Test Your Feel For...

The Structuralist Approach

Works best when:

A meritocratic focus on capability of people is required to ensure tasks are successfully completed.

Drive for action:

There is a desire for a combination of certainty, stability and high efficiency.

The issue reveals that the existing organization of procedures or posts is not fully or properly developed: e.g. re-organization, disciplinary appeals
&
Individuals in one or more specific posts can be personally held to account for the issue.

Involvement of others:

Everyone is a post-holder i.e. in a depersonalized position (or role) that might be filled by someone else if necessary.

Unique strengths:

● All possible decision situations are covered.
● Everyone has autonomy in a demarcated sphere of discretion and may use their own decision style.

Intrinsic dangers:

● Loss of direct contact with specific goals, facts and people.
● Proliferation of posts, committees, meetings as part of empire building.
● Becomes mechanistic, bureaucratic, petty, rigid, impersonal, remote.
● Over-values running a smoothly-oiled machine and can stifle innovation.
● Excessive preoccupations with status.

Less appropriate if:

● Assignment or delegation is inappropriate.
● The validity of the issue is in question
● There are polarized views of how it should be handled.

Typical Work Roles

The dutiful bureaucrat thrives in an environment dominated by precedent and adherence to set rules, procedures and schedules. He sees his task as maintaining the existing system and ensuring there are no loose ends. He operates in a cautious, correct, impersonal and dependable way. He is often concerned to be efficient and equitable. A treasurer or committee secretary might properly operate in this way.

The organizational chief is a line-executive who is oriented towards achievement. Each line manager sees his job as setting appropriate tasks for his subordinates within a policy-priority framework, and then not interfering with the exercise of discretion used by subordinates in completing these tasks. That discretion would include deciding how any decision is to be made. The operation of the executive is instrumental and focused on a concern to determine and apply an individual's capability to suitable assignments.

Misuse

Structuralist decision-making is about authority, and hence about power. While power-centred individuals do not particularly like rational systematic elements, they do like using people as instruments and are preoccupied with status. In any case, the assignment and exercise of power and the desire for management control have potentially deleterious effects on anyone. That is what leads to empire building and proliferation of support roles for the emperor but not for subordinates. The common metaphor of «silo» mentality reflects the way movement of information outside borders is inhibited or blocked, and the placing of obstacles in the path of cooperation with outsiders.

Return to the Summary Table.

Originally posted: 3-Apr-2011.