“We’re restructuring and we’re interested in the idea of organisational fabric” mentioned a client recently. “We know that the cross-cutting threads of how we operate need attention with our technology focus”. This of course was music to my ears because while I have researched and taught organisation design for a number of years, much of my clients’ interest and attention has been on hierarchical restructuring. They have often only feigned interest when I suggest that it is the horizontal connections (both formal and informal) that can make the difference to whether a design translates to performance.
My client’s interest in the notion of organisation fabric piqued my interest in the process of fabric weaving so I thought I’d do some basic research on the subject.
In short, woven fabrics are made on a loom by interlocking threads lying in a vertical (warp) and in a horizontal (weft) direction. Weft threads are woven over and under warp threads.
Warp and weft threads in fabric weaving
This was interesting as we now have some language that we can incorporate in this thinking. The “warp” represents the vertical structures most often given attention in formal design processes, and the “weft” represents the cross-organisational connections across the organisation, whether formally designed as part of the structure or not.
I also asked my ex-Ashridge colleague and textile artist, Kathleen King, for some thoughts on the metaphor. Her response was…”there’s a difference between cloth weaving and tapestry weaving. I think tapestry weaving is perhaps more appropriate here, because you can build up an image, work diagonally etc.. With cloth looms you can make patterns but they tend to be repetitive.”
So, what threads do we need to consider when creating the organisational “weft”?
Structural Threads that Connect Across the Organisation
- Matrix management relationships e.g. staff reporting to both a product and a region lead
- Integrating Roles e.g. Centres of excellence and Business partners, with functions as corporate integrators
- Clear cross-boundary processes and decision rights, with clear responsibilities (using RACI) and decision rights (using RAPID)
- Job rotations across the structure e.g. McDonalds and most Japanese companies
- Learning programmes g. leadership programmes which encourage cross-organisation relationships, collaboration and are implicitly about culture and expectation-setting
- Peer knowledge sharing social network e.g. BuurtzorgWeb where nurses in this organisation share knowledge across the system
More Cultural and Social Threads in the Fabric “Weft”
- Simple rules across the organisation e.g. “Avoid Rules” (Netflix), “Contracts define internal supply relationships” (Haier), “Interchange rules must enable global interoperability” (Visa)
- Agreed cadence for meetings and physical presence e.g. monthly face-to-face all-hands meeting
- Professional networks e.g. Chapters or Guilds in the Spotify model, and Communities of Practice
- Cross-organisation events e.g. town halls, annual conferences
- Active social identity networks e.g. LGBTIQ, neurodiverse
- Access to coaches and mediators to help when in-team or cross-organisational conflicts arise
The challenges of maintaining the organisational weft are significantly compounded in hybrid and matrix environments — a dynamic we explore in depth in our article on hybrid working in matrix organisations.
The other factor worthy of consideration here is that there are two aspects to lateral organisational relationships: termed “bridging and bonding” in the academic literature (Hentonnen et al, 2014). “Bridging” refers to cross-boundary connections, while “Bonding” refers to lateral connections within teams. Research seems to suggest that teams need these to be broadly in balance for optimal performance. This means that too much attention to cross-organisational connections with little attention to bonding can lead to lower performance following restructuring and the opposite is also true.
If you’re working through a restructuring challenge and need support with both the structural and cultural dimensions, find out more about how we approach organisation design at Metalogue.
Sources:
Image: https://blog.treasurie.com/warp-and-weft/
Galbraith, J., Downey, D. and Kates, A (2002) Designing Dynamic Organizations, Amacom: New York
Henttonen, K., Johanson, JE & Janhonen, M. (April 2014) Work-team bonding and bridging social networks, team identity and performance effectiveness, in Personnel Review
Kates, A., Kesler, G. & Dimartino, M. (2021) Networked, Scaled & Agile, Kogan Page: London
Laloux, Frederic. (2014) Reinventing Organizations, Nelson Parker
Interested in our research on organisation design? Find it here.
Sull, D. & Katherine Eisenhardt (September 2012) Simple Rules for a Complex World, in Harvard Business Review
