Chapter 2: Making The Transformation to The Knowledge-Driven Corporation

The cliché that managers are known to get things done right the first time but leaders are known to get the right things done is quoted in many leadership books and articles (American Psychologist, 2007). According to the University of Illinois functional approach (Graen, 2007b, 2007d; Hackman & Wageman, 2007), this means that the situation or context dictates which human constructions are preferred. When the situation calls for solving routine, clear, and safe organizational problems, a process engineering structure works most efficiently. On the other hand, when the situation calls for dealing with problems of high complexity, ambiguity, or danger, different structures are needed. A process engineering structure is composed of formally interdependent role players whose formal duty is to solve continuous problems within ongoing systems while quickly activating damage controls to minimize sudden disruptions of the ongoing production or service. In contrast, different organizational forms may be more appropriate for different contexts.