Designing Organizational SystemsCornell Course

In times of change, organizational designers may respond by proposing modifications to the formal structure of an organization, perhaps by adding new divisions, changing the vertical hierarchy, or adopting alternatives to the traditional structures. While these are all methods of adjusting the formal structure of an organization, sometimes it is not feasible to make changes to the formal structure of an organization.

In such cases, an organizational designer may choose to use policies, systems, practices, and culture to overcome the limitations of formal organizational structure. The proper adjustments to these powerful mechanisms can enhance organizational effectiveness and achieve desired outcomes by linking groups and activities.

In this course, you will review research-based approaches to redesigning policies, systems, and practices to better manage your business and your workforce. You will consider which policies, systems, and practices to change and which to leave alone based on examples of real-world success and not-so-successful stories from companies around the globe. You'll also gain the skills you need to analyze organizations as social entities and consider ways you can use things like social capital, organizational culture, and informal groups to smooth the work functions. Finally, you will consider ways to combine and align these integration mechanisms — policies, systems, practices, and culture — to solve a specific organizational issue. You'll also look critically at some of the latest fads or trends in organizational design.

You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course:

• Fundamentals of Organizational Design
• Assessing Organizations in Context
• Analyzing Formal Organizational Structure