Running head: BUS-FP4013_ASSESSMENT 1 1

Organizational Structure, Learning, and Performance

Rebecca Poteete

Mechanistic Versus Organic

Assessment 1

Capella University

October 2019
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Introduction

For this research paper, mechanistic organizational structure and organic organizational

structure will be defined and environmental considerations and changes will be reviewed and

compared in terms of their differences and their application to the current environment.

Mechanical Organizational Structure

To control activities of the company, organizations require different structures. The

mechanical organizational structure has a centralized approach that is vertically formulated with

its tall, triangular shaped functional organizational structure. This type of organizations

environment is based on authoritarian management and permanent organizational structures

made up by workers form the structure’s foundation, grouped into departments, followed by their

managers (Johnson, n.d.). The span of control gets consolidated as the structure grows moving

up the organization, where you have managers over managers. And finally, the top of the

structure, the crown jewel, has the centralized power of the company. Knowledge is formally

documented and is delivered from top to bottom. In a mechanical organizational structure

environment characteristic such as efficiency and productivity are achieved. Just like it sounds,

“Mechanistic” get its name from mechanicalistic, it is very robotic, and it doesn’t change the

way it operates, working the same way every single time.

Organic Organizational Structure

The organic organizational structure has a decentralized approach that is flat and fluid,

meaning that is uses cross-hierarchical and cross-functional teams, and there isn’t a typical

pyramid of leadership flowing from the lower level workers up to senior management (Leonard,

2018). As participative decision making empowers management and enhances cooperation

through reciprocal dialogue and communication, it is everyone’s responsibility to evaluate action

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and to improve performance. An organic organizational structure produces adaptive development

of performance and employees work together face to face to coordinate tasks and have the

authority to control delegated tasks in environments that are unpredictable and change rapidly.

Organic structures are more adaptable to the fluidity of collaboration within this type of an

organization structure.

Differences Between Organizational Structures

As companies or organizations face an uncertain environment many may have to develop

an organic organizational structure, whereas companies or organizations that operate a stable

environment may benefit from developing or maintaining a mechanistic organizational structure.

Organic organizational structures can distribute information faster within the organization, which

results in an increased ability to respond or react to changes in the environment. However,

mechanistic organizational structures may act as an effective and efficient organizational

structure for companies operating in a more stable environment that may not need to make

decisions quickly because there is no constant need for change.

Mechanic Organizational Structure Organic Organizational Structure

Stable Environment Uncertain Environment

Low differentiation of tasks High differentiation of tasks

Low integration of functional areas High integration of functional areas

Centralized decision-making Decentralized decision-making

Standardization and formalization Little standardization and formalization

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Environmental Changes

To explain how the local and global environmental changes translate into mechanistic

versus organic organizational structure we must consider the factors going on such as the market

stability, company size, and the company’s financial stability. Environmental changes in

business make a company’s existing structure competitively inappropriate and may demand a

change to the organizational structure (Johnson, n.d.). Translating environmental changes may

force one company to rely on the efficiency and economies of scale that mechanistic structures

provide while with an organic structure they may prosper if a revolutionary change occur such as

a competitive threat from a new company where mechanistic structures may fail because they

aren’t nimble enough to quickly stave off threats the way less bureaucratic companies might

(Johnson, n.d.).

Where Are We Heading

In a business environment, change is inevitable and may not always be welcomed but it

happens all the time. The economy frequently fluctuates up or down daily forcing businesses to

change internally and alter the way they operate. Change management is an important strategy

for any business to prepare an organization for growth and change. For an organization to grow

and innovate, it is important to understand economic, technological and social challenges, as well

as the marketing environment of an organization and how those challenges impact a business.

Such challenges that can impact a business include new competitors entering the marketplace,

shifting weather patterns and natural disasters, political events, wars and the adoption or

rejection of laws and rules. Another challenge in the current digital age environment we live in,

the workforce has become more diverse then combined with advanced technology, products and

innovation there becomes a greater need for more collaborative work environments.
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Turbulence of Hyper-Change and Hyper-Competition

Mechanistic organizational structures are not capable of responding quickly in a hyper-

competition environment as this change forces companies to move rapidly and to experiment in

non-traditional ways. On the other side of the spectrum, organic organizational structures can

respond to changes rapidly allowing for faster resolutions through exchanged ideas and

knowledge to stay afloat in a hyper-competitive market. To remain competitive in hyper-

competitive markets, products and services are suggested, reviewed, and implemented much

more quickly to allow organic organizational structures.

Hyper-change environments force organizations to be faster at surpassing the swiftness of

movement to increase innovation. In a mechanistic organizational structure, this is a weakness as

this type of organizational structure is not capable of responding with the speed needed.

However, within an organic organizational structure, they are flat and fluid with the ability to

adapt quickly at any moment. To remain competitive in hyper-change environments, it is

important to adopt the ability to free flow information at all levels without the need for pyramid

structure that enables top level approval. Having a flatter structure allows for suggestions and

ideas to be reviewed faster providing a competitive advantage. Concluding that mechanistic

organizational structures are viewed to be slow, they will have difficulties with change and

meeting needs of customers which they can lose (Fox & O'Conner, 2015).

Most Appropriate Structure

The most relevant structure in the current and global environment would be the organic

organizational structure. Because of the advancements in technology and communications,

organizations must be able to react quickly and create more efficient solutions. Having the most

appropriate organizational structures is important because it establishes the way tasks are divided
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up, how the workflows, how this workflow is coordinated and mechanisms that allow this

coordination to occur. An appropriate organizational structure determines individual

responsibilities for different functions and processes to different departments. An organic

organization culture provides the environment in which people can communicate and make

decisions to determine the manner in which the organization operates and performs.
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References

Fox, K. & O'Conner, J. (2015). Five ways work will change in the future; Society, The future

of work. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/nov/29/five-ways-

work-will-change-future-of-workplace-ai-cloud-retirement-remote

Johnson, S. (n.d.). Mechanistic Organizational Structure. Small Business - Chron.com. Retrieved

from: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/mechanistic-organizational-structure-58785.html

Johnson, S. (n.d.). Changes Affecting Organization Structure. Small Business - Chron.com.

Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/changes-affecting-organization-structure-

64789.html

Leonard, K. (2018). Organic Structure of Organizational Design. Small Business - Chron.com.

Retrieved from: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/organic-structure-organizational-design-

58657.html