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Aligning the Spine of Your Organization

2/28/2005

This news release is an excerpt from Volume 1, Issue 2 of the Capelle Associates quarterly eNewsletter. How often have you heard an employee complain of being micro-managed by his or her manager? Certainly, it’s not an uncommon gripe heard around the water-cooler. In fact, research finds that more than one-third – 38% – of all employees suffer from compression, a malady that occurs when a manager works at the same level in the company structure as the employee. This weak organization design has two unfortunate results: the direct report is frustrated in not being able to use her/his full capability, and there is a waste of money because the manager is not adding sufficient management value. Dr. Ron Capelle, president of Capelle Associates Inc., says organizations must think strategically about the alignment of their manager–direct report relationships. Specifically, he says research has consistently found that the alignment of the manager-direct report relationship is the one factor that, by itself, is directly related to an organization’s financial performance, customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction. “The manager-direct report relationship is the spine of an organization. Every employee should have a manager who is working at exactly one level or stratum above him or her,” said Dr. Capelle. “If the spine is misaligned, everything else will be suboptimal. This includes clarity of accountabilities and authorities, matching people to positions, communication and project work. This will weaken the delivery of strategy, objectives and projects.” Compression is only one of two situations that can occur with a misaligned spine. The other situation is called a gap and arises when a manager and direct report are more than one level or stratum apart. The symptoms of a gap include having a manager who believes that the direct report does not have enough initiative and a direct report who feels that she/he is not given sufficient direction. This is usually treated as a performance problem of either the manager or direct report, but it is actually a structural problem since there is a missing role. This situation is often created through downsizing that is done without appropriate assessment. The good news, says Dr. Capelle, is that organizations can improve the alignment of their manager–direct report relationships, and achieve the related performance improvement. A strategic analysis of factors can pinpoint critical weaknesses in the organization design that affect performance and productivity. Capelle Associates Inc. has found that the following steps are critical: Understand the organization strategy and business plan and the implications for both the current and potential future organization designs. Assess the complexity of work currently completed by each role or position. Determine current manager–direct report alignment and opportunities for improvement. Design the optimal organization, including both vertical and functional alignment of roles or positions. Ensure that the design is robust and flexible enough to meet both current requirements and future directions. Use a Talent Pool approach to optimally match people to positions. Ensure the necessary supporting mechanisms such as clarifying both managerial and cross functional accountabilities and authorities. “With the tools that are now available, there is no reason for organizations to continue to suffer under the weight of compressions and gaps,” said Dr. Capelle. View the full issue of the eNewsletter Register to receive the newsletter every two months Email us at info@capelleassociates.com, or call us at 416-236-3044 to learn more about how you can use Organization Design to further enhance your business success. Capelle Associates Inc. Driving the success of your business through optimal organization design.

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