Chap 6 - Lecture Notes on Job Specialization & Organizational Design môn Principle of Management | Trường Đại học Quốc tế, Đại học Quốc gia Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh

Chap 6
1. Job Specialization Definition:
Job specialization refers to the process of dividing work into smaller, more specific tasks so that each
employee performs a narrow range of duties. Detailed Explanation:
This concept originates from classical management theory, especially Adam Smith’s “division of labor.”
The idea is that focusing on a limited number of tasks allows workers to develop expertise, improve speed,
and reduce training time. Specialized work also enables organizations to use advanced tools and standardized procedures. Benefits:
●Higher efficiency and proficiency: Employees master specific skills, leading to greater productivity.
●Reduced time between tasks: Less switching between different kinds of work increases flow and consistency.
●Simplified management and replacement: Training new employees becomes easier because the tasks are standardized. Limitations:
●Monotony and boredom: Performing repetitive tasks can lower job satisfaction and motivation.
●Reduced flexibility: Workers may struggle to adapt to new roles.
●Lower engagement: Employees may feel detached from the overall organizational goals. vd1: Starbucks:
At Starbucks, job specialization is evident in the clear division of roles such as barista, cashier, and shift
supervisor. Each employee performs a specific set of tasks, which increases efficiency and product consistency.
+ Benefits: Employees gain proficiency and deliver standardized quality across stores worldwide.
+ Limitations: Repetitive work may cause boredom and fatigue. To overcome this, Starbucks implements
job rotation and training programs that allow employees to switch roles and develop new skills. vd2: Vinamilk:
Vinamilk also applies a high degree of specialization in its production lines. Tasks are divided into smaller
steps such as raw material processing, packaging, and quality control.
+ Benefits: Improved efficiency and consistent product quality.
+ Limitations: Potential worker fatigue and monotony, which Vinamilk addresses through automation and
modernized production technologies.
2. Alternatives to Specialization
Organizations often modify or enrich jobs to reduce the negative effects of specialization. a. Job Rotation:
Employees are periodically moved between different jobs or departments. →
Purpose: To increase variety, prevent boredom, and broaden skills.
→ Example: A bank employee rotates between teller, customer service, and loan processing.
b. Job Enlargement:
Increasing the number of tasks performed by a worker at the same level. →
Purpose: To make jobs more interesting and reduce monotony.
→ Example: A factory worker handles both assembly and quality inspection.
c. Job Enrichment:
Adding both variety and control to a job — employees gain more autonomy and decision- making authority. →
Purpose: To satisfy higher-level motivational needs (Herzberg’s theory).
→ Example: Allowing employees to plan their own schedules or participate in process improvement. Starbucks:
+ Job Rotation: Employees rotate between brewing, customer service, and cashier duties.
+ Job Enlargement: Baristas may take on additional tasks such as inventory management or preparing ingredients.
+ Job Enrichment: Employees are encouraged to propose service improvements or take part in
local marketing campaigns, increasing their sense of control and engagement. Vinamilk:
+ Job Rotation: Practiced among production and quality control teams to broaden technical understanding.
+ Job Enrichment: Technical staff can propose operational improvements or efficiency initiatives.
3. Job Characteristics Approach Concept:
Developed by Hackman and Oldham, this model identifies five key dimensions that make a job motivating and meaningful. Key Dimensions:
1.Skill Variety: Use of multiple skills and talents.
2.Task Identity: Seeing a complete piece of work from start to finish.
3.Task Significance: Knowing that the job impacts others or the organization meaningfully.
4.Autonomy: Freedom and independence in how to carry out the work.
5.Feedback: Receiving clear information about performance effectiveness. Practical Application:
When these dimensions are strong, employees experience higher motivation, satisfaction,
performance, and lower absenteeism.
→ Example: A project manager who plans, executes, and evaluates an entire project has all five dimensions
high, leading to strong intrinsic motivation. Starbucks:
=> Starbucks promotes skill variety by training employees in multiple competencies such as beverage
preparation, customer interaction, and teamwork. The company emphasizes task significance by linking
employee performance to customer satisfaction.
Employees have a degree of autonomy in daily operations and receive continuous feedback through
customer reviews and managerial coaching. Vinamilk:
=> Vinamilk enhances motivation through task identity, allowing workers to see the complete process
from raw milk to finished product. Skill variety is achieved through multi-stage training, and feedback is
provided via performance metrics and quality evaluations.
4. Grouping Jobs (Departmentalization) Definition:
Departmentalization is the process of grouping jobs and activities into logical units or departments. It
determines how organizational work is structured and coordinated.
a. Functional Departmentalization
Jobs are grouped based on similar activities or skills (e.g., Marketing, Finance, Production). ●Advantages:
○ Staff expertise is concentrated within each department.
○ Easier supervision and coordination within functions.
