Annotated Bibliography: Organizational Design and Structures

Anderson, M. H. (2007). Social networks and the cognitive motivation to realize network opportunities: a study of managers information gathering behaviors. Journal of Organizational Behavior,29(1), 51-78. doi:10.1002/job.459

The study conducted by Anderson aimed to establish the various methods that managers use to gather behavior information. The author argues that many scholars have not given enough attention to this behavior of managers despite its significance as far as organizational behavior is concerned. The researcher has linked the aspect of managers information gathering to social networks. The article has criticized social networks for lacking the ability to evaluate intervening mechanisms through which theorization of network characteristics have effects. Also, social networks have not been able to consider the motivation effect of actors in relation to the network benefits. These two concerns have been addressed in the journal through studying the real behavior of managers when it comes to information gathering. The researcher established variability in the personalities that were associated with variability in cognitive motivation to establish information benefits from a social network. The study further revealed that the characteristics of a network had effects on information. Managers can take advantage of this effects and benefit.

Chen, X., Zhang, H., & Dong, Y. (2015). The fusion process with heterogeneous preference structures in group decision making: A survey. Information Fusion,24, 72-83. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.inffus.2014.11.003

The publication by Chen et al. (2015) focused the aspect of group decision making. This is a topic that has been researched by many scholars who have established both strengths and weaknesses. These authors attempt to bring into focus the main reason for the strengths as well as weaknesses of the decision approaches. Group decision-making process is always characterized by different opinions as well as preferences. The author suggests that different contributions are likely to present the different preferences of information as well information structures. Factors that have been cited to cause this difference include cultural differences, educational experience, and experiential differences. It has been established that most of the studies conducted on the group decision making have revealed a common trend of heterogeneity in structures. Therefore, the paper focused on various fusion approaches that include the optimization-based, direct and indirect approach. These fusion approaches are very beneficial in enhancing the understanding of group decision making.

Fairfield, K. D. (2016). Understanding Functional and Divisional Organizational Structure. Management Teaching Review,1(4), 242-251. doi:https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1177/2379298116661843

The journal published by Fairfield (2016) intended to focus on functional and divisional organizational structures. The author has claimed that limited exposure to the organizational structure is a common problem for most students today. Therefore, the publication attempts to create a theoretical picture of the two structures. The primary approach to deliver the lesson is through exposing the reader to various situations and challenges that can be witnessed in an organization. Such challenges aim to prove to readers that functional organizational plays an important role in an organization. The functional organization offers more opportunities for coordination. On the other hand, the divisional organization has been associated with agile responses. The divisional organization also revealed potential challenges of coordinating various divisions established within an organization. Every structure has a different influence on the process and approach to decision making in an organization. Some of the areas that have been addressed include the classroom as an organization and management development.

Fjeldstad, O. D., Snow, C. C., Miles, R. E., & Lettl, C. (2012). The architecture of collaboration. Strategic management journal, 33(6), 734-750. doi:10.1002/smj.1968

The publication by Garicano and Wu (2012) has elaborated the concept of collaboration in organizations. The aspect of globalization has been the main source of pressure to most organizations. Organizations are faced with fast developments requiring constant adaptation strategies to remain competitive. Short life-cycles, technological evolution are some of the challenges that organizations face. The authors have presented new proposal designs to help organizations. The actor-oriented architectural scheme has the potential to help the organization of three main characteristics. One, organizations with ability as well as values to manage the self-organization. Two, organizations with tendencies of accumulating and sharing resources. Three, organizations with processes, protocols, as well as infrastructure that facilitate multi-actor collaboration. The project included different organization from different sectors. The information provided by the authors is significant since it provides an option for organizations to develop a new way of collaborating. This is a process that modern organizations have to cope with.

Garicano, L., & Wu, Y. (2012). Knowledge, communication, and organizational capabilities. Organization science, 23(5), 1382-1397. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1110.0723

According to Garicano and Wu (2012), knowledge and communication are essential components in an organization. It is the depth of knowledge and efficacy of communication in an organization that determines an organizations capability. This publication attempts to elaborate on the relationship among the three components. Organizations need the knowledge to facilitate different processes, and this can only be achieved by bringing together different talents under the same human resource. The authors have clarified that knowledge also affects the communication processes and approaches in an organization. The processes in an organization can be acquired using codes as well as a culture. Since human limitations are a factor, a proper organization can help mitigate this aspect. Therefore, the processes and structures in an organization are paramount as far as growth is concerned. It is important for the human resource management to play the important role of managing strategic knowledge through effective management of human resource.

