Designing for Complexity: Using Divisions and Hierarchy to Manage Complex Tasks
研究任务复杂性和可分解性如何影响企业的部门化和层级程度，发现复杂任务促进部门化，但任务不可分解时部门化降低，而层级增加以协调复杂任务。
This paper studies the impact of task complexity and decomposability on the degree of organizational divisionalization and hierarchy within firms. Drawing upon the team theory and modularity literature, it argues that the degree of divisionalization is predicated not only on the extent of interdependence (complexity) among tasks but also on the extent to which those interdependent relationships are decomposable. As such, the feasibility and benefits of modularization in organizational design may be overstated when the underlying tasks are not decomposable. In addition, this paper argues that organizational hierarchy serves to mitigate the tension between complexity and decomposability by facilitating a higher degree of divisionalization. These arguments are tested using data on the business activities and organization structures of U.S. equipment manufacturers in 1993–2003. Results show that divisionalization increases with task complexity, suggesting that complex task systems encourage more division of managerial responsibilities. However, divisionalization decreases as task systems become less decomposable. Meanwhile, organizational hierarchy increases with task complexity, and it increases as task systems become less decomposable. These findings highlight the constraints firms face in designing modular organization structures and the role of hierarchy in coordinating complex task systems that are not fully decomposable.