Types of Coordination

Coordination: Principles and |Types

Different functional areas of organization involved in completion of varieties of work. All the work or activities distributed among the departments, groups and individual employees. These work executed towards the achievement of organizational goal. The process which coordinates or integrates all the efforts toward the common goal of organization is known as coordination. Coordination plays vital role in implementing various functions of management such as planning, organizing, staffing for the excellence in the management practices.

Coordination is the process of making link between the efforts of all the departments, groups, and individual employees in order to achieve the organizational goal. It coordinates all the distributed works towards the accomplishment of common goal of organization. coordinate ensures the execution of all the activities in accordance with the common goal of organization.

For example

Common goal of organization: “To Become a quality leader with innovation”

The functional area, production and operations management always focuses on maintaining the quality in the process and produced product. Production management department must not compromise the quality. At the same way other functional department coordinated by making coordination between them. quality in the product influences the better results of advertising. In this way the one functional area that is production management coordinates with the another that is marketing management.

The marketing management department ensures the customers satisfaction in terms of quality provided with product. If any complains coming from customers regarding quality, the marketing department’s responsibility is to convey the information immediately to R&D department of production management. Production department makes the necessary changes and improve the process to produce the product that meet the customers’ expectation.

Human resource management department ensures the potential staff available to provide the required effort for better quality in production.

Fig. 1.2- Block Diagram shows execution of Coordination

Coordination process categorized into

Vertical coordination
Horizontal coordination

Vertical Coordination

The levels of management, top level, middle level, and lower level of management in organization works with different responsibilities and authorities. All superiors and subordinates across all the levels of management should link their work toward common goal. The process of linking the work of every superior and subordinates called as vertical coordination.

Examples

Top level decisions converted or divided and distributed to all the middle levels authorities and it again divided among various groups. These distributed and divided objectives linked with each other in accordance with top level decision. The process which makes this link is vertical coordination.
Production manager’s responsibilities and supervisor’s responsibilities linked with each other by the process of coordination. All these responsibilities coordinated to common goal.
Goal set by top level employees such as the profit target set by organization may by twice than previous year. This decision again divided into different target and distributed among all the groups of organization. coordination ensures the divided targets should coordinated towards the top level decision.

Following are the principles which play key role in implementation of vertical coordination

Chain of command
Span of control
Delegation
Centralization and decentralization

1. Chain of command

Chain of command is the formal relationship between various authorities in organization. chain of command works on two principles that is unity of command and scalar principle

Unity of command: this principle directs every employee to report only one supervisor. Single boss to every employee avoids the confusion or conflicts. Reporting to the single boss and direction from the single boss can enhance the clarity in employee’s work.
Scalar principle: formally Assigned authority and responsibility from top to bottom is the scalar chain. The line of responsibility and authority guide or direct the employee’s communication path from top to bottom and bottom to top. It increases the clarity about the way communication made among the superiors and subordinates.

2. Span of Control

Span of control is concerned with the limits or authority or management. It can be determined using the capability of manager. Limited authority can enhance the productivity. Limited directions to an authority can increase the chances of better result.

3. Delegation

Delegation of authority from top to bottom for the completion of responsibility plays vital role in coordination. Proper and sufficient delegation of authority enhance the capability to complete the responsibility. Authority is concerned with rights, power of taking decision in order to complete the responsibility. Key elements of delegation are accountability and authority\

Authority: Authority is the right or power to take decision for the completion of responsibility. Authority and responsibility should balance so that the responsibility completed easily. If authorities are more than responsibilities, the chances of misuse increases. If authorities are less than responsibilities, the responsibility can not possible to complete effectively.

Accountability: it is an obligation to answer about the result of assigned responsibilities. Authority given to employees in order to complete the responsibility effectively.

4. Centralization and Decentralization

Decentralization is concerned with distributing the authority in order to complete it by expertized and specialized person. Decentralization distributes the work and authority in contrast to the centralization in which authorities are reduced.

Horizontal Coordination

Horizontal coordination is the process which involve in making coordination of the activities distributed among the same levels. It coordinates the Activities between marketing manager, HR manager, production manager, finance manager, purchase manager as well as the activities distributed in unit and group. The horizontal coordination works on two principles – Functional authority and line and staff authority.

Functional Authority:

This authority initiates many concerned activities among the individuals or group but not in the direct chain of command.

For examples

HR policy directs the HR activities which should be in accordance with company policy. Functional authority ensures the coordination between these activities and company goal.
Production manager ensures the coordination or link between the practices, procedures, policies of production department and company goal.

Line and Staff Authority

line authority includes the employees who are directly involved in manufacturing and sales. staff authority employees are indirectly involved in assisting the line employees. staff authority consist of advertising, personnel, accounting, purchasing which assist line employees work. Proper coordination between these two types of employees is the essential part of management. The process which involve in making link between the work of line and staff employees is called horizontal coordination. at same time vertical coordination work to coordinate.