The Chain of Command - Essay Example

Pros and Cons of the Chain of Command Table of Contents Introduction 3 2. Advantages of ‘Chain of Command’ 4 2 Lines ity 4 2.2. Lines of Responsibility 5 2.3. Lines of Communication 5 2.4. Other Advantages 5 3. Disadvantages of Chain of Command 6 3.1. Rigidity 7 3.2. Time Consuming Approach 7 3.3. Create Confusions 7 3.4. More Discussion and Lesser Actions 8 4. Conclusion 9 References 10 1. Introduction According to Schulman and Kowadlo (2004), ‘The Chain of Command’ is referred as the formal and systematic flow of orders, information and responsibilities. It is largely based on the organizational hierarchy and the size of the business. The aspect of ‘Chain of Command’ is termed to be essential for an organization due to the fact that it assists the employees to understand their roles and responsibilities in the organization. It also assists the top managerial team to supervise the organisational operations in a systematic and organized form (Schulman, M. & Kowadlo, B. F., “Working Smart”). On the contrary, due to the changing scenario of business in the modern era, various disadvantages and complexities are arising in maintaining a specified ‘chain of command’ within an organization. With this concern, the paper shall aim at identifying the various pros and cons of ‘chain of command’ in the managerial aspect. 2. Advantages of ‘Chain of Command’ In the managerial perspective, the aspect of ‘Chain of Command’ is termed to be one of the crucial factors of organizational behavior. It not only determines the organizational hierarchy but also signifies the roles and responsibilities of every associate in a specified manner. On the whole, it assists the executors of a business to form a well-structured organizational chart, which considers three aspects, i.e. line of authority, line of responsibility and line of communications in the internal environment of the organization (Schulman, M. & Kowadlo, B. F., “Working Smart”). Thereby, the advantages of ‘Chain of Command’ can be described as follows: 2.1. Lines of Authority A well-developed ‘Chain of Command’ assists in developing a specified and structured line of authority within the organizational hierarchy. The line of authority demonstrates the flow of authority from the top level management comprising of president(s), director(s), executive(s), and others. Hence, it assists the top level managers of the company to organize the company’s operations in a systematic manner (Schulman, M. & Kowadlo, B. F., “Working Smart”). 2.2. Lines of Responsibility The ‘Chain of Command’ also assists the organizational structure by defining the lines of responsibility. To be precise, the line of responsibility signifies the responsibilities of every participant according to their power of authority and position in the organizational hierarchy (Schulman, M. & Kowadlo, B. F., “Working Smart”). 2.3. Lines of Communication Apart from determining the lines of authority and responsibility, the ‘Chain of Command’ also specifies the lines of communication, i.e. the flow of information from the top level management to the lower level workers in the organizational hierarchy; and the flow of accountability from the lower level worker to the top level management group (Schulman, M. & Kowadlo, B. F., “Working Smart”). 2.4. Other Advantages Other than these basic advantages, the implication of ‘Chain of Command’ also has many other pros to benefit the organization and its stakeholders at large. They are as follows: By providing a firm structure of the organizational hierarchy and demonstrating the various lines of authority, responsibility and communication, the ‘Chain of Command’ assists the organization to utilize its resources with minimized wastage It also assists the employees to enhance their managerial, leadership and generic skills Helps eradicating confusion uprising in terms of authority, responsibility and communication in the internal environment of the organization Source: (Mukherjee, S., “Organisation & Management and Business Communication”) 3. Disadvantages of Chain of Command Along with the advantages, there are several disadvantages of the ‘Chain of Command’ in its realistic practices as well. However, the disadvantages of ‘Chain of Command’ depend highly on its form, i.e. centralized or decentralized. It also depends on the organizational structure. Illustratively, the disadvantages or the shortcomings of the ‘Chain of Command’ are as follows: 3.1. Rigidity The single form of ‘Chain of Command’ is termed to be rigid providing the organization with limited flexibility and adaptability of change which is connoted to be one of the major factors of the modern day businesses. Notably, the single form of ‘Chain of Command’ is termed to focus on the top to bottom flow of information and accountability in a centralized structure (Texas State Auditors Office, “Organization Structure”). 3.2. Time Consuming Approach According to the principles of the ‘Chain of Command’, the lines of instructions, orders and the authority follow a specified sequence, which can in turn raise the constraint in time. Thus, the implication of ‘Chain of Command’ can emerge as a time consuming process (Texas State Auditors Office, “Organization Structure”). 3.3. Create Confusions Where on one hand, the centralized form of ‘Chain of Command’ can become nonflexible; the decentralized form can create confusions among the employees. It is due to the fact that the decentralized form of ‘Chain of Command’ denotes multiple flows of information and orders (Mukherjee, S., “Organisation & Management and Business Communication”). 3.4. More Discussion and Lesser Actions One of the major characteristics of the ‘Chain of Command’ is that it is a free-form approach when applied in a decentralized form. Even in the case of a centralized ‘Chain of Command’ the flow of information takes place according to the organizational hierarchy and the rules and regulations prescribed by the company. This generally happens through meetings and several discussions among the top management group which stretches the process of discussion with a narrowed process of execution (Mukherjee, S., “Organisation & Management and Business Communication”). 4. Conclusion ‘Chain of Command’ undoubtedly holds a remarkable significance in rewarding effectivity and efficiency to the overall organizational performance. It signifies the organizational hierarchy determining the responsibilities and the authorities of the employees. It also assists the organizational heads to control the organization’s operations in a comprehensive and systematic manner. However, the aspect is influenced by a string of factors such as organizational structure, size, culture and the flow of information followed within the organization. These factors in turn influence the aspect of ‘Chain of Command’ and thus create various disadvantages. Certain disadvantages are rigidity, time constraint, confusion, misunderstanding within the internal environment of the organization and others. Thus, the organizations which are following the concept of ‘Chain of Command’ should execute their performance in such a manner that all these limitations are eradicated without affecting its advantages. References Mukherjee, Sampat. Organisation & Management and Business Communication New Age International, 2005. Schulman, Madelyn. & Kowadlo, Bonnie F. Working Smart Cengage Learning, 2004. Texas State Auditors Office. “Organization Structure”. March 03, 2011. Accountability Modules, 1994. Read More