Organisational structure
Introduced| English | Meaning |
|---|---|
| organisational structure/ˌɔːɡənaɪˈzeɪʃənl ˈstrʌktʃə/ | The arrangement of roles, responsibilities and reporting relationships within an organisation. |
| organisation chart/ˌɔːɡənaɪˈzeɪʃn tʃɑːt/ | A diagram showing positions, departments and reporting relationships within an organisation. |
| hierarchy/ˈhaɪərɑːki/ | An arrangement of people, categories or elements in ranked levels. |
| chain of command/tʃeɪn ɒv kəˈmænd/ | The sequence of authority and reporting relationships linking levels of an organisation. |
| span of control/spæn ɒv kənˈtrəʊl/ | Subordinates per manager. |
| subordinates/sʌˈbɔːdɪnəts/ | Employees or members of an organisation who report to someone in a position of greater authority. |
| tall/tɔːl/ | Tight control, slow. |
| flat/flæt/ | flat |
| empowerment/emˈpaʊəmənt/ | Giving employees authority and resources to make decisions affecting their work. |
Who reports to whom
- As a business grows past a handful of people, someone has to decide who does what and who answers to whom.
- That map of roles and reporting lines is the organisational structure 组织结构.
Choose the ownership form
Compare ownership, control and liability in real business types.
A diagram showing roles and reporting lines is an organisation ______.
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The org chart shows hierarchy and the chain of command.
The organisation chart 组织结构图
- An organisation chart shows roles, levels of hierarchy 层级, and reporting lines.
- It makes responsibility and the chain of command 指挥链 clear.
Each level reports to the one above; authority flows down the chain of command.
The span of control is:
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Span of control = direct subordinates per manager.
The chain of command is:
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It is the line down which authority flows.
Span of control 管理幅度 and chain of command
- Span of control: the number of subordinates 下属 a manager directly oversees.
- Chain of command: the line of authority from top to bottom.
- A wide span means fewer levels; a narrow span means more.
A tall organisational structure tends to have:
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Tall structures have many levels and narrow spans.
Widening spans of control tends to make a structure flatter.
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Wider spans reduce the number of levels.
Tall 高耸型 vs flat 扁平型 structures
- Tall: many levels, narrow spans — tight control, but slow communication.
- Flat: few levels, wide spans — fast communication and empowerment 授权, but managers stretched.
Tall structures have many levels and narrow spans; flat structures have few levels and wide spans
Wide span ↔ flat structure. Widening spans of control reduces the number of levels (flatter); narrowing them adds levels (taller). The two ideas are linked, not independent.
You've got it
- an organisation chart shows hierarchy, roles and the chain of command
- span of control = subordinates per manager; wide span → flatter structure
- tall = tight control, slow; flat = fast, empowering, but stretches managers