Improving organisational effectiveness through organisational analysis

Abstract

Organisational analysis is an overlooked area within the field of organisational psychology. While the roots of organisational analysis date back at least to the Hawthorne studies, and even to the early management theorists such as Taylor, Weber, and Fayol, the first conceptual framework for conducting such an analysis was only provided by Wilfred Brown in 1965. For some reason which is probably now lost in the sands of time, no organisational analyses along the lines advocated by Brown were ever reported in the literature. This is a pity, since the method adds immeasurably to the understanding of organisations and the way they function. Thus, the aims of the present study are twofold. The first is to revise the original conceptual framework in the light of subsequent insights into organisational behaviour. The second is to conduct a case study of a particular company in which this methodology is employed to describe and analyse how the company functions at different levels of analysis. The importance of this study is that it provides a way of making recommendations for change which are a natural outcome of this specific method of analysis. Further research may examine the relevance of this method not only diagnostically for improving organisational functioning, as has been done in this example, but also for increasing the effectiveness of organisational planning and strategic management.