DIVISION OF LABOUR & Guidelines on Coordination

After Departmentalization, the second main consideration of any organizing effort is how to divide labour.

Division of Labour is the assignment of various portions of a particular task among a no. of organization members. Rather than one individual doing the entire job, several individuals perform different parts of it.

Production is divided into a no. of steps, with the responsibility for completing various steps assigned to specific individuals.

The essence of division of labour is the individuals specialize in doing part of a task rather than the entire task.

Advantages & Disadvantages of Division of Labour:

Several explanations are available for the usefulness of division of labour.

• When workers specialize in a particular task, their skill at performing that task tends to increase.                                                                                            
  
• Workers who have 1 job and 1 place in which to do it, do not lose valuable time changing tools or locations.                                                                 
• When workers concentrate on performing only one job, they naturally try to make their job easier and more efficient.                                                        
• Division of labour creates a situation in which workers need only to know how to perform their part of the work task rather than the entire process for producing the end product.

Dis Advantages of Excessive Division Of Labour:

Division of labour focuses solely on  efficiency and economic benefit and overlooks the human variable in organizations.

Work that is extremely specialized tends to be boring and therefore will eventually cause production rates to go down as workers become resentful of being treated like machines.

Managers need to find a reasonable balance between specialization and human motivation.

COORDINATION:

In a division of labour situation, the importance of effective coordination of the different individuals doing portions  of the task is obvious.

Coordination is the orderly arrangement of group effort to provide unity of action in the pursuit of a common purpose. Coordination is the means for achieving any and all organizational objectives.

Coordination involves encouraging the completion of individual portions of a task in a synchronized order that is appropriate for the overall task.

Groups need coordination for maintaining productivity.

Establishing and maintaining coordination may required close supervision of employees. Managers can establish and maintain coordination throughbargaining, formulating a common purpose for the group, or improving on specific problem solutions so the group will know what to do when it encounters those problems.

Mary Parker Follett's Guidelines on Coordination:

1. Coordination can be attained with least difficulty through direct horizontal relationships and personal communications. When a coordination problem arises, peer discussion may be the best way to resolve it.                                                                                                                                     
2. Coordination be a discussion topic throughout the planning process. Managers should plan for coordination.                                                                        
3. Maintaining coordination is a continuing process and should be treated as such. Managers cannot assume that because their management system shows coordination today, it will show coordination tomorrow.                                                                                                       
4. Human element is important and the communication process is an essential consideration in any attempt to encourage coordination.               
5. Employee skill levels and motivation levels are also primary considerations for the coordination activity.