Contingency Management

The target organization is the Patrol Division of a ì

metropolitan police department. Division productivity has ì

deteriorated, and officers assigned to the Division appear to be ì

less motivated than officers assigned to other division within ì

In the context of task responsibility, the responsibilities ì

of the Patrol Division within the department are specific, ì

separate, and specialized. Task definition for the Patrol ì

Division is rigid within the overall police department structure, ì

and task definitions within the Patrol Division also are rigid. ì

The hierarchy of authority within the Patrol Division is ì

characterized by strictness and complete adherence to rules. ì

Task control within the Patrol Division is centralized at the ì

top, and communication within the Division is primarily vertical ì

Within the context of the above description, the structure ì

of the Patrol Division organization may be characterized as ì

mechanistic. The differences between mechanistic and organic ì

organizational structures are expressed in the context of the ì

level of formal structure and control embodied in the two ì

organizational concepts.Ä  3.ls1

1R. L. Daft, Organizational Theory, 4th ed. (St. Paul,

. . .
y Publishing Company, ì 1993), pp. 193-194. ¡  In such ì ì instances, the adoption of a composite organizational structure ì ì that incorporates characteristics of both the organic and the ì ì mechanistic organizational concepts may be an effective solution ì ì for some organizations, because the ambidextrous organizational ì ì structure would permit a shifting emphasis as required by a ì ì changing situation.ì  ääá An ambidextrous organizational structure, however, may not ì ì offer a complete solution for the Patrol Division. The Division ì ì does operate within a dynamic external environment; however, the ì ì nature of police work demands more planning to deal with ì ì uncertainties than the organic or even the ambidextrous ì ì organizational structure typically provides.ì The Relevance of Contingency Managementì The contingency approach to management is a means of ì ì developing organizational strategy.  5D. C. Hambrick, and D. Lei, "Toward An Empirical ì Prioritization of Contingency Variables for Business Strategy," ì Academy of Management Journalô, 28 (April 1985): 765-788. -  Strategic forecasting is ì the cornerstone in a contingency approach to manageme
. . .

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1499
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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