Definitions
|
|
Organizational effectiveness All definitions
|
Katz and Kahn (1978) distinguish between organizational effectiveness and organizational efficiency.
For them, "organizational effectiveness" is "an inclusive measure of the ongoing state of the organization in relation to its environment" (p. 759). They see organizational efficiency as a component of effectiveness, writing that "efficiency is defined in terms of the energic ratio of organizational output to input" (p. 759). Burnes (1998) cites the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (1978, p. 35), in presenting "effectiveness" as "the ability or power to have a desired effect" (Burnes, 1998, p. 101). He emphasizes that perceptions of "desired effect" will vary by stakeholder group and sometimes conflict. Therefore, use of the term without definition – in organizational life as well as the academic literature – is not a trivial issue. References Burnes, B. (1998). Recipes for organizational effectiveness. Mad, bad, or just dangerous to know? Career Development International. 3: 100-106. Katz, D., & Kahn, R. L. (1978). The social psychology of organizations. New York: Wiley. Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (1978), Longman: London. Read a practice exam essay in response to the question:
"Drawing on relevant research and theory, evaluate the effectiveness of the change agent role during organizational change. What factors contribute to making change agents more or less effective?" Exam essay practice answer |
|
|
|