies
Excellence for modern companies, operating in a generally complex environment requires accelerating modernization processes, increasing the speed of change, revolutionizing attitudes to integrate them with the rhythm of modernity. Modernization is not acquiring the latest cry for fashion in terms of technologies, nor adopting fashionable management techniques in isolation, it means seeking to incorporate it into the concert of world-class companies, considering all the parameters that make up a business strategy focused on continuous improvement: teamwork, self-diagnosis of strengths and weaknesses, assertiveness in saying and doing, self-training and acquiring knowledge, respect and collaboration with suppliers, customers and subordinates, formalization of the vision, mission and objectives, personal honesty,Intellectual and professional, participatory planning, measurement and management control and performance, but above all, an iron will to recognize mistakes and proactively correct the course as many times as necessary, overcoming adverse conditions and taking advantage of favorable ones.
Every world-class or excellence company requires knowledge and computerization, as a basis for technological development in the acquisition and processing thereof, as well as the establishment of a regulatory base based on international standards such as, ISO Standards highlighting:
ISO 9000 (Quality), ISO 10012 and 13 (Regulations, specifications and measurement), ISO 14000 (Environment and sustainable development), ISO 18000 (Industrial and social security), ISO 21000 (Intellectual capital).
The capacities that companies can achieve in their development generate different stages or categories, in this research the categories of: reliable, competent and world-class. In correspondence with the classification of the Mexican Center for Business Management and accepted by the Knowledge and Technology Management Company.
Reliable Organization: Those that have demonstrated their ability to deliver consistently reproducible products or services and know how to manage their cash flows with a simple method of costing; They have an organization that ensures that the company is at least able to maintain itself at this level. Typically, these organizations make sporadic efforts, identifiable but without continuity, both in the development of an activity to understand the customer and in their capacity for innovation.
Competent Organizations: Those that have demonstrated their ability to deliver products in competition with others that compete in the market, both in quality and in price and opportunity, and are capable of rapidly imitating the development of competition. They have an organization integrated into work teams to achieve good productivity, understand the customer and propose improvements to differentiate their products. Typically, these companies have developed a good response speed to new market demands or new offers from the competition, they know how to adapt technologies and solutions from others, and they have an incipient capacity for innovation.
World Class Organizations: Those that have been able to assume leadership in their field through systematic innovation, with a high degree of quality, with the lowest costs in the market and with the talent of interpreting expectations and the value in use of the client through technological values to operate with continuous improvement in added value.
They have ISO 9000 certification and an organization with high delegation and empowerment that fosters the development of its people. These organizations carry out programmed, systematic and persistent efforts in both planned and organized innovation and customer service, with very clear goals in terms of added value that is sought to be improved.
In this regard, the characteristics of the organizations of excellence proposed by: Berry, Parasuraman and Zeithami, Delivering Service Quality are of interest. (2004).
Tangibility
- Great companies have modern-looking equipment. Physical facilities are visually appealing. Employees are neat in appearance. Service-related materials (brochures, account statements, etc.) are visually appealing.
Reliability
- When they promise to do something, they do it. When a customer has a problem, great companies show a sincere interest in fixing it. They perform the service well the first time. They complete the service on time. They insist on keeping error-free records.
Answer's capacity
- In a great company, employees communicate to customers when service completion will be completed. Employees provide prompt service to their customers. Employees are always ready to help customers. Employees are never too busy to answer questions. from customers.
Security
- The behavior of employees of excellent companies instills confidence in their customers. Customers feel secure in their transactions with the organization. Employees are always kind to customers. Employees have sufficient knowledge to answer customer questions.
Empathy
- These companies have individualized attention for all their clients. They have adequate working hours for all their clients. An excellent company has employees who offer personalized attention to their clients. They care about the best interests of their clients. Employees of these companies They understand the specific needs of their clients.
Conclusions
The formation and improvement of organizations constitutes a consequence of technical, economic and social development, which requires a process whose purpose is to create the conditions for the aforementioned organizations to achieve the objectives that gave rise to their creation. Once again, the application of the improvement processes of these is a necessity to guarantee their survival and development in a turbulent and dynamic environment.
Organizational design has evolved in correspondence with the approaches that underpin it. The most modern conceptions are oriented to participation, flexibility, systemic, proactive and situational character, in correspondence with the characteristics of the environment.
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