A different slant Strategic HR
Networks can also extend
outside the organisation, creating
ecosystems consisting of
numerous organisations (Yeung
and Ulrich, 2019). Both internal
and external networks are often
supported by process, technology
and cultural platforms (e.g. a
common set of values), which
help members navigate the
network efficiently.
Organisations can combine
communities and networks with
each other and with functions
and horizontal teams through
the use of ‘melds’, which are the
modern less formal equivalents
of matrices. Melding is about
allowing multiple organisation
forms to sit on top of one
another, without the need
for formal organisational
mechanisms. Common examples
of melds are the core and
periphery organisation (where
a community acts as the hub
of a broader network), and the
network of teams in which
horizontal teams are linked
through a network rather
than a traditional programme
management structure.
Comparing different organisational models
A comparison of functions, horizontal teams, communities and networks based on
orientation (internal or external) and employee motivation (intrinsic or extrinsic)
People doing work, intrinsic motivation
Internal
orientation
Communities Networks
to ‘the Facebook community’ (all
2.7 billion members). However,
true communities tend not to
include more than about 100
people so that all members can
develop close relationships with
most others.
HR has long used communities
of interest or practice to bring
people together to support their
joint learning. However,
organisations are now
encouraging these groups to be
more proactive, creating what I
call ‘communities of performance’.
As an example, centres of
excellence are being replaced by
communities of expertise in some
organisations. These tend to be
more focused groups than the
previous centres, still providing
a home for the relevant specialists
but perhaps only part time,
and also including people from
other areas with a particular
interest in the community’s
domain. Examples include
DaVita, Buurtzorg and Spotify,
where Agile teams (squads)
are complemented by
communities (guilds).
Leaders and managers cannot
instruct a community but can
bring one together, facilitate it,
and encourage it to think what it
might be able to achieve for the
organisation. However, these
activities need to be ones that
community members are
Functions Horizontal teams
Work done by people,
extrinsic motivation
passionate about. Using
communities is therefore
potentially most suited to the
knowledge era.
Distributed networks
Like communities, networks
provide opportunities for
members to co-operate to
undertake useful work for
the organisation. However,
networks tend to be larger than
communities meaning that
External
orientation
people cannot have the same
close bonds and any
responsibilities are more
distributed. Therefore, rather than
looking inwards networks look
outwards, promoting the needs of
a domain to the rest of the
organisation. Networks are
particularly common in change
management, although some
organisations are broadly
networked too. For example, WL
Gore and Morning Star.
Benefits and drawbacks of the five main organisational forms
Benefits Drawbacks
Functions Efficiency and economies
of scale
Professionalism and vertical
career progression
Not very Agile or innovative
May lead to silos and ‘command and
control’ approaches
Horizontal
teams
Collaboration and fast
decision-making
End-to-end focus on customer
needs
May need cross-skilling and changes in
professional identities
Often includes big jumps in
responsibility between project member
and project manager
Communities Unbureaucratic and human
way of organising, with work
emerging out of cultivation
of relationships
Organisation lacks ability to control
work centrally
Will not work in areas of activity people are
not intrinsically motivated to perform
Networks Informal, highly Agile and
can be very innovative, with
people able to co-operate in
different ways
Better at meeting urgent needs than
implementing major programmes
Platforms Eliminates need for line or
project managers, community
facilitators, network brokers, etc.
Best used for simple work that can be
broken down for completion by individuals
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