Reflective Journal
As part of the group work in this course, students were expected to work in group and form organizations for learning purposes. I was in a group that came up with a not profitable organization called “Teens on Track.” Like any other organization, our created organization had its goals that would only be achieved through a well-laid structure. Before starting this group work, I did not know much about organizational structure. It was, therefore, a challenge when I was expected to contribute not knowing much about organizational structure.
However through the exercise I learnt that organizations have structures. Daft (2010) defines an organizational structure as the formal arrangement of the organization. I learnt that activities in an organization have to be organized in importance of authority and responsibility. According to Austin (2002) a good organizational structure can be judged by how it can help an organization to function well. I was not aware that the structure of an organization can affect the information flow in the organization. Information sharing in an organization is important in order for an organization to achieve success.
Information sharing in our created organization was not frequent between the top management and other members and always proved to be an obstacle in us achieving what we wanted. I learnt that both vertical linkages and horizontal information flow in an organization can improve the performance of the organization. Lynda and Karen (2014) insist that there are many plans in the organization, and the plans can be confusing. Furthermore, I learnt that there are different types of plans. The plans range from strategic, business, operational and program plans. Through the realization of the different business plan, I was able to differentiate between the most important plans for our organization. A strategic business plan was most suitable for our organization because it had a mission and vision.
It is through the strategic business plan that our organization would be able to set its mission statements, vision, goals, carry out analysis, set an action plan, monitor and evaluate progress. As a non-profitable organization, I learnt that marketing the organization is important in order to get funds and let people know of our existence. I was not aware of some analysis like the SWOT analysis. However, I learnt through the exercise that the SWOT analysis is a systematic method used to identify and evaluate strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threat that an organization may have (Bertelsen, 2012). I have a weakness of controlling people when am in authority. However, il learnt that even if many senior officials always make rules on how an organization should be run, it is important for all the organization stakeholders to come together and come up with ideas too. A clear understanding of each stakeholder’s role in the proposed plan is also essential.
In conclusion, the group exercise helped me learn about several business aspects that I was not aware of. Through the learning experience, I have become a better person in terms of cooperating with other people and communication. Initially, I had a weakness of over-controlling, and when I was expected to work in a group, I learnt of the importance of listening to other people’s ideas. I now know of the requirements that an organization needs in order to be successful and achieve its goals, and that includes, having a good structure and a plan.
References
Austin, D. M. (2002). Human services management: Organizational leadership in social work practice. New York: Columbia University Press.
Bertelsen, B. (2012). Everything you need to know about SWOT analysis. Newmarket, Ont.: BrainMass Inc.
Daft, R. L. (2010). Organization theory and design. Mason, Ohio: South-Western Cengage Learning.
Lynda,B., & Karen, C. (2014) Strategic planning for practice.Management and practice in health and human service organisations. pp. 118-127