Cellular organizational structure

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Suppose that this 3x3 grid image depicts a social group with nine homogeneous people. With them all in communication with at least one other person, as symbolized by the black lines, the top left individual is part of both a three-person project (area in light red) and a four-person project (area in teal). Organized in a cellular structure, the group may still have both of those projects survive even if the top left person drops out of everything. 3x3 grid graph haven.svg
Suppose that this 3x3 grid image depicts a social group with nine homogeneous people. With them all in communication with at least one other person, as symbolized by the black lines, the top left individual is part of both a three-person project (area in light red) and a four-person project (area in teal). Organized in a cellular structure, the group may still have both of those projects survive even if the top left person drops out of everything.

A non-biological entity with a cellular organizational structure (also known as a cellular organization, cellular system, nodal organization, nodal structure, et cetera) is set up in such a way that it mimics how natural systems within biology work, with individual 'cells' or 'nodes' working somewhat independently to establish goals and tasks, administer those things, and troubleshoot difficulties." These cells exist in a broader network in which they frequently communicate with each other, exchanging information, in a more or less even organizational playing field. Numerous examples have existed both in economic terms as well as for groups working towards other pursuits. This structure, as applied in areas such as business management, exists in direct contrast to traditional hierarchical leadership that is seen in institutions such as United States federal government agencies, where one type of supervisor gives specific orders to another supervisor and so on down the line. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Background and concepts

Creating cellular organizations fundamentally involves mimicking processes that occur in natural processes. This entails fostering both strong senses of independence and interdependence, with improvement being seen at a central level as a continuous, gradual phenomenon. Each individual cell experiences either negative or positive reinforcements for its specific behaviors. Advocates for these organizational structures state that their key asset is adaptability. [1] [2]

With respect to armed conflict, political revolutionaries such as Che Guevera and Mao Tse-tung advocated this kind of approach in terms of mounting guerrilla warfare. Should the state take out a few clandestine cell groups, many other nodes within the general structure remain to continue fighting on. The two figures highlighted this in their influential writings. More recently, government entities such as the United States Department of Homeland Security (itself a strictly managed hierarchical system) have faced problems dealing with terrorist organizations due to those groups' efficient use of cellular organizational planning. [1]

A cellular business structure is partly related, philosophically speaking, to the notion of 'spontaneous order' described by prominent Austrian–British social theorist F. A. Hayek. The theory posits that free association and open access to up-to-date information will lead to individuals naturally creating and sustaining social groups to co-operate for mutual benefit. Information management is a crucial aspect of why even otherwise successful groups will face compounding difficulties and perhaps fail due to problems with interpersonal communication and other issues.

Research and specific examples

Gabe Newell, pictured speaking in 2010, is one of the co-creators of Valve. Gabe Newell GDC 2010.jpg
Gabe Newell, pictured speaking in 2010, is one of the co-creators of Valve.

A prominent example of a 'spontaneous order' based organization is the software company Valve and its Steam platform, which has been used for digital distribution of video game related materials. Economist Yanis Varoufakis, who has been a professor at both the University of Athens and the University of Texas as well as a Valve consultant, has remarked on the program EconTalk that "the mobility within the corporation is a great asset, and everybody recognizes it". He's also stated, "Everybody's desk is on wheels. There are only two plugs that need to be unplugged in order to shift from one team to another." [4]

Outside of the economic context, World War II featured a variety of different conflict zones practicing various tactics. Fighting against the onslaught of Nazi Germany, anti-fascist militants such as Marshal Josip Broz Tito's partisans organized in a distributed manner so that they could make spontaneous-like attacks before melting away into the general area. The diversity of leadership meant that each individual cell of militants had significant leeway, though they felt strictly loyal to Tito and the general anti-Nazi cause. Many of these partisans remained involved in Yugoslavian affairs after the war ended. [1]

Professors Brent B. Allred, Raymond E. Miles, and Charles C. Snow have cited instances of cellular organization in terms of the telecommunications industry in Australia, specifically referring to the firm Technical Computing and Graphics (TCG) as an example due to how its processes have created successful work for partners such as Hitachi and Telstra. [2]

Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos, has remarked that his business considers cellular-type self-management groups to be a key to its potential longevity, highlighting the contrast between a standard corporate structure and that of a diverse city. In a 2017 interview on the U.S. news program PBS NewsHour , he remarked, "Most companies, as they get bigger, they become less nimble, less innovative, less productive. Every time the size of a city doubles, innovation or productivity per resident increases by 15%... you get more people in a relatively smaller area... then you get this crossover of ideas from different creative types and entrepreneurs and businesses." [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

Cell most often refers to:

A hierarchical organization or hierarchical organisation is an organizational structure where every entity in the organization, except one, is subordinate to a single other entity. This arrangement is a form of a hierarchy. In an organization, the hierarchy usually consists of a singular/group of power at the top with subsequent levels of power beneath them. This is the dominant mode of organization among large organizations; most corporations, governments, criminal enterprises, and organized religions are hierarchical organizations with different levels of management, power or authority. For example, the broad, top-level overview of the general organization of the Catholic Church consists of the Pope, then the Cardinals, then the Archbishops, and so on.

In general, a node is a localized swelling or a point of intersection.

Grassroots democracy is a tendency towards designing political processes that shift as much decision-making authority as practical to the organization's lowest geographic or social level of organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Organization</span> Social entity established to meet needs or pursue goals

An organization or organisation, is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose.

