A new CEO has been hired at Valley Hospital who proposes to change the

QUESTION

A new CEO has been hired at Valley Hospital who proposes to change the centralized organizational structure that was put in place ten years ago, based on widespread consultation with staff.

The proposed structure involves substantial flattening of the organizational structure, with significant decision making being made at the point-of-care and an emphasis on interprofessional collaboration. There is a great deal of discussion about the balance between hospital-wide budget decision making and unit-based decision making. This discussion represents:

a. Chaos theory.
b. Organizational redesign.
c. Organizational reengineering.
d. Restructuring.

ANSWER:

ANS: C
Reengineering involves a total overhaul of an organizational structure. It is a radical reorganization of the totality of an organization’s structure and work processes. In reengineering, fundamentally new organizational expectations and relationships are created. Redesign is a technique to analyze tasks to improve efficiency, and restructuring is a technique to enhance organizational productivity.