Loose connections within an organization may seem to be less organized. Can loose connections serve a strategic purpose. At first glance I might say that not being connected as a company does not serve the organization's best interest. Such a lack of connection may disperse goal orientation. Can an organization benefit from this though? I would say yes ,but only to an extent. I do not agree with an organization being so compartmentalized that the head does not know what the arm does ,so to speak. While I feel that being well informed about what different departments are working towards I think it that decision making can be a much quicker process when departments have the freedom to act independently in some regards. Although I do think that the departments that are most closely related research and collect information from other surrounding departments I do not think that those surrounding departments need be part of the end decision. For instance if one department is responsible for wheel design on a car that department should consult with those who designed the axle as well as those designing the tire to create a finished product that works well together.
A division can also allow for less impact. An organization that is connected at all levels and across all departments may be more impacted by outside forces. An organization that is more loosely connected will take the impact in one area rather than the affect being absorbed by all departments.
On some levels organizations must be connected because it is communciation that creates an organization. Goal orientation must be shared in all areas. Although common culture and goals among an organization should be shared I don't believe this is necessarily true in all things. Reasonable considerations taken into account, department's decision making should be independent.
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The book gives the example of the loosely coupled system of the typical college and university. Weick (1979) points out that the loose connections within an organization can sometimes be advantageous because they are better to withstand environmental jolts. So holds true for the university example. With budget cuts that affect the colleges, some departments are not being hit as hard since large donations are being given to those departments to keep them going either by giving scholarships to students or to the department for upgrades to the building, classrooms or equipment or new purchases to provide a better learning environment.
ReplyDeleteI find myself wondering, is an institution aware of their own loosely coupled system? They might be to some extent, but would they know if it was hurting them, or their clients? To build on the typical college or university example, I am sure that most students at SJSU are aware of the annoying bureaucracy that goes along with running the school. Trying to turn in a form, and they tell you you're in the wrong place and point you to another place, and you get there and you have an outdated form, so you fill out the new form, but they only take cash. A never ending cycle of confusion and annoyance. Obviously it is a more extreme version of a loosely coupled system, but if they were aware, wouldn't they want to make changes?
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