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Posts from the ‘Presentation’ Category

How to simplify a complex organization – now as slidecast (presentation with voice-over)

by Nicolay Worren on March 28th, 2012

About a year ago, I created a presentation about how leaders can simplify the structure of their organization. This presentation has been viewed more than 2,500 times so it seems like people find the topic relevant. I have now revised the presentation and recorded voice-over (audio narration) with explanation of the slides and additional examples.

The slidecast lasts for 14 minutes.

This presentation deals with the key topic of my new book that will be released next week. The book provides an analytical and data-based approach for analysing complexity and developing simpler organizations designs.

View another webinar from Nicolay Worren

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Slidecast: Hitting the “sweet spot” between separation and integration in organization design

by Nicolay Worren on April 20th, 2011

If you are a leader contemplating re-designing your organization – ”To separate or integrate, that is the question”: Should units be divided or combined?

In the slidecast embedded below, I discuss how to approach this challenge. It includes a couple of examples from a series of interviews I did with leaders of oil services firms. Any comments would be welcome.

P.S. A slidecast is a presentation with audio, so make sure you have the speakers turned on if you want the narration.

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Beyond the matrix: Alternatives for organizing complex firms

by Nicolay Worren on June 24th, 2010
I have for a long time been interested how to organize complex firms with multiple types of sub-units (e.g., product units, geographical sales units, internal service providers, etc). I have worked in matrix-like organizations myself and felt the challenges of having to live with the ambiguity, conflict, and lack of clear direction that such structures create. 
At the same time, few managers seem to know about alternative organizational forms (other than reverting to simpler, functional structures etc.). In a presentation I held yesterday at the Aarhus business school in Denmark, I discuss two alternatives to the matrix form: The front-back organization and the modular organization. This is also the topic of one of the chapters in the textbook that I am writing. The presentation is built on the so-called axiomatic design approach developed for the engineering sciences. Any comments are welcome!

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Why are we making it so complex – and how can we simplify?

by Nicolay Worren on November 10th, 2009

Many of the changes introduced in large organizations only seem to add to the internal complexity. One example is process improvement efforts, which sometimes lead to the creation of a new organisational dimension consisting of “process owners”. The unforeseen consequence is to create a kind of matrix where responsibility is divided between line managers and process owners. But it doesn’t stop there: I was told of one large organization that – in addition to the two dimensions of functions and processes – introduced a third dimension of “process coordinators”, who were supposed to facilitate co-ordination between functional managers and process owners. This company ended up with a three dimensional matrix!  

Based on 12 years of experience working with large organisations in Scandinavia, I have concluded that handling the increasing level of internal complexity is a key challenge for most managers.

This is the main motivation for writing the book I am working on. The main purpose is to show how to re-design organisational structures and minimize unnecessary complexity. The basic line of reasoning is presented in the PowerPoint presentation included here. I would welcome comments and reactions from readers of this blog.

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