○ Promotes operational efficiency. ●Disadvantages:
○ Can slow decision-making due to bureaucracy.
○ Employees may focus too narrowly on their own department (“silo effect”).
○ Difficult to assess total performance across departments.
b. Product Departmentalization
Grouping activities around products or product lines. ●Advantages:
○ Enhances coordination for each product.
○ Allows performance evaluation by product line. ○ Speeds up decision-making. ●Disadvantages:
○ Duplication of resources (e.g., each product needs its own marketing team).
○ Managers may focus only on their product rather than corporate goals.
c. Customer Departmentalization
Grouping activities based on customer types (e.g., retail clients, industrial clients). ●Advantages:
○ Specialized service for each customer group. ●Disadvantages:
○ Requires large administrative staff to coordinate across departments.
d. Location Departmentalization
Grouping jobs by geographic area (e.g., North Region, South Region). ●Advantages:
○ Better understanding of local markets and needs. ●Disadvantages:
○ Higher administrative cost and possible duplication of roles. Starbucks:
● Functional Departmentalization: Marketing, HR, Finance, and Operations departments.
● Product Departmentalization: Coffee, tea (Teavana), bakery, and merchandise divisions.
●Location Departmentalization: Divided by region (Asia-Pacific, North America, Europe).
→ This structure allows efÏcient coordination and faster local decision-making. Vinamilk:
● Functional: Manufacturing, R&D, Marketing, Finance, and Logistics departments.
● Product: Divisions by product lines (liquid milk, yogurt, powdered milk, beverages).
● Location: Factories and offices across Vietnam and abroad for regional efficiency.
5. Establishing Reporting Relationships
a. Chain of Command:
A clear line of authority from top to bottom ensures accountability and order.
b. Unity of Command:
Each employee should report to only one supervisor to avoid confusion and conflict.
c. Scalar Principle:
Authority flows in a continuous line through the hierarchy — from top management to the lowest level.
d. Span of Management (or Span of Control):
The number of subordinates reporting directly to a manager.
●A narrow span = tall structure (more management levels, closer supervision).
●A wide span = flat structure (fewer levels, more autonomy).
Tall vs. Flat Organizations:
Tall structures suit large, complex organizations; flat structures promote faster communication and decision-making. Starbucks:
=> Starbucks maintains a relatively flat structure at the store level, where store managers report to regional
managers. Globally, a clear chain of command connects each level to corporate leadership. Vinamilk:
=> Vinamilk uses a tall structure, reflecting its large scale and operational complexity. Factory directors
and regional managers report to the central headquarters to ensure consistent standards and control.
6. Delegation and Authority Delegation Process:
Involves assigning tasks (responsibility), giving the power to make decisions (authority), and holding
the individual accountable for results (accountability).
Centralization vs. Decentralization: ●
Centralization: Decision-making power is concentrated at top levels. ●
Decentralization: Authority is distributed to middle and lower levels, allowing local decisions.
Effective delegation empowers employees, reduces managerial workload, and improves responsiveness. Starbucks:
=> Starbucks practices decentralization, giving store managers the authority to make decisions about
staffing, store hours, and local marketing. This allows quick responses to customer needs and market conditions. Vinamilk:
=> Vinamilk follows a more centralized system where major strategic decisions—pricing, investment,
and expansion—are made at the corporate level. However, partial decentralization exists in regional
marketing and distribution management. 7. Coordination
Need for Coordination:
Coordination ensures that all departments and individuals work harmoniously toward organizational goals.
It avoids duplication, delays, and conflict.
Forms of Interdependence:
1.Pooled Interdependence: Each department contributes independently to the organization’s
overall performance (e.g., separate bank branches).
2.Sequential Interdependence: One department’s output becomes another’s input (e.g.,
production → packaging → distribution).
3.Reciprocal Interdependence: Mutual exchange of resources and information (e.g., hospital
departments like surgery, pharmacy, and lab).
Higher interdependence requires stronger coordination mechanisms. Starbucks:
=> Departments such as operations, supply chain, and marketing are tightly coordinated to ensure product
consistency and efficient service. This represents reciprocal interdependence, as changes in one area affect others directly. Vinamilk:
=> Vinamilk demonstrates sequential interdependence in its production process—each stage depends on
the completion of the previous one. The company uses an ERP system to synchronize operations among departments.
8. Bureaucratic Model Characteristics: ● Clear division of labor ● Hierarchical authority ●
Consistent rules and procedures ● Impersonal relationships ●
Employment based on merit and expertise Advantages: ●
High efficiency and predictability ●
Clear responsibilities and accountability ●
Stable operation in large organizations Disadvantages: ●
Inflexibility and resistance to change ●
Excessive paperwork and slow decisions ●
Lack of concern for human motivation or creativity Starbucks:
=> While Starbucks uses standardized procedures for quality and training (a bureaucratic trait), it also
fosters a friendly and flexible environment. The organization blends bureaucratic and organic models to
balance consistency with adaptability. Vinamilk:
=> Vinamilk heavily relies on the bureaucratic model in production and quality control to meet strict safety
regulations. In contrast, its marketing and R&D departments follow a more organic approach to encourage creativity.
