Organisation and management
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. |
| autocratic/ˌɔːtəʊˈkrætɪk/ | Describing a leadership style in which decisions are made by the leader with little input from others. |
| democratic/ˌdeməˈkrætɪk/ | Describing leadership that involves group members in discussion and decision-making. |
| laissez-faire/ˈleɪsez feə/ | Describing leadership that gives members substantial freedom to make decisions with little direct intervention. |
| delegated/ˈdelɪɡeɪtɪd/ | delegated |
Organising the people
- Once a business has more than a few staff, someone must decide who does what and who reports to whom.
- The result 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 who reports to whom.
- It makes the chain of command 指挥链 and responsibilities clear.
Authority flows down the chain of command, level by level.
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 the top down.
- A wide span means fewer levels (flatter); a narrow span means more levels (taller).
Managers organise and lead the workforce
An autocratic leader:
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Autocratic leaders decide alone.
A manager who delegates a task is still responsible for the result.
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Authority is delegated; responsibility is not.
Roles and styles
- Managers plan, organise, command, coordinate and control.
- Leadership styles: autocratic 专制型 (the leader decides), democratic 民主型 (consults staff), laissez-faire 放任型 (hands-off).
Authority can be delegated 授权; responsibility stays with the manager. A manager can pass a task down the chain, but is still accountable for whether it gets done.
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
- leadership styles: autocratic, democratic, laissez-faire