3.2 Different Ways of Working

Organize these options into the right categories

Groups:

(a) Tall Organisations

,

(b) Flat Organisations

• Managers may find it easier to supervise subordinates

• There are only a few layers so communications will be faster.

  
  

• Workers will feel trusted because managers will need to delegate responsibility

• It is easier to share ideas - they do not pass through so many people

• The message is less likely to get changed – it passes through a small number of

  layers

  
  

• Workers may be motivated to get promotion and move up the hierarchy

• Workers will be clear who they are responsible to

• Fewer layers of management - saves money

Advantages & Disadvantages of Flexible Working

Groups:

(a) Advantage to Business

,

(b) Advantage to Worker

,

(c) Disadvantage to Business

,

(d) Disadvantage to Worker

• Workers may save time and

  money by not having to travel

  to work

• Job sharing may mean that the

  business is able to retain

  experienced workers.

• Workers may need more

  supervision to make sure they are

  working well.

• May miss the

  social side of working with

  other people.

• Workers enjoy having some

  freedom to work where and

  when they want

• May benefit from the

  increased productivity of workers

  who find it better to work from

  home.

• May save costs by

  needing less office space and less

  storage space.

• Communications between workers

  may not be as good as workers

  may not meet each other regularly.

• Flexible working suits some people with family commitments.

An _____________ _____ is a diagram that shows how many workers are organised in a business and who is in charge of whom

Match the following terms and their definitions

• layers

• the number of subordinates who report directly to the line manager

• span of control

• the number of levels of authoruity that are in a chain of command

• subordinates

• the process of giving a manager authority to a subordinate to make decisions

• delegation

• the workers that a line manager is responsible for

• delayering

• when a business reduces the number of layers, making it flatter

How many layers are there in the organisation?

• 2

• 3

• 4

• 5

What is the span of control of the Managing Director,

Luke Holden?

• 2

• 3

• 4

• 5

Which of the following is a subordinate of the Marketing Manager,

Julie Jervis?

• An accounts clerk

• A sales representative

• A maintenance supervisor

• The managing director

The managing director has delegated responsibility for finance matters to Gordon Wright, the finance manager, and his two accounts clerks.

Which of these statements is true?

• Gordon Wright must provide his own money to finance the running of the business.

• Gordon Wright may feel that the managing director is taking advantage of him by

  giving him this responsibility.

• Gordon Wright can specialise in finance work and so it is more likely to be done

  efficiently and effectively.

• Gordon Wright does not need to do much work because he has two assistants.

Organize these options into the right categories

Groups:

(a) Flat

,

(b) Tall

• 
• 

Match the following ways of working to their description

• part time

• when people work partly at their place of work, partly elsewhere e.g home

• flexible

• when a worker does not have any guaranteed work - the business will contact workers as & when they are needed

• zero hours

• when a worker works 35 hours or more per week

• self employed

• when people work as their own business

• full time

• when a worker works fewer than 35 hours per week