Assignment 1: Discussion—International Strategy and Organization

Structuring organizations is a complex task made even more complex when those organizations span national boundaries. If a company’s organizational structure is appropriate for its strategic plans, the organization will be more effective in working toward its goals. Two central issues in organization structure are vertical and horizontal differentiation.

Using the Argosy University online library resources, locate a minimum of four different scholarly sources on structural design for international organizations and:

• Identify the major types of organizational structures and evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of each for international operations.
• Determine the role played by a firm's strategy plays in determining organizational structure.
• Explain the meaning of horizontal differentiation, and analyze its possible implications to how managers design their company's structure. 

Write your initial response in 300–500 words. Your response should be thorough and address all components of the discussion question in detail, include citations of all sources, where needed, according to the APA Style, and demonstrate accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation

Do the following when responding to your peers: 

• Read your peers’ answers.
• Provide substantive comments by 
• contributing new, relevant information from course readings, Web sites, or other sources; 
• building on the remarks or questions of others; or 
• sharing practical examples of key concepts from your professional or personal experiences
• Respond to feedback on your posting and provide feedback to other students on their ideas.
• Make sure your writing 
• is clear, concise, and organized; 
• demonstrates ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and 
• displays accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Grading Criteria