Understanding Organizations...Finally!: Structure in Sevens

The iconic Henry Mintzberg provides a crystal-clear map to the seven forces that shape all human organizations, synthesizing sixty years of research on organizational design and theory. Human beings have been organizing to accomplish work for as long as we’ve existed. So why is organizational behavior still so elusive and mysterious? In this book, one of the greatest scholars in his field reframes his career’s work around the seven forces that drive all organizations. Mintzberg identifies them as efficiency, proficiency, consolidation, collaboration, culture, division, and conflict. Each of these forces aligns with one of the seven basic organizational forms: the Personal Enterprise, the Programmed Machine, the Professional Assembly, the Project Pioneer, the Divisional Form, the Community Ship, and the Political Arena. Mintzberg explores how these forms combine and hybridize and offers a life-cycle model to explain how organizations transition between the forms and hybrids. Mintzberg says that organizations are formed by a set of relationships, yet their purpose is achieved only through individual work—making the act of organizing a unique science. This brilliant book not only explains why organizations are the way they are, but it also shows how we can make our individual organizations function at the highest possible level. "Synthesizing 60 years of intense research into organizational design and theory, the iconic Henry Mintzberg provides an elegant, plain-English map to the forces that shape all human organizations"-- Human beings have been organizing to accomplish work for as long as we've existed-so why is organizational behavior still so elusive and mysterious? In this book, one of the greatest scholars in his field reframes his career's work around the seven forces that drive all organizations. Mintzberg identifies them as efficiency, proficiency, consolidation, collaboration, culture, division, and conflict. Each of these forces aligns with one of the seven basic organizational forms: the Personal Enterprise, the Programmed Machine, the Professional Assembly, the Project Pioneer, the Divisional Form, the Community Ship, and the Political Arena. Mintzberg explores how these forms combine and hybridize, and offers a life cycle model to explain how organizations transition between the forms and hybrids. Mintzberg says that organizations are formed by a set of relationships, yet their purpose is only achieved through individual work-making the act of organizing a unique science. This brilliant book not only explains why organizations are the way they are, but shows how we can make our individual organizations function at the highest possible level The iconic Henry Mintzberg provides a crystal-clear map to the forms and forces that shape all human organizations, synthesizing his fifty years of research. We live in a world of organizations, from our birth in hospitals until our burial by funeral homes. In between, we are educated, employed, entertained, and exasperated by organizations. We had better understand how these strange beasts really work. But where can we go to find out? Welcome to Understanding Organizations . . . Finally! For half a century, Mintzberg has been observing organizations, advising them, engaging them, and escaping them. Here he offers a masterful update and revision of his 1983 classic, Structure in Fives . Believing there is one best way to structure organizations is the worst way to do so. A better place to start is by recognizing different species of organizations. Mintzberg identifies seven—personal enterprises, programmed machines, professional assemblies, project pioneers, and others. He explores these forms and the seven forces that drive them toward hybrids and across their life cycles. You will find no better guide to the care and feeding of these extraordinarily varied and vital creatures than this book. Cover Half Title Title Copyright Dedication Contents Preface 1 Our World of Organizations Part I: Re-Viewing the Organization 2 The Players and the Parts 3 The Art, Craft, and Science of Organizing Part II: The Building Blocks of Organization Design 4 The Mechanisms to Coordinate 5 The Elements of Design 6 Design in Context Part III: Four Fundamental Forms of Organization 7 The Personal Enterprise 8 The Programmed Machine 9 The Professional Assembly 10 The Project Pioneer 11 The Four Together Part IV: Seven Basic Forces for Organizing 12 A Force for Each Form 13 Three Forces for All the Forms Part V: Three More Forms 14 The Divisional Form 15 The Community Ship 16 The Political Arena Part VI: Balancing the Forces Across the Forms 17 In Praise of the Anchored Form 18 Hail to the Hybrids 19 Riding the Life Cycle across the Forms Part VII: Organizing Beyond Sevens 20 Organizations Outward Bound 21 Opening Up Organization Design Notes Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z About the Author