Virtual Organization

Essay by axclegionUniversity, Bachelor'sB+, May 2008

download word file, 3 pages 0.0

What is VO: Virtual Organization

A temporary or permanent coalition of autonomous organization that pool resources, capabilities and information to achieve common business objective through the use of networking and virtual world.

Basic Characteristics of VO

Today's organizations to be successful need to be highly flexible and adaptable. This insight has let to the introduction and discussion of virtual organization. A first pretty abstract definition is that it is a temporary alliance of enterprises that cooperatively work together to share skills or core competencies and resources in order to better respond to business opportunities, and whose cooperation relies on computer networks and a cooperative, yet distributed information systems structure. Up to now a commonly agreed on more precise definition is still lacking. However, the following four features are commonly accepted as mandatory characteristics:

Purpose-driven

Virtual organizations are formed for specific reasons and with clear overall common goals and objectives in mind.

All members have agreed on these goals and objectives.

Flexible organizational structure

The organizational structure of a virtual organization can be quite dynamic; i.e. can change numerous times during the life time of the virtual organization. From the outside the shape of a virtual organization may change continuously. It may extend if additional tasks are identified which cannot be covered by existing members or if an external company seems to be a useful supplement for the virtual organization. Companies may leave because their internal goals do no longer meet the goals of the virtual organization. Finally, companies may have to leave if their value for the virtual organization does not meet the expectations. In the inside we have to deal with a permanent demand driven restructuring process with respect to functional units like groups or departments.

Autonomy of members

Members join a virtual organization intentionally. This implies that...