Functional versus Divisional Organizational Structure - Case Study Example

HR Planning and Recruitment Student’s Name Institution Date HR Planning and Recruitment The organisational structure of Upstream International is divided into specific geographical regions, each performing specific functions related to their mandates. The organisational structure is designed to handle specific regional functions which the firm performs across the world. Upstream International is headed by Malcolm Brinded, who holds the title of Executive Director. The firm’s organisational structure has been divided into different geographical units to boost collaborations with different stakeholders in specific regions. As a result, the executive director oversees the functions performed by the firm’s different divisions in the global market. There are several divisions in the firm which report directly to the Executive Director (Vorser 2009). The EVP Exploration whose responsibility is to explore for hydrocarbons in different geographical regions reports directly to the Director. The commercial, business and LNG unit is also under the direct authority of the director. EVP Europe, EVP Sub-Saharan Africa, EVP Middle East/North Africa and other units in Qatar, Asia, Australia and Russia are all under the direct authority of the executive director. Some of the senior officers in the firm who report to the executive director include Marvin Odum who the Americas division. He is required to report to the manager on heavy oil, deep water, onshore gas and exploration activities in different parts of Americas (Vorser 2009) . The Chief Information Officer and the Chief Auditor will head the finance department and they will report directly to the Executive Director. The Chief HR and Reports Officer will receive reports from other regions and he will coordinate various HR issues that occur in different regions where the firm’s operations are based. The structure used by the firm has both divisional and functional elements. The divisional aspects of the organisational structure used by the firm are captured through its geographical spread. There are specific upstream divisions which are spread out in different zones of the globe each performing a wide variety of functions. The firm has operations in all continents in the world and its divisions are involved in exploration, drilling and other operations which are directly related to its mission (Gupta 2009). The firm’s divisional structure helps it focus on different products that are obtained from various global regions to come up with a clear structure on how they are going to be produced and sold in the market. The divisional structure enables the firm to make its units operating in various geographical zones to make them more stable and focused on what they do. The firm’s functional structure helps it coordinate different functions in various regions where its divisions have an active presence. The firm’s functional structure helps senior executives to supervise and coordinate various processes performed by its departments in different divisions across the world. The processes which are performed under the firm’s functional structure include finance, human resource and corporate and legal affairs. The firm has different EVP’s who are responsible for different responsibilities which are directly related to their core areas of competence (Gupta 2009). All functional operations are performed in line with the firm’s divisional structure to ensure all processes are well coordinated. As a result, the firm’s organisational structure allows all stakeholders to share ideas that are crucial for internal improvement to make its operations more competitive. Organisational Structure of Asia Diagram 2 showing the organisational structure for the firm’s operations in India Diagram 3 showing the organisational structure for New Zealand Diagram 3 showing the organisational structure for East Asia According to the above diagrams, the firm’s operations in Asia have 16 managerial positions, 42 supervisory positions and 990 subordinate positions for junior staff. Supervisors are required to supervise large numbers of employees in the firm and this may have an effect on their performance. The firm needs to review its internal working systems to ensure supervisors are not in charge of too many employees. This will make its operations more efficient and will reduce the workload supervisors currently face (Gupta 2009). The organisation needs to put in place more innovative work systems that increase productivity at lower costs. The firm has done well to use a lean management team in running its operations in this geographical region. However, there is need for a rationalisation policy to be undertaken to ensure all functions in the firm run smoothly. Responsibilities for HR Strategy and Internal Communication Department The department will perform various tasks in the organisation. The first responsibility of the department will be to prepare recruitment strategies that need to be used to ensure the firm gets highly skilled manpower. The department will also coordinate with other geographical divisions to make them aware of any policy changes that all employees need to be informed about. The firm will prepare documents, staff details and authority structures to be used in the firm as it discharges different functions in the market. The department will also be involved in preparing remuneration policies that determine the different amounts of salaries to be paid to employees performing various responsibilities. The department will propose work place benefits and other forms of compensations employees should be given as they perform their duties. The department will draw up a communication structure to be used by employees in different workstations across the globe. Through the communication structure, the department will give guidelines to all employees on formal channels to be used when sending and receiving messages. The department will also come up with an overall HR policy to guide all divisions on how they are expected to handle different employee issues. The three job positions that will be created in this department include Corporate Affairs Executive, Executive Communications Officer and Human Resource Liaison Executive. The Corporate Affairs Executive will work closely with other executives in this department to ensure corporate functions in the firm are performed in an appropriate manner. He will coordinate with other managers on strategies being introduced to make them aware of various trends in the industry which have an impact on the firm’s operations. The executive will also look at overall policies to find out if they conform to regulations and standards that are enforced in various geographical regions where the firm operates from. The executive will propose any changes that need to be made to the firm’s operations to make it more competitive in the market (Johnson 2013). The Executive Communications Officer will be charged with the responsibility of making improvements on the overall organisation’s communication policy. He will be expected to prepare different types of information to be sent to the media to ensure the firm gets necessary publicity required to boost its image. He will also be analysing any information that is either published or broadcasted about the firm to find out how it affects its reputation in the market. The officer will also link the firm with the media to ensure all messages produced by the firm are clear, honest and boost its reputation in the market. He will also institute standards to guide employees on how to communicate with their colleagues and clients to enable the firm achieve its vision (Nordmeyer 2013). The HR Liaison Executive will coordinate with other HR managers in the firm’s divisions to ensure all work processes go on effectively without disruption. He will also look out for labour issues that may have an impact on the firm’s operations in different countries. The executive will propose measures to be adopted by the firm to streamline internal HR functions to make them more competitive and efficient. He will also propose various supervision techniques to be used to improve the quality of results achieved at work. References Gupta, A 2009, ‘Functional v divisional structure’, Practical Management: Designing a Better Work Structure, Accessed Oct. 2 2013 from . Johnson, S 2013, ‘Functional versus divisional organizational structure’, Small Business Chronicle, Accessed Oct. 2 2013 from . Nordmeyer, B 2013, ‘Functional vs. divisional organizational structure’, AzCentral, Accessed Oct. 2 2013 from . Vorser, P 2009, ‘Update on structural changes: EC-1 organization’, EC-1 Organisational Structure. Read More