Valve Software
INTRODUCTION
Valve software is a successful entertainment and software company with over 300 employees. Valve software wanted to create a working environment that empowered their employees and gave them the freedom to be creative. What they have achieved is a very successful company that operates on a ‘flat’ structure where there are no managers or supervisors to report to and all employees are equals. “The company tries to keep its structure flat to remove or reduce barriers between the employees and the customers” (Valve steams ahead n.d).
Many theorists believe that people are the most important asset in any organisation and the same can be said for Valve Software. Without the right people being employed this structure could easily fall apart. One of the largest problems faced by Valve Software is in relation to employees. Valve has a challenge to not only find the right kind of people but also to help them adjust to what is a very unusual working environment. Since Valve has no Human Resources Manager responsible for attracting and developing new employees the task falls to existing staff.
“It is possible that there is no job more vital to society than that of the manager” (Mintzberg 1975, p.61). How does any organisation continue to operate without any managers in place? In this report management structures and functions will be discussed as well as human resource management, human relations theories and why Valve Software should consider all of these aspects and restructure their organisation in the future.
BODY
Organisational structure can be described as being the anatomy of an organisation and how it functions. There is no one singular structure that meets the needs of all circumstances or organisations (Schermerhorn et al 2011, p.244). In fact organisations that operate in highly competitive environments such as technology tend to continuously adjust their operations and organisational design. These adaptive or learning organisations decentralize
Valve software is a successful entertainment and software company with over 300 employees. Valve software wanted to create a working environment that empowered their employees and gave them the freedom to be creative. What they have achieved is a very successful company that operates on a ‘flat’ structure where there are no managers or supervisors to report to and all employees are equals. “The company tries to keep its structure flat to remove or reduce barriers between the employees and the customers” (Valve steams ahead n.d).
Many theorists believe that people are the most important asset in any organisation and the same can be said for Valve Software. Without the right people being employed this structure could easily fall apart. One of the largest problems faced by Valve Software is in relation to employees. Valve has a challenge to not only find the right kind of people but also to help them adjust to what is a very unusual working environment. Since Valve has no Human Resources Manager responsible for attracting and developing new employees the task falls to existing staff.
“It is possible that there is no job more vital to society than that of the manager” (Mintzberg 1975, p.61). How does any organisation continue to operate without any managers in place? In this report management structures and functions will be discussed as well as human resource management, human relations theories and why Valve Software should consider all of these aspects and restructure their organisation in the future.
BODY
Organisational structure can be described as being the anatomy of an organisation and how it functions. There is no one singular structure that meets the needs of all circumstances or organisations (Schermerhorn et al 2011, p.244). In fact organisations that operate in highly competitive environments such as technology tend to continuously adjust their operations and organisational design. These adaptive or learning organisations decentralize