Project Management: Achieving Competitive Advantage, Fifth Edition

Organizational Structure

1. LO 2.4 Recognize the strengths and weaknesses of three basic forms of organizational structure and their implications for managing projects.

The word structure implies organization. People who work in an organization are grouped so that their efforts can be channeled for maximum efficiency. Organizational structure consists of three key elements:20

1. Organizational structure designates formal reporting relationships, including the number of levels in the hierarchy and the span of control of managers and supervisors. Who reports to whom in the structural hierarchy? This is a key component of a firm’s structure. A span of control determines the number of subordinates directly reporting to each supervisor. In some structures ...