9. Situational Influences
Organizational structure should fit the environment, technology, size, and life cycle.
a. Core Technology:
Different production technologies require different structures:
●Unit or small-batch technology: flexible, customized production → organic structure.
●Large-batch or mass production: standardized processes → mechanistic structure.
●Continuous-process technology: automated systems → requires technical specialists and flexible coordination. b. Environment:
●Stable environment: favors mechanistic structure (rules, predictability).
●Dynamic environment: favors organic structure (flexibility, innovation).
c. Organizational Size and Life Cycle:
As organizations grow, they usually move from simple, flat structures to more complex, formalized
designs. Mature firms tend to be more mechanistic, while startups are organic. Starbucks:
=> Operating in a dynamic, competitive global market, Starbucks adopts an organic structure—flexible,
adaptive, and innovation-driven. Technology such as mobile ordering and digital payments reinforces this adaptability. Vinamilk:
=> Vinamilk’s environment is relatively stable and technology-driven, suiting a mechanistic structure
characterized by rules and efficiency. However, the company applies organic elements in product development and innovation.
10. Forms of Organization Design 1.Functional (U-Form):
Grouping by function (Marketing, Finance, HR). Suitable for stable environments.
2.Conglomerate (H-Form):
A company that manages several unrelated businesses (e.g., General Electric). 3.Divisional (M-Form):
Grouping by related product lines or markets; each division operates semi-independently. 4.Matrix Design:
Combines functional and project structures — employees report to both a functional manager and a project manager.
→ Promotes flexibility and collaboration but can cause role conflict. 5.Hybrid Design:
A combination of multiple forms, adapted to complex organizational needs. Starbucks:
=> Uses a Matrix Design, integrating both product and geographic divisions. For instance, the global
coffee product team collaborates with regional marketing teams.
Starbucks also functions as a Learning Organization, emphasizing continuous improvement and knowledge sharing. Vinamilk:
=> Operates under a Divisional (M-Form) structure, grouping activities by product lines (milk, yogurt, beverages).
It also employs a Hybrid Design, combining functional specialization with divisional flexibility.
11. Emerging Issues in Organization Design
a. Team Organization:
Focuses on project-based teams with minimal hierarchy. Teams are empowered to make decisions and
solve problems collaboratively.
b. Virtual Organization:
A networked structure where most communication and coordination occur online. It reduces physical
infrastructure costs and allows global collaboration.
c. Learning Organization:
An adaptive organization that continuously acquires and applies new knowledge. Employees are
encouraged to learn, share ideas, and innovate.
→ Key traits: open communication, decentralized control, and continuous improvement. Starbucks:
● Team Organization: Each store functions as a self-managed team.
● Virtual Organization: Digital systems enhance communication and coordination.
● Learning Organization: Starbucks Academy promotes continuous learning and development. Vinamilk:
● Team Organization: R&D project teams develop new product lines such as plant-based or organic milk.
● Learning Organization: Collaborates with international partners to acquire advanced production technologies.
Practice: Distinguish between centralization and decentralization. What are their relative advantages
and disadvantages? Which structure would you prefer to work within?
1. Distinction between Centralization and Decentralization Aspect Centralization Decentralization
Definition Decision-making authority is Decision-making authority is
concentrated at the top levels of distributed among various levels of management. the organization. Flow of
Top-down — subordinates follow Shared — lower-level managers Authority
directions from senior managers.
have autonomy to make decisions. Speed of Usually slower due to many
Usually faster as decisions are made Decision- approval layers. closer to the point of action. Making
Control Tight control by top management.
More flexibility and independence at lower levels.
2. Advantages and Disadvantages Centralization Advantages:
● Ensures consistency and uniform decisions.
● Better coordination and control.
● Reduces duplication of work and costs.
● Suitable in small organizations or in crisis situations. Disadvantages:
● Slow decision-making process.
● Reduces employee motivation and creativity.
● Overloads top managers with routine decisions.
● Can make the organization less adaptable to local needs. Decentralization Advantages:
● Faster decision-making and greater flexibility.
● Encourages initiative, motivation, and innovation among employees.
● Reduces the workload of top management.
● Improves communication between management and staff. Disadvantages:
● Possible inconsistency in decisions across departments.
● Risk of duplication of efforts and higher costs.
● Requires highly skilled and trustworthy lower-level managers.
● May weaken overall organizational control.
3. Preferred Structure
Personally, I would prefer to work in a decentralized structure because:
● It allows more participation in decision-making.
● It encourages creativity and professional growth.
● Communication is more open and responsive.
● It creates a sense of ownership and responsibility.