79Variations and Enterprise Excellence
can develop competencies and capabilities that more traditional structures simply cannot. A matrix
structure gives the organization both a focus on current performance and the ability to vary; thus,
it can be a structure that supports tactical as well as major strategic variation. The combination of
many close-to-the-customer business units and a matrix structure is often the best way to design
a large Built-for-Variation enterprise. Business process outsourcing (BPO) model is popular in
nance, accounting, HR management, and information systems management. BPO arrangements
can produce real cost savings because of the economies of scale an outsourcing rm can achieve.
There is also a core competency adv ...