Mugabe and military officers. image credit insiderzim.com

Mugabe and military officers. image credit insiderzim.com

ZIMSEC O Level Business Studies Notes: Organisational Charts

  • These are concepts that are related with how business organisations operate and are organised
  • Power- is the ability or capacity to influence others
  • For example charismatic leaders like Adolf Hitler could get people to do what they wanted
  • Authority-is the legitimate exercise of power
  • Authority is institutionalized power that is inherent in a given position/title
PowerAuthority
Is derived from an individual's personal characteristics for example charismaIs derived from an individual's position within the organisation for example the Managing Director, A commanding officer or President
Is based on the individual's personal ability or capacity to influence othersIs based on position occupied by the individual and the rights of that position
It's scope is not defined or limitedIt's scope is limited and defined
Is always innate in an individualIs awarded to the individual when they assume the relevant position
Does not come with a title, rank or designationUsually comes with a rank, title or disignation
  • Authority is often associated with titles such as Marketing Manager
  • It also comes with responsibility
  • Authority has a defined scope or boundaries
  • The authority and scope of a given position varies from organisation to organisation
  • It is determined by each organisation’s rules and its culture
  • Authority might also be delegated
  • Responsibility- is the duty or obligation to perform a given task
  • It is the duty to fulfil one’s allocated tasks
  • Once an individual has been given a task they ought to fulfil it
  • Responsibility comes with authority
  • An individual must always be given authority commensurate to their responsibilities
  • Otherwise that individual will not be able to fulfil their responsibility
  • Failing to fulfil one’s responsibility results in some form of punishment
  • Span of control-the number of subordinates that report to and fall under the direct supervision of a given superior/manager
  • It is also sometimes used to refer to the number of subordinates that a given manager can directly control
  • The ideal span of control varies and it is determined by:
    1. Organisational culture
    2. Geographical spread of the organisation
    3. Skills and ability of the supervisor
    4. Required administrative tasks
    5. Complexity of the job involved complex tasks require constant supervision hence require a lower span of control
    6. Routine tasks require minimum supervision hence can have a wider span of control
    7. The level of skill of the subordinates
A simple organisational chart.

A simple organisational chart.

  • The span of control for the Managing Director is 4
  • A span of control can be either wide or narrow
  • A small span of control is known as a narrow span of control
  • A large span of control is known as a wider span of control

To access more topics go to the O Level Business Notes page.