Harvard Business School professor Dr. John Kotter has been a thought-leader on organizational change, and he developed Kotter’s 8-step change model, which helps business managers deal with organizational change. Kotter created the 8-step model to drive organizational transformation.
The Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model was created by David Nadler and Michael Tushman at Columbia University. The Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model is a diagnostic tool that identifies problem areas within a company. In the context of business, congruence occurs when the goals of different people or interest groups coincide.
McKinsey’s Seven Degrees of Freedom for Growth is a strategy tool. Developed by partners at McKinsey and Company, the tool helps businesses understand which opportunities will contribute to expansion, and therefore it helps to prioritize those initiatives.
Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy is a strategy development model that examines five different perspectives (plan, ploy, pattern, position, perspective) to develop a successful business strategy. A sixth perspective has been developed over the years, called Practice, which was created to help businesses execute their strategies.
The COSO framework is a means of designing, implementing, and evaluating control within an organization. The COSO framework’s five components are control environment, risk assessment, control activities, information and communication, and monitoring activities. As a fraud risk management tool, businesses can design, implement, and evaluate internal control procedures.
The TOWS Matrix is an acronym for Threats, Opportunities, Weaknesses, and Strengths. The matrix is a variation on the SWOT Analysis, and it seeks to address criticisms of the SWOT Analysis regarding its inability to show relationships between the various categories.
Lewin’s change management model helps businesses manage the uncertainty and resistance associated with change. Kurt Lewin, one of the first academics to focus his research on group dynamics, developed a three-stage model. He proposed that the behavior of individuals happened as a function of group behavior.
The Standard for Portfolio Management (SfPfM) describes a suite of portfolio management processes concerning programs, projects, and organizational strategy. The Standard for Portfolio Management is a creation of the Project Management Institute (PMI).
Change is an important and necessary fact of life for all organizations. But change is often unsuccessful because the people within organizations are resistant to change. Change management is a systematic approach to managing the transformation of organizational goals, values, technologies, or processes.
An organizational structure allows companies to shape their business model according to several criteria (like products, segments, geography and so on) that would enable information to flow through the organizational layers for better decision-making, cultural development, and goals alignment across employees, managers, and executives.
The Margerison-McCann team management wheel was developed by Dr. Charles Margerison and Dr. Dick McCann. Margerison – an author and psychologist – partnered with scientist and organizational behaviorist McCann to determine why some teams were effective while others with a similar skillset were not.
Greiner’s growthmodel, also known as the Greiner curve, describes the various phases and crises an organization may experience as it grows. Greiner’s growthmodel is not specific to any industry, instead providing a general overview of the various problems a company may encounter as its size increases. If nothing else, the model highlights the fact that growth is inherently difficult. Greiner’s growth model is comprised of six phases, with each comprising a different stage of company maturity. These are growth through creativity, direction, delegation, coordination and monitoring, collaboration, and extra-organizational solutions.
Deloitte Business Chemistry is a model that organizations use to develop emotional intelligence within teams.
Deloitte Business Chemistry is a way to increase the emotional intelligence of individuals with organizational teams. It seeks to provide clarification on common organizational problems around team harmony and effectiveness.
Deloitte Business Chemistry is characterized by four working styles: pioneers, drivers, guardians, and integrators. Whilst employees may embody a mix of all four styles depending on the context, they tend to prefer one style over the others.
The Mullins’ Seven Domains model is used by entrepreneurs to determine whether a new business idea is viable.
The Mullins’ Seven Domains model assesses an idea from seven perspectives (domains). Four pertain to micro and macro level factors across the industry and environment, while a further three relate to the team within the start-up.
The Mullins’ Seven Domains model is not a checklist that must be satisfied for organizational success. Nor is it a summary of what most people know about testing a new idea or starting a new company.
The Galbraith star model was developed by American organizational theorist Jay R. Galbraith in 1982. The model provides a framework with which an organization can sustain its value propositions and business model over time.
Swimlane diagrams are a type of cross-functional flowchart developed by organizational consultants Geary Rummler and Alan Brache in 1990. The pair built on pre-existing multi-column process charts to better illustrate processes involving more than one unit or department. A swimlane diagram is used in process flowcharts to clarify job sharing and job responsibility.
Key Highlights
Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model: Developed by Dr. John Kotter, this model provides a structured approach to managing organizational change. It consists of eight sequential steps to drive successful transformation within an organization.
Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model: Created by David Nadler and Michael Tushman, this model helps diagnose problem areas within a company by focusing on the alignment or congruence of various elements within an organization, such as people, tasks, culture, and structure.
McKinsey’s Seven Degrees of Freedom: This strategy tool, developed by McKinsey and Company, aids businesses in understanding growth opportunities and prioritizing expansion initiatives. It provides a framework for making informed decisions about growth strategies.
Mintzberg’s 5Ps: Developed by Henry Mintzberg, this strategy development model emphasizes five different perspectives (plan, ploy, pattern, position, perspective) to create a successful business strategy. An additional perspective, “Practice,” has been added to address strategy execution.
