Information and Systems

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What is an organisation?
A group of people with a specific purpose. The purpose the organisation determines how it operates.
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What 3 Factors Influence Information Needs?
1. Size 2. Purpose 3. Nature
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What is Division of Labour?
The allocation of tasks. By specialising, individuals can develop knowledge and expertise in a particular group or tasks.
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What 5 Factors Influence the Nature of Information Needs
1. Type or structure of the organisation 2. Scale of organisation 3. Nature of the organisation 4. Management style of the organisation 5. Tasks in the organisation
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What is Span of Control
The number of employees who are directly supervised by one person. Too wide a span leads to lack of control and is inefficient. Too narrow a span wastes staff. The nature of roles of staff will help to determine an appropiate span of control.
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What is Chain of Command
The path through levels of management, from the managing director downwards. Long lines of messages mean they become distorted and take time to reach their destination.
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What is a Hierarchal Structure
Traditional shape of an organisation in a large business. It is common in large public limited companies. Roles are clearly defined within a large number of layers, each responsible to the layer above.
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Give 3 Advantages of a Hierarchal Structure
1. An individual's authority and responsibility are clearly defined 2. The effective use of specialist managers is encouraged 3. Employees can become loyal to department.
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Give 3 Disadvantages of a Hierarchal Structure
1. Decisions take a long time to be made and longer to implement 2. Communication across sections can be poor 3. Senior staff can be very remote from lower levels of the structure.
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What is a Horizontal/Flat Structure
There are fewer layers but the spans of control are much wider. As a result, problems being referred to up the line can be resolved more quickly.
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Give 3 Advantages of Flat Structure
1. Greater Communication between managers and workers 2. Less bureaucracy and decision making is easier 3. Lower costs associated with fewer levels of management.
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Give 4 Disadvantages of Flat Structure
1. Poor communication as departments are specialised 2. Manager role is not always clear 3. Control of top management can be weak due to wide span of control 4. Fewer prospects of promotion
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

What 3 Factors Influence Information Needs?

Back

1. Size 2. Purpose 3. Nature

Card 3

Front

What is Division of Labour?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What 5 Factors Influence the Nature of Information Needs

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

What is Span of Control

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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