The relationship among organizational theory, organizational design and change, and organizational structure and culture

Essay by mainiacUniversity, Master'sA+, March 2005

download word file, 2 pages 5.0

According to Jones (2004), organizational theory is the function of a company on how it operates in the environment (self impact) and how the environment affects their operational agenda. In my opinion, this correlates to the law of cause and effect.

The organizational design and change indicates the how/why various means are chosen, which assist in managing the structure and culture to control activities to achieve its goals. Change process occurs when an organization attempts to move from its present positions to a future state to increase proficiency. Structure entails the organization's chain of command; employees and management are made up of people, thus creating a culture, enforcing rules, upholding standards; it is obvious that structure and culture are inherently connected. Thus, structure is a control mechanism implemented by an organization in the way personnel coordinates and carries out tasks, and a means by which to motivate employee's to attain organizational goals.

The structure is shaped by the people through shared values and norms to control its member's interaction with both internal and external resources, such as suppliers, customers, and other outside sources. Culture evolves through the people and their values within the company for example: organizational ethics, rights of employees, and design structure are a reflection of its culture. It also shapes and controls behaviors internally, what is rewarded, what is not tolerated. For example, the essence of an organization's culture is shown by the way the organization conducts business, in the manner in which it treats customers and personnel, and degree of loyalty expressed by personnel. Therefore, culture has a tremendous impact on the behavior, productivity, and expectation of personnel. It can also provide a benchmark of the standards of performance for personnel.

In short, organizational theory, design and change, structure and culture are systems of interconnecting roles,