COSO Framework: The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) framework provides a structured approach to designing, implementing, and evaluating internal controls within an organization. It focuses on control environment, risk assessment, control activities, information and communication, and monitoring activities.
TOWS Matrix: An extension of the SWOT analysis, the TOWS Matrix addresses criticisms of the SWOT by considering the relationships between Threats, Opportunities, Weaknesses, and Strengths. It aids in strategic planning.
Lewin’s Change Management: Developed by Kurt Lewin, this model provides a three-stage process (unfreezing, changing, refreezing) to manage organizational change and overcome resistance by considering group dynamics and behavior.
Standard for Portfolio Management: Created by the Project Management Institute (PMI), this standard outlines portfolio management processes related to programs, projects, and organizational strategy, aiding organizations in effective portfolio management.
Change Management: Change management is a systematic approach to handling the transformation of organizational goals, values, technologies, or processes. It addresses the challenges of managing change and ensuring its successful adoption.
Organizational Structures: Organizational structures determine how information and decision-making flow within a company. They are shaped based on various criteria such as products, segments, geography, etc., and align employees, managers, and executives.
Team Management Wheel: Developed by Margerison and McCann, this model categorizes team members into specific roles (pioneers, drivers, guardians, integrators) to enhance emotional intelligence and team effectiveness.
Greiner’s Growth Model: The Greiner curve identifies six phases (growth through creativity, direction, delegation, coordination and monitoring, collaboration, extra-organizational solutions) that organizations may experience during growth, highlighting the challenges faced in different growth stages.
Deloitte Business Chemistry: Deloitte’s model focuses on enhancing emotional intelligence within teams by categorizing team members into four working styles (pioneers, drivers, guardians, integrators) to improve team harmony and effectiveness.
Mullins’ Seven Domains: A tool for entrepreneurs, this model assesses the viability of a business idea from seven perspectives (industry, environment, team, etc.) to help evaluate the potential success of a new venture.
Galbraith Star Model: Developed by Jay R. Galbraith, this model provides a framework for sustainable organizational value proposition and business model by considering strategy, structure, processes, rewards, and people.
Swimlane Diagram: A type of cross-functional flowchart, the swimlane diagram clarifies job sharing and responsibility in processes involving multiple units or departments, helping visualize the flow of tasks.
Airbnb follows a holacracy model, or a sort of flat organizational structure, where teams are organized for projects, to move quickly and iterate fast, thus keeping a lean and flexible approach. Airbnb also moved to a hybrid model where employees can work from anywhere and meet on a quarterly basis to plan ahead, and connect to each other.
eBay was until recently a multi-divisional (M-form) organization with semi-autonomous units grouped according to the services they provided. Today, eBay has a single division called Marketplace, which includes eBay and its international iterations.
IBM has an organizational structure characterized by product-based divisions, enabling its strategy to develop innovative and competitive products in multiple markets. IBM is also characterized by function-based segments that support product development and innovation for each product-based division, which include Global Markets, Integrated Supply Chain, Research, Development, and Intellectual Property.
Sony has a matrix organizational structure primarily based on function-based groups and product/business divisions. The structure also incorporates geographical divisions. In 2021, Sony announced the overhauling of its organizational structure, changing its name from Sony Corporation to Sony Group Corporation to better identify itself as the headquarters of the Sony group of companies skewing the company toward product divisions.
Facebook is characterized by a multi-faceted matrix organizational structure. The company utilizes a flat organizational structure in combination with corporate function-based teams and product-based or geographic divisions. The flat organization structure is organized around the leadership of Mark Zuckerberg, and the key executives around him. On the other hand, the function-based teams based on the main corporate functions (like HR, product management, investor relations, and so on).
Google (Alphabet) has a cross-functional (team-based) organizational structure known as a matrix structure with some degree of flatness. Over the years, as the company scaled and it became a tech giant, its organizational structure is morphing more into a centralized organization.
Tesla is characterized by a functional organizational structure with aspects of a hierarchical structure. Tesla does employ functional centers that cover all business activities, including finance, sales, marketing, technology, engineering, design, and the offices of the CEO and chairperson. Tesla’s headquarters in Austin, Texas, decide the strategic direction of the company, with international operations given little autonomy.
McDonald’s has a divisional organizational structure where each division – based on geographical location – is assigned operational responsibilities and strategic objectives. The main geographical divisions are the US, internationally operated markets, and international developmental licensed markets. And on the other hand, the hierarchical leadership structure is organized around regional and functional divisions.
Walmart has a hybrid hierarchical-functional organizational structure, otherwise referred to as a matrix structure that combines multiple approaches. On the one hand, Walmart follows a hierarchical structure, where the current CEO Doug McMillon is the only employee without a direct superior, and directives are sent from top-level management. On the other hand, the function-based structure of Walmart is used to categorize employees according to their particular skills and experience.
Microsoft has a product-type divisional organizational structure based on functions and engineering groups. As the company scaled over time it also became more hierarchical, however still keeping its hybrid approach between functions, engineering groups, and management.
Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