Cellular may refer to:

An organizational structure defines how activities such as task allocation, coordination, and supervision are directed toward the achievement of organizational aims.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cardiac conduction system</span> Aspect of heart function

The cardiac conduction system(CCS) transmits the signals generated by the sinoatrial node – the heart's pacemaker, to cause the heart muscle to contract, and pump blood through the body's circulatory system. The pacemaking signal travels through the right atrium to the atrioventricular node, along the bundle of His, and through the bundle branches to Purkinje fibers in the walls of the ventricles. The Purkinje fibers transmit the signals more rapidly to stimulate contraction of the ventricles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cellular network</span> Communication network

A cellular network or mobile network is a communication network where the link to and from end nodes is wireless. The network is distributed over land areas called "cells", each served by at least one fixed-location transceiver. These base stations provide the cell with the network coverage which can be used for transmission of voice, data, and other types of content. A cell typically uses a different set of frequencies from neighboring cells, to avoid interference and provide guaranteed service quality within each cell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Organizational architecture</span> Organization’s built environment

Organizational architecture has two very different meanings. In one sense it literally refers to the organization's built environment and in another sense it refers to architecture metaphorically, as a structure which fleshes out the organizations. The various features of a business's organizational architecture has to be internally consistent in strategy, architecture and competitive environment.

A flat organization is an organizational structure with few or no levels of middle management between staff and executives. An organizational structure refers to the nature of the distribution of the units and positions within it, and also to the nature of the relationships among those units and positions. Tall and flat organizations differ based on how many levels of management are present in the organization and how much control managers are endowed with.

In sociology, a social organization is a pattern of relationships between and among individuals and social groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biological organisation</span> Hierarchy of complex structures and systems within biological sciences

Biological organisation is the hierarchy of complex biological structures and systems that define life using a reductionistic approach. The traditional hierarchy, as detailed below, extends from atoms to biospheres. The higher levels of this scheme are often referred to as an ecological organisation concept, or as the field, hierarchical ecology.

Cellular manufacturing is a process of manufacturing which is a subsection of just-in-time manufacturing and lean manufacturing encompassing group technology. The goal of cellular manufacturing is to move as quickly as possible, make a wide variety of similar products, while making as little waste as possible. Cellular manufacturing involves the use of multiple "cells" in an assembly line fashion. Each of these cells is composed of one or multiple different machines which accomplish a certain task. The product moves from one cell to the next, each station completing part of the manufacturing process. Often the cells are arranged in a "U-shape" design because this allows for the overseer to move less and have the ability to more readily watch over the entire process. One of the biggest advantages of cellular manufacturing is the amount of flexibility that it has. Since most of the machines are automatic, simple changes can be made very rapidly. This allows for a variety of scaling for a product, minor changes to the overall design, and in extreme cases, entirely changing the overall design. These changes, although tedious, can be accomplished extremely quickly and precisely.

A team leader is a person who provides guidance, instruction, direction and leadership to a group of individuals for the purpose of achieving a key result or group of aligned results. Team leaders serves as the steering wheel for a group of individuals who are working towards the same goal for the organisation.

Organizational ethics is the ethics of an organization, and it is how an organization responds to an internal or external stimulus. Organizational ethics is interdependent with the organizational culture. Although it is to both organizational behavior and industrial and organizational psychology as well as business ethics on the micro and macro levels, organizational ethics is neither organizational behavior nor industrial and organizational psychology, nor is it solely business ethics. Organizational ethics express the values of an organization to its employees and/or other entities irrespective of governmental and/or regulatory laws.

A clandestine cell system is a method for organizing a group of people such that such people can more effectively resist penetration by an opposing organization.

Business agility refers to rapid, continuous, and systematic evolutionary adaptation and entrepreneurial innovation directed at gaining and maintaining competitive advantage. Business agility can be sustained by maintaining and adapting the goods and services offered to meet with customer demands, adjusting to the marketplace changes in a business environment, and taking advantage of available human resources.

Quick response manufacturing (QRM) is an approach to manufacturing which emphasizes the beneficial effect of reducing internal and external lead times.

Holacracy is a method of decentralized management and organizational governance, which claims to distribute authority and decision-making through a holarchy of self-organizing teams rather than being vested in a management hierarchy. Holacracy has been adopted by for-profit and non-profit organizations in several countries. This can be seen as a greater movement within organisational design to cope with increasing complex social environments, that promises a greater degree of transparency, effectiveness and agility.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Schley, Don G. (November 2009). Rahim, M. Afzalur (ed.). Current Topics in Management: Organizational Behavior, Performance, and Effectiveness, Volume 14. Transaction Publishers. pp. 119–146. ISBN   9781412843393.
  2. 1 2 3 Allred, Brent B.; Miles, Raymond E.; Snow, Charles C. (2003). McKern, Bruce (ed.). Managing the Global Network Corporation. Psychology Press. pp. 211–218. ISBN   9780415297059.
  3. ↑ Miles, Raymond E.; Snow, Charles S.; Mathews, John A.; Miles, Grant; Coleman, Henry J. (1997). "Organizing in the knowledge age: Anticipating the cellular form". Academy of Management Perspectives. 11 (4): 7–20. doi:10.5465/AME.1997.9712024836.
  4. ↑ "EconTalk - Varoufakis on Valve, Spontaneous Order, and the European Crisis". Library of Economics and Liberty - EconTalk. February 25, 2013. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Zappos is a weird company — and it's happy that way". PBS NewsHour. March 2, 2017. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
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