Page 158 - Managing Change in Organizations

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Contingency, choice and organizational environments

Coordination
performance management

High
complexity

Market
mechanisms
R&D
Lean Adaptive
thinking organization Product
TQM development

Low
complexity

Team building
Job rotation
Job design

Weak Strong
resource resource
base base
Figure 8.5 Changes needed to create an adaptive structure (derived
from Lawrence and Dyer, 1983)

■ Finally, it is worth noting a renewed belief in universal principles of organiza-
tional structure. These have been broadly enunciated through a research

method which has focused on ‘successful’ or high-performing companies and
asked whether they have any common organizational characteristics. Peters
and Waterman’s In Search of Excellence (1982) is the best known of this type of
work. Some care has to be taken to avoid reading these books uncritically, how-
ever; by not concentrating on unsuccessful companies we cannot assert with
certainty that a culture of ‘success’ is due to certain structural forms. It might
even be that there is no relationship.

Similarly, some writers, such as Ouchi (1981), have argued that Japanese forms of
organization represent a superior model which could be imitated. To some extent
Japanese practices such as ‘right-first-time’ production, flexibility in tasks among
operators and participative styles through such mechanisms as quality circles
have been tried by many large firms and notably those suffering most from
Japanese competition, such as the automobile producers. However, again, care
has to be taken in assuming that it is easy to create new attitudes or an improved
company culture. Such changes require long-term effort.

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