Management 4

THE BUSINESS OF HIERARCHY Every employee should be able to answer these basic questions: To whom do I report? Who reports to me? Which decisions do I make, and which decisions are reserved for others to make? These questions all get to the issues of business hierarchy and structure.

This week’s Strayer Talk explained that every business has a hierarchy of some kind: a pyramid or a series of management tiers that indicates who reports to whom. Just like pyramids, a business’s hierarchy may be tall or flat.

A tall hierarchy is a traditional way to organize management. There are many levels of employment, and a few employees at each level report up to a manager at the next level. For example, at Starbucks, baristas report to store managers, and store managers report to regional managers, and regional managers report to executives at headquarters. This works really well for Starbucks! Baristas are carefully and consistently trained and supervised so that you can count on the same cup of coffee at any store. Employees who want to advance can work hard and make their way up the chain to gain more management responsibilities. Business is efficient and quality is consistent.

On the other hand, some businesses prefer a flat hierarchy. When Paul and Ari founded Zingerman’s Delicatessen, they wanted to make sure that every employee felt empowered to make decisions to improve the customer experience. In their service-oriented business, Paul and Ari’s employees get their jobs done in creative and collaborative ways. A flat hierarchy makes this possible.