Chain of command

The chain of command is an unbroken line of authority that links all persons in an organization and defines who reports to whom. This chain has two underlying principles: unity of command and scalar principle.

• Unity of command: This principle states that an employee should have one and only one supervisor to whom he or she is directly responsible. No employee should report to two or more people. Otherwise, the employee may receive conflicting demands or priorities from several supervisors at once, placing this employee in a no-win situation. Sometimes, however, an organization deliberately breaks the chain of command, such as when a project team is created to work on a special project. In such cases, team members report to their immediate supervisor and also to a team project leader. Another example is when a sales representative reports to both an immediate district supervisor and a marketing specialist, who is coordinating the introduction of a new product, in the home office. Nevertheless, these examples are exceptions to the rule. They happen under special circumstances and usually only within a special type of employee group. For the most part, however, when allocating tasks to individuals or grouping assignments, management should ensure that each has one boss, and only one boss, to whom he or she directly reports.

• Authority Flows from Top to Bottom

  Managing Director

  ↓

  Marketing Manager

  ↓

  Sales/ Media Manager

  ↓

  Salesmen

  According to the above diagram, the Managing Director has got the highest level of authority. This authority is shared by the Marketing Manager who shares his authority with the Sales Manager. From this chain of hierarchy, the official chain of communication becomes clear which is helpful in achievement of results and which provides stability to a concern. This scalar chain of command always flow from top to bottom and it defines the authority positions of different managers at different levels.
   

• Scalar principle: The scalar principle refers to a clearly defined line of authority that includes all employees in the organization. The classical school of management suggests that there should be a clear and unbroken chain of command linking every person in the organization with successively higher levels of authority up to and including the top manager. When organizations grow in size, they tend to get taller, as more and more levels of management are added. This increases overhead costs, adds more communication layers, and impacts understanding and access between top and bottom levels. It can greatly slow decision making and can lead to a loss of contact with the client or customer. 

ORGANISATION - Meaning and Definition

The term organization is derived form the word “organism” which means structure with parts so integrated that their relation to each other is governed by their relation to whole.

The term organization is used both structural and functional sense. As a structure it means a developed enterprise being operated t achieve the given goals. As a function it refers to establishing relationship between activities and authority pertaining to an enterprise.

Organization is nothing but a process of integrating and co-ordinating the efforts of men and materials for the accomplishment of a set objective.

Definition

“Orgnisation is the process of identifying and grouping work to be performed defining and delegating responsibility and authority and establishing relationship for the purpose of enabling people to work most effectively together in accomplishing objectives.

                                                                                                -ALLEN

Organisation thus is an arrangement for internal administration of the enterprise. It describes the part which each employee is intended to play in the operation of an enterprise and ensures that concerned endeavour of all of them will be conductive to the full implementation of the plans of the enterprise.

Factors included in the concept of organization

a)                  Assembly of business elements such as men, money and materials.

b)                  Creation of formal relationships between men employed at different levels through a hierarchy of authority.

c)                  Defining the functional role of the personnel and laying down the range of their responsibility for business performance.

d)                 Operating the organizational activities in conformity with the establishment objectives of the enterprise.