Organization Structure is a Business Initiative Not an HR Initiative

By Michelle Malay Carter on August 14, 2008 

People System Integration and AlignmentPlaying off a line from my last post, organization structure is a business initiative, not an HR initiative.?

A Missing Collective Understanding
I think executives underestimate the connection between organization design as well as all of an organization’s “people” systems, i.e. compensation, performance management, talent management, and organizational sustainability.

When executives push down the accountability and decision making around those crucial people systems into non-strategic layers of the organization, the ramifications are huge.? You will get incremental innovation or improvements to current operations, but not more.? So who is accountable for the future focused work in these areas?

An Organizational Structure Design Imperative
Some role at the executive level (Level 4+)?that is occupied by a person capable of thinking strategically must be stewarding the system design in the critical areas!? It may be an HR role, it may be not, whether it’s HR is not really the point.

A Title is Not Enough – You’ve Got to Examine the Work!
Unfortunately, even when HR staff are “titled” with executive titles, a requisite work levels?examination?of their actual work often finds their work tasking and delivery to be at an operational level (Level 3 or below), rather than a strategic level, i.e. executive level work.

You Get What You Design For
When people systems are designed at a lower than 4 level, you will get processes and procedures, but you will not get cross program integration nor will you get future focused change work focused upon the infrastructure changes and current operations changes necessary to deliver strategic goals beyond two years.

I’m OK.? You’re OK.? Let’s fix the system.

Have you ever been a victim of a poorly designed, non-integrated people system?

Filed Under Accountability, Executive Leadership, Organization Design, Requisite Organization, Strategy, Talent Management, Work Levels

Comments

4 Responses to “Organization Structure is a Business Initiative Not an HR Initiative”

  1. Scot Herrick on August 14th, 2008 4:37 pm

    One of the lesser known hits from flattening of organizations is that managers do far more task work like individual contributors instead of managing the work of their individual contributors. This reaches very high in an organization.

    The unintended result is that a lot of managers do not understand how the work gets done by their team. That leads directly to poorly designed organizations — because they don’t know what people actually do.

    Good post.

  2. Michelle Malay Carter on August 14th, 2008 5:41 pm

    Hi Scott,

    Welcome. Good point. Yes, managers should be integrating the work of their direct report team. They cannot do this if they don’t what the work is. Thanks for the comment.

    Regards,

    Michelle

  3. Eric Pennington on August 19th, 2008 11:15 am

    Wonderful insights, Michelle.

    I’m glad that you always address the system issues.

  4. Michelle Malay Carter on August 19th, 2008 8:42 pm

    Hi Eric,

    Thanks for the encouragement.

    Regards,

    Michelle