Gigerenzer, G. (2010). Moral Satisficing: Rethinking Moral Behavior as Bounded Rationality. Topics in Cognitive Science,2(3), 528-554. doi:doi:10.1111/j.1756-8765.2010.01094.x

The journal authored by Gigerenzer (2010) intended to focus on the nature of the moral behavior. According to the author, a relationship exists between morality and rationality. Bounded rationality has been established to be a product of three main components: (1) character traits; (2) rational deliberations; (3) interaction between the mind and its environment. The concept of moral behavior also results from practical social heuristics. Moral rules and enhancement of principles may not always contribute to moral behavior. The nature of the social heuristics regarding good and bad are still dependent on the nature of the environment. The type of environment or environmental forces can play an important role in determining morality. According to the author, the study of behavior can be well achieved through concentrating on social groups and individuals. The environment for studying these behaviors includes controlled environment and the natural environment. This proves that the aspect of behavior is a result of the interaction between the mind as well as the environment.

Garcia-Morales, V. J., Jimenez-Barrionuevo, M. M., & Gutierrez-Gutierrez, L. (2012). Transformational leadership influence on organizational performance through organizational learning and innovation. Journal of Business Research,65(7), 1040-1050. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.03.005

Transformational leadership is one of the most important leadership topics today. Garcia-Morales et al. (2012) also conducted a study and published a journal on this topic. The main aim of the study was to establish the relationship between transformational leadership and organizational performance. While other forms of leadership have impacts on organizations, transformational leadership has proven to present organizations with enormous growth opportunities. Other important areas included in the study were the organizational learning and innovation. These aspects are indirectly interrelated but have a huge impact on the performance of organizations. A study was conducted on 1688 firms in Spain, and it was revealed that transformational leadership supported organizational learning and innovation which had a positive influence on organizational performance. It was evident that organizational learning through innovation had a positive influence on performance. Also, organizational innovation had a positive impact on the performance of organizations. The findings proved that companies which adopted organizational leadership had a higher chance of experiencing organizational learning, innovation, and change.

Holmstrom, J., Ketokivi, M., & Hameri, A. (2009). Bridging Practice and Theory: A Design Science Approach. Decision Sciences,40(1), 65-87. doi:10.1111/j.1540-5915.2008.00221.x

Over the years, the education sector has researched in various fields. However, the goal of enhancing the relevance of academic research to practitioners has not been achieved. Holmstrom (2009) has published a book that focuses on this issue. According to the author, both academic and theoretical research has not fulfilled the interests of management practices. The important aspects that the author has noted include the aspect of knowledge production, knowledge transfer, and knowledge interests. While science is widely regarded as a tool for knowledge discovery and a problem solver, there is need to bring together theory-oriented research in academic and problem-solving. The author further notes an important point that the practitioner and the student face different challenges/tasks. A student focuses on academic research while a practitioner faces operations management research which is a problem-solving oriented approach. Combining the two bodies of knowledge can enhance practical relevance. Therefore, Holmstrom (2009) presents a design of science connect practice to theory.

Liao, C., Chuang, S., & To, P. (2011). How knowledge management mediates the relationship between environment and organizational structure. Journal of Business Research,64(7), 728-736. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2010.08.001

Knowledge management is very critical in management of an organization. Liao et al. conducted a study that focused knowledge management, environment, and organizational structure. Knowledge management has the ability to control the way people interact with the environment. Therefore, knowledge management helps organizational structures fit in prevailing environmental conditions. However, the literature supporting this argument has been established to be scarce. The researchers used an integrated model to establish whether this assumption exists. A result also presented in a structural equation model revealed that knowledge management proved to have the capacity to mediate between organizational structure and environmental uncertainty. It was revealed that uncertainties in the business environment often compel organizations to reconsider knowledge management as a mitigation measure. Through knowledge management, organization tends to adjust structural models to cope with the environmental uncertainties. This impl...