IT Applications Theory Slideshows

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IT Applications Theory Slideshows
Organisational Decisions and Systems

• By Mark Kelly
• mark_at_vceit.com
• Vceit.com

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Organisation Hierarchy

• A hierarchy (say higher arky) is an arrangement
  where there are different levels of authority or
  power.
• Organisations usually have a hierarchical
  structure, where some people are more powerful or
  important than others.

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Typical hierarchy in organisations
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Typical hierarchy in organisations
STRATEGIC
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Typical management hierarchy in organisations
STRATEGIC
STRATEGIC
TACTICAL
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Typical management hierarchy in organisations
STRATEGIC
STRATEGIC
TACTICAL
OPERATIONAL
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STRATEGIC DECISION MAKERS

• The very highest level of the hierarchy
• Make very big decisions that
• Must consider the whole organisation, not just
  part of it
• Are expensive
• Are long-term (e.g. years)
• Could be disastrous if wrong
• Define the nature of the organisation
• Changes the organisations future

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STRATEGIC DECISION MAKERS

• Typical Strategic level job titles
• Chairman
• President
• CEO (Chief Executive Office)
• Board of Directors
• General Manager

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Tactical Management

• These people are still high-level, and make
  important decisions in their own areas
• But they follow instructions from above from the
  strategic management.
• Tactical managers implement the decisions made at
  the strategic level.
• They take a big idea and work out how to make it
  happen
• Their decisions are usually limited to a sector
  of the org (e.g. advertising, transport) rather
  than the whole org.

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Typical Tactical-Level Job Titles

• Advertising manager
• Personnel manager
• Creative director
• Manager of information systems
• Communications director
• Chief Financial Officer

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Tactical decisions

• Implement strategic decisions
• Are medium-term (e.g. months, weeks)
• Are passed down to the next level of management

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Operational Management

• Operational managers directly manage
  non-management staff and the public.
• They make day-to-day decisions that are vital to
  actually make things, sell things, provide
  services.
• They are at the coal face doing business and
  making money.

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Typical operational job titles

• Store manager
• Foreman
• Army Sergeant

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Strategic Example

• The prime minister and parliament decide to
  invade New Zealand.
• They are top-level STRATEGIC decision-makers.
  They decide on a big, important, risky moves.

Lets invade New Zealand
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Strategic

• They do not carry out the invasion themselves,
  but they take the big decision and issue the
  order to the tactical managers.

Start the invasion, General
Ill get right on it, Sir
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then attack the sheep here and here

• Having been told to invade, the tactical managers
  (e.g. generals, admirals, intelligence agents)
  have to work out how to do it.

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Tactical (continued)

• They muster troops
• They order the purchase of anti-sheep weapons,
  ammunition, food, medical supplies etc

• Each tactical manager has a specific area of
  responsibility to focus on

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Operational management

• But not even the general and colonels will be
  wrestling sheep to the ground.
• They pass their orders to the operational
  managers the lieutenants and sergeants.
• These operational managers are command the
  non-management personnel who actually get the job
  done the troops.

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Operational management

• The captains tell the lieutenants which way to
  lead their troops into the town.
• The lieutenants tell the sergeants which
  buildings to take out.
• The sergeants choose which men will lead the
  attack.
• The troops (non-management) actually do the
  shooting.

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Operational management

• Operational managers deal directly with
  non-management personnel.
• They are the final and vital link in the chain of
  command that leads to action.
• Their decisions are immediate and have a lead
  time of mere days or hours.

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Example 2

• Supershop, a statewide chain of grocery stores
  wants to increase its profit.
• The board of directors discusses how to best
  achieve this.
• They decide they will move into the pharmacy
  sector and include chemist shops in their stores.
• This is a big departure from their usual
  business. Its a strategic decision.

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Tactical

• The directors instruct the tactical managers to
  implement the decision.
• The personnel manager advertises for pharmacists
  to be employed.
• The publicity manager plans a TV newspaper
  campaign to advertise the change.
• The facilities manager puts out tenders for the
  construction work needed.

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Operational

• The builders arrive at a local supermarket.
• The supermarket manager instructs staff to
  reorganise shelving to allow the construction of
  the pharmacy.
• The manager chooses and arranges training for
  staff who will be working in the pharmacy.

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Non-management

• Cheryl, the checkout chick, empties out the
  shelves where the pharmacy will be built.
• Her decision-making is limited to Ill need to
  get a trolley to take these cans to the other
  shelves.

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Drawing the line

• Sometimes its hard to decide whether a decision
  is strategic, tactical or operational.
• It can depend on the size of the organisation.

• Sometimes its hard to decide whether a decision
  is strategic, tactical or operational.
• It can depend on the size of the organisation.

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Drawing the line

• E.g. for Safeway, building a new million-dollar
  store is a relatively minor tactical decision,
  but for the manager of a single gift shop,
  building a second store is a massive, strategic
  decision.

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Drawing the line

• Judge whether the decision will have a
  significant impact on the organisation over quite
  some time. That would be strategic.

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Drawing the line

• If the decision is made to implement a decision
  made by a higher-ranking person (but it doesnt
  actually achieve the end by itelf), its tactical.

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Drawing the line

• If a decision actually leads workers to doing
  something that makes the plan work, its
  operational.

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IT APPLICATIONS SLIDESHOWS

• By Mark Kelly
• mark_at_vceit.com
• vceit.com

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