The main ideas about Contingency Theory are:
- There is no universal or one best way to manage
- The design of an organisations and its subsystems must 'fit' with the environment
- Effective organisations not only have a proper 'fit' with the environment but also between its subsystems and
- The needs of an organisation are better satisfied when it is properly designed and the management style is appropriate both to the tasks undertaken and the nature of the work group.
The contingency approach opens the door for the possibility that leadership could be different in every situation (Saal and Knight, 1988). It provides a more realistic view of leadership by allowing for complexity and situational specificity of overall effectiveness. As organisations today are faced with continuing changes in technology, environment conditions, and internal processes, this approach can offer a more sophisticated understanding of the leadership process and emphasise the idea of flexible, adaptive leadership that may contribute to the success of a company.
However, the various models in contingency theory have been criticised largely for the difficulty in testing the contingency variables selected since variables may affect each other or be influenced by a leader. The complexity of situational factors and various combinations of task and subordinate characteristics makes a single comprehensive test of the model impossible (Wagner and Hollenbeck, 1992). As it is entirely possible that different leaders in the same situation may reach different conclusions about the situation, which may in turn cause them to take very different actions, the practical use of this theory in business is quite limited.
Though the current tall structure and Role culture at Gazda internally complement each other, one can question whether those are the most efficient with regards to the dynamic and highly competitive external environment. Role culture and tall structure is perfectly suited in a stable external environment but cannot maintain maximum productivity in an unpredictable and rapidly changing external environment. Such structures and cultures lack the flexibility to quickly adapt to external influences; it is commonly known that if one cannot adapt to ones external environment then one is in great danger of becoming extinct.
It is important to identify the need for reorganisation culture, process and structure. If reorganisation can be justified than the most feasible and effective approach should be implemented to replace its predecessor.
The structure at Gazda is a much closed system where information processing and co-operation are slow. It can be said communication is the way to success, hence in order to achieve maximum efficiency champion manufactures need to increase levels of cooperation and information processing to improve the internal environment.
Maybe a more organic approach, being an open system which emphasis is placed in group actions; co-operation and team work should be integrated into the present structure and culture along with lateral relationships. The pre dominant advantages of integrating these two new elements are firstly, allowing direct contact between employees and those higher up the hierarchy, hence problems are addressed quicker and time is used efficiently both the current structure and culture will successfully take the business further.
In contrast to a tall organisation, a flat organisation will have relatively few layers or just one layer of management. This means that the “Chain of Command” from top to bottom is short and the “span of control is wide”. Due to the small number of management layers, flat organisations are often small organisations similar to Bomino Printing. A task culture refers to a team based approach to complete a particular task. They are popular in today's modern business society where the organisation will establish particular 'project teams' to complete a task to date. A task culture clearly offers some benefits. Employees feel motivated because they are empowered to make decisions within their team, they will also feel valued because they may have been selected within that team and given the responsibility to bring the task to a successful end. I say they are both related because the informal structure relates to a particular task carried out by particular groups of individuals working together this is of a similar nature to a task culture.
Decision making at managerial levels is more efficient as fewer people need to be informed/included in this process. Thirdly, staff motivation is increased at higher levels of co-operation means employees are not constantly being given simple direct orders by managers. This has a boosting affect on morale and motivation. Last but not least with a free flow of information present, all departments can be encouraged to succumb to change, therefore enabling the organisation to respond to influential external factors. Bomino Printing should remain loyal to the present culture and structure because this will help them build and progress further in the future.
Bibliography
Human resource management – Ian Beardwell and Len Holden
Management – James A.F Stoner (Fifth edition)
Organisations and behaviour – Patrick Corner
Principles of scientific management – Fredrick W. Taylor
Web sites –
http://www.business.com/directory/management/management_theory/contingency_and_system_theory/
