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Boundary conditions for effective delegation in flat structures

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  • Constantinos Markides

    (London Business School)

Abstract

For flat structures to succeed, managers need to delegate decision-making authority to their employees and grant them more autonomy. However, for such high-delegation regimes to work, certain boundary-setting parameters or guardrails must be put in place to guide employees’ decisions and actions. The literature has already identified several guardrails that can be used by any organization facing the challenge of delegating decision-making authority without losing control. In this essay, we discuss two that are especially suited for flat structures.

Suggested Citation

  • Constantinos Markides, 2022. "Boundary conditions for effective delegation in flat structures," Journal of Organization Design, Springer;Organizational Design Community, vol. 11(1), pages 19-22, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jorgde:v:11:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1007_s41469-022-00113-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s41469-022-00113-x
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Markus Reitzig, 2022. "Get Better at Flatter," Springer Books, Springer, number 978-3-030-89254-8, July.
    2. Massimo G. Colombo & Marco Delmastro, 2004. "Delegation of Authority In Business Organizations: An Empirical Test," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(1), pages 53-80, March.
    3. Aghion, Philippe & Tirole, Jean, 1997. "Formal and Real Authority in Organizations," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 105(1), pages 1-29, February.
    4. repec:ner:ucllon:http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/17678/ is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Northcraft, Gregory B. & Neale, Margaret A., 1986. "Opportunity costs and the framing of resource allocation decisions," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 348-356, June.
    6. Markus Reitzig, 2022. "How to get better at flatter designs: considerations for shaping and leading organizations with less hierarchy," Journal of Organization Design, Springer;Organizational Design Community, vol. 11(1), pages 5-10, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    Cited by:

    1. Shepherd, Dean A. & Seyb, Stella & Williams, Trenton A., 2023. "Empathy-driven entrepreneurial action: Well-being outcomes for entrepreneurs and target beneficiaries," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 38(2).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Autonomy; Delegation; Hierarchy; Strategy; Decentralization;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • M10 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - General

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