Organizational Chart Assessment - Term Paper Example

Organizational chart assessment Organizational chart assessment It is imperative for any organization to have an effective reportingstructure as it is the only way to enable effectual flow of information through communication and decision making. Therefore, organizations ought to have organizational charts illustrating how information flows within the organization. As asserted by Faulkner and Laschinger (2008), structuring an institution in an effective manner helps empower workers psychologically.

This paper is an assessment of an organizational chart from the point of view of the manager, in this case Hershey Medical Centre, and describes key insights for nursing management related to centrality, span of control, centralization, decentralization, and managerial levels, including the distance between the front line and the CNO. Additionally, this paper elucidates whether the chart reflects how communication actually occurs in the organization. By definition, an organizational chart is a figure illustrating the diverse arrangement of an organization in terms of departments, as well as how these departments relate (King Saud University, n.d). The kind of chart depicted in Hershey Medical Center organizational structure is a vertical chart.

King Saud University (n.d) additionally states that a vertical chart "shows high-level management at the top with formal lines of authority down the hierarchy" (p. 2). In terms of delineating nursing management in terms of span of control, it is of significance to define it. According to Ellis and Hartley (2004), span of control is the quantity of positions of responsibility present in every department that each manager handles. Roles in Hershey Medical Center are decentralized from the Chief Executive Office down to the Executive Director, followed by the Chief Nursing officer.

From the Chief Nursing Officer, roles are then decentralized to twelve other directors and managers (Penn State, n.d). Centrality denotes the place or location whereby a job or role is arranged in the organizational chart (Ellis and Hartley, 2004). The Chief Nursing Officer is more centralized in terms of nursing management as she is in-charge of a bigger workforce hence she receives information from all directions. Other than the organization structure in Hershey Medical Center being vertical, it is also flat.

This means that the structure is decentralized hence pronouncements or decisions are made within the departments they occur (Ellis and Hartley, 2004). In other words, power is decentralized. In terms of management levels, Hershey Medical Center has top levels managers, middle level managers, and first level managers. Top levels managers include the CEO, Executive Director, and Chief Nursing Officer. There are three middle level managers, and eight first levels managers, all under the Chief Nursing officer.

It is worth noting that there are also two peripheral managers (Penn State, n.d). According to Ellis and Hartley (2004), top level managers are involved in creating policies, middle level managers are the channels of information between the top level and first level managers. First levels managers implement policies. The organizational chart reflects exactly how information flows in this health institution. This can best be demonstrated through an example. When the top level managers, in this case the Chief Executive Office, Executive Director, and the Chief Nursing officer, create organizational goals, plans of action, and subsequently prioritize them.

These are then passed down to the middle level managers who pass them down to the first levels managers whose role is to implement them. Middle level managers direct and manage the endeavors of the first level managers. In a nutshell, a flat organizational structure has decentralized roles, meaning decisions are made within the departments they occur. Middle level managers are also in a more centralized role within organizations are they are positioned to receive information from all directors.

In other words, they are in a better position to have a wider view of the organization. ReferencesEllis, J. R., & Hartley, C. L. (Eds). (2004). Nursing in Todays World: Trends, Issues & Management. Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health. Faulkner, J., &Laschinger, H. (2008). The effects of structural and psychological empowerment on perceived respect in acute care nurses. Journal of Nursing Management, 16(2), 214–221. King Saud University. (n.d.). The organizational structure of nursing service department.

Retrieved August 10, 2012, from http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa/Hanan_Alkorashy/Nursing%20management%20489NUR/8._ The_organizational_structure_of_nursing_service_department.pdf Penn State. (n.d.). Nursing leadership organizational chart. Retrieved March 18, 2014, from http://www.pennstatehershey.org/documents/1699942/1893042/Nursing+Organizatio nal+Chart_v091913/3174d08f-8cbe-4edc-92bd-70a4b8239357