Product Description

In today's volatile business environment, organizational design is a serious challenge for any manager, whether of a multinational enterprise or a small team. This book sets out a step-by-step approach to designing an organization. All the key aspects of organizational design are covered, including goals, strategy, structure, process, people, coordination and control, and incentives. The text engages with critical issues affecting organisations, such as globalization, worldwide competition, deregulation and ever-new technologies, and contains many helpful features such as end-of-chapter reviews and unique step-by-step diagrams to orientate the reader in the design process. Diagnostic questions help the reader to determine the changes needed in an organization. The action oriented approach of this text helps the reader to assess and re-design the complex organizations of today, and plan for the information-rich organizations of tomorrow.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #45576 in Books
• Published on: 2006-01-09
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 252 pages

Review
“This book makes the complex task of designing an organization understandable. It covers the main academic perspectives well, so any reader will find his or her favorite approach covered. I especially enjoyed the book's focus on application - the step-by-step approach, diagnostic questions that accompany each topic, and an emphasis on the importance of fitting key organizational components together.” Charles C. Snow, Chair, Department of Management and Organization, Smeal College of Business, Penn State University

“In Organizational Design: A Step-by-Step Approach, Burton, DeSanctis and Obel have struck a fine balance between theoretical rigor and managerial clarity. The information processing theory that underpins their organization design approach is rigorous and consistent. The book walks a reader through a clearly articulated series of steps to assess the contingency variables of strategy and environment, and to configure the organization's structure, process & people, and coordination & control to fit its context. This book makes a significant contribution toward advancing the process of organizational design from an art to a craft. It works well as both a monograph and a textbook.” Raymond E. Levitt, Ph.D., Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Director, Collaboratory for Research on Global Projects, Academic Director, Advanced Project Management Program, SCPD

“This offers a comprehensive view of organizational design, covering a broad range of aspects. It includes not only strategy and structure, but also task design, leadership, organizational climate and incentives. The work draws widely on the concepts from research to offer a holistic model. It uses the contingency approach to spell out what fits are required for high performance, and what misfits should be avoided.” Lex Donaldson, Professor of Organizational Design, Australian Graduate School of Management(a joint venture the Universities of New South Wales and Sydney, Sydney, Australia)

About the Author
Richard M. Burton is Professor of Management at the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University.

Gerardine DeSanctis is Thomas F. Keller Professor of Business Administration at the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University.

Børge Obel is Professor of Organization and Management and Rector of the Aarhus School of Business, Denmark.

Customer Reviews

A practical guide for understanding organization design.
This small book was a pleasant suprise. Burton and colleagues provide a simple, easy-to-understand and powerful framework for understanding the relationship between organization design and strategy. This book is designed for executives but based on extensive academic research. I found it helpful and actionable.

Straight to the point
As a Manager of a Telecom and e-business organization, i have to deal everyday with Organizational design challenges as the industry flows and changes. What i liked about this book is that it go straight to the point, it is clear and help you attain an holistic 360 degrees view of an organization lay out. Then as always it is up to you to implement it.

Organizational Design: A Step-by-Step Approach
This is a large and complex topic but the book is an easy read but very powerful - as the book says - step-by-step.

Concepts are easy to grasp and well explained.