Page 190 - Fundamentals of Management Myths Debunked (2017)_Flat

Exhibit 6–3 Chain of Command and Line Authority CHAPTER 6 • Organizational Structure and Design 189

Chief Executive
O cer

Executive President Executive
Vice President Vice President

Vice Vice Vice Vice Vice
President President President President President

Region Region Region Region Region
1 2 3 4 5

District District District District District District District
A B C D E F G

performance! Allocating authority without responsibility and accountability creates opportuni-
ties for abuse. Likewise, no one should be held responsible or accountable for something over
which he or she has no authority.

whaT are The diFFerenT TyPes oF auThoriTy relaTionshiPs? The early man-
agement writers distinguished between two forms of authority: line authority and staff
authority. Line authority entitles a manager to direct the work of an employee. It is the
employer–employee authority relationship that extends from the top of the organization
to the lowest echelon, according to the chain of command, as shown in Exhibit 6–3. As
a link in the chain of command, a manager with line authority has the right to direct the
work of employees and to make certain decisions without consulting anyone. Of course,
in the chain of command, every manager is also subject to the direction of his or her
superior.
Keep in mind that sometimes the term line is used to differentiate line managers from
staff managers. In this context, line refers to managers whose organizational function con-
tributes directly to the achievement of organizational objectives. In a manufacturing firm, line
managers are typically in the production and sales functions, whereas managers in human
resources and payroll are considered staff managers with staff authority. Whether a manager’s
function is classified as line or staff depends on the organization’s objectives. For example,
at Staff Builders, a supplier of temporary employees, interviewers have a line function.
Similarly, at the payroll firm of ADP, payroll is a line function.
As organizations get larger and more complex, line managers may find that they don’t
have the time, expertise, or resources to get their jobs done effectively. In response, they cre-
ate staff authority functions to support, assist, advise, and generally reduce some of their
informational burdens. The hospital administrator who cannot effectively handle the purchas- line authority
ing of all the supplies the hospital needs creates a purchasing department, a staff department. Authority that entitles a manager to direct the work
Of course, the head of the purchasing department has line authority over the purchasing of an employee
agents who work for him. The hospital administrator might also find that she is overburdened
and needs an assistant. In creating the position of her assistant, she has created a staff posi- staff authority
Positions with some authority that have been
tion. Exhibit 6–4 illustrates line and staff authority. created to support, assist, and advise those holding
line authority
whaT is uniTy oF Command? An employee who has to report to two or more bosses might unity of command
7
have to cope with conflicting demands or priorities. Accordingly, the early writers believed that Structure in which each employee reports to only
each employee should report to only one manager, a term called unity of command. In those one manager